FASTBACK340

On a related topic: $59,900 is the MSRP for the Hellcat. That is before the dealers have their way with you…..

They basically take a Dominator to a band saw and cut it in half to stagger the ports closer to the intake runners. Take a set and chop `em.

​Actually they sell a household playroom floor carpet like that. My nephew drove his Hot Wheels a million miles on his. It was about 4' X 6' IIRC.

I have a stash of AMT Pro Street Coronets due to the abundance of stock and aftermarket goodies. I also bought about 8 of the re-issue Ramchargers F/E dragster when they were released a while ago, never built one. I also have about a half dozen Revell `32 Ford kits in various versions. I also have 5 unbuilt MPC `68 Barracuda annuals.

I'm not a big fan of `57 Chevy's, but that my friend is a spectacular build. Beautiful finish, beautiful assembly. Thank you for sharing!

I'll be at the LIARS show with the 'Cuda.

LOL! I appreciate your concern, but trust me there were no children, elderly, or puppies in harms way! Like I said, it was a BAD choice but GOOD circumstances. Although a well traveled road, it wasn't nearly as bad as it sounds. I was there....

Yeah, it was in poor judgement, but I know the area and we had a good, uninterrupted stretch of road where we could play. I also had my wife riding shot-gun (she's pretty cool….) and we had a good time. It's hard at times not to go for the cheese ……

Very good assessment Tom! When ever someone is willing to explain, I will ALWAYS stop & listen. I had the please of having a 1 on 1 machining lesson with the legendary Augie Hiscano at the Toledo NNL in the 90's, I've had personal lessons with Rich Manson, Tony DelVecchio, Lyle Willets, and Bill Geary to name a few. Then there's John Teresi, Bill Davis, Randy Derr, and many others here whom are displaying cutting edge skills, and there's people figuring out simple solutions and sharing them. I myself will continue to advance when I can. Unfortunately I take off from model building during the summer months….. but I still watch & learn. I have a list of topics I'll re-visit when I decide to get in front of the work bench again in that tiny little room. But I'm still checking in when I can. SASE… I haven't seen THAT in ages!

I don't know whom is credited with this ancient statement, but my personal favorite is "You can fix anything with a hammer, hacksaw, and a torch". Which brings this all full-circle: I just got in from surveying the situation and realized I can weld it in the car. So instead of killing myself today to get the steering column & pedals out (rough work in tight quarters), I can drive the car like a normal person and go to work, lay out a welding blanket, and MIG in a reinforcement plate that's a little more solid than the factory stamping. In less than a half hour. Basically, torch it is…..

Once I realized I was out of the game I slowed down ( we were on a well-traveled public road….) and I waved and signaled and turned down a side street. I didn't want to work on the car on a busy road, and I didn't want to embarrass myself by breaking my stuff in order to out-run him. I fixed it with a tire iron and limped it home. The pedal assembly is coming out (hopefully….) today and I'll weld in more reinforcement . But I'm just so tired of working every day.

This car is so insanely detailed and over the top it's really more art. Must be seen, and heard, in person. This is how it sounds through the mufflers. With the cut-outs open it sounds like a pro-stock…...

This was one of my first projects when I went to work for Pauls Rods & Resto's. It was a retired drag car that was totally roached-out. The harness was hanging out of the car and it hadn't run in 10 years. Aside from being wired and street legal (?) we installed a complete nitrous system and re-positioned the motor plate for correct pinion angles. This was a project that as we completed one set of requests, the customer would lengthen the list. I test drove it and didn't really get on it (dry-rotted 12" slicks are NOT very "stable") but it has power.

Thanks for the compliments guys. FWIW: I did something really stupid last night and engaged in an illicit contest of speed on public streets. Late model 6.1 Challenger. Had him by third gear when the clutch linkage jammed. My clutch pedal hit the stop and slipped past it. My clutch pedal was against the bottom of my dash & I couldn't step down on it! But this is what I do during the summer. I build, and break, my toys. But I had him…. wow.

Nothing is sacred in my collection. I'll cut up almost anything. But not this one…...

Sorry for re-hashing this build, but the photo's were so nice I had to share them. As you guys know, it was included in this issues coverage of NNL East and I appreciate the coverage. I just wish I had the time during the summer months to build. As it is, I'm enjoying a morning of coffee in front of the TV while internet-surfing, but I'm out in the garage shortly to repair some wonky clutch issues that developed on a 2-3 power shift last night. Every day….every night….. I'm under a car. And to answer your question, yes, those are Chief Joseph's beautiful Drag Radials in 1/24 that look "just right" on my build.

I received the photos taken at NNL East of my Barracuda from the my friend Tom Valenta. Thank you for sending them! Photos courtesy of Tom Valenta/Model Cars Magazine

I kinda like the new "squashed" bug's look. It looks a little more hunkered down and muscular. Especially with the steel wheels and hub caps. The original "new" Beetle was, well…. HAS a rather "feminine" look to it. A bit too "cute" maybe would be a better description. But yes, I agree. The new Mini coupe is odd looking. I read somewhere that the styling was to mimic the backwards ball cap look we all embrace.

My most recent "first" was finally using that bottle of Alclad I had forever. I was in a jam and needed a chrome trim piece for a customers dashboard at work. Broke out the needed material and was blown away by the results. Alclad is a game changer. And in all fairness, most of everything I've tried for the first time was instigated by someone from here. Especially all you guys scratch-building with brass. Thank you!

Oh my....... That's REALLY nice.

I think a co-worker has a short video of that big-block Chevy/Charger being driven for the first time in 8 years. I'll get back to you.

After much cussing & swapping, I decided on abandoning the electric-only idea and added an auxiliary fan in addition to the stocker. I modified the shroud I made for use with the stock fan and bought a SPAL pusher fan and will return the puller I had bought initially. Stck fan with shroud. I'll finish up the fan relay/sensor wiring and we'll be at cruise night tonight. So far this season I had her out for 2 hours before disaster struck. Looking forward to tonight!

Don't intend to offend, just want to share. I'm fortunate to be in a position to supply the type of intricate detail shots I hope you guys would enjoy. Granted, I spent 35 yrs. working in new-car service departments where it was all rape & pillage, but here it's almost like a reward for not killing all those idiot managers and frustrating co-workers. Yes, I know I'm incredibly fortunate to do this for a living, but I still want others to see the cool stuff out there. Especially the really out-there stuff, like the big block Chevy powered `69 Dodge Charger I got road-worthy this week. Nothing pretty, but a solid 9+ on the weird meter. Again, when some really neat stuff pops up, I'm going to share. After all, we're all car-people here, right?