MrObsessive

Yup! It's not like Johan's have hundreds of parts like a Fujimi Enthusiast kit or something! Of the few Johan's I've sold on eBay, I've laid out the parts nice and neat for all to see so they can check against the instruction sheet which was also laid out with pics of both sides if needed. Some sellers are just flat out lazy, or simply devious as they can use that as their "out". I love it when they say.............."I don't know much about these----I'm selling this for a friend". They have no clue what you're trying to sell for them either?? On the subject of Johan's though, I believe at this point I have the kits that I want. There are a couple I'd love to find simply the boxes for----a '68 AMC Matador and Javelin are a couple of them that's missing their boxes for example. Even crazier than some of the prices for whole kits can be just the PARTS for those beasts! There's a certain seller on eBay that specializes in simply parts for kits. I've seen some of those Johan bodies (and just the bodies) go for insane amounts of money! Nothing against the seller in what he does as I've bought from him, but it just goes to show how much people will pay if they want something bad enough, in which I have to plead the fifth on that one! I do have a regret for a Johan I sold, and now wish I could find another for a "reasonable" price-----the 1967 Fury III hardtop which was in pristine shape with the original box. I can't even remember why I sold it, but I've since got the convertible (no box) and I have a couple of the '68 hardtops. One with the original box, and one without. Those are just a few of the MANY Johans I have that I intend to keep whether I build/restore them or not.

Yeah, I meant Hong Kong...............As Rob said many of them were made there as well as here in the US. The more valuable HW's are the Hong Kong ones as they're nicer with better details. Nicer mags and tires, as well as the tinted windows which I mentioned about earlier.

One possibility of the "early" makings of the HW '68 Corvette is that Mattel's intention was to make the Mako Shark version of that particular 'Vette (thus the "Custom Corvette" moniker). That car debuted back in '65, and that was close to the time HW's would have been in development (1966?). Someone may have leaked a drawing or even a pic of what was going on behind the scenes at Chevy's styling studio to an employee at Mattel. Happens all the time in the biz..............people leave and go work for another company, transfers, firings, etc. Anyway................it's interesting how stuff gets leaked and then no one knows how it happened! One thing I have to clarify though on my part is not all of those original 16 HW's were stamped 1967 on the chassis. IIRC, there were China made versions (IMO better detailed, and nicer wheels and chassis), which I've seen stamped 1967. There were US made ones as well during that time which had slightly different wheels, "non hole" chassis, and clear glass as opposed to this China made one's tinted glass, and those were tagged as 1968 on the chassis. Yikes! All this talk about '68 Hot Wheels Corvettes! Now you guys have me searching the 'net for another one after all these years!

The article I linked to reminded me of who it was that complained of the front fender peaks in the '68 Corvette's design. It was Zora Arkus Duntov that made a stink to styling about that, and how they should seriously be revised. Apparently he drove one of the early prototypes and was not happy about the visibility in the car, from the driver's perspective. Possibly another reason why the 1:1 car was delayed a model year from '67 to '68?

Seems as though they didn't get a LOT of blueprints for their '68's!

No. Not according to this. While I no longer have that particular Hot Wheels in my collection, I'm certain that the year engraved on the chassis is 1967, as a lot of the original 16 were. Logic dictates that they would have been market tested many months before they were released to the public (I thought Dave Van on the board here once mentioned he was one of the kids that checked 'em out back then), so yeah..........the kids along with their parents would have seen what the new gen 'Vette would have looked like before the general public did. And no, Hot Wheels came out in the late spring of '68 not during that summer. I distinctly remember getting my first one very shortly after they first came out. Lets also talk about advertising, toy store selections, distribution, etc. All of that has to be done way in advance before the general public sees it. That could go for most anything that's sold.

I seem to remember a story years ago that Mattel released photos of the '68 Corvette Stingray Hot Wheels before Chevrolet had the actual car for intro. While I can remember the '68 Corvette as a kid when it was new seeing them on the streets, I wouldn't know about the behind the scenes action as to why the car was perhaps a late intro into the automotive scene. I thought I read somewhere one of the reasons the car may have been late was due to the front fender peaks being a bit too tall in the original design. Chevy was told to change this at the 11th hour, which might have been the reason for the delay. Of course, Mattel would have had the blueprints to the change, and it was probably not as difficult to make the tooling for the "toys" as it was for GM to push back the intro of the C3 'Vette. I can just imagine the ruckus raised in the styling offices when the designers were told they had to change what was already pretty much set in stone.

