tim boyd

More on the new front and rear bumpers....with images.....hopefully later today. Update...and here's the link to the (hopefully) whole story...TIM

Years ago there was a continuing and long running article series in Model Car Mags using a similar approach to the image in the first post here....in fact, makes me wonder if it was that exact model car??? Anyway, the series had some really innovative modeling and ideas and was really well done.....well worth a look back through your issues archive....TIM

Hope to be able to post some images of a look inside the new kit along with commentary sometime this weekend....TIM

Steve.....great to see one of those in fine, finished form. Kinda makes me want to dig mine back out and get busy....,thanks...TIM

Good points. For the 400/455, I think you may be entirely correct. My reticence in sighting it as the very best was that I was thinking of the entire family of Pontiac V8's. The AMT-Ertl 1962 Catalina 421 Super Duty kit has the very best one overall, in my view. I haven't built the Moebius 1961 Ventura/Catalina but I would suspect that they are close to the AMT-Ertl in accuracy. The other one I would view highly is the Revell 1966 GTO 389. Best....TIM

Correct....probably not the best scale replica of a big block Pontiac, but certainly among the better ones, at least in my view....TIM

Dave....would be very cool to see your interpretation of this kit. Really interesting survivor, too, in that he used the hot rod tub radiator with the full fendered configuration. That radiator/shell piece sure is nice...although the plating was damaged in some way in every one of the five kits I've acquired over the years.....TIM

Alan had previously privately shown me his latest tub, but I've got to say, looking at these pictures, it looks even better than I recall. Leaving out the two crossmembers to lower the body works really well, too! This tub breaks a bit from the above ones with its ground hugging stance, but still is close enough to the theme to warrant a quick pic.... And then there is this one which had the body painted five years ago (for an article in MCM on historically correct traditional hot rod paint colors), but was provoked to be finally completed after seeing Alan's preview of his above project, as well as Jim's Tub above with the cool bottom-originating flames. It's basically the same kit, but with a hot rodded Model A four banger, a Model A banjo rear axle, different wheels/tires, the factory stock radiator/grille shell, and several other minor mods. Thx for the inspiration, guys!

Casey said "The '55+ Pontic V8 architecture is the same, differing in bore, stroke, and accessories, so an early 287 block, heads, etc will look much the same as the largest 455 V8. No idea if the Monogram '80/'81 Turbo 301 T/A's engine was accurate in the first place, but the base is accurate for a '70. Good info here: https://www.enginebuildermag.com/2018/01/history-lesson-pontiac-v8-power/" Casey, you are of course totally correct about the overall architecture and appearance of all the Pontiac V8's. However, the 301 engine had changes vs. the earlier V8's that did result in some visible exterior changes between the two. Those changes (not big ones, but noticeable upon close inspection) do manifest themselves in the 1970 T/A kit engine being a copy of the 301 rather than the 400 that was in the actual car....TIM

I haven't checked the entire kit but I believe Steve is correct here. What I can tell you for sure is that the same engine is used in both kits, which is of course entirely incorrect as the Turbo 305 had significant external appearance differences vs. 400 RA III and RA IV used in the real1970 Trans-Am, yet the basic Turbo 305 engine tooling was carried over, incorrectly, in the 1970 T/A kit. I discovered this when I was doing the engine buildups for the old "Muscle V8" article series for the other mag. And as I pointed out in the "Collecting Muscle Car Model Kits" book a couple of years ago, one of the most glaring omissions in the 1/24th - 1/25th scale world is that to this day, we STILL do not have an accurate scale replica of the Pontiac RA-IV engine! Cheers...TIM

1) Front grille area 2) Rear bumper/tailamp layout 3) Exterior ornamentation (e.g. badging configuration and location of same; GTX ribbed rocker panel molding vs. none (IIRC) on 1972 Satellite....) A few Google images should clearly show the differences, which are all minor but still noticeable even in 1/24th-1/25th scale... Good luck with your project! TIM

Those are the interior pieces from the Revell Highboy Roadster kit, correct? They sure seem to fit nicely (either that, or you did a ton of work to make them look that way, right?!!!!). Thanks for the idea....TIM

Did not know that about the Gotti wheels....cool info. Have you ever been to his slot car racing museum in LA? I have not, but I hear it is a highly impressive setup.....TIM

Yeah!!!! That's certainly the way I should have done the original. Cheers....TIM

No, the trailer was an incomplete offering (just the the basic frame, suspension, fenders); I added the tool box, boards and the board rack which itself was adapted from the the AMT Barris "Grandpa Munster" rail dragster kit. The trailer was not in the in the original nor the pre-paint issues, only in one of the follow-up street rod version issues which differed only in the kit number on the lower corner of the box end. The assumption was that the RC/Ertl crowd made a mistake in allowing that production run to go through with the partially completed trailer runners opened up.... Best, TIM

