Bernard Kron

Bee-oo-tiful paint. Great stripes and detailing. Superb build alll round!

Really great. The agressive front end treatment was a brilliant idea. Adds a whole extra dimension. I agree, the "new" GM should build this!

Great styling Raul. The shiny paint really shows off the details, flow and proportion. The redo on the hood scoop paid off big time. Nice and crisp and adds an extra dimension to the front end. That rear 3/4 view just keeps getting better and better. The little lift on the taillight openings are perfect. Can't wait to see this thing with more details. People often build models of great 1:1's, but this will be one case where someone really needs to build a 1:1 of this classy custom!

First off, to Curt, what a fabulous subject to model. Can't wait to see you build it. Secondly, to Tommy, what a clear and workable tutorial. I asked about louvers last year and wish I had seen something this well done. If there's a builder who can get great results from this method I think it might be you, Curt. Go for it!

For me the critical part for any future '32 issue would be a stock-style frame with transverse leaf spring rear suspension. I'm assuming that the actual cost of plastic is negligible so that the most of the costs would be in the prototyping and tooling, thus not much different than smaller parts like an engine or new type wheels. This piece would drive large numbers of sales as a critical part for traditional rod and factory stock builders. Paired with drum barkesd a stock style firewall and interior for whatever body style was released and you have a classic parts box/kit bashing kit. The Special Edition Roadster upgrade is my pick for this approach but a true '32 roadster pickup with the details show in the pictures above would be fabulous, too. But the key issue here are the more stock, more traditional details, in the frame and firewall, since these can be used with any of the other kits.

Looking at the rear view I could see how raising the bottom edge of the tailights a bit might improve the proportion of the tailights a bit, but I would probably not raise the lower edge all the way to the tailgate's bottom but just up to where the fender wraps around into the rear pan which is just slightly below the tailgate..

E-mail: kitchen_table_resins@yahoo.com Website: http://public.fotki.com/KenK/kitchen_table_resin_kits/

The rear 3/4 view is exceptional with those great talights, the flow of the finders onto the tailgate and rolled pan, and that really nice tailgate. Not to say that it doesn't look spot on from every other angle. The truck looks totally solid and right sitting on its wheels. Even the bed has now integrated totally into the cab area. I'm looking forward to seeing all the nice little chassis and interior details, and the paint...

Progressing steadily… More interior panels were fabbed, some primer/sealer layed down to mask the differing colors of the plastic, and a color mockup of the paints scheme made up in Photoshop. Chassis and grill will be blue with red body with white paneling on the hood. Minor bodywork and chassis cleanup needs to be done and front wheels fabbed up to allow for a brakeless front setup. I hope to have a roller by the end of the week and maybe some paint, weather permitting. Here are some pics: EDIT added later the same day: I needed a pair of '40 Ford style steelie front wheels that had good inside back detail since I wanted to run the front end without brakes with just a spindle and kingpin. Most kit steelies are completely flat on the back or have crude brake backing plates molded in. I wanted to avoid having to sculpt a groove in the back of each wheel if I could since duplicating them might be difficult. Here’s my solution. Not absolutely accurate but very reminiscent of the back of wheels on track roadsters and dirt track cars in the 40’s and 50’s. I found these wheels in a bunch of parts I got from my friend Raul Perez when he let me graze through his parts stash last winter. I don’t know what they come from but there are five of them, they’re all exactly the same but there are only 4 wheel backs. They’re very deep. I’m guessing they’re some kind of truck wheels. Anyway, they’re just about exactly what I had in mind. I’ll trim down the mounting post as needed in the final installation on the front axle. Al I had to do is trim off the flanges on the back and mate them up with some AMT ’40 Ford rim backs. The fit was perfect for the set of Modelhaus 110B 5.45 width tires I’m using. Thanx for lookin’, B.

Very nice little rail coming along there. Very cool! I didn't realize that kit provided such a long wheelbase frame. What are your plans for the body?

2012 is pretty nearby. I guess things'll be pretty much as they are now. With regard to Rodenberry's views, I've always felt that things happen much later than we would want them to (probably the 2012 thing in his case) and, once we're disappointed, much sooner than we come to expect. So maybe some of the pain and confusion in the air now will have worked itself out by then. But the end of mankind's baser instincts, I'm afraid not... But I sure do hope I'm still building and that my skills have moved along so I can realize the things bouncing around in my head!

My only concern about a very low opening price would be as a seller and whether I could continue to do it. I would make darn sure that all my fixed costs and minimums are covered in the s&h charges! Then at least I'd know that I'd be around to spread joy among happy modelers everywhere - maybe, if there isn't a bidding war...

Wonderful text, great logos and layout. It's gotta reach out to people, I'm sure...

Put me in Category 2 (needs some brushing up). I'm willing to bet there will be very few builders who won't get something important out of this meticulous step by step through "the way to do it right". As for me, I'm four for four - each post had some important "lightbulb moment". Your generosity is greatly appreciated!

Thanx buffalobill. Great story on your brush with the Jimmies... I will persevere with this one even though it creates many of the issues you outlined, only in 1/25th scale. Besides bulk, one thing these mills don't lack for is character!

