VW Dave

Happy 40th and mahalo to the big kahuna from way up here in sub-freezing New York. I hope to see you in NJ again next month.

The white one is well done, and the CF really sets the paint off nicely, but I must admit the blue one really speaks to me....and those Aoshima wheels look right at home on it. Nice pair you got there indeed! I've yet to see a real one in person, but I am trying. My buddy Tom is a senior Audi tech at our local dealer, and I keep pestering him to tell me when another new R8 is coming in; they've sold a few already, but none have stayed in stock longer than a day because they have all been pre-ordered(and the new owners apparently can't wait to get their hands on them ).

That's good advice, the very reason I feel the $7 I invested in a mini tripod from Ebay was money well spent. I also got a full-size tripod for about $15 to serve the same purpose for 1:1 car photos. My first digi was a Nikon Coolpix 3200(3.2mp), and it took decent model car close-ups as well as non-model pics. When the time came to get a second camera, we stuck with the Coolpix and upgraded to the 6mp L6 model; I feel the 6mp camera made a big improvement in my model photography. I'm pretty sure the L6 has already been replaced/outmoded by now, but it was about $150 at Sears at the time we got it. Shopping online helped us find the best price. Here's the 'in progress' shot of my Charger's filler neck tube I took with the L6 in macro, on the mini tripod: And a close-up of the rust on my junkyard Monte's nose:

I just wrapped up a trade with Casey, probably the most involved single swap I've ever done, and it went smoothly. After replying to his "here's what I have/here's what I want" post, we swapped a handful of PMs until we sorted out what was coming from us both...ultimately, we each sent the other three whole kits+. Casey's a man of his word, a lover of all things Mopar, and a guy I'd trade with again in a heartbeat.

I agree with you 100% on all points, but I've never heard of a show allowing PE in an out-of-box class....kinda defeats the purpose of OOB, if'n you ask me. I have heard of a show(MassCar, I believe) that does a "parts box stock" class; pieces pirated from other kits are allowed, as are BMF and filler for sink marks and flaws. As others have already posted, I say flocking is over the line when it comes to OOB.

No criticism from me....I say it's way cool, and you did great work on it. I really like the hinged lids with struts.

I'm also looking forward to updates on this one, as E-body Mopars are one of my favorite things. For a first-time effort, those headers really look the business!

If I bring another Volkswagen home it better be a camper....'cause my wife will likely kick me out of the house, and I'll need a place to sleep. Now, maybe if I find a home for the Ghia(scratches chin and ponders) (a keen observer might be able to spot my Beetle tucked in behind the Manx )

I really need to see more pics of this one.

As of October last year, we have three Michaels stores within a half hour of my house; I have never felt out-of-place there, even when I shop without my wife(the scrapbooking goddess ). Occasionally we joke about which one of us shops there more often. The new models are a great piece of news, and another reason to snag those coupons when they come.

OK, now you have my full attention. I'm looking forward to seeing that. Any chance that you'd ever consider doing a splittie 'old Beetle?'

I'd like to see more pics of it as well...it's cool to see another 1:1 buggy owner here. billywilly92 - I can tell you it's not a Manx, but any 'glass buggy is a cool thing to have

Hebmüller was the family name; their coachbuilding firm was established in the late 1800's.

Not turbo'd, but it is what we VW folks call 'slammed on earlies.'

Hebmüllers were never sold by VW here in the US, although a handful are here nowadays; any you see here are/were 'gray market' cars. Hebs were sold and serviced through the domestic(Germany) dealer network. Another reason you rarely see them is because the Hebmüller Coachwerken factory burned in the summer of 1949. Including the prototypes and the post-fire models assembled by Karmann, they still numbered less than 700 cars. The most recent accounting had the worldwide Heb population at just about 100. The top pic is the facility today, while the bottom pic is from 1949:

Must be a fuzzy pic - I see a Mercedes. My suggestions? Macro setting and a tripod. My pics have improved by leaps and bounds since I went there.

