Big_John

I also wanted a pleated bench seat, so I resin printed that too. This, along with the tonneau and the wheels were painted with a light beige color that I mixed up with leftover Tamiya acrylics. I wanted a late 50's type steering wheel, like many of the customs from that era, so that got printed too and installed in the stock dash. The rest of the interior was painted flat red. And a shot of fitting the pink primered body.

Since I didn't have a good bed anymore, I resin printed one. My own design, tunneled lights and license plate. The tonneau cover was printed on my filament printer. The texture was achieved by printing it face down on the mat. The mat's surface gives the texture. I also printed the wheels. There's also my first attempt for the bed. While I said "no detailing", I did cut the generic exhaust manifolds and crossover pipe in favor of printed headers. The exhaust was made with aluminum craft wire with heat shrink tube as the mufflers. In hind sight, I should have painted the mufflers another color besides black.

When I was a kid, one of the favorite models I did was the AMT '34 Ford truck. It was a favorite for a couple reasons... I liked the truck and it was one of the first models I did where it didn't come out looking like a mess of glue and plastic. I wish I had a picture of it... I bought a bagged kit at a model show last year. The custom pieces were gone and my original intent was a slot drag car. I got as far as cutting up the bed for motor clearance and it hit me that I really wanted to do something else with it. So.... It sat for a year until I decided to do something with it. I looked around for inspiration and I decided to build a 50's style hot rod truck. I found it with this truck. Jay Everett's truck was featured in the February 1951 issue of Hot Rod Magazine. It has about everything I wanted with a mild chopped top, channeled body, custom built bed and smooth sided 3 piece hood. I couldn't come up with a color until I remembered the one I built as a kid was red... So this one should be too. I chopped the top 1/8" and that works out to ~3" and channeled the body over the frame. I wanted to keep it simple with no extensive detailing. This model was intended for me to get back into modeling and not get hung up with a long project. No, the truck isn't crooked... It's my lack of photography skillz..

I drop a lot of stuff because I'm just clumsy and the usual was to get down on my knees (which really hurts) and look with a flashlight. I had a LED strip light that I was going to set up over my printer and it was laying on the floor when I dropped a part. I switched that LED on and it lit up the entire floor so nicely that I've left it sitting there so I can search for anything that gets dropped.

About 30 years ago, I dropped a hard contact lens down a hotel drain when I was out of town for work. They were about $85 each to replace (in mid 90's money) so I called the front desk and they sent up their maintenance guy. He asked me for a sock and placed it over the nozzle of his vacuum cleaner and sucked that lens out of the drain first try. Tipped him $10 (again mid 90's money) and learned to always cover the drains.

A lot of that "plumbing" is for the hydraulic valves. They tried not using a camshaft and instead a timed hydraulic system that was tied to the distributor that opened and closed the intake/exhaust valves. It was innovative, but complicated and troublesome, and the extra hydraulic system made the engine hard to start, so it needed a 24volt aircraft battery. It was canned for a conventional camshaft engine. Some good reading on Preston Tucker and the Tucker car is "Preston Tucker and His Battle to Build the Car of Tomorrow" by Steve Lehto. Lehto also wrote a fantastic book on the Chrysler Turbine car too.

That is amazing. When I first saw the pics, I thought it was a real 1:1 car and not a model.

Actually not "war surplus". They did use a modified helicopter engine that was originally intended for a Bell 47. The final engine design was quite a bit different. Preston Tucker bought the engine company (Air Cooled Engines in Syracuse, NY) and the family owned it for years after his death. That company was formally known as the H.H. Franklin company that built Franklin cars until 1934. It's a really interesting chapter in the Tucker history. Wikipedia barely scratches the surface on the history, but it does summarize it fairly well. I've been a Tucker fan ever since I saw one when I was a kid and yes, it was being driven like a regular car at the time. The last I saw that particular car, it was sitting with a bunch of junk cars behind a body shop. I have no idea what happened to the car after that... Hopefully it's still around. This particular kit looks nice, but I can't justify the price tag. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Engine_Company https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tucker_48 And here's a pic I took of the engine in the prototype Tucker chassis in the Hershey AACA museum. https://www.aacamuseum.org/exhibit/tucker-automobiles/ And the prototype chassis.

