Erik Smith

Suspension is not lowered on the wagon - it looks like it is still channelled, though. I can post some comparisons in the morning.

Smooth My copy had decent chrome - but…somewhere along the line it took a "hit", I guess, because the chrome sprue was broken in a couple spots and one wheel was halfway off - little bit of damage I did a quick look over and couple things: 1. There is an annoying spot on the rear window that the mold looks like it bulged out or something and it interferes with the molding, which will require some finesse clean up 2. I am surprised how little this kit shares with the '49 Mercury kit - frame and engine and a few parts are identical, but a lot of the parts are close but slightly reworked Overall, it's a really cool kit. Most of it pretty crisply molded (for Revell standards) Hey Tom - B and B has a few $19 White Elephant will be a little slower in getting them, but probably save a few bucks on them!

Very nice model! Great work on the paint.

You would have to be more specific on what the cosmetic air brushes are - brand, etc. Most cosmetic air brushes are the same as any other - they generally have smaller capacity for nails and finer nozzles…but there are a lot of variables. Make sure they are suited for solvent based paints. I would bet they are the same air burshes sold for any purpose, just targeting a specific customer with the wording.

Maybe I'm just not used to them, but the Vallejo paints seem to go on thick and dry slow compared to Polly Scale. One of the things I like about the Polly Scale is how well details show under it. I have only used the air brush ready Vallejo paint - which was too thick to spray with my Iwata Eclipse.

Yes, all of the above. You save considerably paying and printing shipping labels online. Almost 10% or so? Ship much and that adds up. Priority is the way to go - tracking, $50 insurance, usually gets across the country in two, maybe three days.

Sauna: Sow-na and not saw-na (sow as in female pig, not sow as in seeding). That's the really hot room Finns sit in.

Unfortunately, as mentioned in above posts, yes, no more. Fortunately, there are still a lot available on eBay and other online sources. It is a great paint - and thins easily with water. Cool, off colors too.

That steam tractor would be handy to pull other tractors around the farm backwards. I bet the JD can get a lot more work done. I wonder what the weight difference is?

Love the wood work.

I love white steering wheels on a dark interior. The horn ring doesn't look too hard to replicate either. The roofline on the front, above the windshield, looks so homely on these cars…never really paid attention to it before - like a bald, sad guy head.

The roof looks too tall. No, just being smart... Great looking model. All the changes are subtle but recognizable - the kind of model I enjoy. Great work.

I know some guys who moved over. Halliburton even had recruiting events here in Spokane. I like my job here - and that $14 was the minimum to make $9000. Both my wife and I are happy and above that minimum. At $95000, that's almost $8000 a month. So another $1000 and... From home, a little more difficult. Medical billing?

$9,000 in 8 weeks? Well, without knowing your current situation and the employment situation in North Dakota - get two jobs and work full time at both of them. 7 days a week including evenings. That's an average of $14 per hour for 80 hours a week for 8 weeks. Not that much of a stretch. My wife and I both have stretches that exceed that through the year. For awhile, my wife was working 35 hours at one job and 3 12 hour shifts on friday-sunday. During the months of June-October, I work 7 days a week (with required R and R days) - sometimes upto 16 hours a day. In both situations, we make over $9,000 in 8 weeks. You don't need to find magic, easy ways to do it if you can find work.

Good insight Brett. I actually like shopping at hobby shops and it's good to hear something good... One thing hobby shops can do is satisfy the human need for instant gratification - want a model and don't want to wait for days? Yeah, only one option - buy it at a brick and mortar. Same with paint and other supplies you run out of in the middle of a building session. I do see people buying kits at HTUSA (highest prices in the area), so price is not always the main consideration.

I don't have any statistics, but I think the anectodal stories speak volumes... How many LHS aer opening? How many are closing? That should answer a lot of questions. The brick and mortar model is scaling back - I won't say dying because some find ways to diversify and attract different customers - but for all intents and purposes, they are declining. A few things to consider: Commercial rent costs - check out the cost to rent a commercial building in a somewhat decent spot (location, location, location) and then figure how many model cars and $3.00 bottles of paint you would have to sell JUST TO PAY RENT! Labor - yeah, you can go for minimum wage, but it adds up. That $8 per hour worker has to pay for himself/herself every hour/day worked - unless you want to be the only employee, which doesn't alleviate you from self employment taxes, healthcare, etc…That's quite a few more models to sell. Your pay - yeah, you have to sell enough after paying rent, insurance, labor, taxes - to pay yourself - how much, or little, do you want to earn? Do you want a job or a business? Thinking of opening a store? Upfont costs - you have to cover operating costs and inventory BEFORE you make any profit... Your competition? Among all the online sellers and other sources, customers are more savvy now - they can shop hundreds of places online that compete directly with you 24 hours a day, every single day. Sombering. The HTUSA in Spokane does a good job sttracting youth into the store - but not for models. Card games and Kendamas mainly - so many kids, in fact, it's hard to get around and it's noisy as heck.

Nice paint and overall "look". My kind of style. Cool model.

Beautiful little model of a great looking car. I like the color choice - red was, it seems, overwhelmingly popular. Great paint and interior detail. Fabulous model.

From my home state: HERE Nothing from Deschutes…a few OSP cars. Do you know how many cars the county ran? Might have been a small number - considering Bend was still up and growing in 1990... Best option might be to go downtown and see if the county has any old photos.

The sideview looks like smoke in a wind tunnel. From the rear, it looks kind of retro. Makes you want to run your hand all the way along the car...

Wow, great models. Very clean building. The Turbine looks great clad in deep steelies and blueline tires.

Don't assume anything…Revell has included many of the parts from previous releases without mention. I bet they are still there as they were all molded at the same time when the kit was originally produced. I have the ROG 1/12 1957 Chevy - it does not mention any of the custom parts on the box or in the pictures, yet all the parts are there. Wheels are such a personal taste that you could never pick out a new set of wheels and have happy campers. Having another set of 1/12 tires though, that's nice. I am sure there will be some custom wheels made to fit...

Cute.

1980 Cinnabar Red... Hope it finds its home, or maybe it will make a sad kid's movie...

You may not, but the people who pay big bucks for that kit must... There was that whole mild n wild thing in '71 -72…