robertw

Mercman, I enjoyed your newspaper clipping. We have almost the same practices here in Saskatchewan but we do it in Celsius. Yep, I've always enjoyed reading my model order stuffing but unfortunately a lot of places are turning to bubble wap or the plastic air pillows to fill the box corners and while bubble wap provides its own fun I don't enjoy it as much as reading other cities newspapers. rob

Beautiful build. Another small car buff here. I built a Trabant cv last year using the old Revell Germany kit, the original Fiat 500 was finished this winter and just got another KR-200 recently to convert into a cv to join my KR-200 coupe on the shelf. Would enjoy adding the Renault to my collection so I'll have to keep my eyes open on some of the old kit sites. rob

Looks good in that colour and your build appears very clean.

I built their BMW Mini convertible a couple of years ago and while at first some of the parts break down seemed a little strange, parts fit together well and the result was satisfying. I'd buy another of their kits if it was something that I wanted. rob

My order from Model Express with the Chrysler 300, GS plus a couple of other kits should arrive next week but today I got a package of stuff from Strada with a bunch of those little p/e goodies that my LHS would never think of carrying. Unfortunately my airbrush went kaput yesterday so I'll be taking a holiday from modelling till I get into the city to buy a new one. rob

Good luck on this build Chuck. I just finished building it as the movie car in January and while it turned out okay it certainly made me appreciate what comes out of todays model box. Expect a lot of filling, sanding and dry fitting. I also ended up Alclading the side trim and bumpers because of poor chrome and poor fit. The interior btw, is black and red. For reference I did find some colour photos from the movie on line and the movie came out on dvd last year so if you can find it there will be lots of reference shots in it. I don't have a photo hosting site so can't post pics of the finished build but if you take your time I think you'll be satisfied with your final result. It's actually a fairly accurate kit despite it's age. rob

I like the three-tone seats. Have had that kit on the shelf for sometime with the intention of starting it but then got the spyder last week.......I'm afraid that the coupe just slid down the list. But then the cv can also be expected to move back becasue I also picked up the London bus (need to build that just to get that giant box out of the way). rob

Tamiya lacquers, whether I spray right from the can (when I'm feeling lazy) or use it through the air brush. Tamiya for those times that I'm using acrylics. robw

Darin, This is a project that I'll be watching closely. The Aerovette was a sharp concept car but not one that lent itself to customizing. I can see already that you're going to be giving a new life to this kit. rob

From what I have read is that when AM closed done there were a lot of left over GS kits and that these are what you are getting. None of the problems of the AM kit have been corrected. It might be a long time before we see this kit available again so it might be a good idea to get a couple while you can. Model Express is already taking pre-orders for them. rob

When we think movie or TV vehicles we usually think of the best known ones, ie Bullit, Gone in 60 Seconds.........etc. It is very cool to see builds of obscure vehicles such as this. Well done. rob

Nice work. I like the extra effort of doing the windshield tint strip. Neat conversion of installing the C5 LS1 engine. BTW, the turbine style weels were found on all C4 vettes from '91 to '96 not just the ZR-1. Very nice build, would love to see it sitting on my shelf. rob

Your extra efforts on paint really paid off, that is a great looking model. The Ghia had a sharp looking body but it's too bad that the drivetrain underneath was pure underpowered Bug. rob

Not a colour that I would usually use but it looks good on this project. Well done.

Be careful around some of the earlier Monogram Ferrari's such as the Testarossa they had fit issues.

