Bugatti Fan

Steve, Assorted drill bits with the same shank size (6mm usually) may well be tungsten carbide bits for drilling printed circuit boards. If that is what you bought they will be extremely brittle and break easily if any side pressure is applied, but having said that they really retain their sharpness. As for normal small drill bits pin vices are relatively inexpensive to have a few to hand for different sizes of drill bits. The all in one that Rick bought from Amazon looks a good versatile bit of kit.

This is really going at a pace now. All the extra detail you have done is phenominal Francois. The chrome sprayed radiator shell looks great with the corrected badge position. Well worth doing I think you will now agree?

Nice model. Did Gunze ever make a factory stock TR7?

Very nice build. Some of those old AMT kits can really be turned into something special with the sort of work Louis has done on this model.

That looks really impressive Chris.

Really nice model of that world famous Mud Mobile.

Subject matter is whatever floats my boat at any given time and a bit of a challenge. Resorted to scratch building the Nieuport Astra Hispano Suiza with the wooden planked and brass riveted bodywork as no chance of a kit ever being done, likewise the Brooklands Napier Railton with polished aluminium body, and a Bugatti Type 59. Then for something completely different I got the Revell 356C Cabrio that with some minor detailing built a model of the late Janis Joplin's car where the challenge was mainly the psychedelic paint job. Present project, using an old Bandai Bugatti Royale kit where the bodywork was badly damaged, and using the very basic and inaccurate in places chassis to build a chassis only model like Bugatti would have supplied to a coach builder using the late Gerald Wingrove's T41 plans.

Recurring problem. All one can do is check out all your stash and ensure that tyres are wrapped in tissue or bagged separately from the polystyrene kit parts. When building make sure there is a barrier all around the wheels where the tyres will fit on them. Bare metal foil or kitchen foil would work being metal.

Jesse. Yes, I have read all the posts, attached articles and watched the videos. The kits that Steve Scott was intending to have been going into production with made interesting reading. The car was in a bit of a sorry state when I saw it on a video that was linked to one of the posts. Fully restored it can be a show stopper once again. I still have the articles in a folder from Model Car Science from way back about the car itself titled 'The Gag on Wheels', followed by an article about how to convert the Monogram kit into a Milk Truck. Built the kit when it first came out and did not part company with my model until very recently when someone very keen to acquire it 'Made me an offer I could not refuse'. Still have the picture of the car cut out from the box lid though. Now it has been rediscovered maybe we will see some 3D printed kits from some enterprising individual. Cannot see any mainstream manufacturer re tooling up the Uncertain T though as it is a bit niche to do as subject matter in this age. A 3D kit in 1/16th scale would be very impressive. I'm almost sure that I saw on the web a picture of a model of the car that someone had scratch built in a large scale displayed at a model show somewhere.

To give great happiness to a dear friend in his last days with one of your excellent models is priceless Louis.

The badge looks so much better now that you have moved it Francois. It was worth taking the time to correct it and hopefully you are happier with it too despite the extra work to do it. The hood hinges are interesting seeing how you are making them. I was a bit lazy and used miniature piano hinges from a dolls house supplier on a couple of my models.

Steve Scott. A bit of a controversial character down the years apparently. Is the Uncertain T his one and only claim to fame? Not heard of any other rods credited to him like Barris or Roth. If so he appears to have acquired some sort of a deity status for making just the one car. Maybe Monogram's short lived production of the Uncerain T kit has given rise to all the discussions and speculation on here. It is interesting that the car has been rediscovered as it has developed a bit of a cult status. Despite all this hype Scott's creation at such an early age has to be admired. Not sure what it's present owner will do with the car, but hopefully will be sympathetically restored to original look. There are many other good show rods out there worth looking out that have been kit subjects.

Bill, that reminds me that I have a Pocher Mercedes kit complete and off bits from one of their Rolls Royce Kits that a chassis could be built from but would need to scratch build their own body work on it. They both need to go as I don't know what I am hanging on to them for. The only Pocher that I would really be interested in is their Bugatti to build.I Your mention of having a Pocher in your stash reminded me!

Nice model. The Avanti body styling looked quite futuristic back in the day.

Lovely Model Pierre.

Thanks for the feedback about the Revell Chrome Francois. I wondered how durable it would be when handled. Most chromes like Alclad AK etc all seem to me to be easy to damage with handling. The radiator cap you made has worked out very well.

The kit stash conundrum. When it needs to be disposed of. Half built or started kits..........mostly worthless to sell on. But could be donated to ex military veterans organisations to finish building them as therapy. Intact kits......worth something depending on age, condition, rarity etc. BUT, does whoever needs to clear all this stuff know how to dispose and capitalise on it? Traders will usually be interested in buying collections to sell on, and often the easiest way to dispose of complete stashes, but not the most profitable way to dispose of them. Sometimes we just get to a point where 'stuff' has to go, before lumbering someone else with having to do it eventually.

Once you have finished the radiator shell, will you be using the new Revell Chrome spray? If so, I would be very interested to know what you think of it. You certainly got some very good definition on the replacement badge you printed. You might even have a little marketing opportunity from builders of the Airfix kit wishing to correct their kit radiator shells either supplying just replacement badges or complete 3D printed radiator shells with the badge on the correct place. Looking forward to seeing the completely finished radiator assembly when fitted to your model.

The badge now looks so much better moved up into the new position Francois. I know it was extra work I was suggesting to move it, but would like to think that you will be happier with it and think it worth it yourself in the end.

The Fiat 500 will be a good re release. It would be good if someone were to make a 3D printed transkit to make the GAMINE version.

Someone in Australia did a resin kit of the Uncertain T. Not sure if developed from pictures or straight copies of the kit parts. Of course nowadays it would probably be easy to 3D print as it is so angular.

Best movie I ever saw that kept to the book was 'Day of the Jackal' written by Frederick Forsythe that was made in the 1960's starring English actor Edward Fox as the cold assassin. It was a superb film full of atmosphere about an assassination attempt on President De Gaulle in France and kept closely to the book. Far, far better than that abomination of a film 'Jackal' with Bruce Willis playing the lead that was very loosely based (and I mean very loosely) on a similar theme, different time, place and victim. Frederick Forsythe has written a number of really good novels. I read 'Cobra' recently about a clandestine operation being set up to destroy many of the world wide narcotics cartels together. A brilliant read that would make a really good techno thriller. If only Peter Jackman, Ridley Scott, or someone similar could pick this one up!

Depends on what you are buying kits for; If you buy the bare minimum of kits and actually built them then you are a purist builder. If the intention is to actually build them but it would be a lifetime impossibility due to the amassed kits outstripping your lifespan you are a builder/collector by default. If just collecting kits with no intention of building them but eyeing them up as a future investment when the kits become rare you are purely a collector. If just collecting models that are already built then you could be termed a cheque book modeller!

Good further progress being made on this model. I know that you may not be very keen to move the radiator badge, but it might be worth the trouble as it is a distinguishing feature on the car that draws the eye to it, and you have taken so much trouble to super detail just about everything else on the model. If you leave it, would you really be happy with it?