tim boyd

I've had the "404 Error" occur occasionally in the past; it resurfaced last evening. I'll try to repost today. Somewhat reassuring the hear I'm not the only person who had a problem yesterday...….TIM

More pix of the trailer mockup from 2019 NNL East (scroll to the bottom of this thread.....) ..TIM

This is a 3Dprinted scale representation of Moebius' new flatbed trailer kit, as presented at the NNL East yesterday. More views including closeups at this link...… see photos #17-21......TIM

http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/142112-2019-nnl-east-event-coverage-here/

For years and years, Tom Geiger and many of the rest of you have been after me to get to the NNL East. This year, it finally happened. For those who haven't been to this event, it's everything you've heard and more. The facility is immense, and the participation is just incredible. To anyone who thinks adult modeling is not in a healthy condition, you need to check this event out. It will change your mind in a hurry. A special thanks to Tom Geiger and his NNL East/Tri-State Model club event team (and originally, to the late John Silvoski who first approached the NNL Nats organizers about conducting a similar east coast NNL event). They've developed over the years a unique event of their own, then superbly managed and nurtured it, all while staying true to the non-competitive origins of the original NNL idea. The following is an album with almost 400 pictures from the event. Wherever possible, I've followed the picture of a model with a picture of the builder's entrant form, so you can see who built these miniature masterpieces. My camera equipment grew overheated from all the pictures I was taking, so I apologize in advance for a few the photos that lack depth of field or clear focus. Bottom line? If you consider yourself an accomplished adult model car builder, you GOTTA get to this event sooner or later. Meanwhile, enjoy the photos and (where applicable) commentary. TIM

The trailer (in 3d printed form) was on display at NNL East yesterday. Will post pictures later today. TIM

duplicate submission, please remove....thx. TB

Greg....both MPC and AMT kitted the 1971 Mustang in annual kits. Both are sitting in a case about five feet away from me painted and with completed interiors, but awaiting chassis and engines. Both kits had non-stock engines only, so to complete them properly is going to require some kitbashing…..TIM

At least one idea called out in this thread is actually likely to happen based on what I heard in the fairly recent past. Two other suggestions mentioned in the thread above - an all-new and correct 1971 [Boss 351] Mustang and either a 1967 or 1968 Mustang notchback were under consideration at various times in the past, based on rumblings I've heard from trusted outside sources (i.e., sources not within the model companies). Given the different situation with kitmakers today, I don't think the chances of either of these materializing are very likely, but from my point of view, the 1971 Boss 351 is among the most under sung Mustangs of all time in both 1/1 and 1/25th scale. TIM

YES PLEASE!!! Tim

Tom said: MPC did some nicely detailed kits in the 1980s that are seriously overlooked. Cars like the Chevy Cavalier and Ford EXP are very well detailed and go together fairly well. Their list of small pickups, the Dodge D-50, (AMT) Ford Courier, (AMT) Subaru Brat and the recently reissued Datsun (which I have open right now) have nicely done chassis that are just begging to be fit under street rods. As I worked on the D-50, I snuck the finished chassis under a 40 Ford sedan delivery and it looked like it was made for that kit! ********** I say - Tom is exactly right on this. These AMT and (especially MPC) kits were really, really well done kits. If you have never seen them, open a box or two and check them out. Even better - build one! TIM

Richard.....thanks for the comments on that old Dodge Funny Car entry......long, sad story about that one. Bottom line it's been a pile of parts in a box for just over 50 years.....BUT at the end of January I started repairing and restoring it. I'm not about 75% done. I'll post the whole story (including the sad part) here when I'm done. As for the 1969 Flint and 1970 Detroit contests, the Charger I still have and it is in pretty good condition for being nearly 50 years old and after having been shipped back to me with NO packing materials after the 1970 MPC National finals! The Detroit show 'cuda's chassis was repurposed under a new Mustang body and its in great shape (and displayed in my Fotki photo album). The original 'cuda body, built in just a couple of weeks to be ready for the '70 Detroit contest, self destructed within a month. I too just started restoring that one by removing the 30+ coats of paint. I'll start working on it in earnest after finishing the other one. Thanks again for your comments and interest! TIM

