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Great looking build. The paint work and the decals look beautiful and the T-Top looks just like an OEM T-Top. You mentioned the assembly issues. The rear quarter windows can catch someone if they aren't used to the way GM did them at that time. I ordered a new '86 Monte Carlo SS that we had for many years. This was at a time when GM was starting to go to the flush mounted exterior windows. They only did these windows and none of the others on this and the other GM models that shared their bodies with the Mont Carlo. Good looking exhaust system and the gold car has a realistic looking chassis and a well done OEM exhaust system.

Great looking paint and color. I really like the stance with the painted wheels. Very clean chrome trim.

Great looking build. I enjoyed following your build on this I liked the theme of your build.

Glad to see this is back on the work bench. Great looking body work.

A lot of these were built here on the Forum when it first was released and a few since the reissue but so many other kits have been issued or reissued since I'm afraid many have more or less forgotten about this one. I still think this and the '62 Pontiac Catalina kits were AMT's best efforts. I have always wondered what they could have offered if AMT hadn't fallen on hard times.

Great looking roll bar setup.

I'm also looking forward to watching your build on this. Like so many others I also remember the Studebakers well and thought they had some of the most advanced styling of the time. Mechanically the were just about as bullet proof as you could buy at the time.

Another one of your great looking builds. You mention the extra parts in this kit. When AMT made the first version it was a showroom stock only with no extra parts. After a time they offered the 2 in 1 version with the additional parts and has always been the more desirable of the two kits for that reason. Round 2 reissued this kit and put all of the 2 in 1 parts in for which we all should be thankful.

You have mentioned the corrections you have made to get the rear window to seat properly. One thing to consider would be to remove both the bridge between the windshield and the rear window along with the mentioned attachments at the base of these windows. This will give the interior bucket a little more room to move up in the body and also make the chassis plate easier to fit in. Think of it as up dating the "glass" to what we see in todays kits.

Relooking at the black Matador picture I just noticed the interior. I remember some ads from AMC why back when and they were offering some designers interior as an option. Wasn't very common as I recall and if this car has that original interior it could be a very unusual car in deed.

With the time and effort you have put into this model I would suggest trying some plastic picnic spoons. Paint the spoons in the same manor as your model and see what happens when you try your new clear paint. Better to mess up a cheap spoon than have to redo your whole model.

Very nice mid-line '56 Ford Custom. These are hard to find anymore.

Been seeing a lot of TV ads for this high end men's underwear. Besides a "pouch" they are offering a "Quick Draw" option on the front. Now I wasn't born yesterday, in fact it was some time ago in the last century. We had all these features in our BVD's and Fruit of the Looms as I recall. The best are still the "Buck Naked" ones. Have you ever priced a pair of those ? You could buy a couple packages of the old Fruit of the Looms for that price.

Beautiful looking paint finish and color. Nice looking interior.

Great looking build. Great engine detailing. I like the side pipes on these. Remember back in the day when a big block Vette with "weed sprayers" was coming you could hear it a couple of blocks away.

Both beautiful looking builds and I like the way you strived to make them as accurate as possible. The finish of both interiors look dead on.

Great looking bed details. You got the body line on the side of the bed and added the larger steak pockets. Reshaped the rear fenders and removed the molded line around the well opening. The top of the bed might be a little bit of a challenge. The IH had the top of the bed sides flat and Ford used a design where the bed tops were at an angle.

Your question about the rear suspension has to do with a different suspension package that GM used. A majority, but not all, HD suspension packages that GM offered would use the rear track bar and different spring rates and shock valving. This was common on suspension setups with the four link design. The next step up, at GM anyway, was to use a sway bar that mounted to the lower trailing arms. This would reduce lean in the corners and also reduce the rear end movement from side to side enough that they would usually leave off the track bar. You notice I'm saying usually, there are so many variables that could be had that you could due one way other the other or even both and may very well be correct. Just count the rivets and build it the way you like is what I'm saying.

Been using the Tamiya Paint stand you have pictured for several years now. I used to bend up a metal clothes hanger and it served me well and I'll still use one every now and then. I also have some wooden yard stakes that i tape parts too when painting. This works well with a long part like an interior bucket that you're just painting one side and not the other. I bought a bundle of these at Home Depot to shape bender board in the garden.

I like the way you did your two tone color paint and great looking finish. You know if I was looking at the air cleaner still on the spruce I would have thought that the air cleaner would have gone the other way around as well. Very nice use of colors on the chassis and drive train.

The paint work looks great. You have to remember this kit's tooling was done late in the last century so the standards are some what less than what we take for granted from todays tooling. Still you can make a very fine looking build out of it.

I always enjoy seeing your car show pictures. A lot of great looking cars on the road in your area. You mentioned the V-8 Matador, they could also be had with their 401 cu in engine as well.

So you have a pretty nice Mercury to work with. What are your thoughts on the exterior ? I'm thinking about the roof where there used to be a vinyl roof. 1. leave it alone ? 2. A new vinyl roof covering ? 3. Body color repaint or a contrasting color ? 4. Go with some custom graphics maybe a little low ridder style graphics or a nice metal flake paint.

At Riverside the station, it looked like and was laid out like a small two bay service station, was tucked into the very end of the garages. The garage buildings were a series of long low structures that you could drive into from either side. I don't recall any type of internal walls to divide the garage areas between teams but I'm sure they had some sort of markings to show who's area was who's. The long back straight came down the slight grade behind the garage area and just behind the Union station was the entrance thru the wire fence into the pits and the inspection area. This was the only way in and out of the garages and the actual pits and the race track. The track made a hard right turn around the garage area to come to the start/finish line and the entrance to the pit road. With all the fencing and the teams equipment we couldn't see the pits or the start / finish line and only the exit from the "S"'s from the top of the gas transport truck. We were allowed to use some of the race fuel that came from Brea Research in Brea Ca. after the races. I had a '68 Chevy Bel Air 427 4 speed, and the difference between the gas at the regular station and what we were putting in the race cars was very different. On a cool damp morning you had to crank the engine for a bit before it would start and then it would sputter for a moment. But when you started going thru the gears and especially when you got on it the difference was a little startling at first. It was like you suddenly got another 50 or 60 more horse power. This was with a pretty much stock 10 to 1 engine. The down side was the gas mileage also dropped. Couldn't be because I still had my foot in it.

Have to wonder why the shipper didn't go to the time and expense of a little tape on the boxes joints. The tabs on the box look like they wouldn't be able to hold the contains if it was sitting on the shelf let alone when the guys at Fed X where using it as a frizz bee.