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Thank you Michelle!

Thank you Bill. I'm already putting the pieces together on the Bordinat roadster... Apparently I'm a slow learner!

Thank you much Samuel

I was thrilled your old thread was resuscitated recently, and I had a chance to see your build. Still looks beautiful!

Thank you Lee. Wouldn't it have been wonderful if Ford had gone through with it (as well as its roadster brethren called the Bordinat Cobra?)

Thank you Hanjo. I had to order them from Hiroboy.com in the UK as it was the only place I could find any. They have great stuff, but shipping obviously added a bit to the cost.

Thank you Al. It's always a trick with this forum to get inspired by all the wonderful talent, without feeling disheartened by my lack thereof.

Hello All, This build was truly the best of times and the worst of times. So many sayings sprung to my mind at various stages - most of which cannot be repeated on this wonderful forum . But, I can share with you one from philosopher Harry Callahan, who said, "a man's got to know his limitations". I certainly discovered mine on this model! I have loved this concept car ever since seeing photos of it in the 1970's, and have had two Lindberg models in my stash for some time. I mean who wouldn't love a Shelby Cobra underneath mated to a sexy Italian looking GT body up top (although this one was designed and built totally in house at Ford)? However, it wasn't until seeing @MrObsessive 's version on this forum that I was moved to try my hand at it (I thank him for the inspiration, if not the perspiration and have developed all kinds of respect for his abilities!) He incorporated some beautiful PE Borrani rims from Detail Master in his build, and had a bunch of opening parts. To be fair, he also did give fair warning as to the difficulty of this kit, but I thought I was up to the challenge. WRONG. To begin with, I did not know IMC originally made this kit in burgundy metal flake molded into the body. Photos of it in the bare looked great, so I left my white styrene Lindbergs aside, and sprung for one of these IMC originals in an open but unstarted box. Of course we all know though that these old kits are never "like new", even coming out of a sealed box. Mine had all the usual issues; rubber tires had etched themselves on the hood, fender, and a particularly interesting etching right in the middle of the windshield. Lots of sanding, buffing, and polishing later, evidence of these had all but disappeared. Both A pillars were broken in multiple places, there was some warpage of the frame, the chrome was flaking off on some parts - the most major being brightwork on the rocker panels - and a few pieces were missing, most notably from hinges and rear red light lenses. So each were addressed in turn to the best of my limited ability. Then came body assembly, and I learned humility all over again! I spent a good week on trying to get the door panels to sort of line up with their openings, but try as I might, the car looked like it came back from the crusher. I don't know if it was warpage, or just an inherent design flaw, but not one single "opening" piece would cooperate. So, after a lot of soul searching, and Harry Callahan on my mind, I decided to skip the opening parts (except hood), and concentrate on making the body as straight as possible. To that end, I heated parts under a hair dryer, glued them in place, used filler to seal gaps in the shut lines, and sanded assembled panels with a block. Once the body was assembled - which was a relatively straightforward affair - I decided to polish it and shoot the roof with Tamiya Mica Silver. The interior was downright stunning to my eyes, looking like a perfect throwback to the 60's idea of luxury and sportiness. I replicated the interior as close to original photos as possible, and used chrome fingernail tape in some spots (BTW; these tapes come in all colors, are cheap, and are great to work with). Next up was the rims. After scouring the internet, the closest I could come to MrObsessive's Borranis were some 1:24 Ferrari GTO rims from Hobby Design. OMG! These things are a pain to put together! Eight layers of tiny parts, some of which have to intertwine their tiny little spokes, all assembled in a beautiful aluminum rim - taking care to line up the itty bitty witness holes, all while NOT gluing your fingers to the part you are trying to build. I would say I exaggerate here for effect, but sadly I am not exaggerating. Oh, and by the way, did I mention it comes with these infinitesimal valve stems as well? First, you're supposed to drill the aluminum rim with some drill bit tenth the size of a human hair, then insert the stem under an electron microscope. Suffice it to say, that's one week of my life I'll never get back, and the valve stems went in the parts bin. The good and the bad of the rims upon completion are this; they look great (although not as great as the Borranis), and the larger diameter shod with wider tires from Testors Aluma Coupe look fantastic on the car - giving it the sportiness and stance one would expect from a Cobra. Having said all this, I present to you my best attempt at the gorgeous Ford Cougar II: Now that it is complete, I have to say this model will feature front and center in my display case. Overall, I'm happy with the decision I made to weld the "opening" parts shut as the alternative was just not going to look as good with my limited abilities. Just taking these photos, I did notice a few flaws I still need to address; exhaust tips, roof touch-up, Molotow on the Ford emblems, etc. The part that bothers me most is the hood closure. It was virtually perfect before assembly, but now wants to sit proud of the fenders. I have a bunch of tiny magnets, so I think I'll try my hand at Doug Whyte's technique on this one part (check out the link below for his wonderful tutorial) Next up for me; the Bordinat Cobra...

Beautiful choice of vehicle and color Jeremy. And great job on the photos. I also like to take photos in daylight, preferably just before dusk so there are no harsh shadows.

Totally awesome! A Nomad for the modern age

I just checked it out, and it's coming out great. Right around photo 55, you gave me quite a surprise though - I thought for sure you were going to go with the textbook light gray interior, but instead you went with bright red! I LOVE black cars with bright red interiors. I'm definitely going to be keeping your build in mind for when I build the 83 Hurst in my stash. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks John! I liked this model enough so I may have to get another one to turn into a Pro Street. Building OOB was therapeutic in this case, but really goes against my grain!

Hello All, While working on a rather tedious and slow build, I decided to mix it up and throw a Revell "Quick Builder" model together of the 2013 Camaro ZL1. It's barely a level 3 build, as it already comes pre-painted and with many components molded together as major assemblies. Having said that, it has a very good level of detail and can certainly be dialed up to a full build for those so inclined. In my case, I only masked off the body in the engine compartment for an accurate look, and reshot the front strut towers with Testors "Revving Red" Extreme Lacquer which closely approximated the body color. The engine was a beauty, with lots of detail. The interior went together easily, and had a nice amount of detail - not quite as fine as the Revell Foose Corvette I recently did, but close. So with only one day in the books, I knocked this one out and will proudly add it to my collection. BTW, as the topside photo shows, I tinted the rear and side windows. If I hadn't already mentioned it, I like to get samples of automotive window tinting and cut them to size. I then either glue or tape them in position under the clear window. I find that I get a much more uniform appearance, and can vary the level of tint or color I want depending on the sample I use.

Just a stunner in every aspect. My respect to you on the incredible realism you achieved!

Totally sweet!

Super cool. I'll be watching this build for sure!

Between your wonderful choice of car, the exquisite build, the incredible photography - - - okay, you're just showing off!

Happy Independence Day to you as well Sir!

It's like watching a Swiss watch maker assemble a watch! So detailed and concise. Love it!

Nothing puts a smile on my face like a Manx! Now I want to build one too! What model did you start with?

I actually saw this car at last year's SEMA in the Chrysler booth. They were showcasing the electric motor, but I was more enjoying the fact that the Charger was again a two-door car.

I LOVE how you let your creativeness run free! At this rate, you are going to be a master model maker in no time. Well done Michelle!

Beautifully done Sir. Nice tribute to the best Batmobile since the TV series!

That is the perfect blue for that car. Well done on the finish!

Looking very tasty!