Howard Cohen

If you are going to use any wax on your model, try to ensure it is silicone free as the silicone may damage the paint on your model. I have used Meguiars in the past and I am going to try Mother's this weekend.

Simple...so you could get in and out of the car

There are several books on auto design including some of the designers. They give a great history of auto design going back to the 1920s.

Name tags? That would be a great idea for that old guy Raymond who I haven't seen in 50 years By the way, who are you

Nothing has happened so far. The family is still thinking about what to do. There are several possibilities.

I did when it was new If you have another one, bring it Sunday

Dan - I'm not in my 90s...stop listening to Steve!

First off is a Durham Classic, Oshawa, Ontario, 43rd scale diecast 53 Ford pickup with the markings for the former 'Collector's Lane' hobby store in Toronto. This was a one time custom lettered truck, 1 of 200 and I think the only diecast made for a hobby store in this area. Next up is a Revell Greg Moore, Patrick Carpentier Indy Car. I always wanted to build this kit but gave mine away years ago. Then Greg was killed and the kits were no more. Now I have one and I can add it to my 'build soon' list

oops, Missing Link also makes a '59 Silver Hawk

Have you seen the 62 Hawk by Missing Link in resin? It is very good

Timing, eh This morning I wrote a small article explaining what it takes for me to get kits, from a vendor's point of view. This may not be true for all kits and all vendors but it is true for many I have been selling used/second hand model kits at shows for many years. I started my own small business two years ago so that I could sell new kits as well. Many people complain prices are too high and they want ‘a deal’. For those who think selling model kits is easy, here is what happens behind the scenes that you may not see. Two years ago I found a small collection for sale in Keswick. After several emails, I set a time to go see the kits. Keswick is a 60 kilometer drive from home, not too far. 45 minutes to Keswick brought me to the house. It took about 30 minutes to look at the kits. I had only wanted to buy 5 of them but they said I had to buy them all or nothing. That left me with an extra 24 kits. Good thing the bank machine was near. Then the 45 minute drive home. It took me another two hours to go through each kit carefully and make sure they were complete and ready to build, can’t sell an incomplete kit My total outlay was 4 hours of my time, 120 kilometers of driving and a few hundred dollars for the kits. And you thought they were free Now that I had the kits, I had to sell them. Finding a swap meet is one way, so I rented a table at a local show, another expense ranging from $30 to $125 a table, depending on the show! Now comes more expense I had to pay for the table about two months in advance to make sure I had a place to sell my kits. The day before the show, I had to load up the kits, about an hour of work. The day of the show I arrived before 8AM to set up, a thirty minute drive from home. The show opened at 9AM and went to about 3PM. After the show, another thirty minutes to pack up, 30 more to drive home, another thirty to unpack the car and finally, I was done, a nine hour work day. I did sell the kits and at the end of it all, I made a few dollars profit, not a lot of money Now stop and think, is it profitable to buy and sell used kits? Sometimes, if you get the right kits and can sell them quickly enough to get your money back. Well, why not sell new kits? Good idea! I set up an account with a local distributor. I can pre-order the kits or I can walk the shelves and see what is in stock. The stock is never what I want or what you want so too often I leave with only half of what I want. The warehouse is thirty minutes from home, another thirty or more in the warehouse and thirty more to drive home...and I have to pay for the kits before I take them out of the warehouse. Can you see where this is going? Buying new kits is different than buying used kits but the expenses are similar. And the profit is still not that great. To try to increase my sales and profit, I decided to add some lines of aftermarket parts. It took some time but I managed to find some lines of parts that are not common in Canada. To get these parts, I had to set up an account with each company. Two companies wanted to meet me in person to make sure they knew who I was. That required a trip to the U.S. to meet them. I do get a wholesale price but I also have a minimum order requirement, meaning I can’t order just one part, I have to order a few hundred dollars worth at a time. As these parts are coming from the U.S., the dollar exchange is very important. Again, I have to pay for the products in advance and with small cottage industry companies, the lead time can be great. I sometimes wait two months to get an order that I paid for in advance. Now that I have the parts, I have to sell them. Back to the show. And it starts again So, the next time you are at a show and the kit price is $15, there is a reason. I didn’t make up the price to become rich, I just want to get my money back and a little something for my time. When all is said and done, I might make minimum wage or a little more but I am not going to buy a new Corvette on the profit from the kits you just bought

