lordairgtar

My opinion on cost.... Then and now Then, kids were the prime buyers of kits, now those same kids are still buying kits as adults. Adults can afford to pay more. Then, crude oil was plentiful and cheap and things were not made of plastic as they are now. Now, Crude costs more and more things are made of petrochemicals, including the model car kits plus plastic houses our computers, make our automobile interiors and body panels, plastics account for much in building materials. I have speakers that used to be housed in wood that are now housed in plastics...plus plastic bottles and other containers are prevalent today. Then, model companies got paid by carmakers to make promo models which in turn were the basis for kits. Now, license fees are costly and to get approved means a lot of scrutiny by the licensor of the product to make sure it satisfies the brand image. Then, rent of a store or ownership thereof was cheaper. Now, very expensive to lease one, even in a crappy area. With the exception of a small blip, property values tend to go up. Then, kids tended to do more with their hands such as crafts, art, and models...plus sports and outdoorsy things. Now , kids tend to play video games, use social network sites to access friends and few are interested in models of any kind. When I was a kid (teenager) we could afford a crappy car with a part time job and we tinkered and hot rodded them and had a genuine interest in them. The cars were simple to work on and we learned a lot by watching dad or the mechanic at the corner station. It was even cooler if your dad was a real mechanic or raced cars. Todays cars are highly technical and hard to understand. That is why there are colleges to train people in working on them which includes advances in metallurgy and plastics, computer programming and emmission control science, plus the new hybrid and electric car technology...hardly stuff you can build in your back yard. Friends in Europe and other places on the planet have shown amazement that teens can afford cars at all. Of course this has changed as the pool of cheap running cars has diminished from programs like cash for clunkers. We will never see $100 grinders that run again.

Hoo boy!

Awesome kits in the way that old IMC kits are awesome. Very technical and lots of small bits. I enjoy building them. I and Mssr. DeLespinay had on occasion conversed about Heller kits. I was asking things about my Alpine build. He needed an AMT boxed double kit of the Matra and Brabham kit for his collection, so I sent him a kit. I had two of them and he did not have any.

Got an email from Southeast Finecast. My order is now processed and on it's way

Awesome little kit. Looking forward to the Corvair engine.

Awesome, JB. I just purchased the engines. Nice quick response from SEF too. Now we wait. The ZZR is a go. Well maybe, I have to replace the front axle tube as mine was kind of week and I broke it....ol butterfingers here.

I hope it does get fixed or it's just a goofy lens issue.

Well I emailed the good chaps at Southeast Finecast and I got a prompt answer. I emailed again for payment instructions and am awaiting that. Cost will be about 73 bucks for two engine kits and post. It's a lot of money but I really want these to finish out my ZZR show rod.

I got a 57 T-Bird kit last week for $7. Kit finds are rare around here. Goodwill? Forget about it...and they are the surliest people to deal with. Best thing to say to vendors who ask a too high price is what I say (especially if they won't haggle), is "You wanna sell kits, or are you running a museum?"

Some of those aren't actual cars seen in a TV show. They are concoctions made up by the model maker. Charlie's Angels van....no, Hardy Boys van...no, Farrah Vette...no. Fonzie's car....no, Barnabas' Vampire van...no,

They might have. There are photos available of his bus, right down to the bus number....2969

I've got to have two of those engines.

Same thing is done for Mc Ds hamburgers. Those nicely arranged sesame seeds are glued in place.

They haven't used the no glass rule for years. Digital cameras and photoshop eliminated the need for such trickery.

No, the body isn't bad, it's the trim. Sand or grind that off and remake the trim straight.

Beeeerrrwwwyynnnn? Ducking the flying rubber chickens now.

You should buy it

That is a great case for saying "yes, I build model cars...and I also collect guns"

So Mouse was more like our beloved Jimmy Flintstone. He did at shirts at the local car shows around here when he was a teen ager.

I saw some model kits at a rummage today. Mostly NASCAR, but I did buy the AMT 57 T-Bird kit. I already own one but you can never have enough birds.

https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/10443523_706700549366311_3779845077500687933_n.jpg?oh=1e83da0158a3d8f8c04eec7609fe0caf&oe=5434D5B1&__gda__=1413915913_df8137463976cdaec22aa380839c3bc9 We had a mini power tour from New Berlin Quaker Steak & Lube(near Milwaukee) to Janesville QS&L then to Madison QS&L, then back home. Mine is the red HHR Panel. About 60 cars of various types going down county roads in Rural Wisconsin....awesome. https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/10379016_706700486032984_4730090145711311762_n.jpg?oh=69d1b4b5a8e9f7bb244db4ac8c647ce1&oe=5439BEE7&__gda__=1414764497_15b4dafa2a312d1c19940e5066baecdf https://scontent-a-ord.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/10426325_706700496032983_9030893592946015657_n.jpg?oh=e40282d623ba7328c294bf9ba5c3307e&oe=54544A29 https://fbcdn-sphotos-a-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/1538862_706700526032980_8264799812465649032_n.jpg?oh=0859df88fc220a3bd353065e80cac163&oe=5433AB49&__gda__=1414184820_6cb9e36b6e2965cc5400ea2c5d90f77c https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xfp1/t1.0-9/10580161_706700569366309_7426599960357360192_n.jpg These two gear heads have a radio program every Saturday morning where they talk about cars, car shows and other things of interest to car people.

I used to live in Santa Barbara and there were the occasional Rolls or something of that nature back in the late 70s. I myself drove a 73 Eldo ragtop plus a 54 Chevy lowrider and a 69 Buick Special muscle car. But I really don't think that there were that many cars of the hot rod type in SB. Now I live near Milwaukee and we a choc-a-block with all manor of cars from street rods, super cars and sports cars, tuner types, even JDMs. Lot's of classics. Saw a 2014 Vette at my cruise night plus a Ferarri of some newer type. Check wednesdaynightclassics.com and check the schedules for cruise nights and shows. So many cruise nights in the area and we get maybe 50 to 60 cars at mine alone. The one down the road a mile away has like a hundred on the same night.

But the grille is hideous.

Well they all come up here in Wisconsin, Harry. I seen a ton of them. They're like snot on a toddler. Just every where and all with Illinois tags.

Nice pipes.