sjordan2

Okay, Christian, you one-upped me. But here's General Lee on TRAVELLER. Take that. I tried to make it my avatar, but the forum isn't cooperating. EDIT: Hmm. Seems the avatar change finally kicked in. Possibly a delay in my own cache that kept me from seeing it.

I saw that in looking up all this info - starring, written, directed and financed by John Schneider.

On another note, I wonder why no one has shown an attempt to build General Lee's daddy, a 1958 300 D called "Traveler" (the name of Gen. Lee's horse, Traveller), the midnight ride of real-life bootlegger Jerry Rushing. He and the car appeared in the movie, "Moonrunners," loosely based on his exploits and recollections, which was adapted by the producers to create "The Dukes of Hazzard." The AMT '57 300 C kit would probably make a good starting point. The picture below is of the actual car after restoration by Lawrence Wolfel. Anyone wishing to know more about the origins and comparisons between Rushing's life and DoH will find some interesting comments in these excerpts from the book, "The Real Duke of Hazzard." http://www.amazon.co...ader_B003D7JZJE

Prior post that was here has been edited after sense of humor kicked in.

Well said. The major difference between armor and the General Lee, though, would be the difficulty of finding accurate documentation of these make-believe movie cars that had 3 to 4 different "hero" versions during the series (not to mention hundreds of stand-in stunt cars and scale model doubles), and went through numerous modifications during their on-camera lives. You can go to the most authoritative sources, ranging from Cooter to book authors who had access to studio records and people, and you won't find agreement on very much. All of which makes your point very well taken. I'm sure that military vehicles also go through numerous modifications, but I would think those are easier to document than the General Lee.

Coming right up. Sort of.

A regular Dodge Charger doesn't generate even a fraction of the controversy over minute detail and accuracy that surrounds the Dukes of Hazzard General Lee.

Tennessee has been working on a bill to collect sales tax from online retailers, but there are a number of obstacles. While one requirement is that if you order online from a company with a bricks-and-mortar presence in the state, you have to pay sales tax (primary example is Apple stores); on the other hand, to attract Amazon to build three distribution centers in the state, the sales tax requirement was waived.

Not my type of subject, but that is a beautiful piece of work, all around. While I don't like basic metallic paints at this scale, this bronze gives it a great custom metalflake look. Nice door upholstery and door frame detail. Congratulations.

It would be interesting to see what y'all think are excellent builds of the General Lee, done by those who took the plastic kits and got it right, and why. Links and detailed images are good. I think this would be of interest to all past, present and potential General Lee builders.

Hey, if we can have a forum on "General," why not "General Lee?"

And your point is...? (Another reason why forum management is discouraging icons and asking for real words).

So you're saying that a reasonably accurate replica can't be made from this kit?

