zak78

What the...no I’m not. It may be another Nick. I’m just hoping his recovery goes well. I don’t think he will be casting while at a loved one’s house, so anyone hoping for him to restart the business will have an indefinite wait. I try not to dwell on it, since it’s all outside my control. Nick

That's the one, yep! Thanks for your replies, fellas, and I'll post whatever I come up with...

I feel like a fool asking this one! I found a hardtop Firebird at the MAMA show the other day, and want to turn it into the LSx-powered monster I'll build in full scale some day. With the MPC / AMT kits, there is a gap between the first, plain-bodied, '82 Firebird with its slatted, front "intakes," and the more bulbous, no-grilles 85+ body style. There are some crazy aero pieces in some of the kits, and I know I can piece together something that looks right for an '84, but it would be great to find the factory kit in ready-made form. If I recall, the Revell kit was slightly different in scale, but I'll certainly use it if it contained optional pieces that fit the bill. Here's how it looks. My favorite of the third-gens, save for that silly rear wing. The optional pieces in the '82 kit remind me of the Mecham T/A. Not bad, just a little extreme lol. Thanks for any input you can give me : ) Nick

Cool. I've been wanting to build an early third-gen and haven't done one since the early 90s at the latest. Great thread for reference. The exhaust looks *exactly* like the one I had on my '79 during sophomore year of high school in 1994 lol. It's hard to believe we used to just run a set of headers to glasspacks, clamp on a couple of crush-bent 90-degree bends and call it a day...

Mikhail Petrenko is a very skilled fellow; he has a lot of WIPs that are still in progress, due to his absolute need for perfection to the last rivet. You can get in touch with him through AF, where he's known as Stratos75. I have two of his BMW S70/2 motors (McLaren F1 powerplant). He was the first to make these in resin, predating Hobby Design by about four years. I think I bought them in 2009.

Hello, this is Nick, his de facto distributor and friend in the US. Although a very private person, you should all know that he has been recovering from cardiac surgery and having a rough time of it. He has no home internet, so he can only return your emails from the library when he’s not in the midst of surgical rehab. I couldn’t tell you how many times he’s been re-hospitalized in the last year, since the first surgery...but he’s too private to talk about it and his lack of communication has taken its expected toll on the business, so I’m informing you here. Please forward to me a pic of whatever you need, as I have some Hemis of my own and may have the parts you need

Wahooo! I'm glad it's working out. This is inspiring me to start mine.

The window banner and the unicorn in the back...Bahahahaha! This is why models are fun...Awesome job, man.

Incredible job with the CF! Well, incredible job on the whole thing.

Thanks everybody. In retrospect I'd leave out medical-tape upholstery that looks like a bath mat up close...and fill the holes in the uprights for the cage, near the B-pillars...but I guess that's what they call learning

You used the stock 964 wheels...and for some reason it still looks awesome...because you're Jon. Same with the Esprit. Any fitment issues with that one?

Hmmm...which RS was too wide, the '74? I haven't built my '73 yet. Interestingly, 2014's re-release of the '73 comes with not only your choice of rear trailing arms, but also with a full early 930 (non-IC) turbo motor. They're like $17-$25 from numerous Japanese eBay sellers...I just haven't gotten around to hoarding them for their parts yet. If I buy a few more I'll let you know, and you can jump in the deal for cheap shipping. Good luck, and let us know how the test-fits turn out!

Thanks! Mike Newport gets the credit for the one-off trim (and for drilling out the center, given that none was marked when I got them!) Thanks! Thanks! It started out as a "Singer-inspired build" and got outta hand. Thanks! It's my favorite too. I'd have every car in Mica Blue if I had a choice lol. Thanks JC! Thanks! Thanks!

This is really well-done; that L24 engine bay looks exactly like the 1:1s I looked at before the car in my avatar started living in the garage space. How did you do the windshield?

