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Wow, two beauties! I have to think though that the silver car was quite the undertaking to get all that plumbing in so perfectly! Looks like you've done this before

I will totally be looking forward to seeing your build! If you haven't already seen it, check out https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235114331-howmet-tx-le-mans-24h-1968/ and https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235113203-howmet-tx-le-mans-24h-1968/

Aah, good to know. There seem to have been so many variations of this car through its development.

Absolute stunners all around Ken! And if you can, post the pics even larger so we can enjoy your detail work even more

Sweet addition to a great collection Kaci!

Sweet collection of GTO's Ludwig!

What a beautiful build Joe, I love it!

Great job Brock, especially the ghost designs in the paintwork. You'll have to share with us how you accomplished it. Thanks for posting!

Beautiful build. I can totally see Biff waxing it under a shade tree

Totally Rad!

Two beautiful builds! I am particularly impressed with the BMF work since it is the hardest part of any project for me!

Thnk you Mike

Very cool idea!

Thanks Joe! Your observation is hilarious with the accompanying photo . On the other hand, I wonder if there is some truth to it?

Thank you much Alan!

Thanks James, I appreciate that.

Thank you Chris! By all means, pull them out and build them! For old designs, they come out quite presentable when done. Thank you kindly Joe!

Thank you much Ken.

Thank you Rich for your kind words. I would LOVE to see your rendition of a Howmet TX! I'm sure it would come out stunning. I recently saw a post of a gentleman that did a Profil 24 version of that car, and the detail work reminded me of your beautiful builds!

Hi Andria, the biggest concern with the reissue is that the rear cowl section never seems to want to line up with the front body, mostly due to warpage. On my "Mark III" version, I glued the two halves together since the engine could be seen through the rear glass. On the stock "Mark II" version, I made a gusset from .032 x .25 inch brass stock which I glued under the rear cowl. The gusset could be bent at will to line up the two halves nicely. You can see it more in detail at the below link: As for the rest, the reissue was not brittle, went together nicely (as long as you paid strict attention to the order of assembly), and looked quite presentable when completed. I would certainly not hesitate to get one at have a go!

Thank you Michael. I think I enjoy the research almost as much as the building with these historic vehicles

Below is my generally stock build of the MPC Howmet TX Turbine Road Racer released in 1968. My kit was complete in an open box, although a few pieces had succumbed to the years having become brittle, warped and broken. These were replaced with ones scavenged from the MPC Can Am reissue. First up was the Continental TS325-1 gas turbine engine which I had built twice before for my MPC Can-Am version of this car, as well as a customized version envisioning what a "Mark III" might have looked like. In this instance, I left the engine in chrome and misted Tamiya TS-94 Metallic Gray over it for a very satisfying Panel Line Accent effect. The exhausts were painted Krylon Metallic Rust. The rest of the frame, interior, and suspension went together identically to my two prior builds utilizing virtually all the same parts. The rear sway bar was done in brass as the original was beyond saving. The only other modification was a pair of fuel inlets extending right and left above the tank. Next was the body, which was nicely molded except for a short shot in the tail and roll pan. The pan was addressed with a piece of plastic cut from a prescription bottle of the appropriate diameter, along with putty. In terms of its shape, the body in this kit looked much like the version of the Howmet that raced in the 1968 Daytona 24 hours and Sebring 12 hours - - - thus became my inspiration for the build. The original decals were long yellowed and dried out, thus an aftermarket set was pressed into service. They went on beautifully, although required much extra labor as components were separate and had to be placed one layer on top of another. (For instance, just the little American flags required a white background decal, then a red stripes decal, followed by a blue stars decal). The paintwork on the body required a base coat of Tamiya TS-26 Pure White, masked area on the nose in TS-51 Racing Blue, another masked area in the engine compartment for AS-12 Bare Metal Silver, headlight buckets and dash in TS-14 Black, and TS-94 Metallic Gray over the chrome greenhouse to knock down the sheen. (TS-94 has become my favorite to give realism to just about any paintjob as it lays down evenly, is fairly translucent, and the effect can be controlled by how heavily it is applied). The build was quite satisfying as parts went together nicely, and I believe the final product came out presentable: The American Racing rims that came with the kit were replaced with the more accurate Halibrands found in period photos, these having come from a Revell Shelby Cobra Streetburner kit. Likewise, the sideview mirrors from the MPC kit were the wrong size, shape, and location. Thus, they too were replaced with period correct bullet mirrors from the same Revell Cobra kit and relocated to the front fenders. Next, the one-piece chrome plastic piece for the rear was replaced with aluminum mesh (I only noticed after the kit was done that I should have rotated the diamond pattern on this mesh 90 degrees). And finally, a small conceit was the addition of tow hooks under the nose of the car from a Fujimi Ford GT kit. Since I also have the Mark II Can Am version of this car done in period trim, it seemed only fitting to do a beauty shot of the two cars together (Interestingly, I have never seen a photo of the two 1:1 cars together). And finally, inclusion of my interpretation of how the "Mark III" would have looked - - - borrowing elements from both of its predecessors...

Such a cool build and even better story to go with it!

Welcome Jim! Your two beauties held up well after all these years, thanks for sharing!

Total beauty!