John - I'd worry about the Q-tip as an application tool, as it may 'shed' fibers into the paint; I use them to burnish BMF, and toss them out after just a few rubs because of that fact. Please keep us posted how it goes, and I'd love to see the results. There's always something new to learn in this hobby, and a lot of the stuff we use comes from 'outside the(model) box.' I more recently used one of those foam brushes to apply mild surface rust to my junkyard '70 Monte, and I think it's proving to be a good method. My wife does a lot of work with kids at her one job, so she also goes through a fair number of those foam brushes....needless to say, I picked up 60 a couple of weeks ago when Michael's had them marked 20 for $1.

Freaky, funky and cool...looks very slick. I like it, Andy!

Two reasons why I left it that way: 1) the movie never showed the engine bay(also why I didn't add any wiring or other details) 2) the real car's underhood area is actually very clean: Before the movie crew got a hold of the car, it was well on its way to becoming a plum crazy Daytona replica; it was originally a white 318 car. As the base paint is very thick, and it has small metal particles/filings suspended in it, I'd say airbrushing is not recommended at all. I generally use cheapo model brushes or the 1" foam ones(pretty often on sale at Michael's @ 20 for a buck).

I've yet to feel the need to thin it, but I'd assume you could use water...it works for cleaning the brushes after use, so I'd say give it a go. For subtle surface rust, I have had good results with a 1" foam brush and a little stippling rather than brushing. IMO I acheived pretty good first-time results on the front fenders of my Charger: I pour a little of the base paint out on a coffee can lid and feather some of it out with the foam brush before applying it to the subject; lightly touch the tip of the foam brush where you need it, to avoid brush strokes. As the paint is very thin when applied this way, I let it dry longer than normal - more than a day - so that the etching solution doesn't simply wash it away. I also apply the etching solution lighter than normal, to help prevent wash-out. To reduce the 'lumpiness' of the rust after etching, I have developed the habit of hitting it with a little dry 700 grit sandpaper(Testors red).

Solder works well for header, because it's very workable; I've hit upon another useful material, however, which is equally user friendly as solder....and lighter weight to boot. Michaels craft stores carry 'armature wire,' which is used in sculpting; it's soft, shiny aluminum, and comes in at least 3 different sizes. Here's a roll of the largest size on the hook at the store for reference: It also comes in straight sections, packaged in sturdy clear plastic tubes. The existing finish is very presentable, and IMO it looks like the aluminum/ceramic coating done by PHC & Jet-Hot; I'm sure it could be polished out to look more like chrome if the builder were so inclined, but I prefer the Jet-Hot finish(like on my 1:1 VW exhausts). The closest Michaels store keeps this product near embossing and sculpting products, but other stores may do it differently....don't ever be afraid to ask someone while there. I did the headers on my VW-powered "V bucket" with a smaller size of the wire, and I used aluminum tubing for the collectors: I'd recommend epoxy to secure the material, as it won't 'fog' the surface like CA can....a couple small spots on the above headers can attest to that. I drilled holes matching the size of the exhaust parts where they would be mounted, and the ends are set in about 1/16" for added strength.

Possible dumb question, but here goes....what are 'French curves?'

That's a '73 Super Beetle, which is the one with the curved windshield/dash and strut front suspension(among a dozen or so other differences); if the OP is after a standard '73, no kit was made of it. One of the Revell '69-ish Beetle kits can be made into one with relative ease; all you would really need is to adapt the larger 'elephant foot' '73-up taillights to it. The Tamiya '66 would need to be altered in nearly every way to become a '73. '73-79 Super(minus full bumpers): '68-up standard(minus full bumpers and turn signals): '66:

I didn't pick up any info, but a few vendors at a huge model railroad swap I went to a couple weeks ago had them on display/for sale.....maybe a good place to start looking is in Model Railroader magazine? A quick Google search for 'model car led' yielded this: Ebay item # 250374608884, seller i.d. 'coffeecoffee101.' Looks like about $34 shipped for a pre-fabbed/pre-engineered kit.

I had to vote 'real' this time....and I'd really love to see any of the Auto Union racers in person before I pass on