I used to travel a lot for work and so I stayed in a lot of hotels. I always kept the key card and tossed them in my toolbox when I had a few on the dresser. They worked great for temporary shims or spreading putty. As I got back into modeling, I found more uses. I'd use them to spread Bondo spot putty or cut them to narrow strips to scrape in a channel. I use them most as a palette for paints and glues. I sometimes buy acrylic paint in squeeze bottles and I just squeeze a little on the card and use my little disposable applicator brushes. Same for super glue... Squirt some out and use the brushes. A well used card. I've gotten a lot of use out of this one. The other side looks about the same.

The ones I looked at on eBay were "remanufactured" Hitachi units, so I assume that would be what the OEM used. Are they actually offering new units that cheap? I'm not doubting that an aftermarket alternator might be different enough to not allow much parts swapping. Cheapest on eBay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/204485279667?fits=Year%3A1971|Make%3ADatsun&epid=227430304&itmmeta=01HWKB54MFW612FJSBA5XPX1H1&hash=item2f9c45bfb3:g:EJQAAOSwje1lxVD5&itmprp=enc%3AAQAJAAAA8ClgJZGL%2F71FGbLrTazEygwB%2B9shABs8jxWsqVCqLHzfCuPdR50VecVd0%2BrOxQRESIP82yqHLccmJofF1skIN0RFcB9osSKrpjaALm7r38UVKgceN%2BzCYLPhz86NecR4KXeAO97F9ZejVWNtAHfCWZEO5IY3VvPU18MNuOtuQBEskTJ%2Bhx8VlezEnrj6bqW5DcqErxDha4BWKto7tcPu%2FXqGc%2BrjJ%2FTSAX5ZX0bNOuECbmYbOT5N6Xiiii%2FKolBYxGUmWcc2ZESN7iLYry0NfZfwBXzT4lJClmL0Gtb6Jp6AIRE2mf1Wx3tZV5g0PFxS0A%3D%3D|tkp%3ABFBMssqU6-Rj Is that an aftermarket or rebuild?

IMHO, epoxy will fail almost immediately, so that's not an option. If you had access to TIG weld it, I'd say to try it, but if you have to pay for it, it's going to surpass the cost of a rebuilt piece. I did a quick search and there's replacements on eBay for around $50. I can't say anything for quality, but save that working alternator and you can swap parts if it lets you down. Which brings me to another suggestion... If you can find a used alternator cheap, it's not hard to swap the case.

My mom gave me a Monogram 1934 Ford to put together on a trip to see my older brother who was stationed in Norfolk. I was 7 years old... and the car ended up looking like a 7 year old tried to put it together in the back of a '57 Chrysler. It was the start though!

No, you're not being argumentative at all. My info was from at least 10 years ago, so maybe things changed or maybe my info was wrong. I've never handled or seen anything in person, depending on other's accounts. Since you have some experience, and even more important, not trying to sell me anything, I may have to rethink this... A lot of what I was reading at the time was that they were aiming at selling franchises and I don't know if that worked too well for them.

Those videos have been around for a long time... At least 10-12 years... It hasn't caught on from what I have seen and I've read that it's a lot of $$ to get into the business. I've read a few comments from seeing it up close and they say it is no where as good as they say... In fact the word "misleading" seems to come up in regards to their advertising. The appearance is more like polished aluminum and for use in the real world, it needs clear coat... and the clear coat makes it look even more like aluminum. So, for model use, I'd say it would probably look OK... But in practicality, it would be expensive to buy what you need as I would assume that it's all proprietary.

Great looking build! I was a fan of the real car, even watched it (the '67 car) crash at Niagara on the TV show Wide World of Sports. A friend was in the stands and saw it happen too. I had to look it up to be sure, but the '66 version of the car still exists, with the crashed '67 being scrapped after its 1968 crash. It might be interesting to build the first, 1966 car.

