Tom Geiger

Inspiration... a real American mailbox. Mine!

Not what you expected? I was sitting at the computer this morning, looked up and the red fox was trotting across the back yard. I grabbed the camera and got this shot before he disappeared up the hill into the woods. This afternoon our regular herd of deer was in the yard. Nothing like the locals.

There's no such thing as a $100 car anymore. With scrap prices for nearly any car at $500, a car that runs at all is worth $1000. I'm not one for car payments and I've always managed to find older low mile cars for reasonable money. With a bit of patience and shoe leather in the search you can find a 50,000 mile car that will serve you well for many years for $2-3,000.

Yea, that's some pretty intensive work. Tiny little parts, right up there with neutering fleas!

Never a problem. I have two computers here at the house and even have accessed the forum from my daughter's computer in NJ. All my stuff is just fine, and it remembers which threads you have been on and brings you right back to the next posting since your last session, no matter which computer I used!

And that's the other end of "disaster builds". Those that are going so well that we're afraid to touch them!

I think it's pretty cool!

Welcome! Which kit to start with? One that you have a duplicate of! Use the first kit as a learning tool. Read the tutorials here on the board and ask a lot of questions. People here are happy to help. On your first build concentrate on the basics. Learn to get a clean paint job from spray cans and build the model box stock. You can get more ambitious as you go and learn. Since you are into Camaros, here's an example of a simple build. It's curbside, which means the hood doesn't open nor is there an engine. I did carve T-tops into it, otherwise it's box stock and just a fun exercise in painting and easy assembly! It's all spray cans.

Mine is a 1991 that I bought new. It has 245,000 on it right now. I replaced the engine and trans at 150,000 just because my bro-in-law came into a 50,000 mile truck that was totaled for free. Otherwise, it's been bullet proof.

And why doesn't RM reissue the Land Rover?? I'd buy a few. Heck, Revell of Germany could clean up with them.

I'll save you the trouble! Here's mine!

No problem Pete, I have snows on my winter beater!

My little winter equalizer! I bought this 1991 Geo Tracker brand new and it's served me well all these years. It's a little mountain goat in snow and the top is off most of the summer. Not a daily driver anymore, it gets driven when I feel like it.

In the beginning... here's what I started with. A Model A pickup that had been mostly assembled by a kid or adult with limited skills. I did like the green finish and figured I'd do something with it someday. Yes, I have all kinds of expensive kits and I always wind up playing with a $5 junker! And the final details got finished a few days ago. It's pretty much my vision of the truck I'd like to have in 1:1. Front bumper is from the AMT '51 Chevy kit. Wheels were found in my tire box, and I don't remember where I got them. Theory is that they are off an old Jada diecast. I also added outside door handles. They are on pins with the head inside the body, so they can flop around. I believe the seats are the custom units from the original 1963 Chevy kit. Seat belts are thin ribbon with belt buckles cut off those clunky plastic seat belts found in older kits. I had prepped the seats for a previous build and they had been sitting on the shelf right above my bench as a reminder that I wanted to use them someday. So today was that day. They fit right into the interior. Bed was just finished with a simple piece of plywood. I left the gas tank in it's original position. For the rebuild, I kept the same Caddy engine to keep it simple and because I'd want an interesting 50s engine in mine, no Chevy small block for my Model A. I made the air cleaners to get the look I wanted and added details like a dipstick, ignition wires, fuel filters and a rubber radiator hose. I kept the original exhaust pipes but instead of gluing them to the skirt like in the kit, I drilled the skirt and attached them to a real exhaust below. I installed an MFA (Magic Floating Alternator) just for Harry because I already had installed a side mirror. And since I didn't take a new close up shot of the door decal, here's one of my progress shots. I found the image on the Internet and had actually made the decals a few years ago. They fit my project so I used them here. Rear view used the stock tail lights that were attached to the now missing fenders. I made a little bar at the back of the chassis and pinned them in place. The Illinois plate was added just because I've been putting random state plates on my builds lately. And because Harry lives there! I already talked about the interior a bit, but there are photo etched gauges behind the steering wheel. The dash is wood grained. I added rope door pulls per a 1:1 I saw in photos. Since last outing, I lowered the rear view mirror, redrilling it into the window frame. It's pin mounted. Chassis is pretty much the way the kit was only I lowered the suspension a few scale inches. I made the exhaust from my hoard of kit exhaust parts. It's all separate pieces that were pinned together, pretty much the same way a 1:1 would be clamped together. I wanted the exhaust to exit right before the rear wheels, and yes I wanted mufflers on a car I'd be cruising around in! This one was only on the bench about two weeks start to finish and is one of the only models I've done without disruption. It was just fun to do and I'm happy with the results.

Looks like you're coming right along! Love the engine detail and you are right about the MPC engines of the era. I felt similar about the MPC Cavalier engine bay!

Let's hope Harry builds as well as Barry Goldwater!

Nobody else has either, so nobody will know! Don't sweat the small stuff, just finish it!

Nice models, I'm sure they'll be pleased! Now how did you get such cool parents? Mine drove Crown Vics!

Got a bit more today. I was in the basement and my wife called to tell me it was snowing. When I looked it was coming down at a fair clip so I figured my evening appointment in Philadelphia was done. Then it stopped. It snowed just enough to cover the ice on my deck. Now it's safe to walk there again!

Class photo looks great! Many thanks!

For staining, I've bought the smallest cans of Minwax brand stains (lighter colors) at Home Depot. Open the can but do not stir the contents. The light stuff at the top is good for staining basswood. That's how I did this one...

Back in that era, I was a computer aided design (CAD) consultant and there was an engineering company in New Jersey that bought one of these to build a mobile CAD lab. This was in the era when CAD was still done off a main frame with attached terminals. They though this unit could be brought onto a petrochemical site and used to create as-built drawings. Back then this was a huge investment. It was a dismal failure. The main frame didn't travel well and wouldn't fire up on site. Kinda funny in retrospect since any single laptop today has more power than the entire system built into that truck!

I read a lot on the boards about hobby shops closing. Doom and gloom. Is this the sign of the times... bad economy with people not having disposable income... internet purchases cheaper than at a hobby shop... younger people not interested in hobbies... ---OR--- are the shops closing due to the shortcomings of their operators, bad circumstances such as the death of the owner, taken over by clueless relatives and run into the ground, or bad business decisions?? Is there room today for well run hobby shops with smart owners who cater to hobbyists? Let the thoughts run...

When my daughter was young we built a few models together. I took my work bench and drew a line down the center. One side was mine, one side was hers. I bought her the Ghostbusters car for Christmas. Her favorite part was painting parts, and I suspect being with Dad. I never pushed her, I'd wait until she asked if we could work on her car tonight. I never said no! So I'd work on my side on my project and she worked on hers. I'd offer advise and support, and when it came to assembly, I'd show her how to do it, then ask her to do it. She stuck with it and we got the car done! Fast forward, that was a long time ago. She's now 30 and the Ghostbuster car is in my display case. Forever a memory! And Richard, you are one of the younger modelers at 38! Most of us are much older than you!

Well, this was a good weekend, and I guess Christmas for me. My 1950 Olds wagon resin came in the mail. And I ordered a Citroen 2CV Fourgonnette, Revell of Germany Trabbie and a Revell VW. Those all came today as well! I got the ferrin' cars from an eBay store. Once I had the two in my cart, I was a few dollars away from free shipping, saving me $10, so I got the Revell VW, figure it was half price in the deal. And I can't post photos... I left my camera at my daughter's house on Sunday. That means I won't get it back until Christmas day! Argh... it's like I can't express myself. Argh!