Steve Geer

Thank you David -- glad you liked them. The 51 Chevy was inspired as sort of a tribute to my late brother-in-law who never had a gasser . . . but should have.

Thanks for taking a look, Carl - appreciate the comment.

Thanks Chris. That particular kit certainly isn't the best example of shape and proportions but I believe there's no such thing as bad Miura ?

Appreciate the nice thought, Tom - especially since your exemplary work with rescues and refurbishing old models has been one of my inspirations for a long time.

Thanks!

Thanks Tom. Saw a T-Bird painted very similar shade on an internet photo and it spoke to me . . . glad you liked it.

That is one spectacular model! Great colors and detailing, especially making the roof work. Most impressive build of the Skyliner I've ever seen. I've tried it twice; once as an adolescent and once as an adult and both attempts were dismal failures -- it's a toughie and you did it magnificently!

I usually manage to finish 4 or 5 models per year but, owing to the great sequestration, I seem to have squeezed out a couple cars-worth of extra bench time . . . 2020 was entirely rebuilds, rescues or long-dead projects finally concluded – not one new kit! The first 4 were done before I joined the forum and the others were posted as finished. In order of completion: AMT 1951 Chevy Bel Air ‘Gasser’. Rebuild/conversion from a stocker constructed ages ago. Gained a lift-off front clip, set-back & injected Chevy W-block engine, various drag parts from the spares bin, some homemade decals and Model Master Bright Aqua Pearl paint during the rebuild. Monogram “Deuce” roadster. Glue-bomb rescue . . . and lots of fun! Purchased at a yard sale in pieces, missing the wheels/tires and numerous other parts. At some point in its life, it had been sanded excessively then hand-painted black . . . apparently using a toothbrush. New paint is “Bittersweet” – a Chrysler color from the mid 1970’s. Refurb and detail parts all came from my spares boxes. Revell Porsche 928. Purchased in the latter ‘90s. Box stock build but curbside since the V8 engine had been swiped to use in a hot rod project a long time back. Tamiya Light Gunmetal paint. MPC AMC Pacer “X”. A bagged, un-built kit I picked up a while back. Model Master Desert Sand paint with Tamiya Clear Pearl. Box stock, except for Magnum 500 wheels and whitewalls from the spares bin. AMT 1966 T-Bird. Previously posted. Originally sloppily constructed and badly painted by yours truly 45 years ago. Rescued from the dregs of my collection and refurbished. AMT 1940 ‘kitbash’ pickup. Previously posted. Leftover pickup cab and bed from AMT’s ’40 Willys gasser kit mated to front clip, rear fenders and chassis from a trashed AMT ’40 Ford. MPC Lamborghini Miura. Previously posted. Completion of a kit I originally started in the early ‘80s Thanks for looking . . . and here’s to a productive and healthy 2021 for everybody. Ciao!

Uh oh . . .! Thanks (I think?) for the brain-jog. I suddenly recall building that MPC BB512 also and, coincidentally, mine was also a gift. Definitely falls into the 'forgettable' category. You used yours better . . . .?

Thank you, Mike -- I agree about the proportions and I think that's part of what kept me from building it for so long. I'd dig it out, look at it then decide I didn't want the headache of fixing the deficiencies so back in the box it went. I have a Hasegawa Miura in my stash and its a far more accurate kit but also a lot more complex build. Hopefully someday . . . btw, I loved that Fiero color -- I bought a red SE when they came out in '84 and always wanted to repaint it once the later colors appeared.

Outstanding, Tom -- that's a little sweetheart! Like a first romance, its good to cherish and remember. IMHO, the Miura is one of the most beautiful sports cars of the 70's - maybe of all time.

Thanks, Trevor . . . those MPC sports car kits were prevalent back in the 70''s, but after buying this one, I was pretty disappointed in the curbside approach so I left them alone. Hope you hung on to yours -- they're kind of cool historical artifacts nowadays.

Thanks, Carl . . . appreciate the kind words. The paint started out as a bottle of icy blue nail polish and I just kept mixing clear blue and pearl essence until I lost control. Glad you liked the color.

Thank you, Ray . . . given all the Cobra re-packagings you've no doubt seen, I'll take your word and check out the Otaki kit. It'd be fun to be build another . . . and I might not take 4 decades to do it ?