This has gotta be your best yet. The chassis and engine alone would make a stunning build. The coupe's lines, of course, are really fine. And I don't think anyone's mentioned that awesome hood, with it's nice cutaways for all the engine details and the perfect flow into the skull. You are in the zone, for sure, on this one! Are you planning on leaving the skull au naturel (it's not been primed, after all) or painting it?

buffalobill, thanx for the links. The crossflow head on the injected Camaro is most likely a late Wayne head. The Fisher head like the one in my build had relatively evenly spaced intake ports whereas the original Wayne Horning design had paired intakes (although they weren't siamesed they came out of the head in closely spaced pairs). There's just a tiny bit of the head showing in the picture but it looks like it's aluminum. This would make it a late casting from Wayne Manufacturing. The injectors are modern. Very pretty engine that I'm sure puts out lots of grunt! One thing that Camaro shows is just how big in every dimension these GM sixes are. They're tall as well as long. It's really the key issue as I move forward in getting this build done. Even though this is a highboy that engine just barely fits under the hood. A V-8 of any vintage would have been far easier to handle! I can see why the advent of OHV V8's were such a revolution in hot rodding. They provided deep breathing and big power in a far more compact package than the the big 6's. A big inline 8 would be almost totaly out of the question! 2 more cylinders would completely engulf those deuce rails!

Thanx as always for all the kind encouragement. Sorry I won’t be making it to the NNL Nats in Toledo this year, Tim, but it’s a long way from Seattle. But thanx for the invite, I appreciate it. This is mainly a scratch built project so the going is slow since I have to “imagineer†stuff before I can start building something. It’s not quite a roller yet but it should be soon. The interior panels are now done as well as some work on the rear wheels and suspension, especially the driveshaft placement and clearances. That inliner is sure big and set well back. I had originally wanted to place the seat on the left hand side but now I’m wondering if it isn’t going to be a center seater to allow for more leg room. Here are some pics of the interior paneling. Thanx for lookin’ B.

Nice Cntemporary Old Skool combo. Love that exhaust detail! Looking forward to more.

ront The front fender work and the cool bed and rear fenders are now all tied together by the widened running boards. Love that rear pan and the back of those rear fenders. Excellent rake and stance, too. The Whole Thing Looks Great!!!

The coupe conversion is gorgeous, worthy of the Cord 810! And the chassis work is such a cool idea, definitely one to remember and "borrow" from liberally! The engine ain't nothin' to sneeze about, neither. And the skull.... Can't wait to see more!

These kits are surprisingly common. They can often be found at your LHS at wildly varying prices, especially the Custom Shop prepainted version which is beyond ugly IMHO and a slow seller. Good luck on your bid. In case the price moves upwards, here`are three Buy It Now examples on the EvilBay which can be bought for $16.00 or less including shipping: http://cgi.ebay.com/32-Ford-Phantom-Vickie...id=p4999.c0.m14 http://cgi.ebay.com/Amt-customshop-32-Ford...id=p4999.c0.m14 http://cgi.ebay.com/Amt-customshop-32-Ford...id=p4999.c0.m14 BTW, this kit is a treasure trove of very cool parts besides the frame including a stock looking firewall that can be easily adapted to the Revell 1/25 '32's, the kit's DuVall style windshield and cowl which also can easily be adapted to the Revell roadster kit, some cool kidney bean front wheels, the unloved but very nicely made IFS, the rear suspension which has the benefit of being fully contained under the body, and the awesome headers.

One suggestion for an excellent frame with a more contemporary tubular crossmember setup is the one included in the AMT Phantom Vickie. It's 1/25th scale and works well with any 1/25th or 1/24th body. It comes with a modern independendent front suspension and Mustang style rear end but conversion to a more traditional solid dropped axle front end and transverse leaf spring rear is very straightforward. Here are some pictures of a recent adaptation I made of this frame for a channeled '30 Ford 5-window. The rear suspension was left unchanged.

After a series of increasingly successful paint jobs I’ve suddenly developed a serious re-appearance of orange peel. I have changed nothing that I am aware of – but obviously have begun doing something to cause this. I was shooting Plasti-Kote, a solid, light blue, from a rattle can over DupliColor white primer. I have seen immaculate paint jobs done with every method, rattle can, airbrush, even brush painting, and all manner of materials, urethane, acrylic, lacquer, or enamel. I’m less interested in materials and delivery methods than the basic mistakes one can make that cause orange peel. Light orange peel can be cured with a good polishing but serious orange peel is almost impossible to completely eradicate, particularly in corners and along moldings. The result is what passes for a good “3-foot paint job†but which can’t pass muster up close. This much I know. So what I’d like are your collective thoughts on the causes, techniques for avoidance, and to whatever degree possible, cures, for the dreaded orange peel. Thanks in advance for a healthy airing out of this terrible subject!

This is a beautifully executed large scale model. Rapid prototyping equipment and CAD software are powerful tools, but the fact remains that the result is stunning. The Offy has its roots in the 1913 Indianapolis winning 4 cyclinder Peugeot GP car driven by Jules Goux and designed by the legendary Swiss engineer Eernest Henry. It has four valves, hemispherical combustion chambers, and double overhead cams: Essentially every purpose-built internal combustion racing engine since then has been based on this ground-breaking design. Harry Miller based all of his iconic motors on this engine and, after Miller went bankrupt, Miller's shop foreman, Fred Offenhauser, carried on the work of evolving and developing this engine. It dominated American circle track racing from shortly adter the first world war until the early 1970's. The Miller/Offenhauser Historical Society link pretty much gives you the whole historical perspective. Here are a couple of books that also do a great job. Offenhauser by Gordon Eliot White, gives an excellent history of the origins and epic life cycle of this engine: http://www.amazon.com/Offenhauser-Gordon-E...f_tit_6_rsrssi0 Unfortunately it's now out of print and has become quite expensive. A book I have not read but which appears to be excellent is Offy, America’s Greatest Racing Engine By Kenneth E. Walton ( http://www.hotrodhotline.com/feature/bookr...ws/2009/09offy/ ) which a can be ordered directly from the author.