W-409

Well a lot has been said already, but here are some of mine. Not in a specific order... -Errors with chrome parts. Mold lines, sink marks, and just chrome parts that don't fit. When you start correcting these issues, usually the chrome plating damages and it's very tricky to fix. I haven't tried Alclad yet so I've always used BMF for this. Not fun. -One piece interior tub with molded in door panels. That way door panels are usually not as detailed as if they were molded separately. And detailing them yourself is quite tricky like this. Even worse, if all seats are molded in too! -One piece chassis with everything molded in. This sucks a lot, finding a more detailed chassis from somewhere usually requires pretty much work and it's not easy to fit under a different body. -Windows that are mounted from outside with window trim molded in them!!!! Aaargh, this is really frustrating. Seen in new Moebius kits that are otherwise top notch, but this feature really sucks big time. It makes installing BMF very tricky, and one slip with a knife and your windows are ruined. There was nothing wrong with the old method where window trim was molded to the body. -Speaking about windows, bad fitting windows is no fun either. You can't do much on them, as everyone knows what happens when you show some sandpaper on that window.... Of course it can be polished afterwards, but it's not as good as bright it was originally anymore. -And last, the thing that annoys me every time... Big wheels with low profile tires! Those look horrible and they don't fit in any classic car in my opinion. I know many people like these, but I've always hated them so I'd prefer having an optional set of somekind of old school custom wheels instead of those big ones. For example on a Muscle Car kit, a set of Slot Mags or Cragars would look really good...

I think anything that was originally 1/20 would be better as 1/25. I have nothing against 1/20 scale kits even though they might look a bit goofy on display cabinet with a big bunch of those regular 1/25 models, but the problem is that there are so few 1/20 kits out there that most people don't have much spare parts for them. That said, you'd have to build them box stock, or then scratchbuild all of the details. And then the legendary 1/24 VS 1/25. I have never seen a difference between those two scales. In fact I think that the difference is so small that it doesn't matter, bigger problem is that sometimes kit parts can be different size compared to each other, even if both kits were the same scale. Some kits, for example AMT "Twister Vega" have way too small engines compared to the size of the engine bay. I mix up 1/24 and 1/25 parts all the time with no problems, so I don't care which scale it says on the box top. That's good, because there are some very good kits released in both scales.

I've been installing some chassis components on place recently. Front axle was not an easy one, as one of the steering rods had to go between headers and oil pan. For some reason I couldn't slide it on place as one piece so I had to cut it into two pieces. Then when everything was on place, I glued that steering rod back together. Rear axle fit just perfectly, and I also started making a fuel line from gas tank to fuel pump, but it's not quite done yet. Here's a mock up with the body. Engine fits nicely on its place. Wheels and tires are not glued on place yet, it's just a mock up...

Today while my Ford Thunderbolt was drying I had to do something on this '55 as well. One of the reasons why it has been sitting long time collecting dust is that I couldn't install the engine on correct position, it was too far in front. So the problem was solved easily with a couple of cuts to the chassis and now those headers are not hitting anywhere anymore. Now the scoop is right in the middle in that hole on the hood too. Oh well, looks like the chassis is a bit dusty... Gotta clean it up! Here the chassis has been cut from the bottom, but upper side is still as it was before. And as the scoop and hood hole lined up properly, I did one more mock up to see that everything fits on place. Now next steps will be clear coating the body again and painting the hood...

Wow! That's a whole lot of rivets ! I bet sanding those to correct length and then gluing them on might not be the funniest possible things in model building, but after it's done the result looks fantastic. Those body tins looked very good even before the rivets, but now with the rivets mocked up the tins are even better. Excellent work as always. Every time I get to visit here on this forum, it's always neat to see what progress you've done. This is one of the most interesting builds anywhere that I've seen. Can't wait to see the next update.

This is a cool looking project. I have an old Beretta Bracket Racer project somewhere waiting for more inspiration to complete it, so I'll be following this with great interest. The start looks really good already, excellent bodywork and chassis modifications. This will be a good looking build when it's finished.

I think it would be either one of these two... Model Car World resin '63 Chevy II 2D Sedan. Why? Well, I would build a model of my real car, '62 Chevy II. I'd just need a correct '62 grill, but otherwise this transkit and Trumpeter '63 Nova HT would do the trick. Or then Aurora '34 Ford Double Kit. This is one of the kits I've dreamed about for a long time. Ultra rare and expensive, so probably I never get to it, but I'd really like to have one...And of course build it!

Really nice work! Excellent paint job and a perfect color combination too. I especially like that white interior upholstery, and your engine detailing looks really good too. Nice work! The only problem with it is that it's not actually a Gasser. You'd need to install a rear bumper, headlights, passenger seat and a hood to make it legal. Otherwise really nice work and it looks period correct, which is always a good thing.

I went to a local Hobby Shop as they had received a collection of a long time model builder who just passed away. There was a big bunch of old kits mostly from the '70s and '80s and while they were not especially cheap, they weren't really expensive either, I had to buy a '74 Malibu Stock Car and Jo-Han '63 Fury. Both of them are opened, but pretty much all parts are there in mint condition. That Malibu will be built box stock with some additional detailing (If I can save those old decals) and Fury will be a Super Stock car some day...

