W-409

I've used Revell Chrome Spray on a few builds. When reading threads about it in the internet, I found so many different opinions regarding the durability that I wanted to try it out myself. I've used a regular automotive spray can primer and then I just shoot the chrome on top of that, so it doesn't need any kind of basecoat. My suggestion is that let the parts dry properly before handling. After drying, let's say, for a week, it's still not very durable, but it can be handled so that you're able to install the parts. When handling the parts, I suggest wearing gloves, it helps with the durability. I've had no issues with the spray chrome myself, it's not cheap, but it gives a good chrome finish for sure. A couple of examples with Revell Chrome Spray: Front axle parts for Jo-Han '71 Pinto Funny Car. Bumpers for Monogram '79 Malibu.

Thanks for the kind comments everyone, they are highly appreciated! Also, Happy New Year to everyone! Hopefully everyone has a great year in 2025. I'd say go for it, we don't see those Plymouths done very often, especially not as Drag Race cars. It was a fun build and I'm really happy how it turned out, it looks just like what I had in mind when I started working on it. My goal was to make them look like they're painted there at the pits with white shoe polish that was pretty common way of doing them back in the day. So, I painted them by free hand with a small brush. For that I've always used Tamiya's X-2 acryl white paint, which seems to work the best for me at least. The trick is to mix the paint up some, but not completely, so that it will look kind of "semi-transparent".

Never knew this was even available as a resin kit. Glad to see an AMC station wagon built, especially when you've done a very nice job with it. Congrats on a beautiful and unique model.

For several years now I've always finished just one model in a year, but 2024 was good as I got three builds done. Hopefully I can keep up with that next year so that I'd get at least more than one finished. The year started with a Matchbox reboxing of AMT's '41 Plymouth. This was built as a Gasser for 1963 NHRA G/G class, where you could run Pre '60 Ford Flathead or inline six or eight cylinder engines, but you had to run naturally aspirated and with stock cylinder heads. That's why the engine is a 221 Cid Flathead from Revell's '40 Ford. On this model there are lots of modifications and scratchbuilt parts basically everywhere. Then in the summer I was able to finish another long stalled project, a Monogram 1/32 scale '79 Malibu. This was converted from a Police car into something that could have been sold new here in Finland. And just last week I finished this 1/43 scale Heller VW K70L which was kind of a challenge for myself if I could make a simple small scale kit into a presentable model. It's mostly box stock. Thanks for looking, let's see what the next year will bring.

Thanks Nigel and Larry! Nigel is correct, these kits seem to have some challenges, but they do build up pretty nice.

Thanks Ron! I actually think building headers is fun. I've scratchbuilt Fenderwell headers for several builds during the last ten years or so. Carburetors are painted with Revell 91 silver, and on top of that there's a light coat of Humbrol Clear Orange mixed with dirty thinner that I use to clean up my brushes with. It's kind of like dry-brushing the gold color and giving it a subtle black wash at the same time.

Yep, that's pretty much what I thought. Luckily, it's not a big deal to modify if the builder wants to make the 1960 correct. And after all, even if the builder didn't want to do those modifications, not many people are able to say at a model car show "That's incorrect!".

