Bill Anderson

Hi, I'm at a crucial build point with the subject model and am facing a couple of confusing points. The chassis and interior is complete, and the body is ready for painting (as soon as we dry out a bit here). - My first question is, is the radiator assembly glued to the chassis or the body - obviously before they are mated? - Are the front and rear bumper assemblys attached before or after the mating of the chassis/body? In reviewing some YouTube videos, and the instructions, I'm getting mixed signals. Thanks all for your input!

Hi, I'm "late to the party" but may I add my wants to the list..... 1962-3 Ford Falcon Futura (I had a red '63 with buckets and factory 4 speed) 2015-22 Ford F150 (other than Raptor or Super Duty)... there are so many of these out there (I had two) and no model kits.

In the last few years I've gotten back to building the cars of my youth (50s-60s). I've found that the instructions no longer have the "step by step" verbiage and the exploded pics can be pretty vague as to what exactly goes where exactly. The kits are from all the major manufacturers (AMT, Revell, Tamiya, etc.), so its not just one company that "could do better" IMO. But then it hit me....all of these kits are made overseas, whereas the kits of my youth were all made in America - which again, IMO, would reflect a language barrier that has to constantly be overcome in preparing instruction sheets. That is certainly understandable, but it sure does give me (and others) a bit more of a challenge.

Ha, the explanation of the rating system makes sense of things (for me). The one site originally said this new (?) version would hit our shores in July. The other day I noticed that "July" was replaced with a question mark. Well, I've in the middle of a '67 Shelby GT350 build, and have a Dodge Charger and the fancy Ford GT waiting for my attention. So I will work on them first and hold off on the Cobra decision for now. The one with the "metal flake" blue plastic sure looks good, but I'm leaning towards a regular white plastic (at this time). I really appreciate all your help, and the pics of your builds are really inspiring! Thank you!

Forgot to ask this question in my original post....... Previous Monogram kits are rated at a level 2. This new one is rated at a level 4. Why would that be?

Oh man, that is one beautiful model !!! My plan for the paint job (as I have the paints) is Testor's "star spangled blue" or "gloss dark red" Exactly which particular kit did that come from? Great work! Thanks for sharing!

Yup, that's the one!!! I see you are in Canada. And they are all over Europe, but still waiting for US deliveries. So what do you think of the kit? Thanks for sharing, Bill

Thank you Can-Con! I honestly expected a flood of comments on this thread, given that the Shelby Cobra was so cool - and mean sounding - when they came out. I recall seeing a 289 and a 427 in the showroom window of a dealership on the NW side of Chicago back in the summer of '66 or '67. To the best of my recall, one had a sticker price of $6,600.

Hi, I've read where Revell's kit 07708 - Ford Shelby 427 Cobra - was due in the US this month. While it currently is available in Europe, there is none readily available here. I have no clue, but suspect there are either some containers en-route or the production is delayed. Does anyone have the scoop on this? Also, is this kit worth waiting for - i.e. is there an existing 427 Cobra kit that is as good or better? Thanks for your time - and help! Mobilman44

Thank you for the two links to vendors that sell Shoreline Gold! You folks amaze me with your help...........Thank You !!!

Hi, I'm building a '62 Pontiac (plastic) and want to paint it the color Shoreline Gold - which was used on the '59 and '60 Pontiacs. Does anyone have any suggestions for a close match? Thank you!

Thanks for the kind words! This was my first finished model post and obviously posted in the "wrong" section. Ha, I noticed the lens misalignment after they were glued in. There was no way to redo it w/o damage at that point. ENJOY!

Hi, Months ago I posted a few threads about getting the kits/parts to replicate the '57 Ford Fairlane 500 (w/TBird 312 cu in motor). I ended up using two AMT/Ertl kits, and scratched the front "V" bumper attachment and the dual tailpipes. My thanks to member "ChrisBCritter" for graciously supplying the tonneau cover which he handmade. Oh, the last pic shows me at the wheel at age 19. It was taken in 1963, in Humboldt Park in Chicago. Hey, thank you all for the inspiration. Bill Anderson Spring, Tx.

