Jim Gibbons

I say real...the leather hood straps kind of did it for me. If that's a model, I'm giving up the hobby, lol!

Too, too funny. I just shook my head and grinned. In a related story, several years ago, I was at the Rhinebeck Antique Car Show in NY, and was wandering through the building that they put most of the model/ diecast vendors in. The vendor that specializes in Hess things had the '67? ship tanker model in mint shape, but didn't have the box. I told him I had a pretty good box (I still have the tanker, but stupidly did some detail painting on it back in the early 70's) and would he be interested. He was, and he offered $75! I sold him the box the next day! Maybe the box is worth more, but more than ten years later, he still has that Tanker for sale, with my box. I think he's asking over $1500 for the combo. That $75 got me a few neat kits and things. Long live the builders! Mmmmm...when I finish my 1/32 AMT/Revell '55 Chrysler New Yorker, I'm gonna have an empty box....

Your work is stunning on this kit. The chassis detail is incredible, as is the interior. I love these cars; I have worked timing and scoring at the Vintage Festival races at Lime Rock, and enjoy the DB4s that often compete there. They had a Zagato version there a few years back. Someone was also displaying a beautiful DB4 Drophead in that green unique to Aston Martin. I turned my head to the left, and there was Vic Edelbrock checking it out! I get tears in my eyes everytime I watch the original 1969 "Italian Job" when Michael Caine's silver DB4 Drophead is sent tumbling off the alpine road. Looking forward to your progress photos. Cheers, Jim

I just found and joined this forum, and enjoyed the progress and pictures of the 500K. I built one of these (and the Fiat) in the mid 80's. An incredible amount of work and a lot of adjustments were needed to make things work. I had to dismantle and rebuild the rear swing axle about 5 or 6 times till it was satisfactory. As with you, I spent more time bending and adjusting the spokes than building the wheels. I did use the kit seats and upholstery, but backed the "leather" and foam padding with pieces of cut up bed sheet material, then hand stitched the "tuck and roll" effect. I then glued thick tan carpet thread at the seams to simulate piping. It came out pretty well, but I do like your resin seats as they are more prototypical. I also hand stitched the top, but wasn't satisfied with the top up appearance, so left it down all the time. A few years ago, a friend of mine started building the Pocher Porsche 993, and gave up. I'm going to finish it for him at some time, and paint the body Arena Red as with his own 1:1 car, plus cut out and simulate an open sunroof. The fit of that kit is appalling, and you could tell that Pocher had limited funds at the end; the head and taillight reflectors are self adhesive stickers and look terrible. I'm going to attempt to scratchbuild some decent ones. They also didn't flock the interior carpeting, but supplied diecut individual self adhesive sections that were applied to the surfaces. Ugh. Wish he hadn't put then on. The seats and dash are molded in an awful lipstick pinkish red. I'm going to do grey seats w/ black dash per his real car, and flock the chassis base in black. The supplied seat belts and hardware are also poorly done, so will figure that one out. The engine detail is very poor, and hope I can dress it up a bit using some added detail. Nuts, the more I think about the amount of work I have to do, the less I want to do it! Again, you're doing a magnificent job on the 500K, and am looking forward to pics of the finished product!