Claude Thibodeau

Hi Jim! Thank you. I'm certain your mind can. It's just a training process. And as you know, sometimes we try and hit the wall, or strike gold if the gods of styrene are looking upon us! Besides, we hardly ever truly innovate. We just rearrange ideas that made a strong impression on us, consciously or not! CT

Hi Francis! Masterfull work, bravo! Your idea to use the thin aluminium from a disquette is clever. Those a rare nowadays, but I think my wife may still have a few stuck somewhere. I'll find them, and thanks to you, I can already think of some uses for them! CT

Hi Paul! Thank you for the compliments. Much appreciated. To your points: Here in the great white north, some strange substances are indeed legal. But I'm a non-smoker, and always have been. Back when my friends started with cigarettes, I was stubbornly refusing to blow my money up in smoke, choosing instead to spend it on... styrene! Look where it got me... Seriously, I build 1/1 cars as a day job, but models allow for more experimentation at a tiny fraction of the cost, as you know. As for running with the new Vette... The big coke-bottle shaped Charger is nice, but remains very heavy. Who knows... After all: "This thing got a Hemi" as they say. CT

Thank you Jim! Coming from a guy who goes by the monicker RestoModGuy, and has a Charger picture in his profile (if I'm not mistaken?), it is quite a compliment. CT

HI! Mottling usually forms when one shoots paint too heavily, even more so with fine metallic paint. With this Tamya Silver Leaf, I had to do light and quick "dusting" over the whole car, from slightly more distance than usual with Tamya's spray cans. Time consuming, but the clear coat seals the whole enchilada later on. Maybe you go too heavy, as you suggest. Try dusting the next time. I guess it will fix most of your issues. CT

Hi Gareth! Thank you for the comments. I was nervous upon shooting that Tamya "Silver Leaf silver"... test panels showed it is easy to have mottling, and hard to have a nice even finish. I was lucky, and in retrospect, it makes for a sheen that looks almost like bare cast metal, only finer. Even a fully polished clear coat can't overpower that "satin" light reflection. Hence the name "silver leaf". I'm familiar with using gold and silver leaf in custom painting, and that reflectivity is unique . CT

Thank you David! CT

Hi Valeri! Great work. I'm very impressed by the treatment of the wood surfaces. Bravo! CT

Hi Tom! Thank you for your remarks. I guess that peril explains why those doors are mostly used on so-called "tuner cars", the domain of predominantly young and agile drivers? CT

Hi Oliver! Thank you for the comments. Truth be told, I'm not either... Regular hinges were impractical, because the rear engine compartment required a sorter cabin (moving the seats forward a smidge), and the front door jamb would have intruded too much in the footwell... And suicide doors hidden hinges interfered with the headers and turbo pipes set-up. So, it was either no opening doors, or scissor type. My decision allowed me to show more of the interior details, ultimately, since both doors are operational. CT

Hi Chris! Thank you for the humour. To your point, ever noticed that the sci-fi movies always fail to mention the AGE of the invaders? Probably old guys like me. That may explain their machinery, eh? Who knows... CT

Thank you Wayne! I had this Charger for years, and I was always looking for something different to do with it. I was certainly inspired by a model our fellow modelist Kerry Ingram (a.k.a. Dr Kerry) had done many moons ago: a Charger with a narrowed "cockpit" roof, and a "passenger-seat" mounted engine. Kerry was kind enough to share some pictures about it, and away I went... If my model can spark just half as-much interest as his did back then, it will be flattering! CT

Hi Carl! Thank you so much. CT

Hi Gary! From such a formidable painter, it is humbling praise. Thank you Sir. CT

Hi Steve! This is a notoriously finnicky body/top kit... Your top job looks super. Keep on! CT

Merci Philippe! CT

Hi Michelle! Not, not really. I used black wash to highlight the grille motifs, and some red ink on the R/T badge, but that's it. The real action is at the back of the grille, where I glued the hidden hinge system to the grille itself. The hood and grille were then glued in place as a unit. Took more time, but allows for a smooth projection of the hood when opened. CT

Anytime Sir! CT

Hi Larry! Thank you sir... We trive to keep them cool...

Hi Nigel! Thank you, happy you enjoy it! CT

Hi Kurt! Thank you. The structure of the door has a tube that enters and slide under de dash. You first pull it out, and then swing it up, out of the way. I looked at the Revell Uptown Chrysler 300 kit's pivot mechanism, but it was too bulky, and would have left a gaping hole at the front of the door jamb. So, I duplicated a system that I once used on a 1/1 car to do just as on this charger, powered by an electric actuator. Of course, the Charger unit is "finger powered"... CT

Hi Keith! Thanks. Actually, i agonized a long time over the best location for the cut lines, because the roof of the 68 Charger is so nice... I left the B-pillar as a whole, 'cause any cut-line trough it would have looked weird, viewed from the side in particular... CT

Hi Michelle! Thank you. I know your car building is slowed by the winter weather, but keep at it! CT

Hi Jason. Thanks. It was indeed a long job. But it is finally on four wheels... CT

Thank you Craig. Much appreciated. CT