Aaronw

AMT or Ertl did a Mack R, not a B. AITM offers a lot of resin Mack cabs including a B. http://www.aitruckmodels.com/pages/kitsparts.html

As far as IPMS favoring non-car subjects, have a look at modelling as a whole. IPMS just reflects the trend of the hobby and car modelers are not the largest group of modelers out there. I would guess aircraft are far and away in the lead, followed by armor with cars trailing in somewhere behind those two, but probably ahead of ships and sci-fi. I've never run into any real shunning of car modelers and IPMS-USA has repeatedly put out requests for more automotive subects for their newsletter to help fight this image that they only cater to the military guys.

John, it is a day to day thing with my anti-virus, some days it says the site is ok and lets me in, other days I get a warning and the site is blocked. Hackers hit the site hard and really screwed it up. I know Chris Mobley the site owner is trying to clean it up, but the last I heard from him he was not sure the current version could be saved, and he might have to rebuild it and start over to get it fully functional again. It is just a fun thing he does in his spare time and like most of us spare time is limited, so it could be a while before an all new and improved site is up and running.

I won't claim to have never been that mad, I stuck my fist through a wall once. I don't recommend that because you still have to fix the wall after the swelling goes down. However with models I just don't get that frustrated, it is supposed to be fun and if I start yelling and cursing at a model I get up and walk away. I've come real close with a couple of biplanes, but I just take a deep breath and step back. If I still want to rip it to pieces after a break it goes into a box and onto my patience shelf (it better be patient because it might spend several years on that shelf waiting for another turn on the bench).

AMT did a kit of the Yellow Submarine (from the Beatle's song / movie). It was even re-issued several years back when RC2 was running AMT. That Granada is actually kind of neat, for whatever reason they were popular with drug dealers for a time.

I'm more on the makes Oscar Madison look like Felix Unger end. I've lost a half built Payhauler on my bench before. That was mostly due to trying to do everything on a small workspace. I'm building my new bench with the idea of stations, a general work area (assembly & hand painting), a scratchbuilding section etc. The general area should be large enough to comfortably fit 3-4 on going projects, and I'm putting shelves below to store the chronically stalled ones to keep them available, but out of the way. Also including an overflow / guest area where I can set things to the side to dry etc or where my wife or son can have a space for their occasional projects. I'm not a neat and tidy guy by nature, but I'm hoping by laying out the new hobby room in a systematic way it will help at least keep the desk surface visible.

I have a rubbermaid box big enough to hold a standard 8 1/2 x 11" sheet, that is about 6" tall. Then I threw in a handful of those silica gel pouches to keep moisture out. (You know the little pouches that say do not eat, that come with all sorts of products). It has worked pretty well so far (been 3 or 4 years now). I also use wax paper if I am worried about decals getting scuffed or sticking to something.

I don't think they were redwood, but yes the trailer wheels are just cut from a big log.

I figured you would, it will really add a lot to the finished model. I sort of have a WIP of the Stratos in the Back on the Bench CBP http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=49084 Not real in depth, just enough to show I'm still plugging away on it. Not much done recently due to a move.

No sorry that is all I got of the traction engine. It was kind of surrounded by stuff on all sides making it hard to get good photos. It is also quite tall as you may guess from the last photo, so I couldn't even get a shot of the cab (maybe if I held the camera over my head, but I think quality would have suffered ). Not sure where it was from but a lot of the vehicles are from a collection in Willits which is about 1/2 an hour north of me. If it is part of that collection I might be able to get better photos of it in the future.

Very nice, do you plan on building up the base so the car has something to sit on? I've been working on the same 240 and a Stratos. Both are really good kits, but weathering is not my strong point so I'm a bit squeemish dirty-ing them up. Revell did a nice 240Z with a motor. Both are nice but I actually think Revell did a slightly better job on their kit as far as building goes, both look great built.

I recently bought some lumber at home depot, and saw there are now warning signs that California has determined wood dust is hazardous. A warning label on wood... so yes sometimes California does seem kind of silly. On the otherhand my Grandmother lived in Los Angeles and when I would visit her as a kid in the 70s I never knew there were mountains there (big ones too) because you couldn't see them through the smog. By the 90s the air cleared up enough so you could see them even on the worst days. I'm not talking about mountains way off in the distance either, they are on the edge of the city. California is a special case so it does make sense we have our own standards. 10% of the US population is in this state that occupies only 4% of the landmass. Of that 33 million, 30 million live in the lower 2/3 of the state west of the sierras so they really cram them into the remaining 1/2 or so of the area that is left. The Los Angeles area alone houses more than half of the states population (18 million). We keep trying to get people to leave but they just keep piling in more every year.

Personally I've found waving a handgun around keeps the two legged types away from my models (I don't really keep a loaded handgun at the bench, the roofing hatchet gets the point across ). My wife and son have actually been really good about leaving my models alone, even when he was two my son recognized the difference between the models I made for him to play with, and the ones that were for me to play with. My wife has been guilty of borrowing my model tools / glues / paints which I find funny considering all the "I borrowed my wifes best cooking pot" stories told about modelers, but she has never bothered the actual models. Both dogs I've had also have been considerate of the models. The cat has been my great fear. Cats are known plastic destroyers, they love shelves and don't like to share that space. They also like to nibble on small bits like mirrors. I did find a way to tame even the feared model hunter Pickles... Duct tape... duct tape works wonders on cats. Just make a few double sided loops of tape and space them around the shelf between models. Cats hate getting tape on their paws so they quickly learn the model shelf is not the right kind of shelf to sit on.

and last a Steam traction engine, sort of a wheeled steam locomotive.

1924 Buffalo Springfield steam roller

I couldn't remember who did the diecast or of which, but I thought there was an IH of some sort available, thanks. My computer started misbehaving last night so I had to quit posting. I got a few from an earlier period of time. Towed grader

A pair of Cletracs, again probably from the 1950s. Both are powered by a Hercules Diesel engine.

Now a little one, a Caterpiller Ten from I'm guessing the 1940s.

Another Caterpiller D-7, this one with a logging attachment.

A well worked Caterpiller D7, from I'm guessing the late 1950s. It was being used as a back stop for a 12 ton logging locomotive that was providing rides.

Caterpiller D2, I'm guessing late 1940s.