Hawk312

Just be careful putting those mopars in if you are going to enter the contest. One of the rules is 50% of the build must be kit parts. I am still waiting for clarification from Revell on exactly what that means, but the engine takes up a lot of a kits total parts.

I am planning on it, though lately I`ve been really uninspired. I started something, but can`t seem to get motivated. The rules and the way this contest is being held isn`t ideal for us builders who build for contests, but this is pretty huge for our hobby, and it is the kind of exposure we`ve been waiting for for decades (for those of us who have been building that long). Even if they were only allowing Prius builds, I would still give it a shot.

That is really cool! What color is that?

Thanks everyone for the tips! Unfortunately, it is about 1000 miles away at the buyer`s home, and he is unable to do it.

Well, the L-88 has a glue blob about the size of a pencil eraser on the door. For those of you that haven`t read the article or thread, it was finished in duplicolor lacquers. The glue has dried. Does anyone know what to use to get crazy/super/CA glue off of lacquer without damaging the paint? Wet-sanding and buffing is not an option.

Nice work! I like the color choice. The turbos and supercharger together would make for some serious boost. Where did you get the turbos and intercoolers from? Can you tell us how you modified the rear wheels?

Thanks again everyone. The compounds I use in order are 3M rubbing compound, Meguires scratch and swirl remover, and Tamiya "finish" compound. The Metalizers are made by Duplicolor, and come in red, green, blue, orange, yellow, and purple. You should be able to find them at any auto parts store. The clear is also Duplicolor touch-up sprays. If you are going to use these paints, I highly suggest testing them on a spare body. I hade some issues with the Metalizer burning through the color base, and the clear making the Metalizer "crinkle". I think the best solution is to give plenty of drying time between each.

I`ve been thinking about this for a while, and I think this is exactly what our hobby needs. For the past decade or so, the future of our hobby has been a frequently discussed topic on the boards. With the popularity of gaming consoles and computers, it is hard to get younger people interested in our hobby which takes alot of patience and little immediate gratification. And by younger, I mean anyone under 40 at this point. Most people associate model building with the "glue bombs" they built as a kid, or others had built. With exposure on national TV, people will be able to see what is *really* possibly with model building. Honestly, if most people saw the work by many of the seasoned builders in here, they would be shocked. I think there is a very large group of viewers who will see this, and realizing they can`t afford to do a full size project, will attempt a model. I also think that alot of younger viewers will see this and think "this is much cooler than my die cast 'toys'", and maybe many others will realize they have been wasting time with car games on XBox when they could use their time to create something tangible, lasting, and something to be proud of. This is a big step toward reaching a large general audience likely not thinking about modeling. The contest isn`t perfect according to our preferences, but it is a start. Maybe next years will be better. As far as Revell being greedy, I could care less. I am tired of the concern about the future of our hobby because, face it, Revell is the top dog as far as domestic kit manufacturers. Do you really want to build only AMT models, when AMT has no competition and no reason to improve? I hope Revell makes boat loads off of this! It can only serve the good of our hobby, which is what I really care about. I plan to enter the contest, even though I know next to nothing about hot rods compared to others here on the forum. Also, I hope the full list of rules clarifies "hot rod." Does this include more modern "street rods?" I hope so, as I think that will bring more interest as far as the younger viewers. Does anyone have clarification on this? From the gearz site, it looks like this guy works mostly on older hot rods, and not street rods so much.

Ha....do I build multiples of a particular kit..... I really don`t have much disposable income though. I just keep my eyes out for deals on that kit. It is a great kit, and being 1/12 doesn`t hurt. Plus, combining it with the Camaro kit gives you lots of options. This and the Camaro kit are the only ones I really "collect" (maybe "hoard" is a better word) though.

Thanks everyone! I really appreciate the kind words! Thanks Harry! Knowing that you have seen so many others over the years, that really means alot.

These were both built as a Christmas gift to my parents. They are celebrating their 40th anniversary just after New Year`s, and they are going with a 50`s theme for the party after the ceremony. They asked me to bring some 50`s era models, and I decided to build these as gifts that they could display. Anyway, they are pretty much built box stock. The only modifications for the `55 were the addition of the Torque Thrust wheels from `58 Corvette kit, the exhaust tips made from aluminum tubing, and of course the typical addition of wires, hoses, carpeting, etc. I decided to go with the Torque Thrusts because I thought they looked more like a street rod wheel as opposed to the kit aftermarket wheels which look a little more "classy", and thought would be more appropriate for the `56. For the `56, I decided to use the `55 kit`s wheels, and made exhaust tips from aluminum tubing that are identical to the ones one the 55. Hoses, wires, and carpeting were added to this one as well. The kits went together fairly well, although the windows and bumpers were very difficult to line up properly and it was difficult to know exactly where the bumpers mounted. However, they are both very rewarding and convincing once complete. Paint on the red one is Duplicolor light metallic red followed by several coats of the clear red Metalizer, topped of with about 5-7 coats of clear. The white is Testors Classic White lacquer. The paint on the purple one is Duplicolor Bahama Blue followed by several coats of purple clear Metalizer. It actually looks much more purple in person as opposed to the blueish color in the pics. The black is Duplicolor Universal Black. After a quick color-sand, 5-7 coats of clear were applied. Both were rubbed out with 3 grades of compound. Let me know what you think!

