Claude Thibodeau

Hi Fred! Great and unique project. Your treatment of the rear end is nice. Does the IRS come from the GT4, as the diffuser does? Your big rear tires will be a tight fit! Go on, very interesting. CT

Hi Jim! Fantastic built, bravo! Your wood structure seems even better fitted than real 1/1 woodie cars. It says a lot! CT

Thank you Carl! The Revell kit is a good starting point, even if fragile and prone to twisting... CT

Hi Kerry! I'll watch for your video, thanks! CT

Than you very much, David! CT

Hi Kerry! I look forward to it. Yesterday, Tom Woodruff send me personnal pictures he took last year of a spectacular 41 Lincoln custom, but a Zephyr coupe, not a Conti like mine. And it was a creation of famous modeler Ted Chopper Lear. Bad news is, Tom told me Mr. Lear had passed last year. Very sad. He was so creative and talented. Life is short, it appears... CT

Hi Mike! Interesting picture, indeed! The polished blower case was a rare occurance back then, mostly the privy of high-end "pro" racers, with BIG sponsors (ex: McEwen and al). Most blower were raw, with sometimes just the ribs polished, since they usually required deburring anyway. The front and rear rotor mounting plates were usually T-56 high end aluminium alloy, to securely locate and hold the bearings at the ends of the rotors. Hence the different "glow" or shade. Not mentionning that magnesium is highly inflamable! And most racers were always trading refurbished units with BDS and others, so, why bother with bling? Sorry to bring back Alclad, but they have a shade called AIRFRAME ALUMINIUM that looks the part of such an alloy. Keep on, and remember that you already master brass. Magnesium can wait... CT

You are right. I know Flinstone has a resin version available. Uses the Dodge Lil' Red Wagon as a donor kit, if I recall correctly... CT

Thank you, I'm flattered! CT

Hi Mike! Have you tried Alclad's MAGNESIUM for the blower case? It is fairly resistant to handling, and pretty close, as the pix of the 36 shows. But beware: don't clearcoat it, or it will get a yellowish hue, even with lacquer clear. Just my two cents... CT

Thank you! Who doesn't love a VW van, really? CT

Thanks Christian! To your point, that may explain why my friend gave me the kit upon receiving it as a door prize... Maybe this car is not a favorite of masses? After all, it was that generation of Camaro (built out of Montreal, Québec, Canada) that saw the demise of the Camaro at the turn of the century. Before the "retro-camaro" came back in 2009. Not unlike the Mustang 2, unloved by the enthusiasts, even in the face of record sales. Go figure... However. my experience shows that the Monogram kit is EXTREMELY well designed, with minute details all over. Certainly a great source of mash-up pieces, if nothing else... The only snafu seems to be textured molding outines for the window black surrounds molded on the OUTSIDE of the glass, CT

Hi Steve! Thank you. As indicated above to Mr. Woodruff... Might be what was in my ears more than what was in my coffee... Who knows? CT

Hi Sir! Thank you so much. I recently bought Mr. Gibbons' latest album, "Big Bad Blues". Pure ZZTop sounding stuff! Maybe I got influenced listening to it while building this car. Subliminal messages laced in his music? Hmmmmm..... What do you think? CT

Ooops... Styrene fever now has you laughing like Vincent Price at the end of Michael Jackson "Thriller" video... I.m getting worried! CT

HI! My ex-wife had a 66 Chevy, the short model. I cut-out the roof (it was dented), and replaced it with a new Dodge unit obtained at a van conversion shop (they had a stack behind the shop). It hinged it at the front (at the rear enge of the front doors cut-line), sealed it all around, and build a "floor/cieling" to allow a "pull-up" tent for sleeping 2 adults up there when in camping, à la Westfallia. We traveled a lot with it, and enjoyed it very much. Sold it in 88, and the lucky guy still has it! Oh, it also had a removable sun roof hatch over the front seats, and we anchored the baby seat of our first-born on the central engine cover. Happy memories! CT

Hi Steve! I knew that kit engine had a very good reputation, but I can see up-close what a modeler of your caliber can do with it. Bravo! CT

Hi Kerry! I remember going with my 64 Econoline to pick-up a date for the first time. When my date's mother saw the van, she was intrigued, and stepped out to "admire" the custom paint and gold leaf lettering that I had just completed. She then asked to see the inside of the van. Oups... plans cancelled, that young lady was not allowed to go out with me "until her mom got to be reassured " that nothing nasty would take place in the van. Took a few weeks, but she became my girlfriend for many years. We went trough 3 vans, goes to say... CT

Hi Christian! Thanks for the comments. The open wheel house is a modification I did to lower the front end, and I chose to let it "open" just as you may have seen sometimes on extremely low riding pick-ups. Their tires often protude over the front fenders at full drop. It looks strange, but any observer links it to extreme lowering at first glance, I think... CT

Thank you Sir! These days, I look a lot at old issues of Contest Cars, and I keep seeing stuff you built many moons ago. Gets me to think that this sickness of ours can't be cured over time, eh? CT

Hi Mike! Wow, great finishes, barvo! The stainless one is very convincing. I had somehow similar results with a Krylon Chrome spray can, believe it or not! The trick is to go really wet, and let it sit for 2 days before handling. You can see what it produces on the bug catcher in this picture. But yours is better, seems of a finer texture. The wheels are great, totally real! CT

Hi Kerry! Well... Thanks, thanks & thanks! CT

Thank you Michel! Indeed, it does surprisingly well... Those parts were meant to be fused together! CT CT

Thanks Jay! CT

HI! More pics from the rear... CT