mrmike

The Story Judge Darpolos has been processed and is sitting in an interview room with his lawyer Charlotte "Charlie" Rothmann and Det. Lt. Adam Troy and all are being very cooperative with each other. McNally has returned from Commonwealth Chemical Testing Labs with his evidence to add to the Police gathered evidence. In Adam's office, McNally proposes a plan to draw out and capture the true culprits. Adam is starting to believe that the Judge is not a murder suspect but a victim of blackmail and he agrees to McNally's plan, much to Det. Darvell's chargrin. The Build After much thought, I have decided to strip the paint and start over again after finding too many flaws in the paint. I have tried to touchup as much as I could and ended up only to make a mess out of the body. All body parts except for the hood are to be stripped. After looking at the completed chassis with the hood in place, my mind's eye can envision a different body...more like something along the lines of a Lotus Series Seven or a Morgan Aero Supersports sports car. McNally will return...

In the last several years, I have become interested in Ford Woodys. I picked up the Monogram '48 Ford Woody kit #85-4282 several years ago with the hope of building it stock, but as time went by, that changed. I wanted to build a street rod Woody. I kept the lowered suspension, dual exhaust, and wide whitewall tires from Revell's '48 Ford Custom Coupe kit that I built previously. For motivation, I will not use the stock flathead engine. Instead, I'll use the intake manifold, tri-carbs, and Ardun heads from Revell's '50 Ford Pickup. Monogram's '48 Ford Woody Kit #852 -4282. My paint will be Testors Colors By Boyd Boyd Red enamel since I wanted a dark red instead of my normal bright red. Also shown are some of the extra parts I have procured. More to come...

Thanks Carl! I was sitting here tonight looking at the 'Cuda 383 sitting on the bench and I didn't like the stance. The nose sat too high, almost like a gasser. To my eye, the rear sat just fine. I decided to rip out the front suspension and mockup the custom lowered front suspension to see how the 'Cuda sat with that. Now the 'Cuda sits level and more to my liking. After looking at the driving lights and their small pins, I figured I would have issues with the driving lights falling off. I decided to carefully scrape the plating off of the mounting pins and in the mounting areas on the back of the front bumper. I glued the lights on and set the assembly aside to completely dry for a day. This should give the lights sufficient time to dry completely. More to come...

I got the glass and the interior installed today. I'm nearly done with the engine compartment. Using some parts sprue, I made the connecting pipes for the exhaust system. I need to clean up the bottom of the engine. More to come...

Thanks guys! Charlie, I got an HP 7520. Far better than the 5510 that crapped out on me for the second time. Two 5510's in two years...that's a sign!

Thanks Carl and Thomas!

Thanks Charlie and Bob! Charlie, the story is far from over. There are more twists and turns for McNally to maneuver through.

Thanks Nicky and Carl! Another quiet Sunday morning in the house, so armed with a cup of hazelnut coffee and my new sheet of BMF, I settled in my chair at the bench to finish foiling the 'Cuda. Foiling the bottom of the rear cove took me the longest to do since I had trouble lining the foil up along the edge correctly. I finally broke down and bought a new printer and proceeded to make a new air cleaner decal for the 383. This one is correct saying "Super Commando 383" More to come...

Thanks Carl! The Story When McNally and Charlie arrived at the Judge's house, the Police were already there arresting Augie for the murder of the woman at the motel. Charlie jumps into lawyer mode and advises her client to remain silent and she'll be with him throughout the entire booking process. McNally asks Det. Darvell about the arrest. "We found some fingerprints on the bedside table and on the lamp along with DNA from a towel in the bathroom." McNally replies, "I have evidence that he is being framed and I can tie that to Roberto Solaros." Darvell replies, "Good luck with that." The Build I have finished the interior and engine compartment. The chassis and the interior have been joined together. McNally will return...

Thanks Carl and Charlie! Charlie, I thought the twist would put a little more interest in the story and you have proven that it does with your nice comment. The Story McNally and Charlie visit Judge Darpolos at his home to check on him. The judge is nervously pacing around the house after finding an envelope from the blackmailers with photos of the judge and the dead girl. The pictures will be released to the media if the judge doesn't follow through with their demands. McNally suggests that the judge turn himself into the Police along with all the evidence he has collected and get themselves in front of the case. Augie tells them to leave and he will think about it and let them know in the morning. Charlie says, "I think he's going to crack under the pressure." Morning comes with McNally sitting in his kitchen eating breakfast and watching the morning news on TV. The newscaster announces that Judge Augustus Darpolos has resigned from the bench. The phone rings with Charlie on the other end saying that all the other Boston stations are reporting the same. McNally says, "The judge just cracked..." The Build I painted and assembled the air filter and induction unit. I added the wheels and tires to the now completed chassis. McNally will return...

Thanks Charlie and John! Charlie, 99 years old...God bless her! John, the surgery went very well and I am in recovery mode. Back to work tomorrow!