My how time flies! I can still remember my very first Hot Wheels........an Antifreeze Camaro which would have been not long after they were first intro'd around mid '68. School had just let out, and I got that Hot Wheels as a gift for getting a good report card. I think I ended up with most of those original 16 that came out that year except for a couple, and I have most of those originals now. Not the original ones I had in '68, but I got into collecting them back in the mid/late '90's into the early '00's, and I'm hangin' on to 'em. BTW, I distinctly remember that Christmas of '68 when I got my first Hot Wheels set...........The "Super Charger Sprint Set" which looked like this.............. My set was complete with the famous orange track, curves and all and I can remember someone got it up and running for me (Probably my Dad) with two new Hot Wheels cars going round and round the track when I came down the stairs Christmas morning. I also got two model kits that Christmas which I didn't like AT ALL as I was disappointed by the pretty box art (IIRC, a '68 Chevelle annual and a '40 Ford) but once opened I saw all these bazillion of pieces. I IMMEDIATELY put them back in their boxes and wanted to play with the Hot Wheels instead! Model kits reminded me of puzzles back then, and I HATED puzzles! You'd never know that now!

I have to echo what Carl said regarding foiling the '58 Impala. Not an easy car for beginners, and I can tell you it may take you quite a while working a couple hours at a time to get it done. At least that's what I can remember when I built this '58 years ago............. One tip regarding BMF that you might want to try in the future..............try prescribing your trim with an Exacto blade so that you can have some kind of "guide" when it comes to foiling later on after painting. Some of the trim is rather faint----particularly along the rear fenders. Scribing these in advance will give your knife a previous guide to go on after you've got several coats of paint on. I do like the advice of perhaps practicing on something a lot less intense before you dive into this project. '58 Impalas aren't necessarily for the faint of heart, and practicing first before tackling such a beast can save you some later headaches. BTW, there is no clear coat on the paint. This color (Rio Red) being a solid color had enough hardener in it so that it rubs out and polishes very well. It's a personal choice, but I've learned over the years to pretty much only clearcoat metallics. The metal flakes pretty much demand that (there are exceptions), as you don't want a swirly, mottled appearance to the finish.

Yup! I knew about the frame, but I was talking more about the cowl and inner fenders that were shared from ‘57-‘59......at least that appears the case to me. The styling changed so much in those years however, that your car was “old” within a model year! ☺️

Beautiful job!! And to think this strange looking car was sitting somewhere on a dealers lot waiting to be taken home when I came into the world. I gotta say.........I'm sure that dorsal fin on the rear decklid must have raised a few eyebrows when it was first seen. Folks may have said......."What the heck??"

I'll be 57 in October and I was a late starter to building relatively speaking. I was 17 and a senior in high school when I started building. Before that you couldn't give a model to me as I was just not interested in 'em. Interesting! I came across this website a while back that lists all of Billboard's hits for a ton of years. These were in the top five the week I came along......... 1 1 TAKE GOOD CARE OF MY BABY –•– Bobby Vee (Liberty)-9 (3 weeks at #1) (1) 2 2 THE MOUNTAIN’S HIGH –•– Dick and DeeDee (Liberty)-10 (2) 3 4 CRYING –•– Roy Orbison (Monument)-8 (3) 4 13 HIT THE ROAD JACK –•– Ray Charles (ABC-Paramount)-4 (4) 5 6 LITTLE SISTER –•– Elvis Presley (RCA Victor)-7 (5) The following week, "Hit The Road Jack" would be #1.

Small parts I'll just attach to a plastic spoon or something with either tape or something called "Fun Tac". which is a removable type putty. I don't often put bodies in the dehydrator though as I'm paranoid about warping due to the bodywork I do. I have to ask though............does yours have a temp control? This is important as you don't want the temp to get no hotter than 105 degrees for plastic bodies. Beyond that can be asking for trouble.