You carefully detail paint some trim on a model, then as you put the cap on the bottle of paint, the cap breaks and the paint spills on your model Today...about an hour ago However, I was wearing a giant horseshoe and was able to wash the paint off with Super Clean, a toothbrush and that horseshoe Wow, I broke even As for scratch-building a model...way back in the late 60s my friend and I got together to build a model of the new Daytona, based on some prototype photos. We thought the slick nose and high wing were wild, so we got together and scratchbuilt the car. We brought it to a local hobby shop for a contest only to find a kit in the 'new' listing...dirty rats

For all you Canadians who are ordering parts or kits from the U.S., please remember the dollar exchange is very important, especially now that it is 40%, or more! That means your $100 U.S. order will cost you $140 Cdn.! Please stop accusing me of over-charging when all I add in is the dollar exchange. If you want to pay me in U.S. dollars for something you buy from me in Canada, I will gladly accept your U.S. dollars Thank you...

A few decades ago, our model club made a list of car songs and passed the 200 mark This is my version of the 'Little Deuce Coupe', copied from a Beach Boys t-shirt many years ago....flathead mill, lake pipes, just like the song...I gave this to a local car club when they turned 50. The 1964 JoHan is a 'shiny red superstock Dodge from 'The Little Old Lady From Pasadena'. Lastly, the Testors Dodge police car is painted to resemble a modern day 'Blues Brothers' car.

Thanks for looking and I hope you enjoyed the BARC race photos. A lot of people say they love racing but never get to a track, preferring to watch it on the telly...too bad, they don't know what they are missing. I volunteered at the tracks back from 1975 to 1982 and started again a few years ago. The smell of burning rubber, burning fuel, burning oil, not always good smells but all part of racing. I go to a few airshows in the area and two air museums and they are really amazing! Even though I understand the laws of physics and everything, I am always amazed when a plane takes off and then lands on those chicken legs with wheels Thanks for you message

Are you preparing to enter upcoming contests at Heritagecon in Hamilton or Torcan in Brampton? Do you want some extra detail parts? I am a distributor in Canada and I carry Historic Racing Miniatures, Morgan Distributors, Pro-Tech, Scale Motorsport and Bare Metal Foil. If I don't have it in stock I can special order it. I can mail detail parts anywhere in Canada only. I also have kits, some new and some not so new. Check out my website for products in stock and pricing and my photo page for in-stock photos. I accept payment by cash, bank or postal money order or cheque, all Canadian only If you have any questions, please send me a private message. Thanks... http://www.howardcohen24.com/products.html http://public.fotki.com/howardcohen/model-kits-and-acce/

There were many Buick model kits from 59 to 70, full size and Skylarks and Rivieras. Then there was the GN kits.

There were annuals made by AMT from about 1958 to about 1969 as 3in1 kits. Revell did a 32nd scale 56 Continental as well. The only other Lincolns I have seen are diecast, marked 24th but closer to 28th.

If it was possible to simply swap the heads, I think Ross would have done that as an engine kit. There have been no RG engines made since he passed away. Ross had no extra stock and the retailers I know have all sold out. I do not think any more will be made

I saw some photos of the interior and it is wild!

World wide, Buick outsold Pontiac. For the past decade, maybe more, Buick was the highest selling import in China.

No, probably never will

This is a great way to get kids started! I did the 'Revell-Testors' make&take at the car show in Montreal in 1963, although I had built models the previous 2 years. It kept me happy and the following year I had a model car display and I kept at it. I still build models and I still go to car shows The disappointing part is those of you who only seem to see a downside to this. You complain about someone selling the kits on Ebay; you complain about the cost of the show ticket; you can't see the good in this, you can only complain. Quit your BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH complaining! This is a hobby to make your life more enjoyable!

Might exist? They all 'might' exist in one form or another but what really exists I doubt anyone really knows for sure I wonder if there was ever an accurate inventory done of the molds, artwork and all the other stuff needed to make a kit when Round2 took over. There may be stuff buried under boxes, stashed on shelves or wherever. Just for the record...how many of you know exactly what you have in your stash? Kits, parts, builts, etc., If you don't know, maybe they don't either One question I have asked is, was there ever a complete list made of all the AMT, MPC kits ever produced? I have the Revell book and the Monogram book and they have a lot of stuff listed, although they do miss a kit once in a while. Does Round2 have a list? Hmmmmmm.....

You guys sure spend a lot of time watching programs you don't like...are you all crazy? (rhetorical)