MrObsessive

LOVE the four door hardtop! A body style I sorely miss since the Safety Nazis essentially banned them from production due to dubious "safety regs". Yours looks a lot like the ones I used to see in the '80's-----body damage and all!

Yup! Sure does! I know that they are different scales, and there was a difference between '58 GM B and C body hardtops, but the basic shape is there and that's all I need.

Oooh! This will be fun to watch! I'm fortunate in that I had an Uncle (Mom's younger brother) that had a '57 back in the later '60's, so I got to see one of these live and in person with the top working and all. To a seven year old kid, it was really neat to watch as the top motors made all kinds of whirring sounds, and I can remember a kind of a "clacking" noise after the top went down and the deck lid closed up. I guess that was the automated "locking" mechanism so the rear deck didn't fly up and act as some kind of parachute! I can also remember that the car had to absolutely be running while the top was operating. It can put a REAL STRAIN on the battery as my Uncle found out! I built this same kit many years ago (early '90s) and I can tell you to TAKE YOUR TIME! The kit will go together as intended, and I got the top working as it's supposed to, but taking your time and test fitting everything over and over will go a long way to a model that you'll marvel at when done. I'll be following along------this is another one of my favorites from the '50's.

Must be something with the '59-'60 Chevy David! I had the same feeling when I was building my '59.......more than one issue popped up at different times. The glass issue was the biggest! Your paint is looking really great, and it's no shame if you'd want to take a break for awhile. I did that and ended up building the '67 Mustang as a bit of a breather. It was a bit detailed as well, but not to the extent of the Chevy. After I was done with it, I jumped back into the Chevy build with both feet and was determined to get it done!

I'll be doing this a bit more often...........might as well get some use out of my YouTube Channel! Also, I think it's easier for me at times to speak about what I've done/am doing, than for me to express it in typed words. So far, I'm working on the door jambs on the body, and next will be the doors themselves. While I'm at it on the doors, I'll start getting the mechanism together for the roll up windows. The fronts hopefully won't be too much trouble------it's the rear quarter windows that will be the challenge because of the confined space they'll have to wind up and down. If time warrants it, I'll put up another video update over the weekend, as well as pics to show here and elsewhere.

Another vote for Adblock Plus! I know Gregg could use the revenue from the ads, but unfortunately, I've found many of them to be quite intrusive, and just flat out annoying. And yes, some of them were making the site slow. I use Chrome also and it's one of the best add-ons they offer, and like Bill said...............it's FREE!

Aaaaah! One of my favorite cars of the '70's! I have to ask.............did you use the Starsky and Hutch Torino as a base? I've got some crazy ideas about that car, and this was one of 'em I had in mind.

Very nice and clean! Not too many of those built show up these days. Steve this is another one I'd like to "slice and dice" someday. I have the hardtop version and have a very definite way to fix what you mentioned. BUT! The '58 Belvedere is what's calling my name the loudest as far as '50's cars to do next. I haven't done a Caddy in 10 years since I did that '61-------it's time to do another one, and this one (along with a corrected '58 Eldo Brougham) are in my gun-sights.

I didn't make a big production out of this earlier, but since the subject's been brought up, I'll make light of it here. I went to the Toledo show last October, and it was the first time I had been there since '08. I have to say going there again was quite disappointing for me as the number of vendors and number of folks attending was not what I remember and frankly it was depressing. I ended up leaving early and didn't even take part in the model show. I was also a bit turned off by literally paying twice for essentially the same show. One admission to get into the vendor area and another fee to participate in the NNL which was literally in the same room. It was sorta like that the last time I went there in '08, but at least the NNL was in a separate building IIRC. In all my years of attending model contests and shows, that was a first for me to leave a show early, and not even put the cars I brought with me on display. It was that disappointing. The only really nice bright spot IMO was the night before at the COMA meeting and dinner in Dayton. THAT was certainly worth going to, and if for no other reason to head that way again, I'd like to get to that meeting as I had a nicer time there than at the show the next day. You make a very good point Jonathan! While surfing eBay at times for different odds and ends for my kits, I'll see on there a whole LOT of stuff geared for more modern cars. Building cars out of the '50's-'70's is my forte, but I'll jump in to the modern era every once in a while as there are some neat subjects out there to be done. My recent BMW build (as difficult as it was) had been a breath of fresh air for me as it was nice for awhile to get away from BMFing everything, and super-detailing to the Nth degree. In the future I plan to do more modern cars----------I just wish the domestic kitmakers would put out more of what we see on the roads. Round 2's recent '16 Camaro release I hope is a start to more modern iron be it American or foreign.

Jonathan, from where I sit, that looks super sharp and clean!

Absolutely Beautiful!

Art, wasn't the old IMC VW kit a '63? I built one many years ago, and it had the smaller back window that the Bugs would have had through '64(?). That's one of the very few styling cues I can tell from VW's back then from one particular model year to the next. Other than that, they all look the same to me!

