Howard Cohen

I was at the Detroit Autorama this past weekend and then Heritagecon Model Show in Hamilton, Ontario. I took lots of photos at Detroit and a few more at Heritagecon. Enjoy... http://public.fotki.com/howardcohen/detroit-autorama-2014/ http://public.fotki.com/howardcohen/heritagecon-2013/page3.html

If it was never driven or owned by Batman/Bruce Wayne, real or fictional, it isn't a real Batmobile If it is a Batmobile, where are all the toys, guns, gimmicks, rocket launchers, flashing lights? Where are the capes? And a woman never drove a Batmobile! Or is Batman secretly a crossdresser and is disguised as a woman

Back in 1972 I took a tour of the Ford plant in Dearborn. Watching the car go from nothing to driving off the line was very interesting, especially when you consider all the parts that were added on back when each option was a separate order. What I remember most was the foundry area where they re-cycled old metal, everything from Coke cans to engine blocks, all thrown in the foundry and melted. We were about 100 yards away and the heat was tremendous, as was the noise! All we do is order a new car, pay for it and wait. When you see all that goes into making a car, it really is amazing. Since then, I have also been on tours at the Honda plant in Alliston, Ontario and the GM truck plant in Oshawa, Ontario, both in the summer of 1985. The differences in production techniques were amazing from one decade to another and from one manufacturer to another. If you ever get a chance to take a tour of a car plant, go. You will be amazed!

The Police should make the owner of the car and the family watch the process. Let them see the car get destroyed

Sunday, February 16, 2014...Royal Canadian Legion, Irwin Hall, 11 Irwin Road, Toronto (Rexdale), 1 mile north of Highway 401 at Islington Avenue. This is a vendors only show, no contest, no static displays, Come out, see some slot cars and model cars and buy something and have fun

I built a Shalako a few years ago for a friend who had an original sealed kit. I would like one for myself, along with Bugs Buggy and a few Dean Jeffries pieces. If the rights are for Round 2, that should include all of their properties.

Andre - the original builder of the dealership has not passed away, just retired from the club. His name is Ron Dixon and he was, and still is, one of the premier model car builders, although he doesn't build as much any more. Richard - there was a used car lot beside the dealer at one point and it is temporarily retired. Over the years there has also been an exotic car dealer; a park scene with a concours; a speed shop; a custom car show; a restoration shop; a funeral home; a split level house; a Nascar curve and (our most popular display) a working 4x8 slot car track The dealership was last restored and used in 2003 to celebrate the 100 years of Ford and it was re-done as 'Hank's Ford' with 'DJs Used Cars' beside it, the 'DJ referring to Dale Jarrett. The address for the Ford dealer was '999 Dearborn Drive'. Stay tuned, it may return...

I dealt with Fred when he first started selling kits years ago. He used to come to Toronto to visit and shop and I used to go to Buffalo for the same reason. If you have never dealt with him, I always found him to be an honest, standup guy. If you are looking for something that is not on his list, ask him and he may be able to find it for you.

Thanks for all your input. I wanted to hear other opinions on this subject.

What do you think of a hobby shop that opens up in the same place as a shop that just moved, then proceeds to use the name of the other shop? Does this sound right? This is actually happening in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The original store was opened in the 1960s. The owner retired and sold it to his daughter and her husband. They moved the store to a new location on Kenilworth where they ran a very successful business for a few decades until a couple of years ago. Then they sold the property and moved the business into an industrial area so they could enjoy some semi-retirement while still working shows and flea markets, etc. Now a new hobby business has opened in the same old location using the same name and have even claimed to be the children of the other owners...not true, they are not related! Does this have a funny stink to it? Does this seem slimy? Would you shop at such a store knowing they are probably dishonest? We are having this discussion on al Canadian model group and so far we cannot find anyone who has been told the truth. I would like to know what you think please? Thanks...

Jo-Han did a very limited run of photo etch for their AMX. I bought a set at Toledo a few years ago. I think they stopped making it.

Do you live in the Toronto area or surrounding area? Do you want to meet some model car people? Want to stand around for a few hours talking about model cars or sit down and build your model car? Have some building questions or tips? Come to our 2nd annual open house and enjoy your hobby with us! Check the flyer for time and location...

Here are the photos I took... http://public.fotki.com/howardcohen/nnl-nationals-2012/

I have given up using Ebay for the following reasons: 1- no protection for sellers; 2 - with my last communication to them, the only way I can get my money from Paypal is to give them access to my bank account...not gonna happen; 3 - the cost of shipping from Canada - for example, I have lots of kits I could sell for $10-$15 but postage will be almost $15-$20, according to the local post office, and too many people complain about the shipping cost. I have looked at alternative selling groups but they seem to favour Paypal and then I have the same problem with getting my money. The last money order I got was wrong and it took too long to get it corrected. I now sell locally via a Canadian site called Kijiji and I do cash only pickup sales.

