Bainford

It's all coming along nicely, David. Mr. Barris gets a lot of credit for building the Batmobile, but it's pretty clear from all your photos that converting the Futura into the Batmobile didn't over tax him to any degree. A weird fake turbine engine built from shop scraps, some tacky add-ons, and some black paint and suddenly he is credited with creating a masterpiece.

The culture of the time, as discussed, was to not wear belts often, if at all. I think some people just felt silly strapping on the third belt. But another problem (the real problem?) was the total lack of ergonomics in belt design. I have a '69 Mach 1 with the shoulder belts up on the edge of the headliner. I am a lifetime seatbelt wearer (Dad drilled that into our heads right from the start as kids), but I never wear those third belts in the Mustang because they are so poorly placed. When installed they fit high on the neck and come across the body right under the chin. Not at all comfortable, and the way they hold the neck, I am convinced that if worn, an otherwise survivable collision would end up breaking my neck as the torso is thrown forward while the neck is pinned to the seatback. Also, they were rigidly mounted (no inertia reel) so when wearing the belt I could not lean forward to operate switches on the dash. Even shifting was troublesome. Complete and utter failure of design.

Another cool subject. Looking good so far. Nice shape.

Looking good. Dig the stock wheel covers.

Welcome to the forum, Robert.

That's one wild machine. Love the look. Got tired of listening to it though. Now, the 917 in the latter half of the video, I could listen to that all day.

Are they a suitable size and type for the Miller? If so, that's a very fine score indeed.

Very nice work. Thanks for showing your process. The tracks look spot on.

Man, those things look tough with the black steelies. Colour looks right, too. Nice work. That's one cool Dodge.

Lovely classic. Big and elegant. Nice work. It must look impressive on the shelf.

Terry, thanks for sharing these lovely race car builds. John, love the Miller, too. All are outstanding and beautifully done. I have been intrigued by the Etzel kits for many year when I used to see them in SAE.

The 2.3 Ecoboost would be an awesome Pinto engine, as would a 2.0 Zetec. Being an aging curmudgeon, I personally tend towards old iron with carburetors. Having said that, I have seen a couple Zetecs fitted with Webers. Hhmmm...

Yes, I am sure these days a flathead build would be expensive. I have always favoured the Pinto 2.3 engine. It responds extremely well to modification and can make big power, though the V-6 would make for a very cool conversion, too. A 2.3 mod that I find compelling is fitting a 90s era twin-cam, four-valve cylinder head from a turbo Volvo 2.3. Apparently they bolt on, needing primarily mods to the water jackets to make work, though I haven't investigated deeply. I have been mentally planning a 1:1 Pinto build for years, and if I ever actually embark on that project, I will be investigating the Volvo head swap. I starting planning this when Pintos could still be had for cheap, but good project fodder is pricey these days.

A flathead Pinto. Strange, but not the first one. I have Hot Rod annual from around 1974 featuring a Pinto with a flattie four-banger.

Lovely old Ford.

Nice looking Road Runner.

Calipers are gorgeous. The overall chassis shots are model builder's porn.

Curiously, if you inspect the sidewall of those 80s vintage Radial T/As, they actually carry the M+S marking, rated for mud and snow. Bizarre, I know. Who approves this rating, I don't know, but shows how pointless it is. My first car was a '77 Pinto with 235/50 R13 T/As on all corners, each carrying the M+S mark. Anyone familiar with driving in snow knows that won't work.

Disclaimer: I haven't done a vinyl roof, but have a couple planned and been giving it a lot of thought. I find some people are using a plastic stock that is too heavy for the chrome trim pieces. I will be using Evergreen .030" x .030" square stock. Once applied, the thickness is easily sanded down to .020" - .015", which should look pretty good. I have used this method to represent chrome trim around wheel wells and works well. Evergreen part # 131. Strips of .020" x .020" would work well (better?) too, Evergreen # 120. Your particular application will determine which is best. As for the strips along the top (the vinyl overlaps), I think it was Steve Guthmuller who recommended masking off the strips and applying a couple coats of primer to represent them. Then remove the tape and give the whole top a light coat of primer to prepare for paint. This method is much more in scale than using a thin tape or strips of plastic.

The ruler is in inches. Traditional (old school sizes) MPC/AMT tires are typically very close to 5/8" ID, and that appears to be what the photo is showing.

Sweet Chevelle! Looks great in gold. Nicely done.

Stunning Cobra, Bruce. This has to be the coolest Cobra I've seen in 1/24. Simply awesome.

Some ARII kits ( a Mustang, Challenger, Thunderbird and a Firebird come to mind) have a very nice set of BFG big & littles with accurate tread pattern. They are a bit large, would look good on a larger type vehicle like a van or panel, etc. They might be a bit beefy for most car projects, especially 1/25. Individual tastes vary, of course. Depending on your project, they may work. The tires are far and away the best part of that series of ARII kits.

Welcome to the club, Bill.

Cool stuff, Steve. The build is coming along nicely. Good to see it back on the bench.