I just noticed, the interior pics aren't showing up. That's odd; here they are. I'll reup all pics to cloud hosting manana. Right now I'm stuck at work, and with a firewall that blocks access to them. I need to do something more interesting with the package shelf, and possible add a half-cage with seatbelts. The 959 seats have been reworked a bit to set at a different angle. I know the steering wheel would be more "tasteful" with a silver or black center. That's why it's blue . Intentionally out of my comfort zone.

Thanks! I leaned a little too hard on the clear-blue and came out with lights that look a little ricey, but they're part of it now. Thanks! I'm guessing it's because those wheels are 18s, which are a little big for a 930. I'm considering replacing them with 17" Fifteen52 Outlaws and saving those (Aoshima Koenigs, made in 1:1 by O.Z.) for an actual RWB build. Thanks! Thanks! It's one of those embarrassing metal-axles kits, so I figured I may as well make the most of it lol.

Thanks!

I have four Revell BMW Nazcas, and all four had "melted" P-Zeroes. Not that I'd have used that junk anyway, but still...whatever substrate was involved in making the tires, it separated and worked its way across the glass pieces, requiring a dip in the rubbing alcohol. Fujimi's have dry-rotted on me, but only those I received in a trade from the Philippines. They were very old. The only Tamiya tires that have deteriorated on me came from a kit made in 1975, which lived in a wet basement before I rescued it in 2009

This. Although I'm guessing hipsters have little bearing on mainstream model companies-- even when they're Aoshima. The beard-product-and-skinny-jeans crowd is busy slambering MKII Volkswagens, making roof-racks and faking rust. For me this will be a track-day street car, same as the e30s

This build has been around, but I realized I hadn't posted it here. Scale Production resin body (headers, metal headlights, other goodies) Fujimi EM motor, unintentionally-ricey-looking exhaust (made from styrene tubing). ~14" Campagnolos and slicks, turned into ~15" by Mike Newport with aluminum sleeves 934 interior base, gutted: Clearly Scale seats, Aoshima head unit, integrated 959 door panels...lots o' scratchbuilt widgets *deleted the rear speakers before I finished it*

This Tamiya is 930 is my "reward WIP;" it's what I allow myself to work on only after I've made progress on more difficult models. As I'd done a "fat-tires" Tamiya 911 earlier last year, this was to be its opposite; lower than low, and a little over-the-top with 90s-style accessories. Other stuff: Ruf-style rain-gutters delete, filled mirror holes, Scale Production ducktail, SP Singer projector headlights. --Silly-wide 18" aluminum wheel barrels by Mike Newport --959 interior tub --934 motor (really just a plate) and header/ turbo transplant, complete with factory bonkers exhaust (aluminum tubes added) Still need a LOT. This is maybe 85-90% if that.

Nice job on the motor, and I like the color. Do your hubs fit under the body? A lot of the G-body (rubber bumpers, 80s) 911 Enthusiast kits came with the wrong rear trailing arms (wider ones from the 930), which cause the track to be too wide, and the wheels not to fit under the arches. The crack in the windshield support/bracket should be an easy fit with some superglue. Apply a little generously so that you can use it to fill any gaps; sand, remask that area, redo the primer and color...and you can have it back to good in an hour. I've cracked at least one pillar or support in any Porsche I've ever built...sometimes 2-3x. Repairs are inevitable...

Dale-- Tamiya seems to be trying to put one over us with that alternator location, which should be much closer to the intake manifold and water pump IIRC. You can fake it with a flat piece of styrene and still make a better-looking flange than BMW themselves did with the early renditions of the m30. Nice job on that wiring loom by the way.

I enjoy these "rebuilder" threads . That paint-- I'm almost 100% sure that's Model Master Mystic Emerald (lacquer, the "one-coat" stuff that goes on thickly), and it comes off pretty easily in 91% rubbing alcohol. Try using a spin-brush or a Sonicare on it it while it's submerged if you need to remove it within an hour or so. That dimpled finish looks like the previous builder's *really* heavy orange peel.

Looks great! Always in for an e24