Not often, but yes I have. The most recent was for an auction of the 3 in 1 AMT 1957 Ford kit. Cost me $80 on Ebay and sourced the steel wheels, baby moons, and spotlights for the '57 Ford Fairlane Convertible I'm building using a different kit as the main source. The $80 was a lot to spend just for the parts I needed, but I figure I'll resell it and substitute mag wheels and other parts and should recover som of the cost. Now if only I could get a convertible top or tonneau cover.............

After some hits and misses, I did manage to put together an acceptable bumper piece that works. I used three sprue pieces, and spent more time than I care to admit getting it to look right. I can't publish a pic as of yet (still working out the bugs on W10 and new PC) but expect to have that resolved in the near future.

Thanks all! I just ordered the "polyglass" version and look forward to building the car I "lusted" for back in the early '60s......... Ha, getting married at age 20 and having 4 kids changed all those "must haves"........... Thanks all for the info, it really is appreciated! Bill

How do I know which is the latest issue?

Hi, I'm looking to get a 1962 Pontiac 1/25 kit, likely a 421 cu inch Catalina or another model. Looks like there are 5 or so different ones (AMT/Ertl) readily available, and I'm seeing similarities in them, and I'm wondering if some are just remakes of early production runs. Anyway, which of those out there offer the most detail, best fit, etc.? Thank you, Bill Anderson

I've been looking at various reviews (via Google / youtube) of some kits I have been looking at or have already worked on. As mentioned earlier, it seems like each kit has its own plus/minus attributes. With the exception of the Tamiya Ford GT (I'll get it for father's day), all my cars and interests revolve around the '50s and early '60s American models - the cars of my youth of course. On a side note........most all of my friends back then were motorheads to one degree or another. But it seems like following generations just don't seem to care about cars. I have 4 adult kids (all early '50s), and the three boys only cared about the stereo in their cars, and not much else............ I find that especially sad, for I had the knowledge/time/tools to teach them so much about cars...........but no one seemed to care.

Chris, I private messaged you about your 58 Ford boot........... Tom, I had a 54 Pontiac (Red Roach) and the 57 Ford convertibles when I was in Chicago. Most of the time the top was down I had the boots in place, for IMO it looked so much better and "complete". But of course it was a pain in the backside, both to put on and take off............

NICE !!!! I will see if Ebay has one of those covers! Thank you!

While I said I didn't want to start a "versus" thread, what I really meant was I didn't want to start a "flame war" of arguments. That said, I would like your thoughts on the quality, detail, & other differences between the kits from Revell, AMT (round2), Jo-han, Monogram, Ertl, Lindberg, MPC, and so on. Thank you! Bill Anderson

Hi, Back in my teens and early '20s I built a lot of model cars from AMT and Revel and Monogram. I dropped out of that for decades, but have recently gotten back into model car building again. In looking for various kits that would interest me, I've found that I've lost touch with the various brands and really have little clue as to what is what in regards to quality, detail, difficulty, etc. I do NOT wish to start a "versus" thread here, but I would like to know your thoughts on the various manufacturers 1/25 or 1/24 kits. Thank you, Bill Anderson Spring, Texas

I'm building a replica of the '57 Ford Fairlane Convertible I had in the early '60s. As there are no suitable '57 Ford convertible kits, I'm using two different AMT hardtop kits. I want to cut off the top, and replace it with a convertible top, or a suitable cover for a "folded down top". So my questions are, what other model has a convertible top that would work, or a folded down top cover that would fit? Thank you, Bill Anderson Spring, Tx.

Hack n whack, Believe it or not, I thought of the same thing. That said, I would prefer a full convertible top or a cover for the downed top. I call that a tonneau, but that may not be correct. I'm going to start a separate thread on this, assuming its allowed.