Spottedlaurel

That looks excellent, like it was always meant to be that way.

Nice one Snake. Certainly not immediately obvious that you didn't paint it.

Thanks all. I hope that I can show an equally good variety by the end of 2021. BMF on the Pincess's chrome trims at 1:43 was a challenge! Would love to see what you can do with some Japanese stuff. Likewise, would love to see your take on the Maserati. It's got a great basic shape and the bodyshell is suprisingly good for a kit that goes back such a long way.

I have something for the next one. After that I'll have run out of subject matter, B.O.Y.D. has been too successful!

Thanks Tim, Tom and Snake. If it wasn't for entering it here this would probably have languished in the box for even longer. I've got my next entry sorted.....

'55 Chevy - GOTTER DONE! 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Certainly not one of my better efforts. I could blame the work I did when I started it 25+ years ago, but to be honest I didn't give myself much time to finish it and I just wanted it done. Ideally I need to work out a way of positively attaching the body and chassis, it's a little vague at present, but I suspect it's more likely that I'll just put it on the shelf in the right position and be pleased it's not in pieces in a box.

Thanks all! Until I counted them up a week or so ago I had no idea I'd finished this many - I thought I'd be doing well if I averaged one a month. Hoping to continue with a mix of Japanese, American and European for 2021.

Aha, my secret ingredient, especially at this time of year. Might also be a handy jar to hold white spirit for brush cleaning...... Thanks Alan, interesting to hear what you've done previously and are planning to do this year. The first glance will do, apart from showing photos online it's very unlikely that anyone with modelbuilding skills/knowledge will ever see my builds for real! In the unlikely event that did happen, this one won't be taking centre stage..... Funny thing is while I do know the '55 went onto feature in American Graffiti, I have never seen that film (I realise it maybe somewhat heretical to admit that here!). Anyway, once the final bits of paint have dried and glue has set I'm ready to assemble this thing: A thin bit of styrene sheet around the bulkhead solved several issues after seeing a 1:1 car online this morning. I can't remember if the original kit had anything here, but it covers up some of the gap at the front of the interior tub and is flexible enough for the flip front to grip onto, meaning I can avoid any complex hinging or attachment. And this is how it now sits, ready for final assembly this evening to meet Snake's deadline. If I was taking this build seriously then I'd be disappointed about the glass fitment, it seems like it's too short front-to-back and too shallow - I'd be looking to cut the front and rear screens so they sit better in each opening and replace the sides with clear sheet. If I'm sufficiently keen when I go back out to finish it off I'll add some front quarterlight frames. I thought the glass installation might be affected by my centre pillar additions and rear pillar repair, but luckily not. Feels odd to be so close to finishing it off after all this time.

Love it! By coincidence, I was pondering whether a Monogram pro-street/stock chassis would fit under the Tamiya Mercedes S600, once I've used its V12 engine for another project.

17! I don't think I've ever done that many in year, even as teenager when I could start and finish one in a weekend. A few were WIPS that had been on the go from 3-4 years up to 25+ years....... 1:24 Fujimi Honda Prelude kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr I think this one was started back in 2016, built in the late '90s Euro Lowrider style. 1:20 Nichimo Nissan Skyline C211 by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr First 1:20 kit I've done done since an F1 in the '80s, vaguely replicating a 1:1 I had some years ago. 1:43 Heller Austin Princess kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Nicely detailed little kit, but the small scale made me realise I needed varifocals (now sorted!). 1:24 Tamiya Audi Quattro kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Having cleared the bench of those WIPs, I could start on some new ones and this was the first of them (although it did use some parts from the road car I built when I was 14). 1:24 Hasegawa Nissan Sunny Truck kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr One of my favourites from the year, for now as close as I can get to one of my 1:1s. 1:25 Revell 1966 Chevelle Wagon kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr I hadn't built an American kit for some time, this Revell one went together really nicely. July/August kit completions by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Good weather and a couple of weeks' holiday in the summer saw this lot get finished. From L-R Revell (ex-Monogram) Ferrari that I started 10+ years ago; Monogram (ex-Aurora) Maserati with V8 that dates back to the '90s as a WIP; Monogram '65 Corvette that a friend started around 1990/91, I then redid it with an LT5, new wheels and fresh paint; Monogram Datsun 280Z that I turned around in less than three weeks, with multi-colour panels so I could practise masking; Fujimi Datsun Fairlady Roadster that I think dates back to 2007 and stalled after it fell onto the floor, necessitating a strip and repaint. 1:24 Aoshima Toyota Ipsum kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr I needed to do something practical and with more seats after all those sports cars. 1:24 Aoshima Nissan Cedric 330 kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr For some reason I didn't gel with this one when I started it, but now it's finished it's one of my favourites. 1:24 Tamiya Toyota and Honda kits by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Tamiya Skyline and Silvia kits by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Finished four of the five kits to replace the batch that got wrecked when I left them on my dashboard in the sun. I'd hoped to get the '55 Chevy finished yesterday, but that's one for today and a flying start to 2021.

Great to see such an unsual subject built, and very interesting to hear the backstory and your family's link to it.

