DJMar

I do love a 4th gen 'Bird, especially ones prior to the '98 refresh. I never built this particular kit, but it looks like a winner. AMT was cranking out some good stuff in the mid-90s.

Yes, the steering geometry on lowered Effies is a whole other ball of wax. But I've seen a few notched front frames to go along with the axle flip on 1:1s, so you're right on. The whole project is coming along nicely. I spent countless hours and too many busted knuckles on my own '53 F100, and I'll tell you, building the kit is a lot easier.

I've seen the flipped front axle (SOA to SUA) on some 1:1 Effies, and while you can do it, it can lead to some clearance and handling issues. A lot of F100 owners will get new leafs for the front end that 1) lower the ride height and 2) center the wheel in the fender. Some go with a dropped axle or a dropped axle with new springs. But in general, these trucks are relatively easy to lower without a ton of mods and still ride decently. On the kit, it's much easier to flip the axle then it is to do anything else. I'd say your build has got a stance that would be totally workable on a real '53. And yes, that radiator is from the original, lime green issue of the Revell Malibu SS Pro Street "Max Rat" kit.

Revell skipped the chrome on the recent reissue of the '85 Z28, too. I'm sure it's a time/cost/process saving step to eliminate the plating, but whatever the case, it also happens to be accurate. Neither the '85 Camaro nor the '85 Fiero have chrome wheels (or valve covers or alternator, for that matter). The only thing "missing" the chrome plating in those kits are the mirror faces, and that can be handled in a jiffy with some BMF or Molotow. As for the Stranger Things Camaro, the only thing on the 1:1 car that was chromed were the wheel trim rings and center cap. Yes, it would have been nicer for some to have the wheels plated for ease of painting, but honestly, that's not going to be a deal breaker for most people buying that kit. And I think that's the point. In this economy, companies are going to do whatever they can to cut corners while still getting us to buy product. So yeah, the bottom line is literally the bottom line. Revell saves a few pennies by skipping plating on some of their kits where it's not "needed". The accuracy crowd cheers. The convenience crowd complains. Some modelers don't care. And the Don't Like It, Don't Buy it crowd says...

1) The original issue wheels were plated, but they were also molded open, as they are in the reissue. 2) There were no "recessed black areas" on the stock wheels; it's more of a medium/graphite gray. As you can see in the pic below (1985 Fiero GT), those recessed areas just kind of blend into shadows at scale viewing distances. You could probably replicate the effect with something like Tamiya's grey panel line accent or a simple gray wash.

You can probably find any generic set of PE harness-buckles-hardware that are era appropriate and go with that. Gofer Racing, Detail Master & Scale Motorsport all offer some sort of racing harness that could probably adapted to your model. Research is your friend here.

Really cool build and a nice print. Love the color. A friend of mine had an original back in the early 80s, I would swap rides on his for runs around the block on my Stingray (which was cool but in a very different way).

Jawa approved!

I would definitely try sanding that down with some very fine grits (2000, 2500, 3200 and up) to see if you could get the paint spill off. If the Tamiya paint underneath is fully cured, you might be able to remove most of it without too much damage to the blue underneath. Go slow, use a gentle touch and see what happens. You can always go back and use more aggressive grits if the finer stuff isn't working. Then, a trunk repaint. I wouldn't use paint thinner at all in this case.

Just a heads up, FYI, etc. for y'all. I'm not sure this has been mentioned before, but I just ran into this issue yesterday. If you are hosting photos on imgur.com, and then linking them in your posts here, it's possible that some users may not be able to see them. Some ISPs have throttled and/or blocked access to that website and all its content. When I first encountered the issue, I thought it might be my browser security configuration, so I tried several different browsers with no change. After a little searching and hair pulling, I realized my main ISP (Comcast/Xfinity) was blocking site access and giving back 409 conflict errors. Luckily, I also have secondary internet because of work (T-Mobile), and I was able to see everything just fine using it. Ditto on access via my phone (Verizon). This isn't an issue with the MCM board, obviously, but if any mods want to add their thoughts on this issue, feel free. I understand that posting photos from outside sites saves space on the forum end of things.

None of your pics are showing up, if you click the link it gives you a 409 error at imgur. Edit: I realized that my ISP was blocking access to imgur.

Wow, I haven't seen those kits in forever, especially the Dust Devil version. That's a cool score, Desert Dawgs and all. I'm kind of jealous that you've got a 2wd frame in that box.

Nice work on that exhaust!

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).