W-409

Thanks Darryl, Jason and Dave! You all are real 'Master Modelers' so I appreciate your kind words a lot. I've done some more cage work with this. I added another crossbar to the main hoop under that Funny Car Cage. After a couple of other tubes on that area, I think the Funny Car Cage is now pretty much done - it needs only cleanup to the seams where those tubings meet each other. I added a bit material to the roof also. I will add one or two more tubings to that cage and then I can call it done. I ran out of that styrene rod though, so I will go and buy a new set of it from a Local Hobby Shop.

That looks really good! My favorite generation of Chevrolet Chevelles for sure! These are very rarely seen as models, so I'm really happy to see one done this well. Good job doing the conversion. What kits did you use? You said you used an MPC Chevelle Malibu as a base kit. But which one was it? Also where did you get that Wagon roof and stock front end (if it didn't come with the kit). Only minor "flaw" I see is that the rear end should be curved a bit more forward just before the rear bumper. But that's a small thing - I'm very happy to see one of these built and this is a really nice and clean build despite that minor thing.

I built a '61 Olds F-85 Wagon last year and it was a lot of fun! This kit seems to be pretty close to that one, which isn't of course a surprise as the car isn't that different either. Good work on this. I really like the color and how well it fits to the shapes of this car. Really nice and smooth paint job too & nice and clean work on interior as well. I like it, thanks for sharing.

It's always nice to see someone Not using the ugly big wheels if they come with the kit. A big plus point for that! I always get rid of them at first, too. Good work with that engine, it looks very realistic with those oil marks etc. Nice trick on those belt pulleys too, I've never thought of that. Keep this coming.

Maybe they did it for the reason & maybe that V6 with missing two cylinders is better than V8. But to me, V8 will always be "the one", and it would have made this car somewhat interesting. Now with a V6 it doesn't interest me at all. Plus that I have never heard a V6 with good sounds. And I can tell you I'm not the only one who thinks like this. So...Even if I could afford buying this thing - I would know many, many cars that I'd buy instead.

That looks plain horrible! It looks like somekind of a Lamborghini or Ferrari or something like that. And I've never liked them. This is very ugly as well, IMO. And that it doesn't have a V8. That would have been the only good thing it that one. It's just like Brian Setzer says... I should'a had a V-8, I should'a had a V-8 It's the only motor ever made that never gets there late You can get a V-6 if you wanna save gas, but I'm the kind of guy who likes to get there fast I'm late! I should'a had a V-8

Thanks Gene, Carl and Michael! Your kind comments are really appreciated! Here is a little update on the progress. I shot some Primer on the Quick Change rear end. There was a highly visible ejector mark and a couple of other flaws that needed to be smoothed out. So I smoothed out that ejector pin mark using a file and sandpaper. After taking the picture I smoothed out all the rest mold problems and it looks really smooth now - ready for the second coat of Primer. I painted wheels as well. Rear wheels are taken from this kit, front wheels are from Lindberg's '64 Dodge 330 (Ramchargers version). Both ended up being in chrome stripping first to remove that chrome plating and then I painted the wheels with Humbrol Metallic 53. Bolts were painted with Humbrol Polished Aluminum and center knobs from front wheels with Humbrol Gloss Black. I still need to add valve stems to the wheels and maybe slight black washing around the bolts and lug nuts. Rear tires are also from the kit, fronts are taken from AMT Firestone Tire Parts Pack, which means that white walls are pad printed. Front axle was glued on place, too. Radius Rods were painted Humbrol Metallic 56 and first I glued that front axle on place. It fit really nicely. However, those radius rods were a pain to install as they were too long. After lots of filing to make them shorter, they fit better now. I need to do a couple of paint touchups here and there.

Maybe Chris was testing his Front Engine Dragster build..? Really, it looks like it could be fired up & driven any moment and I'm sure this Funny Car will do the same when it's done. Super nice work all over, those tins look really nice and smooth. Keep it coming!

I'm definitely a builder. If I don't have plans to build a kit, I will definitely not buy that one. And because I can't own every car that I'd like in 1:1 scale, it's a good alternative to build models from them instead. And of course, building models is Fun!

I've built two Tamiya kits (One for my shelf, other one as a Birthday present) and those metal transfers are great. They're quite easy to install and they still look good after three years sitting on the shelf. It's a shame that MCG hasn't produced those Photo Etch sets for a while now. They would have been a great addition, even though I believe I wouldn't have bought many of them anyway...Maybe for the most interesting kits, though.

Luke's paint jobs are really unbelievable. That paint on the Chevelle looks much better than my gloss black paint job after a couple of clear coats & lots of polishing. I have done one car in black... And according to my experiences, black definitely is a hard color to get right. Not only because it needs really smooth bodywork under the paint job to look good, but it is very hard to polish nicely, too. All of the tight spots, corners etc are easily left grey and not as glossy as middle of the roof, for example. In other colors that is not seen so well, but black shows it immediately. I've done one car in black...I was planning to do a couple of other ones, too, but that's probably not gonna happen.