All so clean Chang, and an excellent variety. Purely because of the subject my favourite is the Toyota Chaser. I enjoyed seeing them through the year, good luck with those you have planned for 2021!

Well done Tom! Great to see this one done after seeing it on here a few times over the last few months.

Good luck Carl, and if you can't progress your own builds do keep calling in and joining in with what everyone else is up to. The family were in the shed the other day and realised quite how many kits have been accumulating, and after a record 2020 with 17 completions I would like to keep being as productive as I can to show I'm not just hoarding them...... My plans are: 1. Finish '55 Chevy today for this B.O.Y.D. round. 2. Finish '67 Impala. 3. Finish Corvette ZR-1 curbside that I've just started (was engine donor for the '67). 4. Finish Ghostbusters Cadillac hearse conversion in the next B.O.Y.D. round - like the '55, that's another WIP that was started 25+ years ago. 5. Finish 1981-ish Nissan Skyline, the last of my sun-damaged replacement builds. 6 & 7. Finish BMW M635 and Toyota Celsior (Lexus LS400) reshell projects. 8. Get on with the Ford Courier + Thunderbird V6 engine that I have barely started. I think that clears my bench of all current WIPs, which would be pretty remarkable, giving me licence to get on with a mix of straightforward projects and a few that will take a bit longer. The easy ones will be whatever takes my fancy, inspired by seeing something at 1:1 or the right combination of subject vehicle, colour and wheels, but for the slightly more complex builds here are just a few of what I'd like to do (or at least start): 9. Various projects utilising 1980s and '90s Mustang/Viper/Corvette/Skyline/RX-7 etc engines in older cars/trucks. 10. AMT '71-ish Mustang as an early 1980s UK street machine with polished tube gille and Centerlines, to fulfil an image I've had in my mind for 35+ years. 11. Stretched Aoshima Subaru Sambar kei-truck with recovery body carrying a Hasegawa Subaru 360. 12. Tamiya Morris Mini done as a 1970s/80s street machine with vinyl top and opera windows. 13. Ford Escort Mk2 as an early '80s National Hot Rod (short oval racer). 14. Datsun 280ZX as a Saloon Stock Car (short oval racer), driven by local legend Horry Barnes (RIP) who raced into his 80s. 15. Loose replicas of various 1:1 Datsun/Nissans I've had/still have. Like most of us, the list will change as more kits get purchased and new opportunities present themselves.....

Well done Tim! Looks like it'll be a 1st January completion for me, but after redoing a few things that got broken/detached over the years it's moved forwards: 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr

That's a fine way of finishing the year off, I really like it. The colour combination with equally green interior reminds me of this Buick I saw a few years ago: 1971 Buick Le Sabre by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr I haven't had any luck in getting one of these Monte Carlos yet, must try harder in 2021.....

That's a great summary, I agree 100%! Great to see such variety too.

That's a stunning collection. Difficult to pick out a favourite but I think most of us would be proud to have just one that good in our display cabinet.

Managed to get quite a bit done on this yesterday. Snake has kindly given an extra day on the B.O.Y.D. deadline, but if I can I'd still like to get it finished by the end of today. 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Butchered interior. To get rid of the back seats I initially just cut off the back half of the interior tub. Luckily I kept the remnants, as the easiest of tidying it up was to reinstate the original side panels and then fill the holes where I cut the rear seat away. I don't like them much, but for ease I will probably use the kit-supplied front seats, unless I stumble across anything better in the parts box. 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr My approach to replicating the dull primer finish of the original was to spray it with some satin black, then give it a light, not quite full coat of grey primer. I might give it a coat of flat clear, as it currently has a bit of a sheen. 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr What I have left to assemble and 'detail'. I'm using that latter word rather loosely......

Thank you Snake! I had planned to get my mongrel '55 finished today after some good progress on it yesterday, but that gives me bit more time to do other stuff.

I have a spare one of those oddball Hondas missing its glass, let me know if anything is missing or broken on yours as I should be able to help out. I was going to say I wish there was a bricks and mortar shop near me selling secondhand kits, but then I remembered there is. Except they'll be closed at present......

A stunning collection, great to see them all together.

Great to see these being built, they look really good. That XJ-S is going to be a good companion for the Hasegawa version you did earlier in the year. I'm another one who's never seen the Alfa before.

Well done for persevering with it! Finished result looks excellent, fantastic detailing work on the engine etc.

You're giving some good advice there Snake, but I'm going to build it true to the vision I had when I first started this thing a long, long time ago. Having not done anything with it for most of the 2-3 months I had available for this B.O.Y.D. round, I've got back into it again with the aim of finishing it by the end of this year (i.e.tomorrow!). Slot has been cut in the hood scoop and LH side roof repairs undertaken: 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr 1:24 Monogram 1955 Chevy kit by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr Lots of other components primed and awaiting final painting. One of the front wheel spindles needed a repair as it'd snapped off and that's in hand. It'll be neither pretty nor accurate, but after 25+ years I'll be glad to have this sitting on the shelf and looking reminiscent of the original.