Tom Geiger

for small rodents

agreed Steve! We both constantly post build threads and finished project photos! I'd say we are in the minority on the board. And some folks don't understand that it takes time and effort to take the photos and write the posts. And they'll criticize our efforts like we're television.

Thanks for posting! Interesting models! I'm not about to give up yet. There's two weeks to go and I'm hoping to push one or both of the builds on my bench over the finish line before year's end!

Love your TROG racer! (first photo)

Same here Bill, That final "last call" of left over parts had severe technical difficulties! I pretty much set up an order of a lot of Valiant kit parts, and couldn't get it to process!

Pictures... hey, I remember back when I started building as an adult some 30 years ago. We had no pictures! There were cameras that used this stuff called "film" and it took real skills to coax decent model photos out of them. And you really didn't know how you did until you got the pictures back from the developer, which cost money. Then digital photography came about... it was like magic! I bought one of those $800 Sony Mavica cameras and it paid for itself in eBay sales. Today? The camera in your cell phone is better than any digital camera I ever owned. So today anyone can take pictures effortlessly. If my wife wants me to buy a specific product at the grocery store, and shows it to me... I'll snap a quick picture. It's just become a way of life. So just don't take it for granted. Someone asked me how you get 5 good photos of your model. I told him to take 100 and at least 5 will come out good! Kinda funny but true! And it costs you nothing to do. My progress shots? Are going to be on my messy work bench. I will try to get decent focus and lighting. But if you can't live with it, don't look. Finished model photos? In my back yard, which is shady so there is no direct sunlight. I have a board I covered with model railroad roadway spray paint. And that's my back yard in the background. Not the best, but it's what I can do!

That can occur with tire shrinkage over time. I've noticed it on two of my 30 year old builds.

I worked in Pearl River New York and traveled the Garden State Parkway with a carpool mate. The parkway is one big stop and go mess. There was a guy who worked at the same place we did (we didn't know him) who drove a gray Mazda Miata. He would do that very same thing. There'd be times he'd get a bit ahead of us, but we always wound up side by side as he turned off his exit! And that was entertaining for car pooling.

In other words, mail your windshield to Bill! ?

Interesting! I was looking at a resin hardtop body with thoughts of turning it into a 4 door sedan. The doors looked right for that application! My family had a 1962 Lark 4 door sedan when I was a little guy. I owned one in the 1980s... can you say rusty?!

Congrats to everyone who finished! That alone is a win! And congrats to Old Mopars! I watched every step of the way. Fantastic job!

If you don't find your door handles, here's an idea. This car just has bent wire as door handles. Drill out your holes all the way, glue in the bent wire. A cut staple would work too. Door handles of this era are fairly simple.

and Corollas too!

How about "out of scale accessories"? When guys use things like doll house accessories, which are 1/12 scale, on their model or diorama. I remember seeing things like huge newspapers etc in built 1/25 scale models.

Two sources... This board, put your need in the "Wanted" section. Someone may be able to send you one. eBay.. there are sellers who break down kits and sell the parts.

Yup. I've never had my wallet in my back pocket, always in my right front pocket! Also, office ergonomics tell you to take a 5-10 minute break per hour. Get up, walk around, do some stretches.

Guys, remember that this was back in the days when they were pumping out 100,000s of copies of kits, not the small runs they do today. So if they could eliminate a step in the manufacturing process, it was a huge savings across that many units. And yes, cost containment has always been a reality in business. Also, don't go blaming Round 2 for this. This was many AMT owners ago, and the guys doing the work were just doing their job at a toy company.

I have the Danbury Mint version of the '48 Chrysler Town & Country convertible and mine looks good for now. I just checked! It's a wonderful car, and probably at scale weight too. It's one heavy model! I understand the problem with the "rash" is in the metal, a zymac(?) composition that is deteriorating under the paint.

Welcome to the board George! Is this glue on an old kit you are restoring or did you just get glue on your windshield? If you are using glue today that damages windshields, don't! There are better glues on the market specifically for this task that won't cause any damage! Microscale's Micro Kristal Klear is available in hobby shops and on-line Here's Evergreen Canopy Glue -- Hobby Lobby stocks this I also use this tape to put in glass. It's clear and very strong, it was made for the scrap booking hobby. I bought this at Michaels. Hobby Lobby probably has it too. I will use a combo of the tape and glue together. Sometimes I will use the tape across the top and glue the remaining three edges. If you are working with old glass that has glue on it, Snake has the right idea about polishing it out. It does take patience though and doesn't work 100% of the time either. Your other option would be to use the damaged glass as a template to cut new clear plastic. Evergreen sells clear plastic sheets and a lot of guys use clear plastic from packaging or soda bottles. Since the glass from a sheet won't have the right curve, the tape above will help you in getting it to conform. Otherwise some people will vacuum form new glass from clear sheet, again using the old damaged glass to form against.

It kinda goes like this... Historic threads have their place, and it's nice to have this vast archive. It's useful when looking up how to information or research material. But... threads like this are meant to be interactive in real time. It's fun to comment as it's happening, not five years later!

in 1/25 scale

I'm an incurable pack rat! I will fold up model boxes, both tops and bottoms together, and put them away. I have a few movers boxes of them saved this way! I use some for parts storage. I do recycle torn or damaged boxes, and fairly recent ones where I've owned multiple copies.

It's a shame that Danbury isn't doing cars anymore! I was so looking forward to buying the Hollingsworth '57 Nomad that they were working on towards the end. I know I'd never come close to duplicating it as a model, and it was one of my favorite cars from the days of the Revell boxtop! I agree with you! I owned a resin Divco milk truck. When I saw the Danbury version I knew I had to own it! So I bought it, and I love to look at it on my shelf. I never touched the resin again, as there was no point.

I never had the Cortina, but the survivors I still have are a Ford Capri, Ford Model T and Mercedes SL. Once I got back to modeling as an adult, the Airfix bag kits could be found at shows for $5 or so each. I'd grab them up since nobody else wanted them! Then eBay came about with the International market and that all dried up. I probably have collected a dozen or so including the Dennis Fire Engine and the Double Decker bus. That bus was my nemesis as a kid! I never did finish it! In school, US military school in Germany, we had a period which was "Clubs", so of course I was in the model club. For an hour a week we'd meet and work on models. I had the bus! I remember bringing the little Humbrel paints and working on it each week. I remember the box losing parts in my locker and eventually it went away! I will do it justice one day!

I remember Kevin! I just sent you a private message.