Jim Gibbons

Thanks for posting the pictures, Jarius. My father's best friend flew fighters off the Essex in WW2. He flew F6F Hellcats, Corsairs, and after hostilities were over, Bearcats. His favorite was the Corsair, but he really liked the flight characteristics and performance of the Bearcat. I do actually have a Corsair I could use (an old Monogram working parts kit), but one of the inner upper wing sections was a short shot molding, so with a little scratchbuilding, it could be a candidate. Even if I end up not contributing, this will be a really cool topic to watch.

Every aspect of this build is a new lesson; with each new post, I feel like I'm opening a Christmas present!

I'd love to, but my disability budget won't allow it! That's okay...I live vicariously through threads like this, and considering some of the criticisms about this particular kit, even if I could afford it, I'd hesitate to spend the money unless it was on a really good sale. I'm very interested in the ways folks are overcoming these faults, though...excellent modeling skills!

I have to find the photo; I forget which book or magazine it was in, but it looked like textured undercoating; a bit lumpy. If I come across it, I'll scan it.

That is too cool! That's thinking outside the box personified. I have to send the assembly photo link to a friend's daughter who skeletonizes dead animals. She'll love it!

Really cool and excellent build! You know when you're showing your age when you can remember the mailman cartoon character that promoted the "new" use of zip codes! As far as troll dolls went, in the mid '60s, since SAABs were built in Trollhatten, Sweden, they had a window decal (my aunt had one on her '65 96) that illustrated a troll doll with the statement, "Made in Trollhatten by Trolls!"

I have to go though my issues of Hemmings Classic Car magazine (or do an article search in Hemmings website), as there was a really good restoration profile of a 300 that has great detail photos of all the bits and assemblies. The only thing I found different from that restoration, and an old assembly line photo of a '55 300, was that the assembly line photo showed a fully undercoated body section being lowered to the chassis. I don't know if the undercoating was standard or a factory option. Maybe Art can assist on that one.

Really enjoying this thread; great modeling work, and the reference pictures are so cool.

I have a handbike; I'm disabled and this allows me to still ride. Imagine the back half of a wheelchair with a long, steeply angled front fork with pedals where the handlebars would be. I have a bit of work to do on it, though, as I moved a couple of years ago, and it's a bit hillier here than my former neighborhood. It has a 3 speed hub, but it's geared on the high side, so I either have to opt for a 7 speed hub, or change the front "pedal" sprocket. I would like to get it going again, as they opened the old Poughkeepsie Railroad bridge over the Hudson River as a walkway/ bikeway near my house, and that would be a great ride.

Wow, that's coming along beautifully. I've built a couple of Tamiya 1/12 F1 models, and even though they came out well (with the exception of a few decal issues on Jim Clark's Lotus), they can't compare to the detail and work you've done. I'm sure your client will be very pleased.

Well, I would never guess that it was that bad a resin product looking at your results. A beautiful job! I used to watch the TV show when I was a kid. I will never forget the car (or the theme song!) I looked to see if the '60s TV show was on Netflix, but it wasn't. However, they did have the 1940 and 1941 serials available. I should get them and see what the Green Hornet's car was like then. Here's an illustration that has the car in it, but I'm sure it has some artistic license. That would be a neat project; the car in the 40's, the '60s, and now.

Well, I guess I'd be out if twin engines are banned. My only idea (and kit that would apply that I have) would be a Grumman XF5F of which there was only one prototype and it didn't see actual service. It would make a cool theoretic racer, though, even if only in comic book dreams! (NOT my model, BTW...a brilliantly scatchbuilt 1/32 version off the 'net.)

I'd be interested, too. Would pre-war "box stock" racing planes be eligible, or only modified war-birds?

Both the model and real thing are coming along, though I'd wager you're wishing the 1:1 were progressing as well as your model! It would be nice if you could get the CAD files of the Boyd C. wheels and have them reduced to 1/25 and done by a model parts manufacturer that does CNC machining work. Cost a small fortune, though.

Beautiful work! A friend of mine had a '56 Super 4Dr Hardtop we used to cruise in. All white lower body, black roof, red & black interior. I loved that car.

I have osteonecrosis and am facing 2 hips, 2 knees, and left shoulder replacements. Are you having the minimally invasive procedure? Some folks in my support group had it, and were doing quite well after several days to a couple of weeks. Main thing is a good chair that keeps your hips at or above knee level for a period of time. (A height adjustable office chair is good; I have two of them.) Best of luck; you'll be in my thoughts and prayers, and you'll be back modeling in no time!

Now that's what I call a good save!!! As an aside, I remember reading years ago in one of my old car magazines that many owners had their roofs painted because the stainless steel was so difficult to maintain appearance-wise (What average DeLorean have you seen that actually looked good?) I'd guess that many of the restored Eldo's had the paint stripped.