The latest, all-new "Classic Kits" column has just been posted at the FineScale website "Extras" section Rediscover the Heller 1/24 scale Lotus 49 Formula One race car | FineScale Modeler Magazine Unlike much of their website automotive coverage, this content can be accessed free by all, not just Fine Scale Modeler subscribers. As mentioned in my earlier post above, this info is provided assuming the Board Moderators are OK with this info and link (and they are welcome to delete it if this is no longer the case). Best regards....TIM

Bill, and with apologies to Dennis and others on this thread, here is three color images of that model, placed alongside the current Revell '29A Roadster Highboy kit.... Now, back to our regularly scheduled program here! Best....TB

Andy....you are exactly correct. Only one production run of the Street Rod Woodie kit had these parts, however. I can't recall the exact story, but it was intended to be a utility trailer. It was to be an added feature for a future run of the kit, but it got killed partly through the tooling process. Memory is very vague on this, so I am probably recalling some of the details incorrectly. Good news is Round 2 is aware of the tooling. There is a possibility it might reappear at some point, although if so, not clear if it would remain in the partially completed form or be finished. In any case, this is probably quite some time in the future given everything else they have on their plate right now. Best....TIM

Replicas and Miniatures Co. of Maryland offers a package of surfboards (#P-90), recapping about 12 of the best boards that have appeared in various kits over the last 70 years or so. Highly recommended....TIM PS = some of the boards shown here are, IIRC, from the R&M Co of Md. package....TB

Interesting insights here...thanks Alan. If any of you know (or knew) Rich Rothermel....he had some first hand experiences with George that left him very disillusioned. One the other hand, Barris was heavily involved in the model kit world (much more so than most people realize) from the very early 1960's through the 1970's; his contributions definitely enhanced our hobby. Years ago I was commissioned by Brett Barris (George's son) to write a chapter for the tabletop art book "The Art of George Barris". Once I started researching, I was pretty amazed at how involved he was. Beyond kit development ideas and topics at AMT (and later, MPC and several of the others), he was heavily involved in writing about model cars and how to modify them during the early 1960's. The mag shown above in one of the posts was just one of several such pubs, and of course he contributed to the mainstream magazines too. A complex man, for sure, for all the good and not so good (as accurately detailed in other posts here in this thread) that entails. TIM

My source at Round 2 believes the kit is now just weeks away from being in the store. Like many of you, can't wait on this one! TIM

David....as a Car and Driver subscriber since the mid 1970's, I am utterly appalled at what they have done to OUR magazine. The current editor had no qualifications that I could find in her past work that would justify her being placed in charge of the single most authoritative new car magazine of our lifetime, and the changes since she took over (whether directed by her or those above her) are, well, I can't come up with a word to describe my reaction. The only things good that have happened are that the Letters section remains, and that Elena Scherr was picked up as a columnist (though I would have preferred John Phillips and the others to have stayed instead). And now they have slyly changed the publication schedule to ten issues a year vs. the 12 a year we paid for. Meanwhile, Rich Ceppos (who has a decades long history with the mag, and is a deeply respected professional who also had direct auto industry OEM experience (Ford SVT/Campbell Marketing, and later on, working for Bob Lutz at GM)), is back at C&D in an online role. He would have been a terrific choice to become Editor. TIM

Rex....I used the Testors Color Shift myself on an Altered Dragster model a couple of years ago; I too was happy with how it turned out. If I am remembering correctly (it was 25 years ago this month IIRC) when we launched the real SVT Mystic Cobra at the 1996 Chicago Auto Show, our talking points suggested multiple (rather than just two) color shifts. The paint was super-expensive to purchase from the supplier and used the same type of pigments as were imprinted in currency at the time. It was also nearly impossible to photograph accurately so our SVT dealers knew what they were ordering. Only those who actually bought an SVT Mystic Cobra were allowed to buy paint for touchups and collision repair. I am sure such restrictions are now long gone.... This Testor Color Shift paint does a really good job of approximating the real thing, at a realistic price point for serious model car hobbyists. Thanks for the reply....TIM 9

Phil....OK, thanks for the follow-up note. Very disappointing news. I may bring it up with the Models Brand Editor next time we converse....TIM

Heh Rex....sharp work on that Mystic SVT Cobra.....what did you use for the paint? Cheers....TIM