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Now that HT General Lee is awesome!!

Thanks Rob for the heads up. I'm kinda disappointed that they didn't at least tool up some new wheels for the kit but the direction they went is understandable.

Any info on what they added to make it the California Wheels issue? From the box art pics I've seen I can't tell if they used the same wheels from the '66 Wagon or the TTII's from the rest of the series. TIA

As said, externally all passenger car big-block Chevys are virtually identical. Dropping a big-block into a 78 Vette shouldn't be all that difficult as they were available with em up to, I believe, '74 from the factory. In 1:1, it should be just a matter of switching mounts, heavier springs up front and some changes to the cooling system. As far as locating the accessories and alternator I would copy the set-up from the late 60s/early 70s Vettes. Here's a pic of a factory 427 in a '69 Vette and remember Ebay Motors is a treasure trove for reference pics.

I'll have to stop by there after class tomorrow, thanks.

there are Marc's pieces, I bought a set a couple of years ago.

I got sent to training for the new software for our CMMs and will be in town til Friday. Any good hobby shops or sites to visit?

I concur on the Canon S3 IS. We got one shortly after our third was born in December and we absolutely love it. A huge lens with a 12x optical zoom plus the super macro and image stablization make it very good for models and shows. This pic was taken with the super macro and image stabilization on at about 1 inch off the lens and in less than optimal light. Anyhow, the wife wanted a digi Rebel and I needed a point and shoot with a decent macro so the S3 was a good compromise for us.

I use a set of riffler files to sand away on the backside of the grill. It can take awhile (depending on how thick the flashed over material is) but it greatly reduces the likelihood that a slip will ruin your grill.

I've been waiting for awhile to see this one again but Revell hasn't updated their sites in ages.

I've got a couple dozen or so from when I was doing research for my pro-touring '69 Vette. I can send some to ya when I get the pics moved over from my old PC to this one.

Although it's probably too late as you've already got paint laid down, the "whale tail" spoiler is available in the AMT 70.5 Baldwin-Motion Camaro variation of the same kit.

Alright, I've tried several times to get in but it tells me that I need a newer Java applet. I go to the Java site and it tells me I have the newest version installed. Oh well, probably nobody there my time of night anyhow.

I picked them up several years ago from an LHS that's now long gone. The guy that had the place ran late-models and during his off-season the hobby shop. He had a ton of cool resin stuff especially for roundy-rounds. I got the last pair he had cast up and never was able to find out what he used for a master. I've never seen them in plastic so he may have pulled them from one of his diecasts. I really wish I knew because I'd like to have a couple of more sets myself.

Finally, I got some quality time on the bench to get some assembly going on the motor. I decided to go with an all-aluminum BBC ala the ZL1 and the T56 tranny from the '02 Revell Camaro. To get some tonal variations, I shot the various pieces with Tamiya flat white, flat black, light and dark gunmetals followed by Alclad aluminum. I've got the EFI fuel rails on and started on the MAS serpentine pulleys. I've still got to work out the brackets for the alternator, power steering pump, A/C compressor and idler pulleys. The manifold is a Best Resin piece that most closely resembles a Kinsler split-port IR manifold. Hopefully, I'll get the HEI distributor from Arrowhead, the throttle linkages and some detail painting done tomorrow. Thanks for taking a look.

Let's see, I started my pro-touring '69 Vette back in 02 when Revell reissued the '69 Baldwin-Motion Vette kit. As this is a build of my dream car I had a very defined plan that I wouldn't compromise on. It got shelved for several years while I hunted down, tried building and ordered several individual runner (Hilborn, Crower, Kinsler type) manifolds to do an EFI conversion. I finally found a Kinsler split-port manifold by Best Resin that I was happy with. Before the Revell Stars and Stripes Vette was issued I spent a long time tracking down an original issue Owens-Corning Vette for the L88 hood, side pipes and fender flares. I planned on using the T56 six speed out of the Revell 02 Camaro on this car and several others so I learned how to resin cast so I could quit cutting up spare kits. I trolled 1:1 Vette forums for more time than I care to admit talking to and reading about suspension conversions (C5/C6 and C4), mods and the different theories on what works best for C3 Corvettes. I finally decided on a Greenwood Daytona 5-link which uses the C3 rear end with C4-type links and custom built A-arms up front. My only complaint at all with the Revell C3 Vette kits is the lack of detail above the door panels on the underside of the body. The tooling was originally done as a convertible so I understand the omission but the gap between the interior tub and the body is a bit much for my liking. There should be a trim panel on the interior quarters and the underside of the T-tops is nonexistant. Combined with the "slightly" inaccurate rear window this has been a bear to fix to my tastes. There are a ton of other little details that have taken way too long to sort out (finding a A/C compressor that I liked, widening wheels/tires for the flares, serpentine belts/pulleys, etc) combined with working 6 days a week, being married and having three kiddos that have kept this car on the bench for almost 5 years.

And that's why I love this board, thanks Bob. I'll have to try and track down some Spaz Stix.

I found a site that's geared towards the hobby crowd that sells the stuff in small batches and wondered if anyone has used it. It's still a bit on the pricey side but man the results are killer. http://alsacorp.com/products/mirrachrome/mirra_prodinfo.htm TIA

My culture shock went the other way Dow City, IA---12 years, maybe 350 people (when we lived there) Oakland, IA---2 years, around 1600 people (when we lived there) KC Metro---14 years, more than 1 million When we moved to Blue Springs there were more kids in my new high school than people in the entire town we had just come from.

I have an uncle that used to live in Shenandoah, they put on a great rodeo if I remember correctly.

Thanks all, I'm in KC now but I used to live in Dow City, IA (hour or so NE of Omaha) and then Oakland, IA (20 min or so east).

My uncle lives in North O and has offered to put us up for a weekend and we'll take the kiddos to the Henry Doorly Zoo. I know there used to be a model contest up there because I entered it a couple times when I was a kid. Just thought we could kill two birds with one stone, take in a model show and a trip to the zoo. TIA

Thanks all, I have the Monogram ZR1 and its batwing is at least an 1/8 inch too wide (and due to it's shape, I'm not too sure how I'd narrow it and keep it looking right) but very well engraved. The AMT C4 batwing is almost exactly the perfect width but lacking in the quality department. From what I can tell, the Monogram C4's are on the large end of 1/24th scale and the Revell '69s are pretty much dead on 1/25th scale. All the suspension pieces from the Monogram kit, when I start mocking them up against the '69 frame, look abnormally huge. I'll have to get back to the drawing board to figure out which way to go. Thanks again.

No, it's really a Greenwood Daytona 5-link setup for the C3 Vettes. The C3 Vettes went to an aluminum batwing setup late in the series. According to my research in the 1:1 Vette forums the hot set-up for guys not wanting to do a full C4 conversion on the C3s is to swap in the batwing crossmembers (to save considerable weight) with their stronger iron diffs and run a 5 or 6 link setup similiar to this. I'm up in the air whether I want to model up this option, do a full C4 or a 6-link setup with the '69 parts. All three would have their pros and cons in 1:1 and in 1:25th scale.

I'm wanting to see if it has the "bat wing" rear crossmember like the one in this pic If it's not done in the Revell kit is it in the MPC Vettes? TIA