alan barton

There's probably more, Andrew, but that's the problem with Aussies, we're so shy and reserved! Yeah, right! Definitely Midnight Oil!

For what it is worth, I took these photos of the original magazine article. Phone camera is obviously struggling a bit! Cheers Alan

Loving this! Brings back memories of the build I did twenty or so years ago. I made my top panel out of printer's plate aluminium and it worked a treat. I'm a big fan of vacforming but in this case I think the aluminium was the correct choice! Cheers Alan

Add me to the list regarding the bare metal paint finish. I have some doors in my garage that look EXACTLY like that! This would look amazing in a body shop diorama. Cheers Alan

I don't know much about Ferraris, Andrew, but I do know when I am seeing some extra fine modelling! Your attention to detail and your tenacity at finding the right components to aid you is remarkable. Cheers Alan

Thanks Bob, thanks Dan, thanks Greg. My wife just googled Zinser and we can get it here in Australia at Bunnings ( like your Home Depot, just with less range and higher prices!) She had used Zinser brush on paint years ago in our bathrooms but we weren't aware of the spray cans so will be getting some today! Cheers Alan

I'm seeing a some Ed Roth with a touch of Darryl Starbird here! Are you thinking of stripes of some sort to highlight the fins, James? Cheers Alan

Well, the update was a long time coming but I just couldn't abide the multiple shades of white that I ended up with. However, we had one of our longest, coldest and wettest winter in years so I really couldn't get excited about painting! Sometimes, though, the planets line up to make things happen! First, as a result of my job I had to pass through Adelaide Airport a few weeks ago which, at the time, was classed as a COVID hotspot and as a result I was forced into 14 days of self isolation quarantine. At the end of the first week, we got our first taste of hot weather, say around 100 degrees in the old money. I gently removed the seat, the steering wheel and column and the windshield and posts. I then masked up the rest of the interior. I sanded the whole body and panels down with 800 wet and dry and then glued them together with some old sprue and superglue. This had to work as I really couldn't afford to get much more paint on that body - the AMT bodylines were starting to disappear on me! I put about three more coats of Tamiya white primer over everything, followed later in the day by three coats of Tamiya gloss clear. I left it a few days to gas out and then today I polished it with Tamiya fine polishing compound. And at last, I am happy! While I was doing all this, I noticed that the taillights weren't the tight fit I would have liked so I swiped a bit of Tamiya putty around the edges and sanded the result smooth before paint. I painted the body, taillights and all, and then used a sanding stick to cut through the paint back to the red taillight inserts. It's not quite flawless but I am very happy with the results. They are as close to a flush taillight as I could get without risking cutting through the paint! Tonight I have the body glued and clamped to the frame and then there are just a handful of pieces to glue on before I send it Under Glass. Hopefully this weekend so stay tuned Cheers Alan!

Two thoughts on this. First, if Revell HADN"T brought out a new improved model, you would still be working on it. (Or if you lived in Australia and had to wait a year or two to find out whether it really was going to come to your local hobby shop or not!) The new Revell in no way undervalues the amazing results you have achieved so far. Sure, buy the new Revell, use it as a reference for your existing project and one day, build it with another project with all the bells and whistles on the 68. Secondly, just put it back in the box, mate! The day will come when you think, "I may as well just get this finished!" In real life, full sized cars, and in the model world alike, it is a trap to keep chasing moving goal posts. Decades ago I tried to convert an old Grant King sprint car into a modern (eighties at the time) sprint car. I was deep into the project but when Monogram came out with their state of the art sprinters, the old GK went back in the box. Decades later, I realised that there was an interim style of sprint car that I now have an interest in and that old Grant King is coming out for another shot. Ditto for 32 3 window coupes - I was building my own version from an AMT roadster and Vicky, then Monogram brought out a perfect 32 3W and I put the AMT back in the box. A year or so ago a wave of nostalgia hit me and I finished the AMT conversion, warts and all, to complete my AMT "set". Cheers Alan

No worries, Michael, warning received and acknowledged! Cheers Alan

Talk about way to come back! This thing is exquisite! Your paint application is so clever and that deep candy red is simply breathtaking. I can't remember if anyone started a "Show us your 30 coupes" post but this one should be right on top if it happens. Plus, I love the way you shortened the shocks. When I did mine I drilled out the body so that the shaft pushed up inside but for some reason I like the way you did it better. Now, I know you are going for a bad boy look and all, but the black wheels to my eye ( and with all due respect to Dennis) are killing the vibe a bit. White walls with a tiny baby moon hubcap might be one option, or else run a Molotow pen over the wheels for a chrome reverse rim with blackwalls. If nothing else, I would be grabbing the rolling stock out of that second kit and trying your options before everything is glued up tight! Can't wait to see this thing done - you're comin back, baby! Cheers Alan

