Exotics_Builder

Don't waste time on the Accustion set. Go with KA or Hobby Design. They will work. Get the Fujimi version PE as the Revell is the Protar kit. I have all the kits and much aftermarket. So if you have questions, ask away. Bill Geary's post on his 250 GTO is an excellent example of what can be done

Well: And more out of the boxes in parts bins

Most big manufacturers are doing periodic announcements, usually quarters. What is more interesting is seeing things. including test shots or box art models. Over 160 photos of various products were taken at last years IHOBBY including tools, diecast, diorama products. etc. The magazine can't publish all, but a good cross section was. There is value in visiting the distributors there as well to see what they are/will be offering. For example, although they were available before IHOBBY, Stevens International had a LARGE display of Plastic Dreams floor mats and mud flaps. Anyway, it helps to round out the picture of what's happening, Is it as big a deal as even five years ago? I don't think so. But then, social media advertising was just ramping up, So, now there are many venues to entice and advertise.

MCM is the only MODEL CAR magazine (or any other I've scanned) that does detailed coverage of IHOBBY along with photos. There was an 8 page spread in MCM on the 2013 show.

Well they are a week apart this time. But I live very close to the convention center, hence I'm the Field Reporter It is a bit more complicated than what you stated. Many companies, particularly the Japanese such as Tamiya, stopped coming some years back. There were several issues around continuing at the Rosemont Convention Center, many centered around costs. From what I was told, Cleveland was a disaster on many fronts. As I didn't go, Len Carsner was covering, I can't say. The venue moved back to Chicago and the Schaumburg Convention Center became the venue. Given social media and the internet, some companies feel this is a better means of exposure. The same is true in Japan, as Fujimi stopped attending the All Japan Model and Toy Show. Others feel product exposure to the public helps. In the case of Revell, the parent company, Hobbico, decided to not have a booth. BUT, Revell still supports the make and take, along with other manufacturers. Here is a list of vendors that will be of most interest to model car buffs (including die cast). Some of these are distributors (such as Stevens International) who provide multiple product lines to Hobby Shops: Acrylicos Vallejo Alumilite Corp American Foam Technologies, Inc b2b Replicas Daron Worldwide Trading, Inc. Green Light LLC Grex Airbrush HobbyBoss ICM Iwata-Medea Meng Merit International LLC Minicraft Models MMD - Squadron Moebius Models Monarch Models Panache Place Pegasus Hobbies Phoenix Toys Round 2 LLC Stevens International The Glue Looper The Testor Corporation Trumpeter Models

Thursday through midday Friday are trade only. There is some public access on Friday afternoon and Saturday through Sunday. Round2, Moebius and Testor are supposed to be there. I have a list that I am editing for visiting priority. I will be there Thursday, Friday and Sunday for Model Cars Magazine. I I'll have a better cut of the list later today.

There is a push to do an unpainted version with decals. There is no full detail kit planned for this beyond the detail in the pre-paint.

Tower Hobby shows on order and Tamiya USA shows out of stock. Manufacturer Stock Number 87146

This is the Pink Primer And it is coming available in the USA

I agree with you there. I have my perceptions on that, mainly related to staffing levels. When I visited Revell at their old Morton Grove location in the mid-90's there seemed to be a much larger staff (disregarding the manufacturing part) than I observed in the last couple of visits (disregarding the manufacturing part). I cannot claim that is an issue, just a perception on my part. As stated above about the printing process, things creep in even with multiple reviews. I was in the software development business and no matter how many design reviews, testing cycles (including negative testing) and user testing; things crept through. In the majority of cases, these were not obvious flaws, but a few were. I know that the photos of I took of the S&H Torino and the feedback are known to them. A couple Revell employees are members of model car clubs I belong to in the area. And I know the feedback is given there as well. The ones I know personally, at least, are honest and sincere people. Let's hope the quality improves. I did like the C7 snap test shots I saw, so there is that.

As stated, the Hasegawa kit is the way to go for a 348. I would pass on the Fujimi, I've seen the kit and passed myself when it first came out.

I wasn't referring to your comment. Sorry if you thought so. Just a general observation on some of the threads that have been going on lately, including this one. I don't envy the moderators trying to keep things civil yet allow an exchange of views. To me, it is useful when someone can compare to a real example or is an expert in a particular mark. I still may buy an inaccurate model and work with it. Or I may not. Personal preference. I think we all do that to some degree, depending on our interest in the subject.

In my opinion, one can still have fun building, but also point out the inaccuracies. As I found out a couple of days back, constructive critiques and pointing out of errors is read and noted. Sadly, it may not result in a rapid fix. Based on some comments Harry made, I went back and checked a lot of older kits and surprised myself on the amount of inaccuracies, some slight some not, that exist. Personally, I don't think the AMT 67 Camaro is much better than the Revell. I don't have an MPC Gen 1 Camaro to compare to, but all the Gen-1 Camaros, AMT, Revell, etc. I have viewed do not have front fender braces. If somebody mentioned that one, I don't recollect. Harry's comment above about respecting opinions is the point. I, again personally, don't like the vitriol that is directed at people regardless of their opinion. If that continues, the value of this forum is severely diminished. Even people passionate about a particular topic can express themselves civilly, And we should respect that. As regards this model, I would to thank those who have been able to compare against 1:1 versions and point out the discrepancies. As regards the model companies in general, I fear that those who are passionate car people are gone (death or retirement) and the few left are dealing with different corporate cultures.

