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Besides the overall look of the build I like how you turned a Pillared Coupe into a Hard Top. You managed to make it look correct. I tried that once but it just never came out looking correct.

Great idea on both counts. I also don't remember seeing to many Squire Rancheros.

So many beautiful '39s and '40s, guess what just got moved to the top of the to do list.

I have to agree with Bill on the chassis swap. I'm trying to finish a "50 Olds with a Resin body and the chassis and interior are finished. I set the Eldorado body over the Olds chassis and that looks like a good possibility also. The wheel base is very very close to the Olds so the two should interchange with little or no problems. I couldn't lower the Eldo body all of the way since the inner fenders are in place on the Olds chassis and of course the Eldo inner fenders wouldn't allow the two to come together completely. I think with just a little work you could almost put the two models in a bag and shake them up and it would all turn out just fine. Think of the possibilities of combining these two kits.

Great clean looking builds. The State Police cars antennas seem a little large but that's the kits fault.

The chopped tops proportions look perfect. When you change the size of that much of a body it is really hard to not get it looking like something bad happened.

Very interesting color combination, really makes the model standout. Nice clean body detailing and as vamach1 mentioned the grill treatment.

I understand your desire to retire early, I did. I would offer this suggestion before you do. Check and see how this will, and it will, effect your monthly benefits. Depending on your age the younger you are now means that if you retire before the predetermined age it will decrease the amount of your monthly benefits. They keep moving the retirement age further and further beyond 65 in order to get your full "pay" in retirement.

Thank you for the information. I remember when this kit first came out and I just think that there was a stock height Victoria hardtop in the first issue. It may have been just wishful thinking on my part.

Thank you for the memories. I'm of an age that I remember as a child when the conversion to diesel engines began. As a child growing up in a "bedroom community" outside of Chicago I would ride with my mother to pickup my father in the evening at the train station when he would come home from work in down town Chicago. He rode the C&NW ( Chicago and North Western Rail Road) and they started using the diesel engine trains in the early '50's but the commuter trains were still steam at that time.

Beautiful looking Kustom build. I like your idea of having two different roof options. Using the Studebaker seats look just right here. This model Ford has always been a personal favorite for me as a former owner of two different '51's and my parents had a '49 sedan. Since you had an original kit to work from and I assume all of the parts were present I was wondering if there was a stock height Victoria roof in the kit in addition too the Chopped Top ??

Great job replicating Jim's El Camino. I'll enjoy watching your build.

Does being 70 plus and spending half a day climbing up and down a 12' ladder putting up Christmas lights and cleaning leafs out of the gutters qualify ? I have definitely slowed down in the last few years but there isn't a Toe Tag on me yet.

Great engineering on this engine and chassis. I like the paint finish and color combination.

Perfect body conversion on this. I like the build style with the checker board firewall.

Beautiful clean looking build.

Amazing amount of work put into the making of this body. Outstanding detail work thru out.

These are both outstanding builds and show the differences between Revell and AMT. What I have always wondered and never got around to doing was to use the AMT Sedan fenders from the kit that offered the option of building a '39 or a '40 sedan and build a '39 Deluxe coupe out of the AMT '40 Deluxe Coupe kit.

I would follow rsxse240's suggestion of using chrome foil. I would add a suggestion that I use if you're not already doing this. The moldings are very faint and hard to see where to cut the foil if you just lay it down on the body. What I have done is to out line the moldings with an Exact O knife before applying the foil. I will then burnish the foil lightly, this will give me a distinct cut line to follow. I use this method on all chrome trim and usually start out lining the trim when it is even bare plastic before even before the first coat of primer since every coat of paint seems to make this type of fine detail harder to see.

Your silver radiator color question depends on what you are trying to represent as to what the radiator is made of. The OEM was a brass affair that was painted a semi gloss black from the factory as was the expansion tank mounted to the thermostat housing. Since you're building a custom they can be what ever you want them to be. A silver radiator would look like an updated Aluminum radiator. I would suggest making the expansion tank more chrome like in appearance since this was and is a common detail on 1:1 customs.

I still marvel at your Black Paint Jobs. I enjoy the way you always strive for accuracy in your builds. Few even realize that the Standard only had the one tail light or that the headlight rings were painted. This is a great addition to your Ford collection.

I noticed how you cut the inner fenders. Was this for the revamped suspension or did you channel the body on the frame to get it lower ? I like the rear 4-Link suspension.

Welcome Flat32, we are of the same general vintage. I have seen builds such as your picture posted here and no one seemed to mind. If one of the monitors feels differently they may move it. As for a protective work surface there are many options. Many builders have different ideas about what works best for them. I can only offer what I have done as a suggestion and by looking at what information others will offer then see what it is you want to use. For me Bed Bath and Beyond offers a lot of good storage and work surfaces for modeling. I have used several of their expandable spice racks for small paint bottles. A self healing cutting board that has a small lip around the outer edge designed to catch fluids works well for a work surface. I have one of their tooth brush holders for my paint brushes and the matching water glass for cleaning the brushes when needed. They will sometimes have an unusual desk lamp on close out that will give you additional light in your work area. I also use a magnifying adjustable light when doing detail work since at this point in life I just don't have the sight I once had. This light and some other neat tools found in the jewelry department are from Jo Ann's Fabrics. These are fairly inexpensive tools to get started. I still find it very interesting all of the different items that members will post information about that have a use in our hobby.

I like the El Camino idea. Now "Wildfire" just got a little wilder.

I have to agree with unclescott58 going with paint designed for what your are doing id best. I know many prefer automotive paints and general purpose hardware store paint and it seems to fulfil their needs, but I still feel that a paint design specifically for your needs will give you a better out come with very little additional cost. As for your dehumidifier, if your humidity is much over 40 % in your basement you need to consider the effects on anything stored there including your models. In some cases high humidity can contribute to the growth of dangers mold. This is an interesting time of year in that we need to dehumidify our basements and turn on the humidifier on our furnaces for the above ground portion of our homes.