Haha, thanks Tom and Sean, I appreciate the kind words! This is one of the projects that I'd really like to finish. I have a soft spot for X-Frame Chevrolets and also for old Junior Stock / Super Stock cars. Next I did a little work on the interior. Old paint was stripped off from the dashboard and after some prepping I was able to airbrush some primer on it. It's Alclad's Grey Primer & Microfiller. Because of the two tone interior, steering wheel will be two-tone. It's a part that I want to paint by brush so I don't have to do tedious masking job that would be needed if painting it with an airbrush. So I had to pick a paint that I can use by brush and that can also be airbrushed on. I'm mostly using Revell and Humbrol enamels so I thought Revell's #34 red might be the best option. I airbrushed the dashboard with it after thinning it somewhere around 40-50% and it turned out great. Now I can use the same paint for steering wheel and steering column by brush so the shade of red will be the same. Then I mocked up the engine. Looks like the AMT engine fits pretty well to Lindberg engine bay. The other reason for my mock up was headers. I found one picture of the engine on 1:1 scale car and it had fenderwell headers produced by Jerry Jardine. No kit that I know of has anything similar as far as headers go, so I had to make them myself. Basically the only real challenge with them was to clear the steering shaft, which is why I wanted to do this mock up. The first step was to build header flanges from sheet styrene. The actual headers were built from Plastruct .060" round styrene rod which I heated carefully with a candle in order to do the bends. I've found out this is the easiest way to create custom headers, as I've never been able to build them succesfully from solder. The headers might not be 100% similar to the ones on real car, but they are at least pretty close. I they're not quite done yet however, I will need to fabricate collectors for them and do a bit of cleanup and smooth out a couple of glue joints before painting them. But, the basic work with the header tubes is done. And here is a test fit with engine and steering shaft on place. It's a tight fit, but everything fits on place without touching each other. Obviously, I will still need to cut pieces of inner fenders away to make them clear the headers.

On '59 Impala, spare tire was originally located at the spare tire well on right hand side of the trunk, so the chassis is correct for a '59. But in 1960, spare tire was just located in the trunk and there is no spare tire well on the trunk floor. I have a 1:1 scale '60 Impala in the garage, so I have reference material easily available. My suspicion is that Monogram released the '59 first and then probably didn't do all of the necessary changes to the molds when they released the 1960. Another thing that's wrong on the '60 Impala kit, is the power steering pump. On '59, the pump is installed to the generator, but on a '60, the power steering pump is under the generator with own brackets holding it. But, both of the kits only have power steering pump like seen on a '59.

I used to have a '74 Malibu Classic Station Wagon as a daily driver here in Finland before I updated it into a '64 Rambler American that I have had as my daily driver for a few years now. The Malibu was a pretty big car, but I never had any issues with it. Sure, it was a tight fit sometimes in parking garages, but I was always able to park and leave with no problem and with no scratches. Now during the summertime I also drive pretty much with a '60 Impala, which is also a pretty big car. But haven't had any issues with it either, even here in Europe. So, if you want a land yacht, go for it! They often have the best ride quality.

Thanks for the kind words, they are appreciated! Ulf, you're correct that this series of Heller 1/43 kits have several iconic cars, and I agree, they would be welcomed as 1/25 scale models, too. While I'm not really a fan of 1/43 scale (as I like to add extra details, this scale is a bit too tiny for my taste, plus that the models look too small in the display case compared to the regular 1/24 or 1/25 kits), this was such a fun build that I think I will be building more of these in the future.

I've used that Tamiya's Panel Line Accent Color and I've used it on top of acryls and enamels and I've never had any issues with it. So with that said, I wouldn't be that worried about it.

I agree. I've always liked the looks of the Fulvia, the only problem is that it's front wheel drive. But, of course, as a model that's not a big deal, so if there was a decent 1/24 or 1/25 kit of a Fulvia, I'd definitely buy one. For the big scale cars however, I have no interest nor any supplies (nor space in my display shelf) so I will have to pass on this one.

Looks like you had a great year, all of them turned out very nice! The Oldsmobile has to be my favorite, it just looks "right" in every way! Excellent work.

This year, I finished three models which is more than I've finished in years. So, with that said, I'd say I need to finish more than one model in 2025! I think it's possible, I have a couple that are coming along pretty well. But, in December 2025 we'll see.

Thanks Len and Bob, I appreciate the kind words! Yep, BMF was really tricky on such a small body. It's not perfect, but we need to remember that the model looks bigger on the screen than it does in real life. I just posted the Finished pictures in Under Glass. Here's a link to the thread, thanks for everyone who has followed along! https://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/197599-70-volkswagen-k70l/