I'd really like to see that Hemi Hustler being reissued. Those Hemi Under Glass kits can be found quite easily, but these Hemi Hustlers are much harder to find. I know I'd buy one immediately... But I'd like to see a new Hemi Under Glass kit too.

This is absolutely the only way to make a Dats... Nissan interesting. Seriously, great job so far. That engine looks really good, sharp detailing there. I like your wheel choice as well. But I just think you should add roll cage to the back of the body (the trunk area) too.

Nice to see you building a '62 Bel Air. You nailed the engine on this one, good looking detailing. Nice paint job as always, but those wheels don't look really good under this one...Makes me think of the '90s hi tech stuff...Unfortunately. But otherwise really good job!

You never know what you'll find when unassembling an old Built Model / Glue Bomb. Seriously though, the engine looks really fresh, just like it was taken from a sealed kit's box. It's great that you were able to save it. I bought a Jo-Han '71 Barracuda Pro Stock Glue Bomb too... Can't wait to start making plans for it when it arrives! This build is definitely a great source of inspiration.

I guess they are rubber plugs just like David suggested, but here is a proof that they are there on real '65 Satellite:

Great to see you building a Chevy, too! This sure is a good looking car, it's just a shame that AMT kit is pretty simple...Especially the engine bay and chassis are not on "today's standards". You did very good job with this one, though. That paint job is really impressive. Gloss black is hard to get right, but it couldn't be any better than this. Nice and clean work overall also.

Good job on them all! Very nice models and after seeing your WIP threads, I must admire the quality of work that you create in a short time. Great builds, but that Malibu must be my favorite.

Thanks so much, Gene! I always try to look for new materials to scratchbuild parts from. Maybe the same parts could be bought as aftermarket items, but I have realized that I don't have the money to buy everything and it's a lot of fun when I can build things from raw materials and especially I'm happy if they look like they should. Today I was able to work on this a little. There was a driveshaft molded in to the Quick Change rear end and because I have different clutch cover and a transmission on my build, it would not work anyway. And actually it didn't look too good either so I will be making a new one later on. I removed mold seams from that rear end, removed chrome plating and shot some Primer on it. I have no picture of the part in Primer though. I removed mold lines from Radius Rods, too. Also there were a couple of ejector pin marks to get rid of. Then the chrome plating was stripped off. In the next picture other radius rod is cleaned up, other one is just like I cut it from the parts tree. In the picture after that one, both of them are cleaned up. But when looking at the pics I noticed I missed two more ejector pin marks on those radius rods. They will be removed before painting as well. I also found a suitable pair of front wheels to work on this. They are from Lindberg '64 Dodge 330 kit - The Ramchargers version. I stripped the chrome plating from them as well.

Thanks for the comments! I appreciate them. Jim: Heh, I'd sure love to do that, but that's a bit far away. I think I will have to go to the model car contest in Jyväskylä instead... Not much, but today I was able to shoot the first coat of clear to the hood. I wanted to go slowly with this as there has been lots of problems during the paint. So I sprayed only a light coat of clear on and I will spray another clear coat tomorrow...Then it should be ready for final polishing. Next I should get back to work with the engine bay and chassis. Interior is done and engine & chassis need only minor detailing. For some reason the hood looks like pink in the picture....In reality it seems to be the same shade of red as the body.

Gene: Thanks! I didn't spray a clear coat this time before that actual color. When the chrome trim will be covered by BMF, masking is not so critical than if I was painting an area with different color in the middle of the roof, for example. Then I would have used clear coat, I guess. Stan... Thank You! Your models are great inspiration sources so I hope we'll see your posts in the future as well. Carl: Thanks! I highly appreciate the way you take time to look these updates each time and post often as well. This is a really small update, but I'm so happy that I finally got the hood almost done for final Primer coat and then paint. Only minor smoothing is needed. I sanded the Bondos smooth and sprayed a coat of grey Primer on. Next I will have to spray light coat of white Primer so then the blue will be same shade than on the body.

Thanks Ernest, Carl and Randy! Your kind comments mean a lot to me & keep me motivated working on this Mustang. Carl: Yep, it's great when the racing is in blood as you said...It keeps me wanting to build more and more Drag Cars. Nowadays almost every kit I buy is planned to be a Drag Car. But of course street cars are neat as well and I build them in the side.

I think Casey made a really good suggestion there. Personally I'd like to keep Drag Racing Models and NASCAR sections as they are now, but if someone changed them, I think that would be the best thing to do what Casey suggested.

I've only used a flat screwdriver (A small one), to pull the parts apart if I can fit it between the parts. If not, I try with a hobby knife. Some paint stripping liquids can also work on glues, but don't know if they affect on this old glue. If nothing else helps, I use a saw to cut the parts apart. Depending on the situation and what the part is, I will use either a razor saw or a photo etch saw.

I can imagine the pain when decaling that one. I'm always really nervous when installing bigger decals than those little sponsor decals and I bet this wasn't easy! It looks very good though. Nice paint and detailing too, engine looks really sharp. Glad to see one of these being built. And BTW: Great to see a Drag Car posted in Drag Racing Models section. In Under Glass they seem to get lost between other models.