Dave Mikrut

I got mine Jan 2nd. One of the best issues in a long time. The Toledo NNL coverage was most excellant and the fotos were preemo. I musta been in the can when the group foto was taken...Doh! Bill Geary's article on hinging doors put this issue over the top! Now I know why you got that nickname "Mr. Obsessive"! I'm really gonna try that now that you showed us "how to". I read these zines cover to cover.

I'm real glad they came out with the 1980 Class Action Monte Carlo kit. See my review of it in kit reviews. This kit has furnish me with parts to proceed with the building of this 1979 Monte I had laying around for 10 years that was missing a frame, bumper trims, window glass and chassis. I bought new 2 kits, and actually painted both bodies today. The 1980 is pearl blue. Heres some progress fotos so far.

I was excited to see this model was going to be re-produced. When it was originally manufactured by MPC, it was a black kind of rubbery feeling plastic that just didn't seem to want to stay glued or painted. A big disappointment because I owned a 79 all black Monte Carlo and wanted to replicate it. To my satisfaction this model is molded in white and what seems to be the good old styrene we all have grown to love. It has that certain smell to it when you sand it yanno? I would like to take a moment to thank the model manufacturers that are making these new heavy duty model boxes with beautifully restored graphics. I know on some of the forums I subscribe to, there was a lot of complaints about the really flimsy boxes that models were coming in a few years ago. There has been a great improvement and this box is beautiful. Not only is the plastic an improvement, the chrome, the decals, the parts, all seem to be better quality. Now I know I am getting you all excited, but this kit is by no means the caliber of the recent Revell Nova, altho I can see myself pirating some of the parts from that kit. Back when MPC released this kit, they were also were producing Promotional or promos of the 78, 79 and 80 Montes. This kit is not much more than that. Nice features of the kit are the ability to remove portions of the roof to make it a T-top car. A half vinyl top roof that can be added and is not molded on. A nicely detailed interior. The down sides are neither sets of wheels are very convincing, the engine is very simple and so is the chassis. I have been building models since the early 1960's. I am not a complainer when it comes to a model not having perfect fitment. I have always been grateful for any model kit, be it a reproduced oldie I can now afford once again or a resin casting that needs work...I'm still happy to have at least something to work with and make it my way. Here's some fotos of this beautiful old kit. Oh and I forgot! It's got a cool little chopper and trailer too I'm gonna have fun building finally!

Can we really ever have enuff? I'll probably not show much more of this little guy, because I'm going to build it fairly stock. BUT. I did want to show that if you have a damaged car body, hang on to it. I got this body, minus roof and decided to saw off a Ratpacker roof to restore it. Not many old AMT screw chassis Chevy II's around anymore. I used a brand new razor saw, made precision cuts and carefully glued it on with plastic weld type cement. I'm kinda diggin this two tone look...may even paint it similarly. Thinking of using the straight six with some mods.

This is amazing, went looking for anthing else in my stash that was 1/20th, found the AMT Chuck Wagon...same thing 1/25th scale on the box...1/20th inside !!! BUT This will have awesome parts for my Gremlin!!!

I'm a little bit torqued about the false advertising on the box of this new kit. I spose I shoulda done more research on this kit but was really excited to see it at the local hobby store. I owned a 72 Gremlin with a factory 304 V8 back in 73 and was looking forward to building this kit. It clearly states on the box as you can see in the photo, 1/24th scale. It's really 1/20th scale. This limits my options to build it my way because I have no parts in my stash to add to it. I'll probably build it zinger style and maybe add a Roth type monster to it.

The body is from the newest AMT Competition Parts Pack. On the friday night before the Toledo NNL I sprayed the tonneau cover black in my motel room. Here's a foto of it, I think it shows better. The frame is from the old AMT Double Dragster kit Fiat Chassis which by the way, is lookin like its coming out again along with the Double T kit ! WOO HOO!!! The instructions in the AMT Competition Parts Pack suggest this frame to be used and I happened to have a restorable one in my junkyard.

If I'd of been holding your beer Gregg...it wouldn't be your beer no more haha, it would have been drank, or is it drunk? hehe

I was there...how'd I miss getting in that photo??? Somebody come get me next time ok! haha

I started building models in 1960. My allowance was $2.50. An incredible amount of money back then for an 8 year old boy, altho well deserved. My mom was a single parent; I was cooking dinnner for her already at that age and cleaning half the house and helping with laundry every other week. An AMT 3-1 kit was $1.49 then and our local five and dime even discounted that sometimes as low as $1.29. Spray paint was $.49 a can and I even had money left over to buy a custom car magazine or model car magazine as they first came out, small tv guide size. Loved it when Cartoons came out then too. If I couldn't afford something I would satisfy my urge to possess it, by drawing it. Became a pretty good artist over the years, art is also in our family genes along with music. Like many others, getting married, having 3 kids, getting divorced, raising my kids as a single dad, all contributed to drifting me away from my beloved hobby. Got rid of most of the magazines but thank God I kept all my model cars stashed away safely for when would come the day. When my kids got older, and time got freed up somewhat, I began to get these models back out into an area where they could be repaired, rebuilt and in some cases started. Along came Ebay. Since I had sold all my magazines, I have since bought all of them back, from 1960 - 1972. Got alot of old preemo kits too, not to collect but to build. I tried the ultra detailed, aluminum and photoetched parts style of of building and it gave me no joy to assemble parts made by other people. Even the kits I build very rarely are right out of the box, ever since I was a kid. A childhood hero was Don Emmons. I dreamed someday of maybe, just maybe being able to build as cool as he. Someday I would love to thank him for sharing his dreams with us, for such a small price...just a magazine. This has become my new style of building. I grab a handfull of old model car magazines and browse them for inspiration while sometimes in a slump and everytime I see something that possesses me and I cannot rest until I have rode the wave of styrene fabrication and putty slinging! I keep on building. Not to win a contest, altho I admit watching from a distance, people admiring something I've built. It's for the personal gratification and creative rush we get for creating these little dream cars that we love so much. God bless all the hobby heroes that have guided our way. They are passing but we are richer for what they have left with us.