The Story The blackmailers were demanding the judge to preside over the case of the Commonwealth vs. Roberto Solaros which the judge couldn't do since the cases were assigned randomly by the court administrator. McNally tells the judge to remain calm and go through the rest of the day as if nothing has happened. Now, McNally has a name to go on and there will be nothing to stop him now. He returns to Boston Police Headquarters to see what he can get from the Police now that he has a name and hopefully they will be a little more forthcoming. All Lt. Det. Adam Troy would tell him is that the DA, the State Police, and the DEA were not releasing any information to anyone. The Build I got most of the interior pieces painted with Tamiya TS-29 Semi-Gloss Black. I also painted the boot cover and the up-top. While that was drying, I finished assembling the wheels. McNally will return...

Charlie, Yes, I did need the surgery! My eye doctor said that it was the densest cataract he has ever seen. The grille stripe wasn't the easiest thing to do and it did require the use of my magnifier. I just need to go back and clean it up a little.. I went back and used Model Master Acryl Iron for the center caps and a second coat of Tamiya X-11 Chrome Silver for the wheels. They look much better now. I've been trying to get back into working on the 'Cuda since I had my eye surgery last Wednesday to remove a very dense cataract. This morning I started foiling the body with a brand new sheet of BMF. I have also started masking for flat black paint on the cowl and the rear cove. My eye is starting to feel the strain so I'll give it a rest for a bit before going back to work on the 'Cuda. Since I didn't file down the wheel lips, I feared that foiling them would make the 'Cuda look like a pimpmobile. My solution was to cut a thin strip of foil and carefully foil the very edge of the wheel lip molding. Each wheel lip took about 5 to 10 minutes each to foil. More to come...

Since you had filed the tabs off the dash, why not glue some new tabs on using sheet styrene? Here's a couple of pics showing the location of the dash in the chassis of two Dusters I have built. I hope this helps.

I think the issue may be with the chassis itself, especially at the front. I would like to suggest that you test fit, test fit, test fit!

I built one of these several years ago switching out the wheels and tires for a set of aftermarket five-spokes and tires along with changing the grille for an Bentley style grille and adding a subtle ducktail spoiler to the rear deck. Watch for the fit of the front and rear bumpers as I had problems getting them to fit correctly with the chassis installed. It kept the nose and rear from fitting properly.

Thank you Harry!

Thanks Dan! Here's a few more pics to view... I detailed the grille this morning and it wasn't exactly the easiest thing to do. First, I needed to use my magnifier, then I couldn't find the correct brush to paint the details with. Ten minutes of searching for my extra brushes that were stashed away resulted in finding the proper brush to paint the red stripe in the center of the grille. That brush will remain with the rest of my brushes in the holder on the bench! I painted the wheels and I need to find a slightly darker shade of argent silver for the center caps. The tire lettering is Shabo Tire Graphics. I painted the core support body color and then with a quick spray of flat black on the front. More to come...

Thanks guys! Thanks Charlie and all of MASSCAR! While my surgery is a relatively simple procedure, I am getting a little anxious. I have much to do today so I will not be at the MASSCAR show. I wish you all a good show! Easy Off Fume-Free works just as well as regular Easy Off. Just no awful fumes. The chrome was removed from the plastic in about 10 minutes.

Thanks guys! The short driveshaft is attributed to the shorter engine I am using in the 'Cuda. I compared the Hemi to the 383 and found the engine block to be the same size, but the bellhousing and transmission were longer on the Hemi. As you said, once it's painted and sanded, you would never know the difference.

I needed to extend the driveshaft to reach the tailshaft of the trans. First, I cut off the universal joint from the driveshaft. Then, using a 1/8 inch piece of parts sprue, I glued the universal joint, the parts sprue, and the driveshaft together. With the driveshaft extended and painted, I installed the engine into the chassis and added the radiator and hoses. More to come...

Thanks Riley! I've seen Vipers in many different colors, but red seems to fit it best!

Thanks JT, Jose, and Dave!

Thanks John! I seem to have a few McNally fans from several of the forums I belong to. The Story McNally leaves the motel and starts hunting for clues. He finds one of his informants who tells him of a drug cartel trying to get their leader out of jail. He returns to Boston Police Headquarters and the Police and the DEA refuse to tell him anything about the cartel, its leader, or about the deceased woman found at the motel. After striking out at Police HQ, he heads back out to the streets talking to his informants around Boston. He stops for lunch at a burger joint near home when his cellphone rings. He answers the call from a very shaken Judge Darpolos. The Build In order to give the brake rotors a more realistic look, I stripped them of their chrome plating using Easy Off Fume-Free Oven Cleaner. I painted the discs with Model Master Aluminium Metalizer and the caliphers with Testors Gloss Red enamel. After the paint has dried for several days, I finished them off with decals. McNally will return...