Funny you say that, I was going to watch his video on that subject last night and decided I would wait. I have a tee shirt from him that says on the back "This is sketchy even by my standards" it's great to wear to the docs for the prostate exam.

How about a model car related "irk". I was painting a '34 Ford truck and it popped off the spring loaded stand I was holding. It went directly into the trash can underneath... My fault completely... I need a better area to paint and I should have taped the body to the stand. I know better. At least it was before clear coat and I can fix it fairly easy.

That seems to be par for the course for offshore sourced aftermarket parts, especially the stuff that is relabeled for sale by places like Jegs and Summitt. You should see the fake Mopar ECU ignition boxes with the fake transistor on the front so it looks like the reliable ECU that Chrysler used to sell. That may be just one bad piece... I would expect that they are machined flat and then drilled in a CNC... Or they are drilled with a clamp on jig with a drill press. Either way, something moved mid process.

I'd like to get the PDF version too, please. I'm sending an email address via PM. Thanks!!

Actually, the 273 Formula S motor is nothing to sneeze at. 4bbl AFB carb with a solid lifter cam, adjustable rocker arms, dual point, 10.5:1 pop up pistons etc. With the stock 3.23 gears, it's got enough snap for me. It's just a good package the way it sits. It's a little tired and it's going to get a fresh engine one of these days, and yes, it will be a 273, although I may go with lower compression pistons because of the gas available (now and in the future) and I already have the pistons. (which also saves $670!) I've had fast street cars... It's out of my system now.

PM sent

I bought an Andis clipper a bunch of years ago. It replaced the well worn Andis that my Mom used for many years to cut our hair when we were kids. It was older than me and I figure that one lasted at least 30 years, so I bought another. It cut my boy's hair when they were kids and I've used it for many years to trim my beard. Yes, it was a little pricey, but it's paid for itself many times over. For someone just trimming a beard, there are other options. With a shorter beard, the clippers with a comb are pretty good. Get out to around 3/4" and the comb doesn't work quite as well. Mine is about 1/2" long in the winter and I usually wear a close trimmed goatee in the warmer months. Some of it will depend on your beard (coarse, fine etc.) and how fast it grows. Mine has gone from soft and dark to gray and stiff. I also use beard conditioner with moisturizer occasionally and maybe a little beard oil if I'm going out. Mrs. Big John was cutting my hair for many years (she used to work in her Dad's beauty shop) when I was working so much and didn't have time to go to a barber shop and I trimmed my beard myself. She really couldn't do it anymore, so I started going to a real barber again about a year ago. What I was doing this past winter was having the barber trim my beard and then I would just maintain it between haircuts. Usually about twice a week to keep it looking good. That seems to work best for me. In the summer, I just trim the goatee myself with the clippers and comb.

That's really nice. Correct color too! I have one I need to start...

That "Super Stock Dodge" would have been a '64 330 Dodge with the A864 package. They were just about as trick as the LO23 Dart. Race Hemi engine with aluminum fenders and hood, no back seat, no heater etc., A100 van seats and special lightweight windows made by Corning glass. Note only 2 headlights! BTW, Jan and Dean did the song first... and there really was a "Little Old Lady". https://www.motorcities.org/story-of-the-week/2022/the-little-old-lady-from-pasadena-1960s-dodge-advertising

Regarding the Duplicolor "chrome" paint. I bought a can of Duplicolor for the reflective surface on some tail light housings for one of my old Chryslers. Worked great for that and I had most of the can left, so I tried it on a 3D printed Chrysler 300 Hurst I've been building. It looked OK, still kind of polished aluminum rather than chrome looking, but good enough for this build. Here was the problem.... I superglued the front bumper in place and because the hood was up in the middle slightly, I put a little thick superglue between the bumper and grille and squeezed it down with my fingers... And then I hit it with some kicker... And it immediately ruined the chrome paint on the top of the bumper. So... The plan is to mask it and touch it up. I want to try to decant some from the spray can and use my airbrush as I can control it better, but I'm thinking it might be too thick to spray. The can has a wide pattern spray that was OK with my real tail light housings, but it's a bit much for the model bumper.