Very useful. I have experimented with a couple and was just thinking of Spaz Stik,

MCM’s pre-IHOBBY interview with Revell covered 1st quarter 2015 releases and what’s on the horizon. At the close of the meeting, a discussion ensued on some message board threads/comments. Revell wanted to try and get some things clear. They said I could post this separately. First, they do spend time reviewing the message boards and social media comments. They take constructive criticism and ideas very seriously. But, they do not have the resources to post in these threads and carry out conversations. The days of being able to do that given their product lines and customer bases are long past. Second, there are several steps in the process where misinterpretation can creep in and an error occurs. When discovered, whatever way, it is noted and an evaluation of potential fixes is done. Again, resources come to bear as to how and when a correction can be made. If there is extensive time before any correction is made, it does not mean they are insensitive to the modeling community. They are a business and need to consider many things. Third, there appears to be a misconception that they are not taking advantage of new technology in the design/development process. That is not the case. Evaluation and use of 3D scanning/printing technologies is underway, but the low cost versions will not cut it and the size of the 1:1 prototypes really raises the price points. The day of light weight portable and affordable scanning wand is not here yet. Believe it or not, they do not get CAD drawings from the manufacturers for every vehicle detail. The auto manufacturers today are not as forthcoming as in the past with vehicle data, causing a lot of field work. Ford was an exception with the 2015 Mustang model. But for the C7 Corvette, Revell had to get out in the field to get the design info needed for the upcoming model. Finally, Revell has several different market segments to satisfy. An objective they have across some segments is to increase the number of younger people introduced to the hobby. That means simplified kits such as snaps as well as prepainted. These will be part of their “garage” along with more offerings that will appeal to the experienced modeler. They will continue to do the best job they can offering all new models, conversions and reissues.

http://s150.photobucket.com/user/exotics_builder/library/2014-09-21%20Cantigny%20Car%20Show

I've seen one at B-N-L resin site that looks good. Don't recollect HRM or R&MofM doing one. VCG my have it.

Not only 9/11/2001, but 9/11/2012 when Benghazi happened.

Obviously, I used the Round 2 AMT F-60 Tampo printed tires instead of the Revell kit tires. I also went into the parts box for Rally II wheels as I didn't like the Revell ones. A quick caliper measurement shows the Revell wheels are close enough to 14", but they look small and do not work with the AMT tires. I needed to go to parts box wheel backs and used some Evergreen tube to get the wheels to fit to the mounting points. I also used plastic tube to craft the front fender braces and applied with superglue. I then put PE bolt heads on them and didn't paint for a little contrast.

And that's with deep cut grooves with Tamiya Smoke wash. I have no idea why it came out that dark. Never has before. Since it is acrylic paint, I may work at adjusting it. Also, some the Bare Metal Foil is starting to curl/pull off and it was a new sheet. I smoothed it down, but need to decide what to do there as well.

This was a relatively quick build that sat on the shelf several times in the last few months for other work. It is a club project for GTR Auto Modelers Group. It was to be shown for the GTR NNL held on August 3, but a put a scratch in it as I was doing final polishing, so had to mask the area off, repaint and then finish polishing it. The kit started as the Revell Firebird 400 kit (1st issue) that was sitting in the basement stash. I was going to do my usual Camaro “whatever” for our club theme, but decided in mid-April to do a Firebird instead. To make it a bit more different, I decided to do a Sprint with the OHC six cylinder engine: I wound up getting the Replicas and Miniatures of Maryland Pontiac OHC -6 which is a cleaned up version of the MPC engine along with one of Norm’s six cylinder distributors pre-drilled. Assembling that, I got to this: I next tackled the interior. I decided on black and created vinyl look floor mats. Revell provides no wood grain for the center dash or console, which is OK for a Firebird. But, I decided to dig into the decal stash and pull out a Fujimi wood grain sheet that gave me an effect that looked close. I also added silver stripes to the center console to complete the look. Finishing off the interior, I used Revell’s decals and added: seat belts and buckles; silver stripe on the top of the door panels to simulate where the window slot would be; photo-etched rear ash trays; and door locks. These are shots of the interior before assembly: I cleaned up the body, including cutting out the two large vent slots in front of the windshield. I also needed to craft a flat hood, so I combined parts of booth included hoods (stock 400 and racing with blower opening) and blended them into a flat hood. Color is Mayfair Maize from Scale Finishes. I was able to get a second decal sheet and part of a Model Car Garage PE fret for the Firebird. I used these to detail the exterior. I also crafted two Sprint decals for the lower chrome body panels. The result is this:

Have any photos to show what you are looking for specifically?

Got it some months ago. Testor Aztec cups will fit the side feed. U love and think you will also.

Off the top of my head, the most likely sources are Walther's train site where they have G-scale (usually 1/22.5) and some 1/24. You would be looking for seated figures and will have to modify after that. The Revell Pontiac Club de Mer has a male and female figure seated for the car, but in 50's style garb. There also are some figure sets from Japan that do have non-racing driver figures, but I can't tell you if they're readily available. Most resin companies don't have non-racing driver figures that I've seen. Ulrich min-men are supposedly available again but would need work to pose and fit. Best to do a Google search for G-scale or 1/24 scale seated figures. A lot of options pop up.

I wasn't going to get the 67 because I have the AMT kit and am more interested in a 68 as I had a real 68 Z/28 and the AMT kit is, IMO, not as good as the MPC kit was. When I asked Revell at the GTR Summer NNL in Crystal Lake, it didn't sound like they are contemplating a 68 as they feel the market is already saturated with the AMT kit. Since they only have so much R&D money to invest, I can understand that and there are a lot subjects that would make other modelers happy. I really like your idea of the body template. There is only so much you can do with photographs, even digital. And there is always the possibility of parallax creeping in to distort. Then one needs to hope the version is pristine.