robertw

Since here in Canada we can't mail paints a LHS is a must. It's therefore important to me that my LHS's remain viable so I support them as much as possible even though they might be more expensive then online ordering. That being said there are lots of bits & pieces and even kits that my LHS won't carry so I do a fair amount of online ordering as well. It is also fun to go into a shop from time to time and make a crazy impulse buy that you'll probably never built. The first thing that I do when I go into a new city is check the phone book for the local hobby shops. Found one this summer that shared it's space with a home decorating/paint store. rob

I decant the Tamiya rattle can lacquer line all the time and spray through the airbrush. I've never added thinner to the paint and while the finish is quite smooth I'll usually also apply clear coat. Primer of choice is Tamiya White but Tamiya grey or duplicolor also works well. I've epoxied short pieces of bendy straws to several Tamiya spray heads then spray through a hole punched in a tape cap on a paint jaw, clean out the straw with a little thinner and put it aside until the next time. Leaving the lid off the paint jar for an hour to let the paint gas out and it's good to spray. rob

Small drop of 5 minute epoxy then wait until the epoxy is getting stringy before applying it to the window. You'll only have one change to get it right but fortunately epoxy is fairly easy to clean off plastic. rob

Any of the full detail Revell C5 or C6 Corvette kits will have a transaxle. Its part of the engine piece in the kit. rob

Thanks William for the small car diorama it was sharp. Over the last year years I've developed an appreciation for the little or odd cars that few modellers build. I've done up most of the Gunze series Sprite, TR3, Elan, Isetta & KR-200, and several other small cars. Right now I'm converting a Revell Smart car kit into a Smart cabriolet even though some of the models features won't be 100% correct for the real Smart soft top. Thanks again. rob

Far out. I've never seen another Honda S800 kit built and I just finished one a week ago. I wasn't able to find one of the Tamiya kits so built mine using the old Nitto kit. It was supposed to build the S800M but I back dated it to the earlier car. It wasn't a bad kit but I'm certain was not up to the standards of your Tamiya kit. I look forward to seeing your's finished.

I agree, in particular sprue attachment points on chromed pieces.

The possibility of the Revell '62 kit based on their promo was a kit that I got excited about as well. Unfortunately after waiting and waiting it was announced that it was being cancelled. I suspect that we'll have a very, very long wait before ever seeing one. The new owners of Revell don't seem to have much interest in doing any new Corvette molds.

Beautiful build and a great colour choice. I've built a couple of the BMW Mini's and have wanted to do one of the originals, I think you've inspired me to get the kit out of the stash and get to work. Thanks. rob

That's a great little kit and easily builds up into a real sharp little car. I especially like the layers and detail that they put into the headlights. If you want a companion for this car, its more potent brother you might say, get the Dragon kit for the BMW M Roadster. The M was a performance version of the Z3 with a variety of body mods and interior mods. Model Express is carrying that kit and while its a prepaint, a good soak in 91% alcohol will take care of the bad paint job, and you'll have a solid foundation for a second BMW. I look forward to seeing this one done. rob

Have glass shelves cut for between the wooden ones then drill holes for pins on the sides of your cabinet. Because the glass is clear and thin the models will almost appear to be floating and even ordinary window glass will hold the weight of a couple of models. Sorry no photos, but I've had a full floor to ceiling unit that I built with alternating wood / glass shelves for years. Glass shelves are 12" x 48".

I love mine! Only charge it up about once a year. I'm not even sure where my old dremel is since it's been so long since I used it.

If you happen to be near the border with the 'great white north' ie Canada check out the hobby shops here. I've had no problems picking up cans of Tamiya white or grey at my LHS. A couple of months back I mentioned to the owner the problems that I'd heard about and he responded that he was having no problems getting it in.

Even a beer fridge in your man cave, add a porta potty and you'll never have to come out. LOL

If you want a real simple putty to use try Tamiya White, very smooth, dries quickly, easy to sand but dries quite hard. Many modelers are recommending the two part auto putties but for a beginner you can't go wrong with Tamiya products. The same goes for paint, I swear by Tamiya. Their rattle can lacquer paint sprays very nicely from the can or is easily decanted and sprayed through the airbrush. Their acrylic bottle line can be thinned with Tamiya thinner for airbrushing or brushed on. It covers well either way. Most of us use Alclad if we need to create a chrome finish and I'm a fan of Model Master Metallizers for a lot of my steel, aluminum or other metallic finishes. I also swear by Tamiya White Primer as my undercoat for all painting but others prefer duplicolor or Krylon Primers which are also cheaper. rob

I'll be headed home on Friday to spend a week with my 85 year old mother (she's only a little over 2hours away). Her favorite car is a white '63 slit window Vette and while I've not built a white '63 yet I've built her several '63's. I did build her favorite aircraft though, a natural metal C-130 Hercules. She's been very supportive of my modelling hobby all my life, allowing me to store unbuilt models in her basement,I still have display cases in the family room and even helping to man (woman)? model displays. rob

A good F1 film with racing scenes of period cars will always be welcome. I'll make space on my video shelf beside Gran Prix. rob

If you want cold fusion, come to the Canadian prairies, we had a blizzard last weekend to welcome in the month of May. robw

Wow !! Most impressive. I've never had much luck at doing armour but can certainly recognize quality when I see it. rob

I'm also anxiously awaiting the re-issue of this kit. I still have the original kit sitting on my shelf painted in AMT Candy Blue. I built it shortly after the original came out. Its intact and still in pretty good shape but obviously not nearly as well done as I could do today. At one time I thought about taking it apart and rebuilding it but then decided that this is a survivor, one of the few surviving models from my teenage years and I need to keep it as a reminder. robw

As it has been suggested use a white primer as your base. My favorite is Tamiya White and I've used the Pure White over it on a couple of projects with no problem. Since their white primer has become difficult to find you might try their Matte White that you could spray over the Grey primer before applying the White Gloss. Most of the time I also decant my Tamiya paint to spray it through the airbrush which will allow you do do as many mist coats over the problem areas as you think you need.

Very nice! That kit can be a pain to get everything to fit correctly and yours looks very good. rob

Since this build has an engine in it I would assume it was built using the new Revell AG version rather then the original curbside version. I was also looking for the Berlin Wall Special to display on my Berlin Wall diorama (it contains an actual piece of the wall) but had no luck in finding one. I've built two of the early curbside Trabants, one as a convertible. Would like to someday find another kit to built the East German police version which looks more like an open Jeep. Yours is an interesting build. Were actual police cars allowed to get that run down? rob

Hello from the southern part of the prairie province of Saskatchewan. It's lonely being the only modeler for 140 miles in any direction. robw

Look forward to your build of this kit since it's also my my someday list. robw