[Fixing Promo Warping]

'Warping' on an old acetate promo is really the air escaping from the swiss-cheese plastic that causes the plastic to deform. You may be able to reshape it with warm water. To stop the deforming, you would have to seal the plastic with some type of coating, like clear coat, paint, primer, etc. Acetate is not like polystyrene plastic. 

[Fishing line for use as pin stripe material?]

2 hours ago, stitchdup said:

If your on amazon look in among the nail varnish for finger line tape/pin stripe tape. Its about 2mm wide but as thin as bmf and perfectly safe for acrylic paint and clearing over and for less than £1 you get 30 rolls shipped from china with free postage somehow. If you know what colours you want I can easily send you some as i have 300 of them cos while 1 pack had free shipping, when you select 2 the shipping jumped to £15 so I bought 10 individually mainly out of annoyance. Auslowe in Australia also do pin stripes I believe

I bought some of that tape but there was a problem...it was vinyl, did not bend well and lifted about a week after I put it on.  

[Motor City NNL D.A.A.M]

This show has grown faster than anyone expected with a few hundred models on display and a few hundred vendors helping to fill your stash They have a display area with some full size cars, which they fire up every once in a while   They also have a working 1/4 mile scale drag strip. I took several photographs and talked to lots of people and bought a few things  I also stopped in at Pasteiners on Woodward Saturday for their weekly 'Cars & Coffee', did some shopping and had a great time. Follow the link and enjoy...

https://public.fotki.com/HowardCohen/detroit-area-auto-m/

 

[Stahl's Auto Museum]

Located halfway between Warren, Michigan and Port Huron/Sarnia, this was a great place to visit. I stopped in for Veteran's Day on my way home from the D.A.A.M. NNL this past weekend. Talk about a mind blowing collection of cars and much more! WOW! When I walked in the front door, I entered their 'Music Room', filled with vintage music machines that are hard to describe but amazing to see and hear Yes, I took photographs and a video as well. Then I entered the cars and much more room. I expected to see cars but I did not expect to see several Wurlitzers, HUGE organs, signs, gas pumps, a Titanic Bar, the Blues Brothers, etc., etc., etc., always with music in the air. The rack with the cards are all thank you cards from a school to the Veterans.  

I took a few photographs  so follow the link and enjoy. 

 

 

https://public.fotki.com/HowardCohen/stahls-auto-museum/

[Car ID???]

1 hour ago, TarheelRick said:

Now that you mention it it does have a resemblance to the Manta Rays I remember, but it also has a bit of the Cheetah influence.

I found the info so I am deleting this thread, Thanks for your help. 

[Car ID???]

17 minutes ago, TarheelRick said:

The red one sort of resembles a Bill Thomas Cheetah.  It has the basic body shape and proportions.  It was probably a knockoff without permission to use the design and was changed just enough to make it legal.  As for the blue one, I do not have a clue, does not look familiar at all.  I used to race slots in the 60's and the hot ticket then was the Manta Ray.

The red one I found listed and called 'Mantaray', slight difference from the Dean Jeffries Manta Ray. 

[Car ID???]

I cannot remember what this blue slot car was called in 24th scale. I have the 12th scale static kit but this is not quite the same. Can anyone help me with the name, etc.? Thanks

 

I also have this one from Classic. Both came from a collector who said he never raced them, just put them on a test track to see if they worked and they do. 

[1962 Chevrolet Impala Styline]

Getting close to the finish line...

[Names, Faces, Great Models, & Mega-Fun: NNL 40th Anniversary Celebration & Reunion Presented by the NNL Founders]

Tim - I have been going to Toledo since about 1980, and before that, to the show in Dearborn...remember the motel?   I think I have been to about 30 NNLs at Toledo, many as part of Group 25 Model Car Builders Club, a few times with the Great Lakes Fire Apparatus group and many times on my own. I have visited many museums in the area including the Sloan, Ford, Indy, Wright-Patterson, A-C-D (5 times) and a few others, all bringing me back to Toledo. You can look at pictures on the internet all day long and still not understand what an NNL really is...it's the people. I lost count of how many great people I have met at various events but the number would crash a Cray computer. I have taken a few photographs (thousands) and written a few articles about NNL. It's not the shopping. It always comes back to the people. Those friendships never disappear. 