Túlio, absolutely gorgeous! I'm partial to the '57 as well as that was pretty much a very important turning point for Ford. While the '56 was a very nice car, it was really just a carryover from the '55, and that was pretty much a rebody still on the original 1952 platform. '57 was a whole 'nuther kettle of fish though, and that would be short lived as it would live on only till '59. Yes, the '59 was a one year deal style wise, but under the skin where it counts it was tied to the '57 in many ways. 1960? Man, that would be one VERY radical year for Ford! But for whatever reason you'll see 10 times the amount of '57 Chevys at a show, than you'll see Fords. Were they that hard to keep around ie: rust? Or did the public for whatever reason just latch on to Chevy due to "nostalgia"? Frankly, I'd take the Ford over the Chevy as for the time, it appeared more "advanced" while the Chevy still seemed upright and boxy dating back through the early '50's.

Mike, several years ago when I went to the Toledo show, I saw Don and Carol in person and I could tell that things were wearing on them then. First and foremost, it is a business to them and while they are "model people" there's still the business end to deal with and I can imagine it's not always sunshine and roses. I can best believe that they'll be glad when they get that last order sent out the door, and can FINALLY relax! It's been a terrific run for them (since the early '80's?), and they probably never imagined they'd be seen as THE STANDARD when it came to all things resin in the aftermarket. They indeed are already missed! They have sure earned their retirement though!

I meant to mention this earlier but a couple weeks ago, I got my last Modelhaus order. The 1976 Cadillac Coupe De Ville that they made, and a set of 1960 Chevy Impala hubcaps. As much as I was thrilled to get the Caddy, it was also a bit sad as it's the last time I'll get something from them directly. True that time marches on, but it's a bit sobering to realize that a lot of our revered cottage industry casters are getting up in years, and of course they wouldn't be doing this forever. Couldn't help but notice this particularly at the yesterday's Mid Atlantic NNL. It occurred to me that there are some that I've now known for 25+ years, and you can't help but notice the "graying" of the hobby. Marty, I was just talking about this very thing with someone at the show. While it would be fantastic if someone bought the molds and such from Don and Carol, my better sense tells me that unfortunately with the demographics of our hobby literally changing by the year, I don't think whoever bought such a vast inventory would ever see a return on their investment. Lets face it.................not many of us will be around say 20-30 years from now that will appreciate a 1969 Camaro, or those cars out of the '50's. I look no further than what I see showing up at the 1:1 car shows-------cars of the '70's and '80's now. Hard to believe, but that's what turning up. It just goes to show that when you see that aftermarket item and you really want it and can afford it, better to grab it then and there than hesitating. You never know when the shop will close their doors, and you end up finding the same said item on eBay for instance and they want 10 times the original price for it.

You ain't kiddin'! I just paid some super big bucks the other day for a long wanted grail. Now when I'll build it is anyone's guess, but it's a kit of a car I've wanted for many years now, and it's FINALLY in my stash! I'm not even thinking about what I paid..........just marveling looking at it as it's one of my favorites. What is this kit you might be wondering?? Model Factory Hiro's 1963 Ferrari 330 LMB.......one of my all time favorite road racers of the '60's.

Update! OK...............seems as though quoting the person that asked the question in the text box might have been the problem. I went back to that thread (just now), and I had the brainstorm of just getting rid of the quote and just try to post what I said. That worked and my response is now posted. Snake, I think the software in the board is now set up so that in case the post does take a dump due to some kind of issue, going back later on the response is autosaved in that particular thread's text box. I literally just went back after several days, clicked on the text box, and everything that I originally typed was still there. Now that the post is up, if I were to go back to that thread and click on the text box, there's probably a blank page until I put up something new. I don't know why this happened, but it was one VERY frustrating thing. And yes, I've done that in the past when I need to make a very long post that involves pics. Problem is, some Word programs (on some (OS's) don't save the pics, or won't transfer the pics correctly from one format to another. But that is a good idea for simple text as nothing's more frustrating to make a pointed and lengthy post, only for it to go into the cyber byte bucket!