There are HOK distributors in Canada. Check their website for a list of who carries the paint in Canada or send them an email. I have seen HOK at car shows in Toronto and I know they sell the product here.

Thanks Kevin...should I just send you all my money now or wait until I get there Tell Jeff we're going for burgers and ice cream after the NNL

I have 3 shows on my schedule for October including the NNL and I am still deciding. I have only missed a few Toledo NNL events and it's always fun. And I always find some place to spend a few dollars I do like the new location as it is about 30 minutes closer to the Windsor/Detroit border

There have been a lot of parts copied over the years, more than you may ever know. I am in the car parts business as a sales agent for a warehouse. We buy a lot of mechanical parts from overseas and they are all legal replacements for factory parts, safety included and meet all original specs. But not all companies make safe parts, there are a lot of very bad parts copied from originals and then 'cheapened down' to increase the profit margins. None of our aftermarket parts have a Ford logo on them, or any other OEM logo or name. Doing so would cause a lawsuit and a huge loss of money and often, bankruptcy. Most parts are marked with a trade number rather than an OEM number. I have seen windshields made in China that are not safety glas as they should be, as well as being greatly distorted, so badly you get a headache looking through the glass. I commend Ford for going after those guys on Ebay and anywhere else. I was working at a car show in Toronto about 20 years ago when we had a simialr incident. Friday morning about 9AM, a group of men walked in with badges and a warrant. They were from the sherriff's office and were accompanied by Provincial Police officers. They were looking for any illegal items from Warner Brothers. They found a few vendors who had stuff but could not or would not tell where they bought it. All of their goods were impounded, everything, and they were arrested.. One vendor told me after that he had bought some Warner Brothers stuff and had his bill with him. He gave the police the stuff along with the bill. They gave him a receipt and he stayed in business for the show. How would you like it if you bought a car that said FORD on it but was made from non-Ford parts? What would happen if you were in a collision and the non-Ford parts failed? What if the non-Ford seat belt failed and you flew through the windshield? OUCH! Maybe you would live but maybe not. Would you be happy because you saved some money?

The Dream Rod was changed to the Tiger Shark in 1:1 scale for the I.S.C.A. show circuit, I believe before the model kit was changed or at the same time. The car show producers needed a fresh car on the circuit and re-building the Dream Rod was easier than building a new car. By that time, the Dream Rod had started to fall in popularity. In the late 60s and early 70s, some show cars and show rods had a short life span on the circuit. No one wanted to see the same cars every year. In some cases the changes were brought about by sponsor money, as in the case of changing the L'il Coffin to the 'MonkeyWard' car for MontgomeryWard. The other guys are right...it would be a lot of work to change the Tiger Shark into the Dream Rod. Find a Dream Rod kit and use it, even a built one. FYI...I have built both in the last 5 years and the kits are tricky to build, so be careful and take your time. I found a mint Dream Rod kit for $100 and a started but not painted one for $50...the $100 kit was about 25% of the time to build and a better bargain.

Kingston...also home to numerous prisons If you screw up your model, you get sent away to the big house I have missed the last few years due to a baseball conflict but I will be there this year...someone has to keep Brian out of trouble

I think the buses are COOL and I may have to add one to my 'build' list! Those buses show creativity and imagination and add some colour and pizazz to the average dull day. Too bad so many of you have to turn every fun topic into a political battle...I though this was a model car magazine site

The 1/16th Nova is very interesting! Who makes the body? I would like one

Warning! Have you been using 'Future Floor Finish' or something similar on your models? I went to use my bottle of Future last night and it had turned 'YELLOW'! I poured some into a glass to make sure it wasn't the bottle and it wasn't. The Future was completely yellow! If it turns yellow in the bottle, what is it doing to your models?

Every year I get together with a few friends and we have a 12 hour build. The rules are simple...start with a new kit and build it in 12 hours. The kit can not be started or painted or sanded. It must be virgin. You can examine the kit in advance if you want to add any parts but they must also be virgin. It takes a little planning but it can be done. Yesterday when I woke up, I was too ill to travel to my friend's place so I took part at home. My kit was the Lindberg Dodge Charger police car...that I built as a modern day Bluesmobile. It was not as easy as I thought. The instructions are not very good, leaving out a few parts, not showing assembly order and generally being poorly drawn. On top of that the tires were missing from the box. I decided to paint the car 2 tone similar to the original car. I masked off the front doors and part of the greenhouse and painted the car Tamiya Satin Black; the chassis and seats flat black; the interior bucket, exhaust, engine, transmission and drive line gray. I left off the head and tail light covers as I don't think the Blues brothers would have wanted them. Over all, I rate this kit 6 out of 10. It would have been better if I had more time and I think a 24 hour build would be better for this car.

Excellent! Now all it needs is a track and some competition!