David G.

In the directions, it looks as if you are to put the radiator support in place, install the upper and lower radiator hoses, then lower the body on the chassis. I initially built mine this way but when I went to lower the body on to the chassis, I discovered that the flare at the top of the radiator support wall was too wide to allow it to slip into the engine bay. I ended up removing it and replacing it after I secured the body to the rest of the chassis. Not only did this necessitate the removal and replacement of both radiator and the hoses (the lower of which I may end up leaving off) but now the hood contacts the radiator support and is about 1/2 mm from closing flush. ? I may have misinterpreted the directions but I thought I'd share the information just in case. Looking at the assembly from this angle, I can see no way that the radiator support can be installed in any other way than from above. Because I couldn't get the radiator support to settle in quite properly, it sits a little high and lifts the hood by about 1mm. It looks like I should be able to file down the top of the support a sufficient amount to allow the hood to settle in properly. I guess if model builders don't have any problems to solve, we can always create our own. Pressing on, David G.

Excellent work so far. David G.

Great color combination, excellent custom work, smooth and clean. Love it! David G.

Looks great John! Great color choice. I have one of these going myself, I'm nearly finished. A word of caution though. When you put the chassis together, mind the front radiator support. In the directions, it looks as if you are to put it in place then lower the body on the chassis. I initially built mine this way but when I went to lower the body on to the chassis, I discovered that the flare at the top of the radiator support wall was too wide to allow it to slip into the engine bay. I ended up removing it and replacing it after I secured the body to the rest of the chassis. Not only did this necessitate the removal and replacement of both radiator (the lower of which I may end up leaving off) but now the hood contacts the radiator support and is about 1/2 mm from closing flush. ? I may have misinterpreted the directions but I thought I'd share the information with you just in case. David G.

Nicely Done! Very convincing rust effects, what did you use to achieve the bumpy texture? David G.

Looks to be a fun build, you're off to a good start. David G.

I'm glad to have found this one again. You've made some excellent progress. I've built a couple of model railroads so I have an idea of how much work goes into even a small diorama scene- all of it very well done. David G.

Smooth and Deadly David G.

Excellent color choice, nicely detailed, a good clean build. Absolutely gorgeous! David G.

Nice work on the bumper blend! Your detail work on the engine is great too. David G.

Excellent design and fabrication work so far! It all blends together so well. Looking at what you've done so far, my mind goes immediately to one of those full-on customs from the 60's rather than a surf wagon. Something in like a purple mist color with a plush white interior and a lightly tinted glass roof. As a plus, that'll give you some justification for keeping the skirts. Bonus! Whatever path you take with it, I'm sure it'll be great. David G.

Tremendously impressive work! Texture, color, detail, they all work together extremely well to create a very convincing model. Well done Sir! David G.

I don't know if you have Sharpie pens in the UK but I'm sure that there must be an equivalent of some sort. In a pinch, I sometimes use them to color clear lenses. The best example that comes to mind is these lenses that I modified years ago. They were cast as a single red lens with no accommodation for the reversing light part of the lens. What I did what was cut off the offending part and attach a clear piece on which drew in the red details with a fine-point Sharpie pen. I believe this is when I first hit on the idea of using a marker in this fashion. I hope you find this helpful. Best Regards, David G.

Thanks Randy, I'm pretty happy with the progress I've made on both fronts. Thank you David, I appreciate your comment. Actually, I never quit working on this one but there were many times when I couldn't do as much as I would have liked. I did place on myself a firm commitment of at least thirty minutes every week as a part of my self-imposed therapy. The good news is that in the past couple of weeks I've been able to make more progress than in the previous couple of months, so I should have this one finished fairly soon. Thanks for your comment Rusty, I'm glad to see that you're still following me on this one. Hopefully I'll have another update soon! Best Regards, David G.

Hello Simon, I'm glad to see that you're still chipping away at this one, I admire your patience and dedication. It seems to me that constructing the mounting armature would be a significant step toward completion. I'm sure that there is still much more to do but having the mount and base well in progress must be a good feeling. Regards. David G.

Hello All! It's time for another update... obviously. As my recovery progresses, I find that I'm able to spend a little more time building than I could a couple of months ago. So here are the results of my recent efforts. I was able to get the foil work completed as well as some detail painting. The more this build progresses, the more I find myself liking the way it looks. What was that slogan? "The thrill starts with the grille... and never seems to end" Yeah, well.. Pink and black and chrome! You can't get much more 1958 than that! As always, thanks for taking the time to look and please feel free to comment. David G.

Thanks David, that's a great idea. I may use that depending on how my current efforts play out. David G.

Thanks David. I'm still building but I have slowed down considerably. Right now I can only work for thirty minutes to an hour for one or two days per week before the mental fatigue sets in. Yes, now that you point it out those pins do seem a bit spindly. It's kind of funny that the stock bumper, which fits very close to the body and has almost no weight, is supported by big 2.5mm mounting pins that are placed in the outer third of each half of the rear panel. Very secure, very stable. While the continental kit which extends 2cm from the back of the car and has about as much plastic as the car's assembled engine is supported by two 1.5mm pins placed on the inner third of each side of the rear panel. Much less stable, much less secure. It would certainly make sense to supplement the mounting points for the continental deck. However, a thought occurred to me during my initial test fittings when I realized that the bumper and continental deck each snapped in and out easily and held rather securely while in place. This would allow me the ability to occasionally switch between the continental kit and the stock bumper, an option I'd like to retain if only for its own sake. So, I've already started migrating the mounting holes to better align the continental kit and it seems to moving in the right direction, so to speak. But it's slow work. File, fit, cut and place some stock, glue, cure, lather, rinse and repeat. Thank you Randy, I appreciate your kind thoughts and words. The healing progress is frustratingly slow but it is progress. I keep reminding myself how tremendously lucky I am that the outcome is not nearly as bad as it could have been and that helps too. Best regards, David G.

Hello Everybody, it's time for another update. I completed the continental kit assembly but there seems to be an alignment issue when fitting it to the body. There is no license plate bracket provided for use with the continental kit so I manufactured one using a parts box license plate mount and some styrene bits. When mounted, the right side of the bumper is slightly lower where it wraps around the fender. There's either a slight warp or a misalignment due to casting or design issues. In either case, I've decided to address it by adjusting the mounting holes in the rear facia on the car. Sorry about the tape in the shot ? As always, thanks for taking the time to look and please feel free to comment. David G.

Excellent work on all of them. Though I don't know much about guitars, the ones you built look great to my eye. David G.

Wow, such a variety and all of them very well done. To my eye, the one that truly stands out from the rest is the Fiat 500. You did a great job with the weathering and damage. David G.

That's a great set! If I had to pick a favorite I'd have to go with the BMW M1. David G.

Thank you Tim, glad you like it. David G.

I'm sorry to learn of the difficulties you experienced this year Charlie, I hope things improve for you and your family in 2021. Excellent work on the Chrysler! With all those thin moldings, the foil work must have been a challenge. Regards, David G.

You have an excellent eye for color! Though as I scrolled through the photos I was impressed by each one I'd have to sat that the Delray is my favorite. There's just something about the color combination that I find rather calming. Well done! David G.