Terry Sumner

Sorry...here it is... http://public.fotki.com/tsumner/nhra-rulebook/ Wow...that is a beautiful race car!

I'm with Dick here...they are ALL excellent but that T-Bird is BAD man! That paint is superb! Please tell us what paint was used, how it was painted, etc etc. Spill yer guts man!

Well like I said somewhere previously, I have the entire 1970 NHRA rulebook on my Fotki site. And now I just came up with a scanned copy of the 1963 NHRA Rulebook and the 1968 AHRA Rulebook. I'll put them both up there when I get some free time...

Back in the day? I guess that depends on how far back you consider, "in the day". The class was called Gas Coupes/Sedans and Street Roadsters in the late 60's. The class designation was A/SR, B/SR, etc. and was still considered part of the gasser clases with the same overall rules with a few extra safety ones in there for the roofless cars. Here's the 1970 NHRA Rulebook page... Notice the title.... Hosted on Fotki

Just a short note about the source of the link to the straight axle information. The Straight Line Modelers is a hardcore group of modelers who are interested in modeling drag cars and other straight liners "correctly." In other words, accuracy is one of the prime interests of what we do. Correct class markings, accurate equipment for the class, etc etc...things like that. You won't fit in there if it's okay with you to build something that's obviously highly modified and you put some kind of made up class marking on it. (not including an accurately built phantom with made up but correct markings) Or you build what is clearly an altered but you call it and mark it a gasser. You will however find some of the finest builders in the hobby on the SLM. The knowledge base that is available there is superb because these guys have actually raced these cars and they know what they're talking about. We in the SLM have been called snobs for a few reasons. Guys join and try to post stuff that is not of the straight line variety and they get called out on it. Guys join and post a modified car and call it a stocker, etc etc. and get called out on it. What I'm saying is that the guys who frequent the SLM are into accuracy, so sometimes when someone new joins and is not into accuracy, they get offended when called out on their innaccurate models and leave in a huff. Then they bad mouth the SLM as Elitists or something like that. Well that is true...they are I guess. But they make no bones about it. So if you really want to learn about drag cars and build accurate drag cars, then the SLM is the best group to be a member of. But if your style of building is of the "looks like a gasser to me" or "who cares, I like it!"..then the SLM is not for you. I only mention this so that anyone who views the link and thinks, "Hey that stuff is cool...I'd like to join the SLM", will be forewarned up front what the group is all about. Here is the link to the group, in case you think you are hardcore enough to fit in... http://groups.yahoo.com/group/StraightLineModeler/

Nice....Gloss black is one of my favorites!

Tim...you mean the silver and blue 57? Yes indeedy, that is a nice example of a correctly built true gasser. Front end not too high, it's got a cooling system, great engine...all the "right stuff". Beautiful true GASSER! Love it! Nice job Donn!

Well Doc....modeling is a personal activity and as such we are all certainly free to build whatever the heck floats our boats right? But IMHO, if you want to build a phantom gasser, that would mean to me that the car would built as a true gasser and conform to what a real gasser is supposed to be...but with made up markings. In other words...it's the markings that make it the phantom. If the model is not a correctly built gasser, independant of the markings, then it's not a phantom gasser...it's just a complete phantom something or other. But that's just my opinion....

I'm sorry Fred...did my passion show? LOL You're right though I have to admit...I am a little on the passionate side about Gassers...like the good Doctor says...a lttle Crazy. But I think it's because I was there...drag racing in the late 60's albeit not in the gas class. I was racing a 66 Chevelle SS in C/MP back then. I ran in a gas class once just to say I did but my car was not competitive with the true gassers. So I stayed in C/MP (modified production) God that was agreat time to be a gearhead!

LOL...lumped under the gasser heading???? Not anywhere remotely close to a gasser. This beautifully done model is a singular purpose built Altered...

Doc...one thing you have to remember about a "TRUE" gasser is that the class was meant for cars that could be street driven. They had to have a complete interior, they had to have a complete cooling system and the engine centerline at the crankshaft could be no more than 24" off the ground, among many other things. This means all these so-called Gassers with their noses so high in the air the driver would need oxygen are not legal gassers. That 24" equates to 1" in real measurement on the model, so if your lower engine pulley is higher than an inch, it would be wrong. And all gassers did not have straight axle front ends. They look cool but are not a prerequisite for a car to be a gasser. So Brad is indeed correct... The Fiat, The Green panel wagon and the Cobra are not gassers. The Stone Woods and Cook Willys is obviously a true gasser. The green Willys and the Vette were built in the Gasser style but are street cars with those tires. There is a huge difference in a gasser that meets the rules vs. a Match racer type gasser. Those match racers with flip-top bodies, tube chassis, big engine setback and a host of other illegal mods could not race in the regular "Gas" classes. It seems a lot of modelers think that any car with a straight axle under the front end makes a model a gasser.....it does not. Here's a link to my Fotki page with the gasser rules from NHRA in 1970. There weren't many changes in the few years prior to that and the late 60's was the height of the gas class activity. Hope this helps you! ) Terry

My favorite assault on grammar is the word. "seen". As in, "Yeah I seen one of those cars yesterday".