I did recently manage to get the chassis done, and now I'm working on the interior. Sorry I've been a bit AWOL on this build, but I'm in another modeling slump due to work, and soon I'll be switching shifts from daylight to overnights. One thing that switching will eliminate is there will be no more 10 hour days except if I want to work Saturday mornings for instance for OT. The interior of the Shelby is turning into a bit of a challenge as I have to pretty much redo the seats from the ground up. The froont seats in the AMT '68 Shelby kits IMO are trash, and I'm redoing the seat patterns from a Revell '68 Mustang interior set. I got these off eBay thinking they had the correct vertical patterns, but much to my chagrin-----no, they're the horizontal ones so I'm pretty much cutting everything apart and making new seat patterns. The rear seat will have to be built from scratch too as the fastback rear one is quite different and not the same at all as the rear seat in the two door hardtop coupes. I pretty much did the same thing over 20 years ago with the old Shelby build...........I just can't remember now how I did it. No digicam or internet back in those days! After the interior is done and it fits without much drama in the bodyshell, it'll be on the downside of this project as it's just getting the other body bits and pieces to go on, and then it's painting time! I've not much time during this week, and with the Mid Atlantic NNL coming up on Saturday, I hope to have some new pics to post up for you folks possibly Sunday.

OK............SIX TIMES yesterday I've tried to give an update on the Shelby project I'm doing. I keep getting a 404 ERROR each time I hit the submit button, and I've flat out given up. Lately, nothing's more frustrating to take the time to put together a coherent post, only to have that effort squashed by constant board bugs. I'm soon about to give up putting out updates all together and just put them on my Fotki page with just a link..........if that'll even post.

David, the Avanti was intro'd in late '62 as a '63 model with those round bezels, and Studebaker didn't close the plant in South Bend, IN until very late the following year when the '64's were in production. Every '63 Avanti I've ever seen had those round bezels, although that doesn't mean there weren't exceptions as what could have been the case especially in those days. I don't know how true this story is, but the Avanti was originally planned to be introduced as a '62 model in late '61. Studebaker not being familiar with the production of the fiberglass bodies ran into many quality issues with the pilot models. By the time the car was ready for the public for the next model year............guess what?? Many people were absolutely blown away by Chevy's new for '63 Corvette Stingray and Stude lost a lot of sales due to that. Just goes to show that sometimes you've got to be in the right place at the right time. Back in the mid '90's through the mid '00's, I was living above what was once a Studebaker dealer in an apartment. Believe it or not, there was a non running Avanti and a Hawk that sat in the garage below me for the longest time. Not long ago, I got nosy and drove past my old place and decided to take a look. Both cars were gone (the landlord REALLY let the place get run down), and I happened to see the Hawk parked at my old landlord's residence later on. HOPEFULLY that Avanti found a good home and was restored to be in tip-top shape as it richly deserves.

Ahhh.......thanks Mark! Forgot all about that one!

Yeah Bill............those are pretty much all the same just reboxed at different times.

No modern 1958 Cadillacs except for the Imai ones, and IMO they're not as accurate as they could be. You MIGHT be able to get an X-EL promo (nee Johan) off the 'Bay on the cheap, but that's a huge longshot, and all of those are the four door 60 Specials. Sadly, the promos made in the '50's are warped to death----at least the ones I've seen. I have an Imai '58 Caddy Eldo Seville, but it's one of those models (like I want to do with the '58 Plymouth) that needs a complete overhaul body wise from bumper to bumper. That's just me though.............. I also have one of the X-EL 60 Specials, but for the time being, that's untouchable.

While I have two of these kits, I've never built them and I've never heard any complaints about any difficulties with it. I have to say that this is the better of the two appearance wise as Revell got the '64 Impala's lines spot on, and they got the 1962-'64 B body 2 door hardtop roofline IMO exactly right. I know the AMT one has been around forever, but that (along with the '63) never quite looked "right" to me, and I'd rather build the Revell one. In all fairness, Revell's '63 looks off to me too, so more than likely if I ever build a '63 I'd swap roofs pretty much like I did with their '59. I've seen these Revell '64's built up here on the board------sooner or later someone will post pics of their take on it.