sbk

Very nice, love the color choices!

1/32?? Very nice work! I had a 77 Granada in the same colors, & like Tom mentioned, the silver paint peeled off in a few years. I saw quite a bit of that on other silver Ford models, too. Was it water based primer that they were trying? I seem to remember someone telling me that. My dad & I repainted mine gray & then, sold it.

As other have said, really nice, clean work & photos!

Same here!

I agree with most models siting too high. Lack of scale weight? Maybe a more proper term than "looks better" would be "looks more like the 1:1" or "looks prototypically correct". The positioning of the wheels & tires in the wheel wells usually could be better on most models kits, too.That also adds to the problem of them looking like they are sitting too high.

Sort of a derail, but I'd prefer if the manufacturers stayed away from "customizing" a model & stick to putting out an accurate stock car with optional custom parts.

I use Photoshop to crop the photo & remove dust specs. This is basically the original photo, only sized down to fit on the screen. See the dust speck on the door & the other dust specks on the floor & background? Here it is after cropping & removing dust specs. I also lightened it up just a bit.

Just like "cry babies" at 1:1 shows.

Great stuff! This thread just keeps getting better. Tom, those taillights are a great idea.

Lots of good observations, many that I can relate to. Lets forget about the engine, chassis & interior detail for a moment & concentrate on the exterior. Stance is everything. Whether it's a gasser or a lowrider & all points in between, how it sits on the table is crucial. Many people mentioned wheels being lined up, centered in the wheel wells, & all of that plays into it. But, how about sanding the bottoms of the tires flat? Practically every model that I see (including 99% of those that I've built) has tires inflated to gravity defying proportions. Although sanding the bottoms of the tires will not produce a realistic sidewall bulge, I think it's still better than perfectly round tires barely contacting the ground surface. This is one of the things that I learned like Ace-Garageguy did, using a camera. Valve stems can be a be a very nice addition, but why bother if the thick rim of the wheel sticks out of the tire a scale inch or so? I'd spend time getting the wheel to sit realistically in the tire instead of adding valve stems. Panel lines really don't need to be darkened much as long as they are scribed deeper. What's the point of having opening panels if it looks like a wreck with the panels closed? Rounded edges on doors, hoods & trunks that don't close properly & have a 1 or 2 scale inch gap. I prefer seeing a well done properly scribed curbside. The thing I see most often is body colored vent window frames. I can't remember ever seeing a 1:1 with that feature, but I may be mistaken. Well, some trucks have black vent window frames, maybe white, too? Regardless, I know that applying BMF to these can be a pain, but unfortunately, I think it's necessary. I've also seen models with body colored vent window frames, yet they have chrome drip rails?? The same applies to body colored trim pieces (side spears, hood spears, etc.) scripts, badges & side marker lights. Sorta' like having a nice classic car repainted & the painter forgets to mask off a few things.

I've used that stuff before for small parts, & it worked. But, a friend tried it on the trim of a primed car body & he could never remove it. So, I guess you can give it a try on a small unpainted piece to see if it will work before trying it on the tuck & roll piece.

The mold is silicone. I'm not sure what brand since I didn't make the mold, but any brand should work.

Thanks, Don. I finished it a few months ago. http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=86228&hl=padded

Hats off to you! I've tried customizing a diecast twice, & never could get it to work out. Beautiful work!

Super nice!

Thanks! I got those from Model Car Garage quite a few years ago.

Thanks so much! I really appreciate it. The grille is a modified version of the '49 stock grille available from Modelhaus.

More details here:http://www.customcarchronicle.com/model-cars/steve-bouttes-1951-chevy-convertible/ Origins here: http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=68070&hl=padded

That's exactly what I thought when I saw your machine shop!

Yep, the reflection in that black Impala is nuts!

I have seen friends making grand plans & then, shelving the project. I would always think to myself, "I won't let that happen to me..." But, in reality, it does. One of the biggest killers for me is being inspired by a 1:1 car in a photo, & then trying to make it happen in scale. It all starts off relatively good, & then, as I become more familiar with the lines of the 1:1, I realize how much work it will take to get the model to even look like a stock version of the car I'm building, THEN I have to customize it. Sometimes, I try everything, measure, take photos, etc... & when I look at the model in progress, it just looks "off" So, it goes back into the box until I figure it out.

I can't stop looking at this thing, all the little subtle touches are there. The white on the wheel covers looks great! How did you do that?

Wow, that really came out nice!

Thanks, but I surely cannot take credit for the background!