DJMar

Great lineup, thanks for posting them. Even though the Ramcharger aficionado in me is silently screaming, this gives me ideas.

The Elco Street machine was announced for release in May and the Shelby in June.

I'm pretty sure Texas 3D has a 440 engine kit with a single plane hi-rise similar to this. IIRC, someone on Shapeways had a file for this manifold a while back, but I don't recall if it was for the Hemi or the B/RB series.

Applying decals over a matte finish poses its own problems, which is why you see a lot of military modelers employ this process when applying decals to their builds. Trying to get decals to adhere properly to a matte surface, without silvering, can be challenging. Depending on the decals, it might be possible to apply them over a dull finish using a good deal of setting solution if they don't have a lot of carrier film visible in the design. You can sometimes trim the decals down to their edges to avoid silvering, but I think you may still face problems with adhesion and lifting. Just curious - when looking at the real car that you're trying to replicate, how pronounced is the difference between the car's finish and the sheen of the markings at any sort of normal viewing distance?

You know how I knew they were going to re-release this one? I bought one late last year in the (overinflated) secondary market. 😆 You would think I would learn my lesson after all these years, but it's nice for everyone else that this one is coming back.

Yes, another vote for STS. Good stuff.

Totally off topic, but that T bucket is 🔥🔥🔥!

I've moved to buying online, since all of the local shops that catered to plastic models have slowly disappeared over the last 20 years. I will pick up a kit at Hobby Lobby or Michael's once in a blue moon, but only if the price is really good. I did score the R2 reissue of the MPC Daytona Shelby Z at HL for $19 last time around. The kit selection at these locations is often limited, so I don't shop them often. I am pickier about buying kits in general. I'm buying fewer models, and I'm much more selective about subject matter. The "price to enjoyment" ratio is simply not there anymore with a lot of new releases (or re-releases), and long gone are the days when I could walk out of the LHS on a crisp Saturday morning with 3 new kits for $30 and a chat with the owner.

Personally, I would wait for it to dry another day or so, scuff the whole body with a 2500 or 3000 grit pad, wash it off, and give it another pass with the can. I found a similar set of those sanding pads at Hobby Lobby about two weeks ago for $5.99 or so, if you have one nearby.

Stanced with stickers still on the tires, I love it! Also, that paint is smoooooth.

Since I started building models in the Age of Enamels™, I am one of those who always lets paint dry forever between coats. Even with fast drying Tamiya synthetic lacquers, I give it at least 72 hours before top coat or re-coat. That's probably a little overkill, but I'd rather wait than strip a paint job. I will echo the suggestion that you let it dry for two days, and shoot another coat over the top. Whether you sand down or scuff the offending areas is up to you, and depends on how rough they are (it's hard to tell from the pics).

I've built about 6 or 7 of these in various forms since the original Z28 kit was released 35 years ago. While there are some fitment problems, most of them can be avoided with careful mock up and test fitting. The issue with the interior tub not fitting well is common in some of the versions of this kit. Tim Boyd referenced this in his buildup of this kit in the April 1994 issue of SAE, so it's been around for a hot minute. There is a 3 part solution: 1) making sure the interior panels are fitted correctly (which often means sanding the lower edges to fit) before you glue them in, 2) test fitting the rear glass to be sure it plays nice with the back of the tub (which can mean filing down the lower edge of the backlight or the upper edge of the tub for clearance) and 3) making sure the dash is sitting where it is meant to be and isn't rotated out of position. If you don't pay attention to these areas, the fit issue gets worse. As for the hood hinges not clearing the tub, this is also pretty common. You can either sand down the hinge stubs a bit so they clear, or you can use a file to open up the holes in the tub, or a little of both. You may also need to slightly clearance the notches in the firewall. Honestly, it looks like one of your hinges is bent to one side, which exacerbates the problem. But this is a pretty simple and straightforward fix. Now it's possible that the issues you're having are the result of shoddy QC on Revell's part. As I said, there are some known fit issues, and while this kit isn't at the level of "shake-n-bake" Tamiya engineering, I think it's still an eminently buildable model with some patience and test fitting. Obviously, YMMV.

Great minds think alike and all that. I did something similar on my original issue of the '29 kit. I noticed that when building the channeled version, those notches are visible just outside the frame rails, and it was making me unhappy. Instead of trying to build the pan and interior as a unit and filling those gaps with putty, I added some .010 styrene covers. I had to work around the existing floor framing, but the idea is the same. It's one of those engineering bugaboos that makes me love/hate these kits. Anyway, your work on this particular '30 is super clean and really inspiring. I might have to revisit the '30 in my stash with some new inspiration.

In my experience, washes are going to be your primary way of getting this sort of subtle weathering, especially in scale. My usual technique - taken from years of military modeling - is to use pin washes with artist's oil paints and thinner. But over the last few years I've taken to using Reaper Miniatures Core Colors paints, used over enamels or lacquers. There are a few advantages. The paint dries quickly, and is not set until you seal it, which means you can wash off any mistakes with soap and water (or acrylic thinner) without disturbing the basecoat. It's easy to mix colors with them, especially dusty or muddy browns and shades of rust. I bought a few colors (orange, brown, black and white) for about $12 and have had them for more than 5 years now. One other option that might work for you are powdered pigments, such as those made by Vallejo. You can mix these with a little water and make very convincing dirt and mud effects, especially if you want something with a bit of texture.

This is cool. I'm digging the bazooka sized exhaust tip!

Nicely done. Those Motormax rigs look great with your added detailing.

That is a really cool paint job. Even with all the building challenges, you turned out quite a looker.

Looks awesome. That's a great color - what is it?

Fleegle, Bingo, Drooper and Snorky would be proud. Your paint work has done them justice. As soon as I saw the title of this post I started singing the theme song (in my head).

I'm with you, Revellogram did a bang up job with their 3rd gen Firebird kits. Even the Revell SnapTite '93 T/A kit is a winner.

I'm digging the color.

That is a pretty 'Cuda. I am digging the color combo and the Mod Top is wonderful, it looks just like the real thing. Great work on the chrome too, everything is super clean. Absolutely top shelf build.

STS sells headlight decals that should work for this model, you might have to use the generic set. https://stsdecals.com/collections/headlights BTW, it looks great in that green. And I really dig those wheels.

I'm digging it. Great color for the car, and I like the painted wheels. Good call on redoing the interior so you can actually see it! As one of my favorite cars of the 1990s, I always wondered why AMT didn't release the unassembled promo as a Snap Fast kit.