OldNYJim

Thank you! I run my machine at .03 generally, but you’re right, I can crank up the resolution if I need something particularly crisp. Usually .03 gets me close enough for most flaws to be hidden by a couple of minutes of sanding and a cost of primer so I don’t sweat it too much… Couple of small updates, as I’m replying anyway…spent most of this week getting nice glossy finishes on what felt like a hundred little pieces ready for chrome…got the first batch shot today: If I was smart I would’ve done this first, because it’s really slowing me down not having parts to glue to other parts…lesson learned (or probably not - ha!) Back on the glass, I designed and cut some masks for the class lettering on the rear windows: Came out ok, I think: And I picked up some Evergreen canopy cement to start attaching some of these red bits to the shiny yellow bits: Seems to work pretty well, although I won’t be pulling on these pieces TOO hard…rest of the glass in place: And I’ve been working on the sister car a little - that one will be almost box stock, to demonstrate the work I’ve done on the ‘main’ car - gave the frame some light weathering (mainly for my own amusement), picked a second color for the engine and some other bits and started laying down some mist coats of clear on the body: Only got this weekend and next to wrap both of these up for the IPMS show in a couple of weeks, so I need to get hustling here…thanks for looking! More soon!

Well, for all us doubters (or, at least, concerned citizens), Atlantis posted a vid from the NY Toy Fair today, with a Sidewinder prototype proudly on display: Plus, this T-bucket that they’ve been teasing for a while: Excited for both of these!

Both of these kits came up on my Amazon recommendations recently and I was contemplating picking them up, so I’ll be watching for some pointers! How is the engine and chassis detail on the beach buggy? Great start!

He posted some paintings that he did to Instagram last weekend: https://www.instagram.com/p/CxlegcdOPLE/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Seems like he's not really doing model stuff lately...

Foose did it better... Him, and Jairus:

Neat - he ruined a plane AND a car!

And your time is no doubt valuable enough that trying to scrub overspray off that nice paintjob would be a waste… Great looking build so far! I remember seeing the Goldeneye Bond movie as a kid and falling in love with this car aged whatever I was then…it’s still on my to-build list now

You can buy perfectly serviceable furniture at IKEA…but there’s still master craftsman woodworkers. The human desire to create from nothing will never go away.

I looked up your build of one of these, and remembered once I saw it - GREAT build! Always enjoy your work!

I don't think you'll find any Atlantis Sidewinders out in the wild to 'stock up' on...not sure any made it out of the Atlantis warehouse door in the first place... I remember they were talking about using some kind of brass or copper plating instead of chrome for that one - maybe that's causing a slow-down and we'll see more in due course. Fingers crossed...

I seem to remember that the C-cab was going to use existing running gear (Tweedy Pie, as mentioned above), but with a newly tooled body. I hope that one makes it, because it's a cool looking kit! Ditto that blue T in the background, although the nose doesn't do that particular build pictured there any favors (in my opinion)

Excellent! Thanks for the review Bill! I've got an original Monogram '34 kit that I haven't tackled yet...I'll DEFINITELY be pleased with my purchase once it arrives then! Thanks for the info!

There’s another dragster, along the lines of the Mooneyes kit that seems likely to be next (because they posted in-progress box-art of it a few weeks back) and there was a T-bucket kit they teased too…I’d bet that C-cab is pretty far down the list right now. Anyone notice that the Tom Daniel Sidewinder kit has been quietly taken off their website and can’t be preordered anymore? A few places still have it available to order, but I don’t see it on Atlantis’s site anymore, and between last week’s weekly email and this week’s it’s been taken off the ‘coming-soon’ list ? I’m sure there were pics of it on their social media too but I can’t see them on there anymore either…

Just ordered one of these myself, having remembered that I wanted one thanks to seeing your post…paid 30-odd bucks shipped for this same issue, new and sealed…I don't even know what to expect in the box aside from the distinctive green plastic that all of these seem to have. Is the detail on these kits similar to, say, the Green Hornet / Black Widow kits, or maybe the old 1/24 Monogram Deuce roadsters? That’s what I imagined I’m getting…