The pencil marks below and between the two "Vees" seem to be resin or mold flash; at first I thought it might be some sort of detail, but under a loupe, it appears just to be junk. I haven't spent much time cleaning up the chassis yet. The body was enough of a project. I wish I could find the pictures, but a friend took many for me of this XJS at Lime Rock. I will do a search in the next few days, and if I find them, I'll post. A possible option to the Hasegawa kit, is an old late '70s Revell issue of an XJS that was a snap kit. I built it for a friend, but added a lot of detail such as fuel injection logs and throttle linkage to the V12 engine insert, scratch built and painted "burl" inserts for the side panels and dash, and guitar string trim for the door panels. It ended up looking very good, and one would have never guessed it was a snap kit. I have to ask my friend if she'll take some pictures for me. The version I built was marketed under "The Saint" remake of the original show. It may not be any cheaper than the Hasegawa, but you might luck out. I can't remember if it was 1/24 or 1/25, though.

I've built quite a number of Revell multi-piece bodied cars over the years (Healey included) and if care is taken during assembly, they turn out very well. David's is a great example. One I'm having trouble with, though, is an original issue 1/32 '55 Chrysler New Yorker. A number of parts were warped, and even after hot water reshaping, it's a bit cockeyed. I'm hoping when I cement the roof on, and place on the chassis, it will straighten. I saw on another board a model someone did, and that by using clear gloss with a little white in it applied over chromed headlights, the effect was surprisingly good. He used a little more white in the paint ratio to do front parking/ rear back up lights. Hate to tell you, David, but the Eldo should have clear front parking/ turn signal lenses!

It's too bad Bandai won't release some of their kits; the 1/16 '37 Packards were gems, and the 1/48 series of armor would still stand up to today's standards and more, as they had full engines and drivetrains.

Love it; the paint is beautiful. I have one of these unbuilt somewhere when they were first re-released. I'm taking the easy way out, though, as I'm now working on the Gunze Sangyo 1/32 version. It fits with the old 1/32 AMT/Revell kits I have.

Looking great! I know it's too late, but here's a photo of the resin base of the XJS which I took a pencil to so you could see the trunk bulkhead. Here's a 3/4 side view of it. I'm sure it's quite different than yours, though.

I was thinking about your project last night, and thought that you might want to do a quick mock up with the chassis, engine, and body panels, especially the hood. I didn't build the Alfa Romeo, so I may be wrong. Since you added gasket material to the heads and cam covers, it might cause clearance problems between the engine assembly and the hood. If there's plenty of room, no worries. Just a caution, as I know when I built the Mercedes Benz 500K, I had to disassemble and correct some issues several times. Good thing I didn't use glue!

Well, despite the difficulties, it came out beautifully, and it was worth the effort. As I found out, pets and models DO NOT mix! A 69 Mustang project got derailed years ago because my roommate's cat decided that the engine assembly before paint was a cool toy. Fortunately I found it about a month later when I took a yardstick to check under the stove. A Italeri Junkers JU-52 civilian version model was never finished as two engines and a spatted landing gear assembly vanished into the great cat unknown. I've given up on molded antenna parts; I now just use the base to mount guitar wire or clipped sewing needles to replicate them. As stated above, I have this kit, and have been thinking of doing a slightly modified version using the wheels/ hubcaps from an old and badly damaged Fujimi Enthusiast's series Porsche 356 and painting it in the '50s combination of black (or metallic brownish grey) roof and lower body area, with that orangy coral color for the middle section. The new version of the Samba from Revell Germany is coming out, and would like to get that and build it stock.

Jeff, just discovered this, and I'm captivated how well it's coming out. I, too, had a '69 Camaro "granny car", though it was my second car. My first was a '54 Ford Rustomline which was a WIP, so in most ways, I consider the '69 I bought in April '78 my first "real" car. I had the base 250HP 2 bbl 327, also with a column shift Powerglide. I didn't change much on it, though, as I didn't have the budget in my poor college days. The only thing I added was a set of used American Racing slotted aluminum wheels in the rear, with baby moons on the front stock steel wheels. I couldn't do a lot HP wise, either, as the base cars had that stupid single leaf rear suspension. Mine was Daytona Yellow with the black vinyl roof; I had the same seats of that indestructable black vinyl. Mine didn't have the woodgrain, as it had the grabhandle. I took the taillight assemblies out, and painted the rear panel flat black. I had a lot of fun with that car; in Jan. '79, I drove it with two friends from NY to Boulder, CO to visit other friends. (The back seat rotation was not a fun thing!) I miss that car...I eventually sold it to a guy who made a bogus Z28 out of it with wheels/ suspension similar to yours. He owned a shop, so he could do things to it I could only dream about.