That looks fantastic, Bob! These are such a great throwback to the early days of model building. I got serious about finding all the 1/32 scale hot rods about 25 years ago and now have nearly fifty, only missing four that I know of. I have nearly finished my Ram Rod. It was built from a glue bomb and I made some minor tweaks around the windscreen area to make it more accurate, mainly because of glue damage anyway. Just got to find some decent pipes for it and it will be ready for show time! These things are just good fun in the purest sense of the word and the box art is amongst the best ever! Thanks for sharing your work with us all. Cheers Alan

That was a treat to look at Tim! Did you know Moonwind was going to be there? That would have been the highlight of the show for me - I must have read Hank Borger's article a hundred times! Cheers Alan

I think this is the first one I have seen built and I must say you've done an amazing job. I wouldn't worry about any grief you may have had, these photos reveal a skilfully assembled model with a stunning paint job. It is certainly one I am missing from my hot rod collection so hopefully they will re-issue it one day. On a trip to the Louisville Street Rod Nationals in the 1990s there was no shortage of hot rodded fire trucks on the grounds so this is, as Mythbusters would say, highly plausible! Cheers Alan

I've built four jalopies myself but none as nice as this! And what a great use for the otherwise unloved Monogram Beachboys 3w coupe body. In this genre the awkward proportions don't look nearly as bad as on a full fendered street rod. That's model builder's resourcefulness for you! Cheers Alan

There's a body style long overdue from the kit manufacturers! What a nice job. I have a Hubley 1/20th diecast kit of a 30 Vicky but for plastic I will have to dream. Cheers Alan

Just the perfect look for the mid '50s! Cheers Alan

What a beautifully balanced model! Not a jarring line to be seen. And I like the clear hood - it takes it from Winfield Custom to Corporate concept car/ motor show exhibit in one fell swoop! Cheers Alan

Wow! Talk about surgically clean! A beautiful representation of the box art that looks so right! Cheers Alan

Just righteous! The colour looks perfect, fit and finish belies the dramas you had with it. I like the detailing on the steering wheel. One really clean model! Cheers Alan

Jim, when I built mine years ago, Plasticoat Odds n Ends had small hobby sized spray cans that had a lemon yellow ( not sure of the name) that to my eye was a perfect match for Mooneye's yellow. I used up two cans on my Mooneyes projects but it hasn't been available in Oz for years. Maybe it is still available in the USA? For what it's worth, Hot Wheels, Matchbox, M2 and Johnny Lightening are all licensed to make 1/64th scale diecast Mooneyes cars and the colour varies considerably, even from the same manufacturer. Some are close to Corvette Chrome Yellow - I would always go lighter if I had the choice. Cheers Alan

I would go with the Gasser option because the lack of side panels for the hood is much better suited to a gasser than a street rod. Do the street rod option on one of your new kits after scaring up a full hood from the Monogram 39 Sedan Delivery kit. Lose the antenna from the cowl and just pop a couple of pinheads in the holes - far less glaring than the antenna. Remove the rear bumper and add a polished aluminium tubing bumper instead. The blown big block is fine but tone done the rocker covers with a very dull and textured grey alloy finish - maybe grey primer sprayed from a distance and washed with Tamiya Panel Line Accent. Considering the era for a gasser with a big block, I would go for some fat-ish M&H or Goodyear slicks rather than piecrusts. PArt of me says if it was mine, I would remove the front bumper and hang a Moon tank out there on some brackets with obvious fuel lines tucking back under the fender. American 5 spokes are my favourite mag wheel ( I have them on my real rod) but Cragar S/S would be perfect for this one, especially with the dark paint. Try and find a decal sheet with a lot of gold leaf signage -it would really pop on your rootbeer paint. Cheers Alan

Andrew, I've never seen that roadster before but it is awesome! What a cool car from my favourite period of drag racing. I don't know how accurate to the photo you are intending to build but if you want those bobbed fenders on the rear looking right, the existing fender opening on the Revell kit is radiused 2-3 mm higher than stock. The easy way to fix this is to trim the fender well section of one of the interior trim panels and then cut file and sand until it fits into the opening with that extra thickness left on the top. A touch of super glue, a bit more sanding and you are back to factory stock contours. Cheers and good luck with your roadster alan

I am so going to do this! I have been sitting on this kit for years, decades even, waiting for inspiration to hit. The mods you have done have improved the design in both proportion and style. I can see this towing a long wheelbase front-engined dragster in the same colours to a Cacklefest. Sooooo cool! Cheers Alan

Yep, that would definitely add some more colour in the front axle area , a bit more eye candy if you like. The trick is to not make it too much like a show car, because they rarely were, but add enough little details to keep the viewer interested. Red, yellow or blue shocks could all work. Cheers Alan