Maindrian Pace

Wow, such a nice, clean build (both of them) on a kit not known for being particularly cooperative. One of the kids in high school (early '80s) had a similar car, a black '78 Z28 with '79 stripes. He was really proud of those stripes! And also of the Cal-Custom chrome dress-up kit on the otherwise stock engine, because that's what a HS kid can afford to do. Ditching math class for a burger run to McDonald's... memories...

I tried that with Counting Cars and there was like 5 minutes left.

Is it really that much worse than restoring the car? If it was restored and sold for 60-70K, it would end up in some guy's collection, only seeing the light of day 1-2 times a year, when he feels like taking it to a car show - where people walk by because it's another Corvette. He will get tired of it in 3-6 years, then sell it to another guy with a private collection, and the process repeats. Lots of nice classic/muscle cars are stuck in this near-limbo. "But we're saving them for future generations!" Future generations that will never see them...

I bet that turns heads in England, and not just because of the size.

Thank you Gentlemen. I think I'll pick my next projects based on how much BMF-ing they need.

I did this '67 a long time ago, from an original issue AMT fastback. The conversion was a little more elaborate than I thought it would be, note the difference in the shape of the top of the 1/4 panel between fastback and coupe: Since then, a couple of resin casters have made '67 coupes available, some better than others. But I do have plans for this one, and so does the Master Caster. Just not exactly in this form.

Three levels up, above the brown car. You can see the rear bumper and taillights only.

'62 Biscayne coupe, six/'glide, metallic blue. Like this one.

I always wondered how Chrysler was able to run special (if not reliable) destroked versions of the 340 for this series without making factory street versions with that displacement, while Ford and Chevrolet had to manufacture 302 cubic inch street versions in order to homologate their engines for the series.

I drilled the headlights out and replaced them with reflectors cut from '60s custom headlights and parts box lenses.

Disclaimer: Second-hand info, and I don't know how much is factual. But it seems reasonable. I discussed this with Dick, owner of Hobby Depot. He said that he has customers regularly calling him for new NASCAR model kits, and has all along. He told me that the main reason for no newer kits is because of the Car of Tomorrow. Not so much because they were generic, but because NASCAR declared their design to be their intellectual property, and only allowed companies to make models who were willing to pay exorbitant licensing fees, like 200K-300K per model - and this left pretty much die cast companies as the only takers. This was also one of the things that upset the car manufacturers, until Ford and GM reportedly threatened to pull out of racing unless they were allowed to run cars that actually resembled what they sell. Thus, no more CoT as of 2013. The manufacturers now own the car designs. Will they loosen up on the model companies? It would be nice.

You round-Earthers are totally square.

I love it all decked out with the rack and trail equipment, and the all-orange big block under the hood is the perfect engine choice. 10/10.

Paint mostly cut and buffed, this clear is really easy to work with. -MJS

Best one yet, not surprising considering the builder.

You guys that build these things out of paper just blow me away.

Looks like a rolling Photoshop. With an LS swap.

Beautiful job, Ron. The hardtop sounds intriguing, I'm planning a similar '67 build, using a kit that I royally screwed up as a misdirected youth.

You know what keeps me coming back to look at this Mustang? The stance. I'm a stance wonk, and this car sits just right, with perfect height, in/out and fore/aft placement of the wheels within the wheel wells. It's the first thing I notice on any build, and as nice as it is, this kit doesn't build like that out of the box. Very few do. I also like the color combo, corrected headlights, and added wheel well trim. It all just comes together so well. -MJS

Very tough looking Mustang!

Fantastic work, Joe, the best I've seen on that kit; and some Revell kits from that era definitely left you with a feeling like you'd gone three rounds with Mike Tyson. The details are on point, and the stance looks way proper. -MJS

Update: The hood, not so good. I used Testors clear on the hood, Tamiya on the rest. The result: The hood was too dark. Not happy with that. So I stripped it, re-primered it with Plastikote and Tamiya, repainted it, and applied Tamiya clear this time. The result: Much more better. The Tamiya clear gives the Mica blue a deeper, slightly more ultramarine color, while the Testors made it more on the purple side. I keep learning lessons.

Looks like Vintage Burgundy, 1964-65.

Thanks again gentlemen! I'll be doing the Rick Flair Woooo when this is done! Which shouldn't be too much longer now... The clear coat Odyssey: Since when is this step so much of a PITA??? I had an unopened can of Testors lacquer clear (non Wet Look, but what's the difference?) So I tried it on the spoon test. Came out OK, but spoons are easier to paint than model bodies. You have to try really hard to goof up a spoon. I did the hood, and it came out too thick, and the can was too low pressure to atomize it any better. I usually dip it into about 1" of simmering water for a minute to thin the paint and increase inter-cannular pressure, but I thought, "I'll just pop on down to H-Town and get a new can of Wet Look." Not so fast, Space Cowboy, see my thread on the demise of that store. So I went to H-Lobby instead, got the new can of WL, and tried it on the second Mica Blue spoon test. Horrors!!! The paint was contaminated, it looked like a thousand little dust specs in the finish, giving it a rough surface. I'm glad I did the spoon instead of the body. Stripping that monster at this stage is a death sentence to the whole project. And my laid-back persona. So I returned it to H-Lobby, bringing the spoon to show them the problem in case they asked. They didn't. I then went to H-Depot and did what I should have all along, buy a can of Tamiya clear. Surprise surprise, it goes on almost like a pro was wielding the can, and cuts and buffs far easier than Testors. The tail gate is done, the rest will be cleared tomorrow, cut and buffed a few days later. The hood was a little scary with the Testors, but some careful sanding kit and Treatment Wax work salvaged it. -MJS

That work horse came out terrific!