gman

That is a really slick, seamless looking truck (that ol' Henry should have made)...glad you did.

Those pics do your work on this one justice. That is a great build.

That has a great look to it- good job!

The closest I have seen in kit form was in the older issue AMT '33 Willys: https://public.fotki.com/drasticplasticsmcc/mkiba-build-under-c/amt-instructions/automotive-cars--pi/willys/amt-33-willys-coupe/img931.html

Looks like a burl pattern. You might be able to replicate it by masking, painting a light base color, daubing a few darker complimentary colors over the base color, and then clear coating it.

Looks really good so far. What paint did you use here?

On my next project using Tamiya Mica Red, I was thinking of trying it over their new red primer. I have had very good luck with Tamiya's fine surface primers, and their new red seems pretty well suited for use with Mica Red.

I have shot that over white primer, grey primer, gold. It is a fairly translucent color, and takes several coats to keep the base color from showing through. The easiest way would be to do a spoon test over your chosen base colors- multiple spoons will show you how many coats will be needed to get the desired hue and coverage.

If you have photo etched license plate frames, you can print your plates on plain paper to see if they fit within the frame to scale them properly, then print on photo paper for your final plate. Affix the license plate frame to the printed plate with a small amount of white glue, and then affix the plate and frame to your model the same way. If you have gel superglue, you can also use that to glue to the plate to your model.

It has a mean, stripped-down and purposeful look. Nice job.

Having contorted myself as an adult getting into the back seat of my XJ, and into the back of Jeep YJs, TJs belonging to friends (and empathizing with those I've made do the same), I can say that as we get older and less-flexible, the 4 door product starts to have some advantages. 2 door SUVs are fine as daily driver transportation for one or two adults with or without younger kids, but for older folks the rear seat access gets to be a challenge. I could say the same about roadsters and other small imports too- at my age, I could get into the MGB I used to have in my 20's, but might have an issue getting back out gracefully. I shudder when I think about climbing into the back seat of the old-school Mini I had (which could seat 4 adults, 5 with a shoehorn).

In efforts to make the SUV more palatable to the minivan crowd, vehicle manufacturers have been "civilizing" them and trying to appeal to those who otherwise might not buy the product...unfortunately at the expense of the purist market. I had a Jeep XJ 2dr 5spd for about a decade. After giving it up and buying a couple of AWD mini-SUVs, I am back in a Jeep- this time a Wrangler Unlimited (JKU). Yes, it has two too many doors, but the extra cargo area over the JK 2 door and the ability to shoehorn extra passengers in with ease made it a no-brainer. I would have had no issue with the shorter wheelbase 2dr, but the tiny cargo area and the effort it takes to get adults into its back seat made the JK less practical. If I wanted to take a step back towards a more civilized SUV, the new Wrangler JL has been appealing to that market while retaining some ruggedness.

A nice tribute to your Aunt, and some nice photos that capture that time.

It will depend on the filler. Some solvent-based fillers will dissolve primer, while some 2 part catalyzed fillers are perfectly safe over primer and will not lift it if applied over top. If you are going to use something like Squadron putty, do your body work on bare plastic. Let the putty gas out and fully set/cure, then prime. If you are going to use a 2 part polyester glazing putty, it can be applied over roughed up plastic or roughed up primer. Re-prime after bodywork to seal it before color coats are applied.

Great paint and detailing (so far). Looking forward to seeing the finished product.

You want to use something caustic to remove any and all mold release that remains on the resin parts. Westley's Bleche Wite tire cleaner used to be good for that, but I believe the company that bought them out changed the formula. Washing your parts with isopropyl alcohol and scrubbing with a strong dish soap should get the mold release agent off.

Making those front tires available with a set of pie crust slicks that fit the SD Rat Roaster rear wheels would be a good combo as well.

They are a nice, period-looking set of big & littles that the builders of early Ford hot rods would probably be willing to pay up for.

Nice paint. Tires look good, will watch this come together carefully.

I hear that. Your project looks really good- that paint laid down pretty nice and smooth.

https://www.wix.com/freesitebuilder/hiker-create?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=216486820^10537495660&experiment_id=wix website builder^e^48420866260^1t4&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIgf_3zKfk4gIVAqvsCh1VdADaEAAYBCAAEgIYBvD_BwE ^^ a (relatively) easy way to DIY a website

Promising start. 1979 Torino? Looks to be an older model than that ;). 1970?

You could search your local IPMS chapter, and network from there for other builder's groups. https://www.ipmsoc.org IPMS is typically focused on aircraft/armour, but you may find people who build what you like amongst the group. There may be local shows from other groups who primarily build automotive subjects who also belong to IPMS.

That appears to be a 1955 release from Revell of the Buick Century 4 door- 1:32 scale. $3 apiece is a good deal, provided all are complete.

Your paint and assembly skills are coming along nicely. What glue do you use for mounting the headlights?