Okay, I'm getting ready to step up to the plate and incur the wrath of all General Lee experts. I'm going to use the 1/16th MPC kit as a basis. There were 3 or 4 Chargers used as the "hero" camera car in the show, with over 250 others used for stunts and demolition. Which one of the 4 is most closely replicated by the MPC kit? (By, the way, I will do just as the show writers and producers did and say that the doors were welded shut, without paying expensive union technicians to actually do it). Here's an overview from Wikipedia: Although the estimated number of General Lees used varies from different sources, according to Ben Jones ("Cooter" in the show), as well as builders involved with the show, 256 General Lees were used to film the series. Others claim about 321 were used in the series. Approximately seventeen still exist in various states of repair. On average, more than one General Lee was used up per show. When filming a jump, anywhere from 500 to 1,000 pounds of sand bags or concrete ballast was placed in the trunk to prevent the car from nosing over. Later in the series the mechanics would raise the front end of the car to keep it from scraping against the ramp causing it to lose speed, thereby providing a cushion for the driver upon landing. Stunt drivers report enjoying the flights but hating the landings. Despite the ballast, the landing attitude of the car was somewhat unpredictable, resulting in moderate to extremely violent forces, depending on how it landed. On many of the jumps the cars bent upon impact. All cars used in large jumps were immediately retired due to structural damage. From 1979 to 1985, 1968 and 1969 model-year Chargers were sourced and converted to General Lee specifications. Despite popular belief, no 1970 models were used, according to all builders involved over the years. Obtaining cars was not a problem until later years. By that time, the car was the star of the show and Warner Brothers moved building of the cars in house to keep the cars consistent in appearance. Later in the show's run, when it got too hard and/or expensive to continue procuring more Chargers, the producers started using more 'jump footage' from previous episodes. In the final season radio-controlled miniatures were occasionally used to the chagrin of several cast members. Episodes 1 to 5 were filmed in the Georgia towns of Covington and Conyers in November and December 1978. Georgia episode cars consisted of 6 Dodge Chargers. The first General Lees were built by Warner Brothers (WB) and shipped to Georgia where John Marendi (picture car coordinator) labeled the first 3 cars LEE 1, LEE 2, and LEE 3 in no particular order for film editing purposes. LEE 1 was a 2nd unit car with a full roll cage. It is a 383 V8-powered 1969 Charger equipped with air conditioning (A/C). It was originally code T3 Light Bronze Metallic with tan interior, 3 speaker dash, and chrome rocker trim. After the now-famous jump over Rosco P. Coltrane's police cruiser by stuntman Craig Baxley, it was stripped of its front seats and 1969-specific grill and taillight panel. LEE 1 was used once more as the "Richard Petty" tire test car in the fourth episode Repo Men and afterwards was retired to a junkyard in Georgia, but later bought and restored. LEE 2 was also a 2nd unit car with a full roll cage and tan interior. It was used for the opening scene in One Armed Bandits. In this scene, Bo and Luke were chasing Rosco's police cruiser with the General after Cooter stole it; during this chase, LEE 2 is shown making a jump (the second that Baxley performed). LEE 3 was the first unit 1 close-up car and the first General Lee built by Warner Brothers; it's seen in the first publicity photos. It was originally a F5 Medium Green Metallic R/T SE (Special Edition) model. It was powered by a 440 Magnum V8,375hp(horsepower)3671 lb,and also had A/C with power windows and a wood grain dash. This car had a tan interior and a removable roll bar that allowed installation of a camera for in-car shots. This car was painted 1975 Corvette Flame Red with a special basecoat; the basecoat was used after they found LEE 1's paint appeared to be blotchy due to the direct application over factory paint. Eventually the first 3 General Lees started to show visible damage, so the crew had to start making more. The first General Lee built in Georgia was a 1968 Charger converted to look like a 1969; the tail light panel, front grill, and front seats taken from LEE 1 were used. The paint used on these cars was Chrysler code EV2 or "Hemi Orange". Interiors not originally tan were sprayed with SEM brand "Saddle tan" Vinyl dye. The first 3 Georgia Lees had a set of crossed flags (a Confederate flag and checkered flag) on the panel between the rear window and trunk lid. Although 4 sets were created, only 3 were used. They were discontinued due to the continuity of the General Lee graphics, making it one less thing to be used. The 3 surviving cars went back to California and had the crossed flags removed upon reconditioning. The wheels were generally 14X7 inch American Racing brand "Vectors" throughout the show and were mainly mounted on P235/70R14 B.F. Goodrich Radial T/A tires with the blackwall side facing out.

You're right, Chuck, I am only half-joking. I honestly wonder if it shouldn't be a topic in itself.

I think we need a new menu item devoted ENTIRELY to the General Lee. That will make it easier to compare who's doing what, and how well...or make it easier to ignore.

Futurabat, one of the best pieces of wisdom I've ever seen here.

Okay, so I'm composing here and I decide I don't want to post it, but there isn't a cancel button. I have to post before I can delete.

test test test Nope, not in my composing window.

On the other side of the coin, it would also be accurate to use Alclad for body paint, such as this one with Aluma-Bead silver:

Great job, and an excellent use of the new (but strange) Mercedes colors using matte and chrome-like paints. http://www.zercustoms.com/news/Mercedes-Matte-Paint.html

Okay, now I see it, but only when I click on More Reply Options. Is this different than before, when you had to click on Add Reply to get a message window to write in? I also see it on my post AFTER it's been posted, but not before.

I was just adding a reply to a thread, and I decided that it didn't add anything to the conversation and I wanted to delete it. But I couldn't find a button that let me cancel the post. So I highlighted my entry copy and deleted it. Anyone else have this problem?

Don has a more detailed thread on this build going on at scalemotorcars.com, and I believe he's planning to put on a rear fender. On another note, Don, the way you used Rust-Oleum textured paint on the seat is one of the best-looking answers I've ever seen for simulated leather, and should be the subject of a Tips/Tricks thread on this site.

Is this the sort of thing you're going for?