This started out as 1/43 scale kit by Heller. I found the kit a year and a half ago while visiting in Germany and decided to give it a go. I thought this would be a challenge for myself - Can I build a decent model out of a simple 1/43 scale kit? The body required a bit of bodywork to fill a couple of sink marks and deal with other imperfections, after that it was painted with Tamiya TS-102 Cobalt Green, followed by Tamiya clear and polishing. Chrome trim was done by BMF, which was especially tricky because of the small scale and because some of the chrome trim were not visible very well after the paint and clear coats. Interior is straight out of the box, painted with Revell and Humbrol Enamels. Chassis in this kit is very simple, everything is molded as one piece. I just painted the chassis with body color and tried to detail it a little by painting the axles and exhaust with different colors. Wheels are plastic, they were painted flat black, followed by a flat clear coat from a spray can, wheels are silver with hubcaps done with BMF. Because of the simplicity of the kit, it was pretty straightforward build, especially as the kit didn't have much fit issues either. The kit also has no chrome parts, so bumpers and side view mirror are "chromed" with Revell's Spray Chrome. Overall, it was a fun build. If you want to see the WIP thread, it's here: https://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/185071-70-volkswagen-k70l/ Thanks for lookin'! All kinds of comments are welcome, so let's make the next one better.

Well, after nearly eight years, this thing is finally back from the dead (time flies, right? ). My main focus will still be on the '71 Pinto Funny Car that I'm working on, but whenever that's drying, I'll continue the Impala. I tried to restore the photos on this thread as they got messed up when Photobucket ruined itself. But, it looks like I'm unable to edit my old posts, so unfortunately can't do anything about that. The reason why this build got boxed years ago can be seen in these pictures. The engine assembly has started, but the carburetors are incorrect, the real car had Carters. Well, now I found a pair of 3D-printed Carters from my parts box, they should be at least closer to correct carbs on a car like this. I don't know who made them, but they look pretty good test fitted to the engine. I was also able to do some actual work on this one. Chassis is now on four wheels, so I glued wheels and wheel backs to the tires and installed them on place. Looks good and the stance is just what I wanted.

And it's finished! The bumpers were sprayed with Revell Spray Chrome and the black rubber parts were painted with a brush. Other than that there was nothing special in the final assembly. It's not flawless, but it's the best I could do with this kit. I will try to take some proper pictures tomorrow and post them in Under Glass.

Next the crome trim was done with BMF. It was definitely not easy as everything is so tiny. I've done better, but considering how small this thing is, I think I can live with it. The chrome trims on front of the hood and on back of the trunk lid were especially tricky, because there was no trim molded to the body, so I just cut a thin strip of BMF and tried to install it the best I could. Then I installed windows. And here the body and chassis are already glued together and I'm actually pretty close to finish. To be honest I'm not completely happy about a few things on it, but it's mostly because of simplicity of the model kit rather than my building (although I've made several mistakes too, as always). Well, I'll just push it to the finish line and see how it looks on the shelf.

Thanks Bob! Despite being a bit simple and smaller scale, this is a fun kit to build. So I'd say go for it. Now that the body had dried for a week, I polished it. Never been a fan of polishing paint jobs, but in the end the result is usually worth it. This was especially tricky one, because all of the body panels are so tiny. Luckily I was able to do a decent job with the polishing, and also not polish through the clearcoat. Next up will be BMF.

Thanks David! Black is a tricky color to get right, but I think that one came out pretty good.

This will be fun! I'm in with a '62 Chevrolet Bel Air. My starting point will be a Glue Bomb that I bought at a swap meet several years ago, then later I robbed the engine from it for another project. Now that this thing will be rebuilt, it will have another 409 for power. After the year changes, I'll start tearing it up and stripping the old paint off.

Very nice build of a kit that we don't see done that often. These old Dragsters with their unique engine combinations are always interesting, unlike the ones today which are all identical. Excellent work on this replica.

I had not seen this thread earlier either, but I'm really glad I came across this now. What a fantastic model of a '57 Chevy Gasser! Everything is very nicely done, and to me, the two most important things are that the overall look is just "right" and that the car would be actually legal to compete in the class it was intended to run in. I agree 100% what was written about the Gasser term. It's not a building style, it's a racing class that has its' own rules and limitations. And there for sure is no such thing as a "modern Gasser".