BrianC

An old man and his toy at an All Ford show.................its going to have to last my retirement !

I was going to suggest just ask politely

OK........Revell USA is gone, snuffed it, dead and buried. Only expensive imports from now on.

Some of Hasegawa's kits have very poor or non existent interior details - I have recently completed their VW pick-up and panel van and there are no interior panels at all. Reviews here show poor interiors in the new BMW's too.

There are lots of great suggestions listed here for new kits. Hasegawa has recently given us some great subjects that have not available in kit form - the BMW 2002 series for example. I would have considered adding them to my stash but for the inexcusable representation of the interiors. I dont even mind that they are curbside, but I refuse to purchase them in their current form and especially for the prices asked. So my point here is that no matter the subjects they choose they have to do a lot better before I consider adding any of their newer kits to my already overflowing basement. How about a re-tooling upgrade of your interiors Mr Hasegawa?

Thanks Gil, I like the McLaren FI and I have looked at the reviews on-line and was not sure about the Fujimi kits however after seeing your build I wont be so put off buying one. Your build is great and the Gulf Racing colour scheme looks awesome too. I am happy with a curbside and the white decals look opaque enough over the dark base colour. I might have to try stretched sprue for the antenna as there aren't many cats in our neighborhood........

That looks really nice. I have read that the Aoshima McLarens were way better than the Fujimi kits, but I cant see anything wrong with that ! How was the build? did you add anything extra? (apart from the harness and decals) Great colour scheme too.

I don't mind the looks - better than the current Fords. Hopefully its built better than my 2010 GMC 2500 which has the build quality of a Lada (Russian built Fiat)

Now THAT is a beautiful car. I wonder if there will be a customer version. Mr Tamiya , Sir, please can we have one!

Well I'm really disappointed - the interior is quite visible through the large windows and the total lack of detail kills it for me. Come on Hasegawa you should know better.

Yikes that's ugly.......

Thanks guys, your compliments are appreciated. Safe Holiday weekend to all.

Four years ago our local club lost Jim Thomas, a great modeller and a good friend, to a brain tumor. He was a talented builder who would always share his techniques and encourage you in whatever you were building. His main interest were military subjects, however he built a wide variety of other subjects too. There were several un-finished projects on his bench, two of which I was given to complete, a P-47 and this Cobra. This Monogram Cobra needed only final assembly. Jim had all the painting and detailing done, all that was left was to join the main components. I would like to share his work with you.

So if I am understanding this correctly I should be able to upload a photo directly from my PC without needing a third party host site? Without limits or restrictions? testing:... .

Beautifully done Jim, I missed this too - however I will be saving the info you have generously provided as I have one of each of the McLarens and several Grand Sports to build. All will benefit from the info in this build. Thank you for taking the time to illustrate your techniques and to explain the build so well. A great reference for use with many other subjects too.

I guess someone wanted to see what all those old AMT custom parts looked like full size !

So if you are really good with a scalpel you can swap the 'o's and 'a's ... good luck with that !! One of our local hobby stores has a couple of these on the shelf for a cool $105 ......(Canadian)

As all of the Canadian modellers have already pointed out a $30 kit is actually not a bad price these days up here. I am interested in many different subjects and I have recently purchased a couple of World War One tanks. None of the new military subjects come close to 30 bucks or even double that - try $80 or 90. It is probably no comfort to consider that most other disciplines in our hobby pay considerably more for the latest kit. Most are from 'foreign' manufacturers and not the domestic brands that serve the automotive side of our hobby. If you choose to look at it this way we are not that badly served.... Trying to find a silver lining I guess

Very nice Sir! I feel it would be a shame to hide the engine - it is such a huge component of the car - and a work of art in this model. Have you considered adding the straps in an open hood configuration? It really would be a shame to close it up forever! Just a thought - it is however your model and it will be in your showcase. I enjoyed following your build too .

Never been a Foose fan at all, however I do keep looking at that one... I like what I see and the grand kids are comming for a couple of week - maybe a 'first glue kit project...

Sorry guys, it doesn't matter what colour you paint it - that's just ugly.

Wow - the colours on the box art build are so seventies ! I remember the Ford dealers having the same colour schemes on pick-ups and full size vans too ! I was a new immigrant to Canada in 1979 ant this reminds me of that time and shopping for my first American vehicle. Truly there is nothing like seventies kitsch !

I have a Buyers Choice Bonneville and I was curious to see for myself what it looked like. I also looked at Yura's build pics too. On my reissue I notice the front fender badges are quite faint - the driver's side is almost indistinct. I would suggest that light sanding prep and a layer of primer will make them invisible - but they are there. The Bonneville script is in the grille but hard to see - it is visible in Yura's pics too - where he shows the headlight rework. Rocker panel ribs are there - maybe a dark wash on the foil or bright silver may help to pop the detail a bit better - cant comment on any change as I do not have an original to compare it to. Same goes for the upholstery.

Great paint Jim. I have always liked the 'stacked light' Pontiacs and your build is flattering to the car. Nice clean build. Wheels: I am a bit of an old fart so I have to agree with Harry on this point. (not to suggest that Harry is an old fart - that would probably get me 'probation'!). The 8 lugs just look good to me. After seeing your post I happened across a Bonneville reissue in my stash and took a look at it. I think I have found my next build. Thanks for the inspiration Brian

I am lucky to have two great "local" hobby stores - one in town and one about 50kms away. They are both supportive of our local model club and so I will support them with most of my purchases. There is a local Michaels store but their selection is small and their prices are a bit higher than the hobby shops. More importantly the hobby shops carry paints and glues that can't be mail ordered. Canada Post deems these as dangerous goods. If we don't support them the next closest centre with hobby shops is Vancouver - 400 kms away!