Ron Hamilton

When I built my Trumpeter 60 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible, I had the interior from the hardtop kit cast in resin, and modified those parts to fit in the convertible. I redid the rear seat to fit. It took a little time but it worked for me. I had to do it. My dad had a triple red 60 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible. I built a model to replicate his car, except for the Modelhaus 62 Pontiac 8 lug wheels and Satco Firestone Deluxe Champions, which I used on my build to replace those horrible parts supplied by Trumpeter. I have a hardtop in my collection to build. I have not decided on the color combination. Also I am rebuilding an AMT hardtop that's currently in primer. I only wish that I had gotten my hands on a Modelhaus Resin Vista Hardtop roof. I would have loved to turn that Trumpeter hard top into a four door.

I love this thread. I have quite a few "box" Novas in my collection waiting to be done, an AMT 62 Convertible, a Trumpeter 63 SS hardtop, an AMT 63 SS Convertible, where I used the 66 Nova Chassis and Running Gear, and a scratch built custom interior, a 65 AMT Craftsman SS Hardtop, and a Rat Packer. I am going to have a couple of the Trumpeter 64 and 65 Novas. I am hoping that they do a bone stock 65 Nova 100 Sedan with a 6 Cylinder. If not, I'll convert the race car. One of my neighbors friends had one when they were new. Boy, was that a cheap car. Very Spartan. Did not even have backup lights. Good fodder for a race car though.

I have always thought a nice build could be made from that kit. I have one of those that has been in my collection for 30 years untouched. Your build is an inspiration for me to do mine in the near future.

I cannot afford a case of 68 SS396, but I plan for at least 3. One for a hardtop, one for a convertible conversion, and one to keep for a later build.I already have the hardtop planned out. And it will have a few mods to be done my way. I may have to get some plum paint. I liked that color. I almost bought a 68 SS396 in that color with white stripes and interior, but it was ridden hard and put away wet.

I'm very happy, and the test shots look pretty good to me.

That's one of the kits I want to build in the future.

Coming together nicely.

Nice concept so far. I have yet to build a stock AMT or Revell 57 Ford.

Very nice selection of restorable C1 Corvettes.

Wow! That came out great. My 61 was kind of crispy. The tail lamps were welded in, and I had to carefully deemed them out. I like yours better than mine, as mine is painted dark gray, with the white tri-tone interior. I have a few 62s to do. One Bonneville, and 3 Catalinas.

You know I have worked over my share of glue-bombs and dirt daubers. Several years ago, I picked yp this rather forlorn 65 Chrysler 300 Convertible. What you see here is what I bought to restore once I got it apart. It was missing the front bumper/grille/headlamps/covers, convertible boot, which I was able to get from The Modelhaus, a seat back and Headrest, which I scratch built, a wheel and tire, as well as the floor shifter and air cleaner, which I raided the parts box for. The windshield header was cracked at the base, which I fixed, and the left pillar post was missing, which I replaced with a piece of plastic rod. Fortunately for me, It was not painted, and it washed up nicely. Yeech, I thought I was going to find roach eggs in this critter. I was not going to buy it, but my Glue Bomb dealer told me that I could not fix it. I had to shut him up, so I bought it, and went right to work on it. It also had a couple of tire marks in the front fender right on the upper right fender at the side mouldings. It had not been sanded on, and all of the emblems were present. I think it cleaned up pretty nice. When I painted it, I did not realize that the Model Master Silver was so grainy, so I used the Kelsey Hayes Stripper Wheels from the AMT 66 Mercury to give the build a mild street machine vibe. That paint looks like it was off of a bass boat, but I like it. Alas I was looking over the model when I was doing some dusting, and I found a crack in the right quarter panel in the plastic clean through the paint. I surmise that it was a combinat6ion of the brittle JoHan styrene and the mild earthquake and hurricanes we had over the past decade. I may strip it, fix it, and repaint it Tamiya Metallic Red, or just leave it alone. Fortunately, I have been able to do projects like this one in the past with The Modelhaus being in business. Lately, it has been more difficult to bring them back. buying parts off of Ebay vendors have been hit and miss, or too expensive. Fortunately, I have some friends here on the board who has come to my rescue from the wanted section here on the board, and I am eternally grateful to them. Wait til you see what I do to this crispy critter. I picked up a glue-bombed Revell Torino Cobra for the chassis and drivetrain, and Missing Link Resin supplied a lot of other goodies to bring it back to life. I aint skeered of any glue-bomb.

I have both a Trumpeter and an old AMT annual hardtop available to me to be worked over. I have not made the decision as to which one to build. If I go full detail, I want my build to be a 4-speed car. There were so many different color combinations available, I don't know what color I am going with.

Outstanding work Tom!!!!

I have some hardtops and convertibles in the stash waiting. One of these days.

A 1/12 scale kit would be nice. I have a 1/12 late model Shelby I have not built yet, and it looks to be a nice kit. I did build the 69 Camaro and have another one. While I like larger scale kits, I don't have the room to display them. My old 1/16 are in boxes with the exception of a couple.

Now that is some serious work. I wonder did Chevrolet see this model and act on it? Hmmmmm.

We know whose workmanship would be worth the big bucks. Nuff said.

I am quite sure that Chevrolet will probably keep the front engine car, at least as long as it sell in sufficient quantities to keep the brand profitable for the market Select dealerships will be able to sell the mid-engine car if their sales and service CSI average is high. Mediocre dealerships need not apply. Unfortunately, the car may be great, but the buying masses will still look at the car as a Chevy, albeit the ultimate Chevy. Ford makes its customers and dealers jump through hoops to get a Ford GT. Chevrolet has to do the same. Limited availability is the key. Proper pricing is the next requirement. The car should be priced high enough at retail to attract only serious players. Poseurs need not apply, even though a few may be able to get one with enough money and corporate connections. In my opinion, a dealership that places a ridiculous markup over msrp should not be able to get the car through normal channels. Only the cream of the crop dealerships with knowledgeable sales and service personnel, management and ownership shall be rewarded with the opportunity to sell this car. At the end of the day, a quality car needs to be produced from job one. The car should have a very short option list, as well as the color and trim palate. The car has to be sharp and purposeful. Not trendy. As a modeler, I want to see a high quality, full detailed kit of this car. We need GM to select, cooperate with, and force the model manufacturer to produce a quality kit of the car. I want to see the selected model manufacturer consult with expert modelers on the subject to critique each stage of each assembly. We know who they are. The Model has to properly represent the actual subject faithfully. No goofy tire/wheel combinations, no misshapen thick bodies, no thick distorted glass, no cartoon like interiors, no engine blobs, nor funky stance. The promo contract should also go to the kit manufacturer as a reward for a job well done. And most of all, the kit should be released at the time the actual car is released. Or at least while the car is hot.

Not even as a mint unbuilt kit.

That one takes me back. When I was a teenager, my best friend's sister had a boyfriend with a B5 70 Challenger SE. I bought a Jimmy Flintstone Resin transkit to do a similar car. His car had wire wheels on white lettered tires. I am going with either road wheels or Rallye Wheels on white lettered tires.

You got my attention with that one. I have an un-built 60 Convertible in the stash. I haven't decided where I am going with that one. Seeing yours will give me some inspiration. I love those big Imperials.

Wow!!!!!!

Go for it Tommy. I have brought worse back to life. It looks like other than the crushed roof, and no glass, its salvageable.

Its not worth anything to me. Not my style, and for what I would do with it, too much work. Someone will absolutely love it.

I have that one in the basement. I love El Caminos.