sjordan2

I have a few of this kit in my stash; I've gathered a massive amount of reference material on the Gullwing, and it looks very accurate to me. You can get a pretty good analysis of the kit at the late Martin Swire's website, which contains several pictures of his build. One advantage of the kit is that it actually has the Gullwing space frame. You'll note that Martin painted the space frame white, which really isn't accurate; he may have been misled by early factory press photos of a white frame which was that color only to make it easier to see the structure more clearly. It should be semigloss black. http://martsmodels.webs.com/1955merc300sl.htm I also have the 1/16 Italeri version, which is nearly impossible to find these days. I think it's overall more highly detailed and accurate and has the advantage of providing chrome window surrounds and body trim separately, while these are molded on the Minicraft/Entex body and require foiling. Minicraft badging is only with silver decals. Of the two kits, the Minicraft has the better wheels, which are chromed, unlike the Italeri; my choice would be to use the Minicraft wheels on the Italeri kit. But you can still make a nice model from the Minicraft with a little extra detailing work. The Minicraft could stand to have the grille mesh removed by sanding down the back of the grille part and replacing it with real mesh. While the Minicraft Gullwing seats are okay, the Italeri seats are a bit more accurate. Also, Italeri has the proper luggage rail running around the upper part of the rear deck; Minicraft doesn't have it. The Italeri kit has its shortcomings, though it is overall superior: The space frame parts are only suggested on the underside of the chassis and it doesn't have a bellypan like the Minicraft and the original car; also, unlike the fully molded Minicraft body, the front clip is a separate part that's going to require some skillful bodywork. One way or another, the best model of the Gullwing will require mooshing these two kits together; The Italeri kit could be much improved by putting Minicraft space frame elements in the engine compartment, which it doesn't have. If the Italeri Gullwing is nowhere to be found to improve the Minicraft, the alternative is the readily available 1/16 300 SL roadster from Italeri, which has the better engine and chrome trim. Oddly, the Italeri kits include a decal for the nose badge that is a red-black-and-white logo that was discontinued in the late 30s. I'll be happy to answer any further questions you may have about the 1:1 or these kits.

I think "Bullitt" started it all but "The French Connection" upped them a notch because driver and passenger were nearly wetting their pants vs. McQueen's ultra cool. "Ronin" has a killer car chase, and both versions of "The Italian Job" are a joy to behold. And, though everyone has gotten too jaded by now, there's a heck of a chase in a zillion movies since them, notably in "Wanted," which is pretty over-the-top. Love Angelina Jolie lying on the hood sticking her legs through the windshield with her automatic weapons blazing.

Horrible disappointment today. Bought a Minicraft Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud that was advertised as 1/16, as opposed to their normal lousy 1/24 kit (sworn to by the seller as being 1/16, not 1/24). Well, the BOX said 1/16, but open it up and it's the same POS 1/24, unfortunately with a mislabeled box (see below). Seller gave me a $15 credit, which brings it back into the going rate for the 1/24 kit, but it's so bad I'll probably never build it. If I really wanted a 1/24 Silver Cloud for my shelf, I'd get the Franklin Mint version. But, boy, I thought this would be cool at 1/16. [ignore the woody stuff – that's just a decal] I'm guessing this is the same kit I built back around 1960 that was issued by Hubley, with straight metal axles and an indistinguishable blob for an engine. I brush-painted it chocolate brown and was very proud of it. Unfortunately, in preparation for the 1/16, I've downloaded tons of Silver Cloud reference material and even bought an expensive parts/service manual for the entire Silver Cloud series.

You're truly a multimedia artist. Wonderful, subtle airbrushing. Did you put the headlight decals over chrome? I'm probably going to have to resort to clear headlight decals for some of my kits.

I agree. I think it would look better with a headlight treatment similar to the Chrysler Atlantic concept car.

Found this on Hemmings while I was there: Hemmings caption: "Next, the Myth, a wild 1934 Packard, built by Frank Roxas with a Packard V-12 and an all-steel body built by Scott and Dave Knight. It made a fairly big splash at the Detroit Autorama earlier this year, but I haven’t seen much of it since. All we know from the RM description so far is that it’s going up with no reserve." Search roxas packard myth in Google images for some other pretty cool shots.