I couldn't help but notice the very thing you mentioned at a local show recently. Some young folks, but nowhere near as many as the 50+ crowd. 30 years from now? I'll be well into my 80's and not quite so sure I'll be building then let alone still walking the earth. Time will tell however how the hobby will evolve, but like most things it may not be the way we see it today.

D.W. very nice and clean work! This is one of my favorite '60's Fords, and I've had one for many years in my to do pile to restore. It's nice to see these old ones brought to life, and I'll have to someday consider doing this one up.

I'd have to say that of all the El Camino's ever done, THIS '68 is by far THE BEST I've seen! I have the original release of the kit and while I've not built it, I've not heard any major complaints about it save for those annoying sink marks in the vinyl roof (which in my opinion it could do well without).

Ain't it amazing? I heard a "rumor" very recently regarding things in our hobby, but immediately I told myself that mum's the word till I hear it officially. Things on the 'net can spread faster than a wildfire, and unlike a wildfire, there's no putting it out so easily.

I'm one of those that will make my own if necessary. This is where the 'net is your best friend! Just look for interior shots of the car you're doing, and more than likely there'll be pics of the dash with the pedals showing. They're not hard to make, and does add to the realism of any interior.

Mike, that looks really good! At least you got the rear fenders on the fastback to look much better on your notchback conversion than the attempt I did in '96. It took a while of brainstorming to figure out just what was the difference between the two body styles in that area to suit my "eyesight engineering".

Thanks for those terrific pics Tim! Seeing that row of two seater AMX's makes me miss my '69 390 soooo much! A good family friend had one of these when I was a kid, so I got to ride around in this quite a lot back then! IIRC, I think that one was a hardtop as I remember the really nice open look with all the windows down.

Thanks for the heads up Charlie! I definitely want the glue kit the next time I'm either at the club meeting or at my LHS. For whatever reason I hardly ever see these on the road! Certainly nowhere near as many as I do new Mustangs. Perhaps the styling change is a put-off for some buyers? I happen to like the looks of it, however I sat in one and it was mighty claustrophobic inside! That's good to hear the Tamiya clear will go over the bare plastic without etching it. Good news for those that don't want to mess with paint, and keep the colored plastic as is.

Thanks Len! Hey! That was a great article you wrote on HRM's '68 Shelby Convertible for SA! Congrats for your build making the cover!

LOL! Yes, things are better than they were a month ago, but still not quite 100%. I go back to the Doctor next Friday as I had another TERRIBLE bout with light sensitivity about two weeks ago. It was so bad that I couldn't go into work as even the nightlight in my bathroom was too bright! The severe sensitivity is gone, but the Doctor wants to check things out to make sure there aren't some other problems that might be lurking. In the meantime he wants me to wear sunglasses outside even on a cloudy day, and try not to strain my eyes too long if possible.

Still plugging away trying to get as accurate a shape as possible with the notchback's roofline. I used some Tamiya spot putty in spots as there were some divots and whatnot that needed to be filled in. Tamiya's putty is nice in that there's some aluminum in its makeup and it shrinks very little as opposed to Squadron's Green Putty which I avoid like the plague! Getting this roof right to me is important as rooflines are what define a lot of the "character" that goes into certain cars, especially those of the '50's/'60's. I'm look at building the roof up as a kit in itself which is a lot of the reason I'm spending so much time on it. Getting that rear slightly recessed window has shown to be a challenge! It's interesting that Ford didn't go the "tunnelback" route yet with the Mustang as at the time that was all the rage particularly with the intermediates from GM and Chrysler. Just the same, I wanted to try and get this shape as close as possible as it's another one of those character signatures that's important to me. I'll get rid of the molded in drip rail on the passenger side here, and replace it with Plastruct styrene strip so that it's symmetrical with the driver's side. One challenge I'll have to deal with is making a more positive location for the backlight when it comes time. I want to be able to just slide the glass in (clear stencil sheet) and have it held it place with just slight grooves on the inside of the roof, and also there will be a headliner I'll fabricate which will help hold things in place. Whenever there's a build underway, I like to take each aspect of the model as a kit in itself. Definitely this roof section has been a kit as to date, none of the kit manufacturers have tackled this 1967-68 Mustang notchback body style. After everything's said and done, I'll add the vinyl roof trim as well as the seams that belong on the roof as this car had that. Driver's side profile.................Will be putting on the drip rail on this side next with Plastruct's Stryene. Passenger's side profile........hardest thing is making sure both sides are as symmetrical as possible. Hopefully, I can get the last of the roof work done over the weekend, and then it's time to dive into the doors and all its workings. During that time, I think I'll try and get one window working on the driver's side since I'll be building up the door jamb on the door itself, and working on hinges too. Just for grins, I got a new tripod for my iPhone the other day. I tried it out today and shot this video which pretty much sums up what I've done here so far..........it turned out not too bad for my first try at using it! Thanks for following along folks...........hope I'm not boring you with these subtle details, but this is kinda like an online diary for me, as I do save the pages on my hard disc for later reference believe it or not.