 

FYI...the last photograph that I took last Saturday evening was of Tim Boyd, standing on a chair, waiting to take some shots. To me, it looks like Tim is quietly saying, 'Thanks' to everyone.

[NNL Nationals plus.....]

8 hours ago, MrObsessive said:

Sorry I wasn't able to make the show.

I literally just moved the week before and to say it's been difficult would be an understatement. I don't know who lived here before, but anything that could go wrong with the house did, chief of which was the plumbing. All the models are packed away anyway, so it would have been a real task to dig out which ones I wanted to take as I have no idea now which box they're in.

Looks like it was a great show and I had even took time off work way in advance in anticipation of going, but the moving ordeal and other difficulties were just too much.

Bill - you were one of the 3 people that I really missed seeing at the show. I hope the house works out (been there, hated that) and you get back to modelling soon. 

[NNL Nationals plus.....]

Hi Greg - Memory lane is a great place to meet old friends and it is always there.

Other than a standing ovation for John, I don't think anything special was done. I don't think many people would remember the GLMFAA except for a few of us. I did put a photograph in my album that I had on thr display table (and I left it there). 

My photopage is always busy and I am adding stuff regularly. 

Howard

 

[NNL Nationals plus.....]

 

My weekend started Thursday as I made a few stops on the way to Toledo.
  Thursday I went to Nick's cafe for dinner (been there for ever) only to find a new speed shop opened next door and they were having a cruise. Good thing I had a camera  There were a few dozen neat cars and I took a few pictures.
  Friday morning I headed to Auburn, Indiana, about 85 miles away, to the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum. I spent several hours there looking at cars in this amazing place! I took a few pictures. 
  Friday evening there was a dinner for the NNL with about 100 people in attendance, including several Canadians. There were a few light speeches and a lot of fun. I took a few pictures 
  Saturday was the NNL Nationals. What started as a gathering in a garage 40 years ago ended up leading to some of the biggest model car events ever with people from many countries taking part and other NNL style events growing out of the original. The attendance was about 360 people with over 1000 models on display! Canada was well represented as my friends and I had our 'SHELL 4000' display and other models around the show. There was also a swap meet and I managed to buy a few things. I took a few pictures 
  Saturday evening was the final event of the weekend. Models were brought from the museum in Utah that showed the history of our hobby going back to the early 1960s with cars from Dave Shuklis and many others. There were also dozens of magazine cover cars on display, a Merc-Deuce Reunion and display from some of the other NNL organizers. I took a few pictures 
  Overall, a great weekend! I saw about 1500 model cars, over 150 real cars, took over 1900 photographs, talked to dozens of people, lots of old friends and a few new ones. I have been going to this NNL for about 30 years, met some amazing people in that time and saw thousands of models. It was worth every mile of driving, every minute of visiting, every photograph I took and every looney spent. If you never went to an NNL, you will never fully understand what you missed. In the meantime, get a large coffee or something and enjoy some photographs... 
Yours in the hobby,
Howard Cohen
https://public.fotki.com/HowardCohen/nnl-nationals-toled/

P.S. the last photograph is Tim Boyd...he was standing there waiting to take a picture but to me, it looked like he was quietly saying 'Goodbye'.....

[NNL History Images - note how many of these guys are still active in the hobby today....!]

11 minutes ago, Dean Milano said:

Well Ken, I won't need a name tag to recognize you since we're driving together, but I may not recognize anyone else next weekend. Ha!

I will be wearing my red flame shirt with my name tag...and a red Group 25 hat...with my red hair blowing in the wind  

[NNL History Images - note how many of these guys are still active in the hobby today....!]

I think we will need name tags  

[NNL History Images - note how many of these guys are still active in the hobby today....!]

In 1993 and '94 I did an NNL in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in conjunction with a model car contest. The NNL was Saturday and the contest was Sunday. Saturday attendance was okay but we lost the venue and didn't do any more. This is the flyer was had done by one a club member. 