That sounds great! I'm seeing a couple of Caprices coming to my way when they are available. Many of those were sold as new here in Finland and still they are seen fairly often cruising around on the streets. Unfortunately the Finnish forum is a bit quiet nowadays. It used to be a lot more active a couple of years ago, but still there are a bunch of guys that visit there daily. Here it is: http://fcma.fi/FCMABBS/

The paint looks a bit better after it dried completely, but it still needs some work before I can go ahead and spray another coat on... Meanwhile some progress was done with the engine and chassis. I added some little details to the engine, for example oil filter decal, throttle return spring, alternator bracket and wires etc. I also gave that whole engine a light black wash to give it a bit depth, not dirty/oily look. Then I glued the engine to chassis. It fit on place perfectly. Headers had to be glued after installing the engine on place. They were not easy to get installed correctly, but after some work I got them on place. Next step should be front suspension and then rear axle together with driveshaft too...

That Caprice is one I've been dreaming of for a looooooong time! I can't remember if it was already discussed in this thread, but what would be the price of a finished resin kit when it's availble? I'll buy several of them if I can afford it! That Caprice has been one car I'd like to have in 1:1 scale too.

Can't see Fox in here, but Pro Mods have always been my favorites (After Stock and Super Stock of course). Good looking cars with different engine setups and short wheelbase = Lots of fun!

Excellent work as always! You sure know how to build these Doorslammers right! Fantastic work on this one, excellent detailing everywhere and smooth black paint job too. Plus that it's always nice to see a Chevy II being built. Great job! I'd like to see you building a 1st Gen Nova or Chevy II sometime...

That's a really nice build! Fantastic paint job on that body, a fade paint job like that must be really tricky to get right, but you nailed it. Really nice build, but my only change would be the tires and wheels. With wide whites and some good looking hubcaps this would be a perfection.

That's a really nice looking Edsel! Great to see one of these built, as I have a '59 Edsel HT builtup waiting to be rebuilt as a Mild Custom. Excellent work with this. Nice and smooth paint job and flawless work with BMF. Interior looks really inviting too...

Dang I haven't seen this thread before, I haven't checked inside this Truck section for a long time...Too many categories. But this Bronco looks like a must have! I have always wanted to build a Bronco Rock Crawler like they did on Monster Garage years ago. Now since there is a kit to do it, I just need to find proper tires for it...

That is the only annoying thing on NHRA Drag Racing! Or if all of those ricers were left out of the ladder, no problem, but unfortunately some of those are actually pretty fast. Well of course it's only the body that is wrong, but to be honest, I hate all of those modern European and Japanese cars... Well, luckily Line and Anderson did great job on Pro Stock!

The progress isn't very fast, but front and suspension components are getting closer of being ready to install. I sanded all mold lines and other flaws from the body, scribed panel lines a bit deeper and shot a coat of primer on. There are still a couple of spots that need to be fixed, but that's not my biggest problem now. For some reason the paint reacted with the plastic a bit and now it looks like there is a lot of sanding required... I hope block sanding and another coat of primer will solve the problem, I don't want to strip the paint with this one.

Wow, I didn't even know these existed until now, a great find! I think having promos or kits of these old models you see very rarely is fun. And of course as a builder, I especially enjoy building them! This one would be an interesting rebuild!

Nice work! Even with all the trouble you had, it turned out great! You sure know how to build these old Funny Cars correctly. Good looking paint job and decal work together with sharp detailing really finish it off. Nice job.

In October we took a flight to Los Angeles to visit Pomona Swap Meet. Of course, there is lots of stuff to see so the Swap Meet wasn't the only place or event where we visited. In 2015 we were in the same place watching NHRA Finals, so some of the places were already visited earlier but then we also included some new places on our schedule. I took lots of pics during the trip so maybe some of you might enjoy seeing them... So on Thursday evening our flight arrived to LAX Airport. We drove to our hotel at Huntington Beach, but it was already pretty late so nothing special was done that evening... On Friday morning though we went watching NMCA West Coast World Finals at Fontana Raceway. It was a great day with a Test & Tune session first and then Qualifying. There were lots of interesting cars on the strip and the day was over way too fast. Unfortunately we were unable to come back on Saturday and Sunday as we had other things planned for those days...There just wasn't time for everything. Here's a link to full picture gallery: NMCA West Coast World Finals, Fontana, CA And here are a couple of teaser shots... This Fairlane was running Outlaw 8.5. That was a wild class as cars were running with small tires and stock front and rear suspension with no wheelie bars. Many guys had some traction issues, but then again other ones had trouble with wheelstands... This Fairlane did a huge wheelstand on that run, just about next to the tree, rear bumper hit the ground and all four wheels were up in the air. When all four tires were on the ground again, the driver had already floored it again... More pics are behind that link above...Pics from other events will be posted in the near future....

I'm not a fan of non-US cars, but this one is a must have. These Group B cars were interesting, and if this kit really is full detail, it sounds great too. Hopefully we can see some pics soon on this one (No, I'm not going to open that FB link...I have never been there before).

Very nice! It's always nice to see these old Stock Cars being built. Really nice and clean work on this '56, everything seems to be just right. Even the holes for side trim are there! I have a question: What did you use to make those straps that keep hood and trunk lid shut? I have a Black Widow Chevy in progress and I'd like to display it with hood open as well, so those straps have to be a bit flexible to display them on or off...

Well after opening the box I noticed the same thing...Excellent! They just don't have any center knobs so I'll have to fabricate them myself and sand those raised letters away from the tires.