ZTony8

I think Bill nailed it on the Accurate Miniatures cars.I understand the molds are gone so there's no more possible runs.One can maybe throw the Round 2 1/16 scale Charger street machine in there too since the mold was modified after the current run was finished-though there are still some of those Chargers on store shelves. Some other kits may retain their value down the road but they would be subject or version dependent if molds are altered.I doubt that many new releases will be a glut on the market like the AMT and Monogram stock car kits or any late Corvette are now.

Dave-We in the club think that's precisely what happened-Doug befriended the suspect while the suspect was panhandling by a local freeway near Doug's residence.Doug was that kind of guy.There was an update in yesterday's paper about the case that said that Doug begged the suspect to stop choking him-before he stabbed him in the chest with a kitchen knife.

Just buy some Tamiya clear blue and paint away!

If you're meaning small parts to be brush painted leave them on the sprue whenever possible.If you mean for spraying,the clay method with toothpicks works very well.For larger parts like bodies or chassis pans I put a large piece of tape on top of an empty spray can and put the pieces on it.

Italian red is a different shade than you're wanting.It has more yellow in it than a regular bright red.Tamiya TS-49 Bright red is the paint you want to use.A close substitute,if you have it,isTestor #1203 red. To make the bright red REALLY pop,use white primer.

I'm wondering why no company has reverse engineered some of the 60s Jo-Han kits to produce them now.Legal complications?Lack of interest?Cost?Something else?

I recall the fuss made back in the early 70s when Testor raised the price on the bottle paint from 15 cents to,I think 25 cents.A kid noticed that,wrote to President Nixon complaining that the increase exceeded the rate of inflation by a wide margin and the press got wind of it and publicized the story.Due my aging brain I don't recall if Testor backed down on the increase or not.

There are three privately owned hobby shops 15 minutes or less from my house on the east side of metro Detroit and one about 30 minutes away.The west side suburbs have a few more plus the local Hobby Lobbys and the Michael's locations.The Model Cave way over in Ypsilanti has been around a little over a year and is an enthusiastic supporter of the local model scene.I wish it was closer to my side of town(sigh)-they carry good stuff. I try to frequent the locals every week or two weeks.When the shop closest to me discounts their older Tamiya kits,I swoop in and buy up what I can afford.Fortunately for me those kits don't move quickly at that store,even at discount.

That's the original tool from AMT circa 1960,with some updates and changes.That particular version is from the 80s,I believe.

This kit is a mixture of good and not so good.It's a typical mid 80s Monogram kit-simplified front suspension,engine compartment molded as an insert to the body,the upper engine/trans done in multiple pieces(two block halves and the heads/intake manifold done as a single unit) that are to be installed on the lower section of the engine trans which is molded to the chassis. The biggest problem is one of detail accuracy in a few areas.One,the air cleaner assembly is a dual snorkel piece used only on the L69 H.O engine but the exhaust depicts the standard 305 engine system(different sized pipes,catalytic converter,and muffler).If this kit is truly supposed to represent an H.O. engined car then the rear fascia is lacking the badge for that engine.There are no "5.0 H.O" decals on the decal sheet either. The interior has one major flaw-incorrect front seats.The kit's seats are the Lear Siegler seats that were optional only in 1982 and 1983 in the Z-28 and dropped after that.I think the kit was partially updated from an earlier year release. The decal sheet includes the "Camaro" panels that were on the Lear Siegler seats.The body side striping is in colors that were only used on the color that the box art model is painted( a kind of metallic kiln red) so they're useless for accuracy for any other body color. The kit is best used as a basis for a street machine or drag car project where parts will be swapped and factory stock accuracy isn't important or with some major cutting and parts swapping a more accurate stock Z-28 or even an IROC-Z could be built.The seats can be used in the Buick Grand National kit-they were optional on that car in 1984.

Just put a cardboard box over the body while it's still on the paint stand.

Those would be some long doors on a real car.

I wish I could find a woman like that!

I subscribe to Hot Rod(and a bunch of other mags,because they were cheap).Hot Rod has been,for the most part,the magazine of flashy,high dollar builds.Car(cass) Craft is a bit lower budget and more "how to".Pop Rod is trying to succeed with Pro Touring but is/was always a pale imitation of Hot Rod.

That announcement caused grumbling over on the open wheel board.Seems the grumblers are the ones who bought the kits several years ago and thought they would hold their value for later (high) resale.There's a lesson there.

Fine idea to rebuild some old builds.I was recently doing some repacking of old builds and decided to separate the ones that needed extensive work from the ones that still looked decent.I now have a box with about 20 more projects!

Michigan has specific antique car plates OR you can find an old plate and use it on your antique.

I recommend the Tamiya putty.It's lacquer based,dries smooth and sands well.I won't completely dismiss Testor's putty,though.It's surprisingly good for use on resin bodies.I used it to fill voids on some 1/43rd resin builds years ago and the filled areas have never shrunk or popped loose.

That older Eclipse is NOT the sweetest kit.The track width is too narrow and the engine is a complete disaster.The block is little more than a low detail box and the exhaust manifold is on one side of the engine and the turbo on the other-with no connection!I'm considering building mine as a curbside so as not to have to deal with the abominable engine.

The "Italian fella" would be Luigi Chinetti,the North American importer of Ferrari automobiles at the time.

This is clever!Not too many other things can be done with the Silhouette trailer-execpt maybe to use it as a butter dish after slicing off the Targa bar.

Fine observations,Art.And why,even to this day,I hesitate to say that an old version of a model is either better or worse than a newer version.Liberties are still taken with sizes and shapes.

I've had the AMT double kit in the stash for about 40 years now.I started it(them) way back then but never finished them.Someday.............

I've seen this view expressed before this in other places.Not a bad idea at all.I think that making all these "models" fit together properly is the final challenge.

I wouldn't bother with digital.I like a paper magazine in my hands and available from my stash anytime I want it for reference. The local Barnes & Noble here doesn't carry Model Cars but it does carry the competitor.I wish they carried both but there's a LHS nearby that does carry both so I'm able to make my buys there.