mrmike

Nice GTO, Charlie! Wow, two in a week! You're cruisin' now!

Thanks guys! I almost wish I didn't have to add the front and rear spoilers as this looked so good without them. I just love this color!

This is little side project that I am going to do while I wait on a paint order so I can start my Spenser For Hire '65 Mustang. I am starting this with the MPC re-issue. The paint will be Tamiya TS-8 Italian Red. More to come.....

Thanks Charlie! It came out better than I thought it would! Even with the warped body and chassis!

This is my '71 GTX with a 440 6 Barrel. Painted with MCW Lucerne Blue Metallic and a white interior.

Brandon, I have mentioned this to you before and what I am about to say is not meant to hurt or insult you. I would like to see you do better and I know you have the potential to do so. What I see here looks good, but your model is incomplete. The rear shocks are missing, the exhaust manifolds are not hooked up or are missing, no backup lights or exhaust tips, excess silver trim paint on the roof and body. Brandon, please don't get mad or upset. I think you need to go back and finish your Charger. In the end, you'll be happier with your finished product. If you need any advise or suggestions, feel free to ask! We are all here to help you.

Thanks Bruce! When I started this project, I had noticed a warp in the chassis and the body. I tried to remove the warpage as much as I can and now that the model is almost complete, the warpage has returned. My solution is to remove the front suspension and modify one of the spindles to get the model to sit flat on all four wheels. I am not looking forward to making modifications at this stage of the build, but I want this GTX to look as good as possible.

Well, I went and messed up the hood decal really, really bad! The only solution was to mask and paint the hood with Tamiya Semi Gloss Black. While the can of paint was out, I painted the front and rear spoilers, as well. I then installed the front and rear bumpers. My GTX is nearly done! More to come.....

Thanks guys! My usual procedure is to drill out the center of the kit distributor, take 4 wires cut to 4 inches in length and fold them in half, put glue into the distributor cap and insert the wires. Fan out the wires and insert a coil wire in the center and allow to dry. I've been doing this for several years, but I have been trying pre-wired distributors from M.A.D.

Are you referring to the window moldings? No paint there, just Bare Metal Foil, time and patience. While doing some additional research on the '71 GTX, I found this. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Plymouth-GTX-440-6bbl-4spd-dana-air-grabber-1-62-/320621441819?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item4aa686f31b Anyone have $36,900 they can loan to me?

Thanks Brian and DW! DW, I use Model Master Leather paint for most of my woodgrain trim. Depending upon the woodgrain trim, I also use Testors Flat Brown and Model Master Wood.

Thanks Charlie! It is coming out really well! And, I have taken it apart again so I can do some more detailing. I'm wiring the battery and running heater hoses. I was going to mount the radiator but I think I'll wait until I get the chassis back in for the last time. It's coming out better than I thought it would.

This is my lion of a Golden Retriever. All 105 lbs of him! I have about 15 pictures of Dakota that change randomly.

Thanks Nico and Mike! Using my razor saw, I cut off the spindles and miunted them high on the front suspension. The rear suspension was moved forward by drilling new mounting holes for the rear springs. I filled in the holes in the frame with round styrene stock. I made a pair of shocks using the same round styrene stock. I finished foiling. I mocked up the body, interior, and the chassis to check the stance and I like it! With the hood in place. More to come.....

The dash is completed. And installed into the completed interior bucket. The shifter sat too high on the console so I enlarged the mounting hole and the shifter went in further, right to where it should be. A mockup to check the stance. The rear axle needs to be moved forward and the front suspension needs to be dropped. I do like how these tires fit with the body! More to come.....

Thanks Donald and Brandon. Donald, I am honored that you think of me as a craftsman, but I think of myself as a modeler who is trying to improve my skills. This model is not perfect, nor would I ever try to proclaim it as so. There are areas that need improvement and I may try to do that just as long as I can do so without making a total mess out of it. Thanks.

Elmers makes a white acrylic fine tip pen that may work. Yesterday, I clearcoated the body and hood. This morning I polished them with Meguirs Scratch X. I glued the wheels to the wheelbacks and found that the tires didn't fit as I had hoped for. I pulled these tires from my parts box and they came from the AMT '66 Galaxie 500 kit. The motor is almost complete and needs some touch ups. The air cleaner is in need of paint detailing. More to come.....

Thanks everyone! This rebuild came out better than I had hoped for. The mobile phone was an almost-last-minute decision and it came out really great. It helped to have found a straight-on picture of one on-line. I reduced the image and cut out the upper portion of the picture and glued it onto the phone and then I ran a wire from the handset to the phone base. I want to do another TV Private Eye, my favorite-Spenser For Hire's first season '66 Mustang, even though Spenser says it's a '65.

Thanks Paul, DW, and Mike. DW, the Gelly Roll pen I got at Michaels Craft store a couple of years ago. I don't think they carry them anymore due to the ink drying out inside the pen. I have two of them and I know at least one of them still works. I have never used them on chrome so I don't know if clearcoat would help. If I black-out a grille, I use flat black paint and take my time to do a good job.

I use Mopar Street Hemi Orange Engine Enamel on my Mopar motors (had the can for a 1:1 project) and I find that Model Master International Orange is a spot on replacement.

Sorry guys, but I have not seen the original movie. I have seen the remake with Nick Cage and Angelina Jolie since I got the DVD for free. But, a car person (gotta be PC) has also seen Grand Prix and LeMans, and Bullitt as well! I remember seeing Grand Prix with James Garner when it first came out at the drive-in theater and LeMans at a regular theater that has long since closed (30 plus years). I have seen more bad car movies than I care to remember (oh the old days of Saturady and Sunday afternoon movies)! After knocking the rear valance off a few more times, I decided that it needed more support. I took a short piece of square tubing and cut it in half from corner to corner. I have decided on my interior colors, white with blue trim. I have lettered the tires with a white Gelly Roll pen and paint detailed the wheels. More to come.....

I have never seen the original "Gone In 60 Seconds" so I have no idea what that car looks like. I have polished the body and added another coat of paint and It is looking great. Another polishing and if necessary, clear coat.

Thanks Charlie! I pulled out the kit distributor to drill it out for plug wires and noticed the mounting stub at the bottom. Very short and unacceptable! I drill it out and replaced the stub with a length of 1/16th styrene rod. Much better! I plumbed the fuel pump to the carbs. I drilled a hole into the block and mocked up the distributor. More to come.....

The motor and carbs have been painted and drilled out for plug wires and fuel lines. This kit is loaded with flash and sink marks! This is the rear axle. I removed the exhaust that is molded into the rear axle. Using my Dremel and a sanding bit, I smooth out the remains of the mounting blocks on the rear axle. First I used the sanding bit and then a grinding bit and smoothed out the exhaust pipes. Both are ready for some time with a sanding stick. More to come.....

Most of the flash is contained towards the parts sprue with a little flash on a few parts. After I started prep on the body and other parts, I noticed that the body and chassis were warped. I seem to have most of the warp taken care of, but I fear that this one is going to fight me a little bit. So much for thinking that this was going to be an easy build! Life moves on.....