That's some great reference. I also noticed there's additional reference for other 30S Packards on that page. The red convertible doesn't have much on that site, but you can get to more shots here: http://www.artcurial.com/en/asp/fullCatalogue.asp?salelot=2015+++++260+&refno=10350424

Jim, that link doesn't work for me.

I've seen some nice builds here that have the windows rolled down a bit leaving some of the glass showing, and I think that's a very realistic detail.

I can't find any kind of smiley face that's appropriate for this astonishing piece of work.

Cool. The wheels you chose are certainly better than what's in the kit. If you didn't follow the other forum thread, I encourage you to do so because there are a couple of good (well, one of them's good) cutaway drawings, plus some really nice 1:1 links.

I posted some info on this kit a while back, with somebody's build journal. He used Herb Deeks wire wheels. http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com/Gal1/501-600/gal558_Talbot_Dalton/00.shtm You'll find more information on the bottom of this page and the one after it: http://www.scalemotorcars.com/forum/large-scale-cars/6477-1-8-gt40-mk1-ford-scratchbuilt-why-not-38.html

There are some diecasts out there that might help for reference http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&biw=1316&bih=778&gbv=2&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=tatra+603+diecast&btnG=Search&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=

I experimented with it by dipping cotton balls and applying to the basic kit color (molded in red). Came out great.

Very, very nice. I saw your posts on this build on the hobbygroup board and really enjoyed looking at your pictures of original 1920s motor homes.

It was supposed to be about encouraging new modelers to learn the basics well before getting too involved in advanced detailing. Seems like the thread got overly involved in different areas. As Salvador Dali said: "First, learn to paint like the masters. Then you can do anything you want."

I tried to send you a PM on this subject, but got the following window: The following errors were found The member midnightprowler cannot receive any new messages This personal message has not been sent Anyway, I think it's interesting that I see a lot of "yeah man" responses to this thread by Jantrix, which includes basically the same comments from my thread about not finishing works in progress, yet I got intensely criticized for making such statements. And I also got intensely criticized for my thread on "civility," asking everyone to be nicer to each other, which resulted in so many nasty responses that it had to be locked.

I have sent you a PM, and will not respond to this sort of talk in public any more. For the record, I was not talking about you.

Commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu3b_EvvMDo&feature=relmfu A little behind the scenes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msIelWLTo9Q

Jo-Han made one. Look around for reasonable deals. http://www.unbuiltmodels.com/servlet/the-3797/Jo-dsh-Han-1963-Plymouth-Fury/Detail http://cgi.ebay.com/JO-HAN-1963-PLYMOUTH-FURY-1-25TH-SEALED-/390302077463?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5adfd11217

Looks like a classic houndstooth pattern. You could download something that looks close and make your own decals on your computer. If you paint the seat back the proper base color, then print your pattern to size on clear paper, you should be good to go. For my Mercedes Gullwing, I replicated the racing plaid upholstery on the computer and printed it on inkjet cloth (for 1/16 and 1/12 scales). http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&safe=off&biw=1316&bih=778&gbv=2&tbm=isch&sa=1&q=houndstooth+pattern&btnG=Search&aq=f&aqi=g6g-m2&aql=&oq=

If you describe your problem more specifically you will get better answers.

Logically, regardless of modifications, if it's a 1:1 I would have to call it real.

Hear, hear. (Applause ensues.)

I share the concerns mentioned here about the interpretation of comments. One of the worst parts is that one's constructive comments can get severely twisted out of shape. Once upon a time, not too long ago, I posted a thread wishing that people who started an "On the Workbench" thread would follow through on their projects, but many have never finished the builds they started, and eventually abandoned the thread. Frustrating to get into a thread that goes nowhere. So I commented that many of the best builders here managed to complete their projects and not leave us in suspense. Yet, this was reinterpreted by another member (who is conspicuously absent these days) as saying I had called someone a "talentless hack," leading others to believe I had actually said that. But I never said or even implied such a thing, and I have never attacked the talents or quality of any builders here, either individually or as a group. If I have ever been harsh, it has been in response to trolls who have made very nasty, incendiary and insulting posts, and that's how past flame wars have gone on and on. My bad. But I'm seeing a somewhat better response to constructive criticisms these days, regarding suggestions like a build could use some clear coat or a little masking would help trim paint look cleaner, re-think overscale wiring, etc. The builder responses I'm seeing lately appear more appreciative. So maybe it's getting easier to make constructive criticism. Do you think?