[50 year old magazine]

Last week I stopped in to visit a local car museum. They had a few magazines and I bought some old 'Car Model' mags from 1967/8/9/70/71 era. I was going through them when I turned the page and saw the ad for the 'International Car Model Association' membership...with my name and address filled in! Yes, I bought back my magazine from 50 years ago! This time I am keeping it  

[Cobble Beach Concours, Owen Sound, Ontario]

The 7th annual Cobble Beach Concours was this past weekend. I spent a few days touring the area to see some of the sites like Harrison Park, Inglis Falls, Indian Falls and took a few photographs. The Concours weekend includes a Saturday morning tour for the cars and they drove about 100 kilometers around the Bruce Peninsula. Sunday I arrived at the site about 5AM and took some shots of the Little Dipper and the Moon...I had to, we had an astronaut present   It started raining a while later but the rain stopped by 8AM and all the cars and motorcycles were set up. My thrill was watching the three Corvair Monza design cars drive onto the show field...yes, they really do run, and then watching the GT drive across the podium to receive a special award...watch the video   If you want to see the influence these cars had on the future, take a close look and you will see some Corvair touches as well as Corvette and Chaparral. There are lots of photographs, over 1400, and lots of interesting cars and ideas, so Enjoy  

 

https://public.fotki.com/howardcohen/cobble-beach-concou-3/

[Watkins Glen Historics]

I went to The Glen yesterday for the Historics. It's only a four hour drive each way, so it's close  THere were hundreds of vintage race cars and hundreds more for the infield car show. During the lunch break, the cars did two laps behind the pace car. If you have never been to this event, GO! There are always some very interesting and important cars to see plus celebrities plus thousands of fans to talk to. It was a great day in perfect weather. 

https://public.fotki.com/HowardCohen/watkins-glen-histor/

[1953 Studebaker custom roadster conversion]

Excellent! That looks like Raymond Loewy customized and modernized a Studebaker. Very smooth and sleek! The removable hardtop is a great idea! 

[Will this be the "Woodstock" of the modeling car world?]

On 8/31/2019 at 10:08 AM, Dean Milano said:

I'll be there. Lookin' forward to it!

Are you bringing anything special? 

[Will this be the "Woodstock" of the modeling car world?]

On 8/29/2019 at 8:09 PM, misterNNL said:

Like a lot of places Toledo,Ohio can be fickle were weather is involved. I have seen everything from cold rain or snow to 90 degrees. Pack up your stuff and plan on attending. We'd be glad to see you here in the Buckeye state.

The weather is only fickle is you are: A - over 50 years old - we just qualify  B - live in some really warm climate that is not like Ohio or Ontario or Michigan  Other than that, my winter coat is always in the car  

[Mascots]

On 8/24/2019 at 11:20 PM, Eric Macleod said:

I agree, though that would require tooling up more full classics...something that seems unlikely these days. On the other hand, one of the cars photographed here is the best of show sharknose Graham Cabriolet owned by the Off Brothers of Hickory Corners. It is currently being tooled up by Automodello as a resin cast model, so there's hope for that one.

Howard,  do you ever go to Old Car Festival in Greenfield Village? I must assume that you are local also? Great photos!

I do not go to the Old Car Festival. I am not local, I am in Toronto, Thanks.

[Mascots]

On 8/6/2019 at 2:28 PM, misterNNL said:

Again great stuff my friend. You an uncommon ability to find details unseen by others like the pinstriped back side of a license plate.

Thank you

[Mascots]

For those of us who love vintage cars, mascots (aka rad ornaments) are important parts of the cars. Many of them were offered from the factory, some from the dealers, some from stores, all are interesting, stylish works of art. Here are a few from the Concours of America. 

 

 

[Concours of America, Plymouth, Michigan]

On 8/3/2019 at 7:04 AM, tim boyd said:

Thanks Howard.....personally I took a breather this year.  A couple of colleagues from my pre-retirement employer and I took in the Mopars at the Gilmore event the day before and kinda wore out my car guy ""fix" for the weekend.  Plus the ever-increasing Concours general admission ticket price and the highly sub-optimal parking situation were standing in the way....but I'm sure I'll be back next year.  In the meantime I get to enjoy your pix....looks that a great time was had by all....thanks again.   TIM  

The Gilmore is on my to-do list, maybe in the fall.