Nice layout!! I like the new look!

Nice work. Nice color scheme too.

Thanks guys!

Mine says "MC200 Red Adonize". It is tricky to work with. If you are going to use it, I would suggest allowing the Metalcast to dry several days at least before trying clear. I`m working with the purple Metalcast for my current project. Over Bahama Blue (also duplicolor), it makes a killer blue/purple candy color.

Nice work. I take it this is the MPC kit judging from the engine bay? Where did you get the wheels from? PS I was expecting a Van Halen song in the background.

Thanks! It is Duplicolor Red Metalcast over Tamiya Mica Red, finished with about 5 coats of clear.

I have to agree. This thing goes together beautifully. It was probably the best engineered kit I have ever built, Revell or otherwise.

Thanks again everyone! I appreciate it! Actually, I did them very last, even after rubbing it out. I masked them off, sprayed a quick shot of clear, then a quick shot of aluminum metalizer, and finished it with a coat of sealer. I wanted to clear over them, but I was worried with how the metalizer might react to that.

Thanks again everyone! I definitely recommend this kit to anyone who is considering it. Sorry Harry. From the beginning, I built this one as a top up display only. I actually applied some of the final details while it was sitting on the display with the body up, and I am not sure I want to risk dropping the top on this one. Maybe I will just have to build another one with the body down.

Wow! Thanks guys for all the complements. Coming from this bunch, it really means alot! I`ve seen some of your builds! I need to stress that I think Revell really knocked it out of the park with this kit. All proportions just seem "right", and the decals are some of the best I`ve seen. I think this kit is as significant and ground breaking as the `69 Z/28 kit that was released in the early 90`s. It makes me wish that Revell would take all their past funny car kits and re-release them as a new tool. I was actually a little reluctant to post it because of the finish. But since there was a request, I`ll post my entire technique. I need to let everyone know that the color is just a shade darker in person. Not much darker, but it is just a bit darker. I started off with the krylon white primer. Pretty straight forward here. A little sanding with 600 grit and I sprayed it with 4-5 coats of Tamiya TS 39 Mica Red, about 10 minutes between each coat. The important thing is to get complete coverage. I let it dry for about 3-4 days. Then I sprayed about 3 coats of of the Duplicolor Red Metalcast spray (available at Autozone and Advance Auto Parts), which is a clear red spray. About 10 minutes between each coat here as well. After the 3 coats of the Metalcast, I waited 10 minutes and started spraying the clear Duplicolor. I put on about 5-7 coats since I knew I would be wetsanding and buffing it out. After about a week of drying, I sanded with 2000 grit, followed by a rub down with 3M rubbing compound, followed by several rub downs with meguires swirl and scratch remover. I used Tamiya "finish" compound for the final rub down, and I lost track of how many times I used that. Anyway, that`s all there is too it. Thanks again everyone. Here is closer shot of it:

This was a "quick" build, about 2 weeks altogether, which is lightning fast for me. I pretty much built this straight from the box with no major modifications, just some added detail. All the good things you hear about this kit are true. The fit on all the pieces is amazing, by far the best engineered kit I have built, Revell or otherwise. The only problem I had was on the hinges for the body. For some reason, the body would not clear the rear tire in the up position, so I had to modify the hinges. I haven`t heard of anyone else having this problem so I am assuming it was something I did wrong. The finished product us striking compared to my other models, and I`m not sure if it is the accuracy of the kit or the color scheme that puts it over the top. For the body, I used krylon white primer, tamiya mica red, duplicolor red metalcast for the candy effect(need to be careful with this stuff!!), and about 5-7 coats of duplicolor clear. This combination gave it a deep candy apple red color, and I couldn`t be happier with it. I know it is not accurate to have it all rubbed out and polished like this, but I like it this way and I am unrepentant about it. The braided line is detail master .035" line. The parachute cables are cat 5 wires wrapped in masking tape and then painted silver.

I am looking through my pictures, and I cannot tell where the parachute cables connect to under the car. I am building the Chi-Town kit. Do they connect to the frame? The rear axle? Thanks.

This looks to be a great one too! And it looks like this will be a excellent, informative thread, just like the Chi-town thread. Your thread on the Chi-town kit convinced me to get it, and I am very happy with it. As for the color, did you consider Duplicolor`s blue Metalcast over Tamiya Mica Blue? I used the red Metalcast over Mica Red, and it came out with a deep candy red color.

Thanks again guys. I apologize for the slow progress. I am getting a little sidetracked with the Chi-Town Hustler kit (great kit!!!!!) I just started. Anyway, I was holding up the stripe decals to the body, trying to get a perfect line for masking that would be covered by the decal, and just decided it would be easier to mask and paint all the stripes, which I did. The red is Testors "Flame Red" lacquer which went on great. After allowing to dry and a quick wet-sand (and a little touch up with a brush), I shot about 5 coats of duplicolor clear on it, which also went on great. Yes, for the purists out there, it will be inaccurate in that respect. I am going to be shamelessly wet-sanding and buffing this out to a high-gloss shine. You don`t paint a car red and then leave it dull. :D Let me know what you think.