Remember that 65 "PLYMOUTH DEALERS" Barracuda I was working on a while back? I lost it! It was driving me freakin goofy! I wanted to finish it for Toledo and could not find it. I had the chassis and sub-chassis laying around my work area that could only be described as organized dis-array, but could not find the painted body or the rest of the kit. All weekend and until yesterday I have been searching for the box, in every room of my house. I'm happy to report I have found it. An interesting phenomenon occured whilst searching. All my kits upstairs in my coach house are now organized and labeled as to what state of completion and urgency. The rest of them, unopened or grokked are in storage down stairs in my garage. Maybe I can proceed in a more orderly manner...is yet to be seen hehe. http://s156.photobucket.com/albums/t9/soooperdave/Plymouth/

WOW What a view! I'll bet when that slope is full of snow you could snow board all the way down to the town! So nice you got to see your son too.

He sent me a message, we were keeping in touch on this, cause we both were having troubles with cancer. He gave me his phone number, said it would be nice if we could talk. He told me he had gained 30lbs and he was doing great. I didn't reply, was going to get back to him after Toledo. Now I am very sad to have missed an oppurtunity to talk to him. I am very very sad at the moment.

Born in 52, just turned 56 and started in 1960 building the Hawk rubberband salt flat models and all the cool $1.49 AMT and JoHan kits. Never built them right out of the box then or now. When I was 17 gas was 19 to 29 cents a gallon but my 57 Chevy I raced on the weekends at U.S. 30 drag strip in indiana used Sunoco 280 which was 47 cents a gallon!

After a couple of years of getting to know Gregg, emailing each other about Ala Kart reference photos and articles and back pain, sadness of the loss of many of our hobbies finest and even model related topics I finally got to meet him in person. I will echo what I have heard others say, and that is Gregg is just a regular down to earth guy. Bright and early I first ran into him at the toy show briefly and he was bopping around like a kid in a candy store. Later when we really got to talk a little, was when he was taking photos of models for the ENTIRE 6 hours of the show. I watched him oogle each model he was photographing and really showing interest and appreciation to each guy and his model that was selected. At one point he was laying on the floor, obviously trying to relax out a back spasm and then he kept on going. Some editors of magazines have little or no knowledge or even like or care what it is they are publishing. There's no doubt in my mind, if there ever was any, that Gregg truly loves this hobby. It shows in his eyes, his genuine smile and in the contents of the magazine I know he loves.

Daniel, C'est tre manifique...see you in Toledo buddy!

I noticed that the instructions for this model made reference to the frame that comes with the AMT Double Dragster kit for the Fiat. I had an old one floating around in my parts boxes so on a whim I thought I'd see if I could clean it up and maybe turn it into something. All the parts used to build this model are from old AMT and Revell kits.

I second the olds 442 W-30 kits chassis choice, lots more detail and as a matter of fact, when doing a frame off restoration of my 1:1 1970 Chevelle at the time, I was able to replace my damaged frame with a 69 Cutlass frame which was in nice condition. So it is a match.

Not to worry, there's more where that came from. Here's an El Camino build you might like to see!

I actually decided to abandon the roof, because it just isn't practical to be able to get in. I really wanted to try to make this build kinda like Big Daddy would like it, hope he's smiling! I'm taking a little break from this one, I've actually been playing with my slot cars all week. Soon I'll get reinspired to finish it.

I saw a wildly chopped up El Camino (see first foto) on the internet and I had an extra 60 El Camino body that was just dyin to be customized. I'm only going to post a few of the many progress fotos, but you can actually go to my photobucket site to see them all.

I bought some of the purple. As the article in Model Cars mentions, this paint really comes out of the can with a lot of force. I held the engine 2 feet away to avoid runs. I really like the way it dries and am looking forward to painting a whole model car body with it.

Has anyone recently been in touch with Brian Nehring? Brian is a participant in the ModelCarlist "Snowball" group model building project. I've been attempting to contact him and I'm concerned that I may have an out of date email address. Snowball, which is an online model club build project is being painted by Brian whith one of his excellant flamed paintjobs. Please help me get in touch with him. You can also get in touch with me at soooperdave@yahoo.com Just for fun here's some links to the Snowball project: http://canney.net/projectsnowball/ http://public.fotki.com/soooperdave/brian-nehring-paint/ http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v655/kus...ect%20Snowball/

This is going to be one beautiful Deuce. That engine looks ready to rumble. Bob Dudek's parts are incredible and make any model so much more realistic. I've had the pleasure of owning some of his works and sometimes would just sit and stare at how intricate they are. I have a set of his slotted mags on a current project I'm working on and I get an occasional attaboy about the model, and lotsa "Hey where'd you get them wheels!"

Here's a try at some interesting headlights. They're from a 34 Ford, thought I would add some realism by adding the head of a straight pin to the lense to simulate those old custom headlights. They're not permanent or lined up real good because I'm not sure whether I'm going with them yet, I'm kinda diggin these tho, whatd'ya think? I used some textured paper from the craft store to do the firewal. It' similar to what's found in the crushproof cigarette boxes.