Hawk312

This thread is very encouraging to me. This is what I have been thinking. I mean, my first kit I bought at Kaybee for $4.99 back in 1983. Yes kits are 4 to 5 times the cost now. But as someone who remembers kits from the 80`s, I have no problem paying that price now. I have built my share of kits with engines where the starter, oil filter, fuel pump, water pump, and oil pan were all just "bumps" on the block, and a long block and transmission were just 4 parts. Or front and rear suspensions that were one piece with the exhaust molded in. Not too mention the flash everywhere and flaking chrome. Compare that to the Foose truck I am working on now which is detailed, proportions are excellent, molding is super crisp, and all the parts would probably fall into place just by shaking the box since then engineering is so much better. I have no problems paying a little extra for this kind of quality. And, there are always the snap kits for those who are just entering the hobby or want something less expensive.

Nevermind. I swore this was a hardtop kit:

Ohhh, that makes that kit interesting. A convertible SS...hmm. If I recall, Lindberg and AMT only offered the SS in hardtop form originally. Hopefully round2 eventually does the Firebird kit with the Firehawk parts.

That`s what I`m thinking. I have the 1/16 MPC kit, and probably will buy a few more. It`s decent, but I would much, much rather have the big Monogram kit. The detail and proportions are excellent on it (I have the `79 and Turbo 1/8 kits as well) plus it`s twice the size. What would really be nice is if they would re-release it and back-date it to a `77.

One thing I noticed with the Rustoleum is that the colors take a really long time to dry. I painted a corvette in black, and even after waiting weeks it was still tacky. I noticed that with several colors. However, the clear seems to dry rather quickly. So I always follow the color with several coats of clear and I can usually rub it out within a similar amount of time compared to Duplicolor.

All the 1/8 scale kits from the 80`s please. And if not all of them, just the `79 and `81 Trans am kits. They have been going for a fortune for decades.

Thanks Slusher and jchrisf! Thanks! Yep, that is Rustoleum Painters Touch Clear believe it or not. I don`t really have any secrets other then my typical wet sanding and rubbing out with compound. I would say it rubs out just as nicely as Duplicolor. It actually seemed to take less effort to wet sand and rub out the Rustoleum. If I remember correctly, I picked up the engine enamel at Advance Auto, the Marigold and clear at Walmart, and the Valspar paint at Lowes. The Valspar is actually the exact color used on the 1:1 Lowes stock car.

I have been using Duplicolor for probably over 25 years now. Its nearly impossible to get a run with that stuff, and rubs out nice. But I`ve also used some Rustoleum with good results. It dries rather quickly and rubs out nice from what I have seen. It will be interesting to compare the durability. I have cars in my case painted over 20 years ago with Duplicolor that still have a glass smooth deep finish. Here are a couple builds with Rustoleum finishes. The Wheaties car is the engine enamel orange. The Lowes car is Valspar (some shade of blue) and Rustoleum Painters Touch Marigold with Rustoleum Painters Touch Clear over the whole thing.

I am sooo glad to see that `69 Mustang. I REALLY hope it makes it to daylight. And Mustangs are not my thing.

What GMCMAN52 said. Pretty cool concept. Never saw that on a `77/`78 car. BTW, if you are not sold on the `77/`78 front end completely, you could build a `79-`81 version of the car in almost any scale. Off the top of my head, we have good kits available to us in 1/8, 1/16, 1/20, 1/24, and 1/25.

Am I the only one having trouble finding wire that will adhere to CA glue?

THIS! My job took me to Chicago once. I ended up walking the streets of Chicago on a Friday night for about an hour looking for a pizza place in 10 degree weather. Was totally worth it though. Also, anyone in the US can have real Chicago pizza.....sorta: https://gio1.ultracartstore.com/2-Pizza-Pack.html I got this as a Christmas gift once. It comes in dry ice and half baked. You bake it the rest of the way. It was *very* close to what I had in Chicago. Still no models at my Hobby Lobby. :-( In fact, nothing on clearance models or paints.

Hi Mademan Does CA glue hold this wire well?

I would say that would be close for factory wires, and the 28AWG would be close for aftermarket wires. But I am not sure how you will glue them in place with silicone insulation?

Wow. Thanks for the tip Snake! Cant go wrong for only $20. I`ll give it a try.

Still nothing in Hilton Head...everything regular price. I was really hoping to come home with an airbrush. At that price, that would push me over the edge (been painting with sprays only for 35+ years).

No clearance items here in Hilton Head/ Bluffton SC.

Do any recent kits include the parts to build the accurate stock car version of the Superbird?

Thanks again everyone! My next challenge is the big '73 TA kit...should be interesting.

Thanks guys!

Thanks guys! This is the 1/16 kit. Basically the same as the kit just released by Round 2, but with the turbo parts. I can`t find the kit anywhere now. It was funny, when I received the kit, it had the original Allied Hobbies sticker on it from 1987. I think the price was $26.99. That was alot of $$ back then even for a 1/16 kit.

More pics.

Built from the rare `81 Turbo Trans Am kit from 1986. It is hard to believe, but all the original light bulbs work! Lots of little modifications made to this one...quite a few "corrections." The details are typical MPC of that area (rough in some spots) and I am not a fan of working doors, so I glued them shut. The rear tail lights from the kit were completely wrong anyway, so I decided to get creative. The Year One wheels were 3 printed from my own drawings. The tires were cast from a modified RC car tire. Lots of details added to the engine, which was a little sparse, but still complex with the turbo set up. As you can imagine, the big bird was fun to to get just perfect. Let me know what you think.