Last build of 2020 . . . This is an ancient MPC Lamborghini Miura kit (an SV/J model, although that info isn’t noted anywhere) which has been resting in my stash since I opened the box and started it in ‘79 or ‘80. Despite wearing the MPC label, it’s clearly a re-packaging of some kit from the orient, being a quasi-curbside with posable front wheels and some engraved engine detail (which is unfortunately invisible under the fixed rear window louvers). It’s one of those designed-to-be-motorized models with virtually no chassis detail and an oddly compromised interior but, hey – it has a nifty tray up front, in case one ever wishes to hide a couple AA batteries. Nonetheless, the shape and proportions are pleasing (what Miura isn’t?), if not entirely accurate, and overall, it looks fairly nice as a shelf model. The azure pearl color is a custom lacquer mix I brewed up — inspired by the shade of a one-off Miura I spotted on the internet. The room lighting makes it appear almost “Petty Blue” in the photos, but it isn’t . . . On top of that, Automotive Touchup clear coat was used, followed by a light polishing. The window edge trim is BMF while most everything else was brush-paint detailed. Assembled box-stock with two exceptions: The kit’s pseudo BBS-type rims were replaced with some cast white metal, Diablo-style wheels (Fujimi, I think . . . ?) with 2-prong knock-offs from my spares and I omitted the airfoil/wing over the cab. Quick and simple build . . . and it only took 40 years to finish. ? Thanks for looking.

Nicely done . . . great color!

Definitely not for the purists, but this hot rod anarchist applauds the salvation. What a cool and zany display of imagination! Very nicely done!

Thanks for the kind words guys! I have a lot of 30-40 year old builds that weren't very good and I'm enjoying rebuilding them with better technology and questionably improved skills. There'll be more . . . The headlights were a lucky accident. When I don't have clear lenses of a proper size, I've been messing around brush painting headlights with thinned silver, black & white bottle paints and a little Molotow pen to get highlights, lowlights and shadows with a bit of reflectivity, after which I hit them with a little clear epoxy. Sometimes it looks okay; sometimes, well, not so good . . . Like the example below?

Recent rebuild of an AMT kit I originally plonked together in the late 1970’s . . . and then buried it away. It was a massive “paint fail”, with the T-Bird elegance concealed under a runny/blotchy emerald green paint job, not to mention a gold interior, a flat black roof and brush-painted silver trim. Oh, and it rolled on slicks(!) all around, just adding further unsightliness. Bad . . . even considering my slapdash building techniques of that era. After a soak in Super Clean, I took care of the mold seams and sink marks as well as sanding the vinyl roof texture smooth before painting with a Dupli-Color GM shade from the 80’s – similar to Ford’s Brittany Blue. The new paint was clear coated and polished and the trim is BMF. The interior was re-done in black while a set of Fujimi rims & low profile treads replaced the aged slot-style mags. The original rear view mirrors vanished long ago so I temporarily added some body-color ‘flag’ units from a die cast, otherwise it’s fairly close to a stock ‘Bird. Best of all, it finally found a residence on the display shelf after many years of languishing in the “ugh” box. Thanks for looking – comments and questions welcome.

Too much! It’s been tough getting my jaw off the floor after looking at this. One of the finest Model A’s I’ve ever seen. Period perfect in every way – the synergy of style/parts/paint/features is just extraordinary. Well done, sir.

This is a "survivor" Vicky I built in around 1978, I think . . . it’s definitely been around quite a while. The 1:1 hot rodding trend at that time was distinctly “Resto Rod” and this one certainly has some of those late ‘70’s touches. From what I can still remember, the body/interior is AMT while the undercarriage and suspension are from the MPC “Switchers” Deuce kit of that era. I no longer recall where the engine and wheels/tires originated. Back then, I only built models sporadically but this one was among my better efforts at the time . . . including the interior, which was ‘upholstered’ in burgundy corduroy fabric. I see the license plate has gone missing and it’s shed a few other parts over the years, but here it is – fresh out of hibernation.

Thanks, Tom That Raptor kit lends itself to all kinds of messing around. Anyway, the roll-back bed I used came from Bryant Saxe at BCS Trading -- he's got some terrific pieces. Here's the link to his eBay store. https://www.ebay.com/str/bcstrading

Incredibly nice work! Great paint/color and excellent detailing make your build of this overlooked model a real standout - A+ And keep those Raptors coming . . . I used one of these kits for a fantasy roll-back wrecker project a few years ago and I've added a couple more to my stash.

Just too cool for words . . . but I'll try using a few anyway. Great bit of imagination and a sweet build. Always loved cartoon/creature cars and this one is a gem. Superb!

Thank you, David . . . glad you liked it!