I am hearing from multiple trusted sources that the Dodge pickup kits were ordered by distributors and shops at a much higher volume than Round 2's production plans forecasted. Some shops are getting only 50% or less of what they ordered. Production will eventually catch up with demand, of course, but if you want the kit now, best buy it at the first place you see it. TIM

I'm with you guys as well. Pure simplicity, $29 a month; that's it. A former work colleague told me "Tim, that's not a smart phone, it's a dumb phone". I kinda like that. And I take it as a badge of honor, so to speak! TIM

This one? TIM

Again, my understanding is that the Ranchero business case simply didn't make sense on a standalone basis. The cost for the tooling changes to do an accurate Ranchero turned out to be so expensive that the expected kit sales did not generate a profitable return. Or stated another way, the same financial investment in some other project (either a different tool revision or partial payment for an all-new tool on another subject) would be likely to generate a greater return for the enterprise. Presumably that would still be the case given the new financial situation/reality you've described above. This is my general understanding of what happened....but it is certainly possible that others might have taken away a different understanding,,, TIM

Not to contradict anyone, but Ed told me well before the Hobbico Bankruptcy that they had investigated in depth the possibility of doing a '57 Ranchero, but that there were so many changes to the tool required for an accurate replica that the project became unaffordable. TIM

And as many of you know, many of Phil Jensen's model truck article builds are on display at the International Model Car Museum....TIM

Congrats Mark! That Paul Sable Merc was part of what inspired me to do my full custom chopped Merc (with a correct top shop) that finished 2nd nationwide in the 1976 MPC National Customzing Contest series. I'm encouraged to see the interest in the modeling community for historic topics like this and the ones that Richard acquired a couple of days ago. I've been told by some of the "experts" that this was not a topic of interest to the modeling community, but I've always thought that might not actually be the case. Best of luck on your restorations and new projects relating to this acquisition. TIM

Curt.....way, wAY, WAY cool! Great idea, and great execution, too. Congrats! TIM

Mark....real world, that's most likely what will happen, but very encouraging to know that you like the idea of (not) doing any changes! ****** Everyone - thanks for the comments and feedback! TIM

I'm curious to know where this model display occurred. (Maybe the NNL Milwaukee yesterday???) Having said that, it appears totally legit to me. The AAR project was nearly completed before the Hobbico debacle, as was the '57 Sedan Gasser (which required more tweaking to the base tool than you might imagine, as it turned out). In fact, the AAR was originally planned for a 2017 debut but was sent back for further work/refinement. I've not seen the result (nor do I know exactly what the refinements might have been) but I am very anxious to see the result. Thanks for posting! TIM PS - now we need to get after Revell to finish fixing the '30 Five Window Coupe Hot Rod tool and get THAT back on the market!!!! TB

Richard.....what a FIND!!!! In particular the Phil Jensen Mustang was one of the most ambitious projects to ever appear in that magazine. It is great to see it in such a restorable condition, and to know you are going to finish putting it back together. Funny you should mention this at this time. About 2 1/2 months ago I started a restoration of my Car Model Magazine/MPC/Dodge Funny Car entry that ended up placing fourth nationwide in that contest. It has been in hundreds of pieces since shortly after the contest results were announced, for reasons that I will detail later. After five decades of parts sitting in a box, it's been quite a project to put it back together, and even now I am only 2/3rds of the way through the restoration. That aside congrats again on winning the bidding, and on your pending restorations. Will be watching for updates!!! Tim

Yes please!!! TIM

Actually...the fuel filler cap is on the instructions. Image attached below from my original post which includes all pages of the instruction sheet. Now, as to whether that is produce correct for 1978, I'l leave that to the 1/1 scale Dodge Pickup experts!