Won't hesitate to use a promo and here's some reasons why: -not available as a regular kit -don't like doing engine detailing so curbside style is fine by me -I don't display models on their roof so again the promo curbside are fine by me -a promo style is often a great way to get the satisfaction of completing a project when you feel bogged down by complex builds -where it shows the ost promos are often no different then other kits -detailed kits can often have fit and other problems and I build for the enjoyment of modelling not the frustrations I'm sure I could come up with several other resons but you get the drift, I don't mind building with promos. robw

I would have to agree with Mike that the RM '67 conv and coupe be added to the short list of the best Corvette kits and not far behind that would be the Revell '68/69 Vettes. All four of these models are very nicely detailed and go together well. James is right that the Revell 60 kit is a bit of a jigsaw puzzle but while reasonably accurate is way down the list as far as an easy or a quality build. Since the differences between '59 and '60 are fairly minor, mostly interior, I've often wondered why RM did'nt mold up one new sprue and issue the '59 kit as a '60. I have several of the '58 & '59 kits put away, recently bought one of the beautiful resin HRM '61 transkits and I'm eagerly awaiting the new '62 kit. I see more Corvette models in my futuure. robw

Welcome back to the hobby Justin. It's nice to see someone else on this site with a strong interest in Vettes. As you've noticed the two long time N.American model companies are no long producing Vettes like they did in the hey day of the hobby but there are still lots of those older kits out there and easy to find. Other posters have mentioned Model Round-up & ebay but my favorite is Model Express.net. Use the search engine on Dennis's site, enter Corvette and you'll be amazed how many of the older kist that he has. Obviously some of the early AMT/MPC C2 & C3 kits are pricey but he also has lots of reasonably priced Vette kits. rob

Christian, that Citroen truck would truly be a nightmare that could wake you up in a cold sweat...........but after second thought it's just ugly enough to be an interesting build. LOL rob

I came across a small box of these collected items a few weeks ago so don't know what kits they all came from but they included: -phones including a pay phone, cb radio sets and mics -45 rpm record player -reel to reel tape recorder -televisions -movie camera -various trophies, some with cars or top and others with cups -numerous styles of jacks -small tool boxes -individual tools including lug wrenches -various cans and round jerry cans -cinder blocks -several types of engine stands -chrome brake drums -suitcases -fire extinguishers -a couple of different laying down dogs -a short length of corrogated racing barrier -drive-inn style window tray -drag shutes including at least one kit that had an open one -helmets, racing & WWII style biker helmets -surf boards Other have mentioned the mini bikes and go carts but don't forget the utility trailers & car hauler trailers. Because many of these items were small they went into my spares boxes and didn't suffer the fate that many of the kits met from those early modelling days. Thanks for starting this thread, it was nice to be reminded of all these little suprises that were often found it the early car kits. rob

I'll second John in his recommendation of Model Express, good prices, good selection of kits and sometimes older ones show up in his online catalog that you didn't even know existed. I wouldn't hesitate to order from Dennis and do so frequently. I buy a lot of my p/e and detail stuff from Strada Motorsports, Kevin is another very honest seller. The rest of my plastic shopping is done at brick & mortar shops, I'm a firm believer in supporting my local LHS even if it costs a little bit more. rob

To paraphrase Star Trek, "live long and prosper Elm City Hobbies", You sound like the kind of shop that we all wish we lived near, one that caters to our needs with someone inside who speaks our language. I hope your modelling community appreciates your existence. rob

I have a nearly two hour drive to get to my nearest LHS and the closest one after that will be an additional 2-3 hour drive but its worth the effort to support them. Here in Canada we can't send paint through the mail so having a thriving hobby shop with it's paint racks is a necessity. About twice a year a buddy and I will make a two day tour of all the hobby shops in the province (five shops for a population of a million people). It's a fun trip and between the two of us we always come back with a car full of goodies. The only ordering on line that I do is for things that the LHS's don't carry. rob

Thanks for the tip on Hobby Hut. I'm hoping to make a trip there this summer to visit relatives in the city and will definitely hunt that shop down. Rob from the praries of Saskatchewan

Two things that I fear/hate : -detailing the engine bay. I build a lot of curbside kits just to eliminate having to wire engines and have a number of partially finished models sitting in boxs because when it came to the engine the whole thing went back in the box. -the last couple of work sessions before I kit is finished. Now matter how well the build has gone I assume that something will go wrong before the kit goes on the shelf and these last couple of times that I'll be handling the kit is the Model Gods last opportunity to ruin all my hard work. rob