I use any of the above for masking, especially the green automotive style. However...I ALWAYS cut a new edge on the tape by using a straightedge and a new sharp blade. The factory edge is fine for 1:1 automotive work but needs to be more precise for scale modeling. So far, the Tamiya tape has been good right out of the dispenser as is the Fineline.

Kinda like the turkeys who made the cut past Thanksgiving? LOL

Most of us use a photo hosting site and link the photos directly from there. I use www.fotki.com You upload your pics to an album you make on that site. Then they provide the code for you to automatically link your photo to whatever forum you choose to post on. Fotki has a free section and a pay section. Start out with the free section first to see if you like it. The pay section is pretty much the same except the storage capacity is unlimited. I use that and it's $30 a year...well worth it IMHO. Here's an example. If you right click on the photo and click on "Properties", you'll see the code that Fotki provides... Hosted on Fotki

Geez...we had storm Alfred that dumped over a foot in many places here in Connecticut back 2 days before Halloween! 800,000 residents without power for over a week! And James: You speak the truth! When I was a State Trooper, we always dreaded the first snow because of that reason...everyone apparently forgot how to drive in the snow. We always got hit hard on the first snow with fender benders!

Oh I absolutely agree with the 5 P's. Heck if I didn't..like Donn said...no matter what paint was used I wouldn't get the glass smooth gloss. I was just pointing out that I don't feel that enamels are the way to go...as of right now....had too many bad experiences with them in the past. BUT..I haven't tried Donn's method and until I do I'll stick to what I know works...for me. As for the health...no problem. I spray 1:1 cars and bikes and I have the proper respirators and paint booth. I realize lot's of modelers may not have that. However, that being said, inhaling ANY paint, including enamels or water based ones, without proper equipment, is going to be a health hazard! And Dr Cranky...that's what Leon told me in a series of emails I had with him back when he was putting out the line. And it sure smells, looks and acts like the HOK stuff I normally use on the 1:1 stuff...

Beautiful! Excellent attention to detail! Can you give more info on the specifics of the paint please? Exactly what primer, paint and clearcoat used?

Well this method looks okay but I wouldn't say that it wins hands down. Not trying to take anything away from Donn's method but there are lot's of ways to achieve that super glossy finish. Here's a pic of the roof of a Willys I did using the old Cobracolors line of acrylic lacquers, which was nothing more than HOK paint repackaged. I actually think the clarity of the surface is sharper than this enamel based finish. What you are looking at is the reflection of my light bulb in it's holder directly above the model. We used to call this the "light bulb test" on the old Modelcarlist. Maybe it's just the photos but I don't see the enamel based paint being as sharp as the Willys paint. And this photo actually sucks pretty bad as it was done years ago with a Mavica first generation camera with a resolution of 640 pixels...not even half of 1 megapixel! That said, I will probably give this method a try and see if I can match my own proven method for glass smooth finishes. Always willing to learn something new! Hosted on Fotki

How about some brand names on the exact lacquer thinner? Around here at the big box stores they carry Klean Strip and Sunnyside brands.

Nice job!

The Aircraft Resource Center is the largest airplane modeling site and forum on the net. ARCAIR is the updated daily ezine for airplane modelers run by Steve Bamford. There are thousands of past articles in the archives now after more than a decade of it running! Well Steve has branched out into car modeling and armor modeling by launching 2 new sites...ARCAUTO and ARCARMOR. These are new daily ezines following the same proven format as ARCAIR. The invite is out for car modeling articles. There is a guide at the site that makes it extremely easy to submit a model for an article...couldn't be any easier. I was one of the guys pushing Steve to branch out from just airplanes into cars so I hope the new site catches on. You can visit the ezine here.... http://www.arcauto.com/

That's cool! Now ya ought to mount the 2 pieces on a small base with sand!

Nice! Love Willys gassers!

Looks good! But why are you labeling it a Gasser when it's not? You have it clearly marked as an A/Super Stock class car on the window.... which is correct for Arnie Beswick's 62 Pontiac.