Howard Linscott

The seam is more or less correct as it travels to the trailing edge of the front fenders. BUT the front fenders, and therefore the whole model car, is much too short. The car must be lengthened from the cowl forward, including the hood, if it is to reflect the proportions of the real car. This is a tricky proposition given the compound curves involved, but can be done. First generation Continentals have a wheelbase of 125 inches, so the wheelbase on the model should be exactly 5 inches. This probably means adding at least a quarter of an inch to the fenders and hood, in addition to the chassis. I would skip the engine compartment and glue the hood shut unless you are making a hotrod. If that hasn't discouraged you from building the kit maybe this will. The grille detail ended up on the inside of the piece -- oops! The vertical bars should be recessed behind the horizontal bars. A lot of work with the rat-tail mini file ahead! Note too that the actual car has a surround panel around the lower grille and a valance panel between the front bumper and body; these are missing in the kit. The headlights are not convincing and don't fit properly. And the rear of the door is too far back. It needs to be re-scribed about an 1/8-inch forward. And all the pieces of the windscreen are too thick and bulky -- some thinning and refitting is necessary. That's what I have found so far. . . Good luck!

To whom it may concern: My model car collection centers on 1/32 scale, with the Revell/AMT kits of 1955-56 being the focus point. These kits all need help to embody the level of detail we have become accustomed to in recent 1/25 scale model cars, but they are well worth it. I have also done extensive correctional work on the more recent 1/32 scale kits from Revell and Monogram and Gunze, such as the 57 Ford Fairlane, 55 Chevrolet Belair, and the 57 Eldorado Brougham, to name just a few examples. Always more work to do than you realize when you start the project! I go to antique car shows in Ontario where I live with a measuring tape and notebook in addition to my camera. I made all the corrections required to the Aurora 1/32 scale kit of the Cunningham C-1 using (and measuring) the photos you have shown, plus many more that I inherited from my Dad's 50s-era magazine collection. There are quite a few modifications required to get that kit looking like the real car, but I succeeded. I have been at it part-time for years! Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I can post some if anyone is interested. I have recently been at it again, sanding and smoothing, so all the modifications are visible. I also have an out-of-the box assembled Aurora kit from 1964 for comparison. My plans include making 1/32 knock-offs of the corrected Cunningham body in 1/32 for any slot car buffs out there. Anyone interested? Howard