Thanks fellas! I picked up a stomach bug early last week and I’ve not been able to hit the bench like I’d like…which is unfortunate as there’s only a couple more weekends left before the IPMS show that I’d like to debut it at (assuming it’s done…). Plenty to do! Next challenge is something I’ve been thinking over for a few weeks now - how to tackle the chromework around the windows. I can’t use foil like I normally would because I made little brass vent windows, and some of the edges on the body itself are too skinny for me to be able to foil them, I think. Next option was Alclad, but I wasn’t overjoyed with the idea of masking the body and spraying black enamel base and risking trouble with the existing paintjob. Also, I don’t wanna have to try and assemble this thing and polish it out and accidentally ruin the Alclad - same problem with Molotow and the other chrome inks. Decided best course of action was Vallejo chrome, which is a bright silver acrylic that I felt safe laying down, can be cleared over to protect it, and easily fixed if I ding it during assembly later. First up, did a half-polish on the body and carefully washed it after: I normally use polishes for a lot of the finishing work, but couldn’t risk contaminating the surface with silicone or anything that would ruin the next paint steps… Next up, masked carefully with my favorite low-tack tape, plus some Tamiya plastic tape and some thin strips of Michael’s artist’s tape to get the curves I needed in a couple of spots: Laid down the Vallejo chrome (much more of a brushed aluminum, in reality…) And a coat of matte clear and some unmasking later and we’ve got some silver window trim: I really wanted to make these all chrome, but hopefully in the overall context of the finished build it’ll look ok…there WILL be plenty of actual chrome on here - plus I think the red tinted glass will be more of an eye-catcher than the silver stuff around it anyway. Speaking of which, polished out the glass with some Novus #2, washed the parts carefully in Dawn and got everything clear tinted like it needed to be: I’ll give these parts another polish before installation, and the side windows need some lettering to match the box art too… And that’s my pitiful process for this week…aside from prepping above 50 little pieces for chrome…that’s what’s slowing down any assembly for me right now. More soon, soon as I’ve done more!

The Sopranos Cheers Frasier American Hot Rod Cant think of a fifth, but I watch the NY news on NBC every single day, so I guess that would be number five ?

That’s really realistic - nice work!

Oh man, those colors are NICE! Good choices!

A little more progress this weekend… First order of business was a little signwriting on the sister car…designed some lettering for the doors and cut some masks: I’m going with colors that will compliment the rest of the scene I’m trying to create here…first up, a pure white base: Then, a little masking with a Post It (which is a useful tool when you don’t want to use anything too tacky over recently shot paint…) and some of the same yellow I used on the ‘main’ car: Then, some more masking and a third color: Next up, I shot some intercoat to protect the work I already did, and once that dried I laid down some more masks: And then some black, to outline those big chunky cartoony letters: Then, the moment of truth…tada! I have a little more to do on this one, but like the box art that inspired these builds this one will be a lot simpler…it’s really just part of the furniture for the little scene I’m making… Speaking of the box art, I felt like doing some work on the base, so I cut some styrene sheet to make the banner that you can see top right here: I covered the ‘banner with medical tape to give it a little texture, then cut some more masks for the lettering and that snowflake graphic, then shot some Createx baby blue and dark blue over top: Some careful unmasking later… Whilst I was doing all that, I had the printer running, making some from brake disks, fire extinguishers for the interior and a shot at a better looking steering wheel…parts fresh off the printer: This steering wheel is SUPER fragile, but I like how it looks compared to the kit piece - what an improvement! The kit part was fragile too, but at least the new one is round to start with… Thanks for looking - more soon, soon as I’ve done more!

In the lot where I work this week

Nice looking build! I love those colors - and those wheels look great too!

Thank you so much! It’s the weekend, so a little more progress… Trued the tires to get rid of some of that shine and make them round…the rears weren’t too difficult, but had to go easy on the fronts because that distinctive triangular tread pattern is pretty shallow and I didn’t wanna scrub it all off… I’ll shoot them with some dullcoat once I’ve rounded those sharp edges off the rears to round them out a little… Foiled the dash: Added the decals from the new Revell issue of this kit, and made some toggle switches: Then used a little of this Glossy Accents from Hobby Lobby to add the gauge faces: It goes on cloudy, but clears right up when it drives, and it’s thick enough to make domed glass, if you need to: Whilst that was drying, masked the seats - I’m going for a sparkly-yellow-vinyl look for the insert and black for the bulk of the seat…Silly Putty to the rescue for that tricky masking job: Worked great…just a couple of touch-ups with a brush and these will be ready for the next stage: Whilst I was messing with the interior, made a template and cut some carpets: And added some detail to the roll cage with heatshrink and monofilament to represent roll cage padding: Quick mock-up of the interior…I wanna improve on that kit steering wheel, I think, it’s not really cutting it for me…although I’m pleased with the metalflake effect on the rim… And back on the outside, got some clear built up on the body and it’s ready for its last wetsand and final coats of clear before it bakes a while before polishing…touched up some flaws in the lilac one too and shot some intercoat on it ready for laying down some lettering: Plenty of disjointed all-over-the-place progress…but at least it’s progress, I guess ? More soon, soon as I’ve done more!

I ordered some licensed Ed Roth art from an artist named Jim Madison after seeing his work at a car show recently…and it came today! Ordered a frame for it, and it’ll be a great addition to the wall above my bench. Plus, he sent a whole stack of over cool art too - all kinds of interesting stuff to hang and display! This one would be cool to illuminate, somehow, with a little hanging light box:

That is FASCINATING, and I’d never heard about that before. Thank you for posting!

Saw this cool old Vette, apparently broken and stuck on a junction on my commute home…there wasn’t a good place to stop but the guy was on his phone when I looped past so hopefully he got things resolved…