Mike999

A few off the top of my head... Revell was always great at product placement, and their kits turn up in a lot of Fifties TV series. Revell kits were almost always displayed in Wally and Beaver's room in "Leave It To Beaver." In the 1953 movie "Niagara" with Marilyn Monroe and Joseph Cotten, he's a troubled war veteran whose therapy includes building a 1/16 scale Revell Maxwell kit. That was an inside joke. Jack Benny's longtime announcer Don Wilson had a part in the movie, and Benny was famous for talking about his Maxwell. The 1990 Jim Belushi movie "Mr. Destiny" had him building some AMT scale models, including a 300SL Gullwing. He also "built" some kits that didn't exist, AFAIK. Like this AMT kit of a '55 Porsche Spyder. Note the tube of Testors glue on the table.

If you have 2 of those kits, you can build a stretched '62 Buick limo!

She's not alone. I was looking over a TV website once, and somebody asked, "What is 'Pawn Stars' like?" The response made me nearly fall out my chair: "It's sort of like 'Antiques Roadshow' on PBS. But with a lot of fat, loud a##holes."

Thanks a lot, but I don't need one. I have a couple of the "Grumpy" kits with the bench seat. I just wondered if those parts were in this re-issue. At a kit swap meet once, I found a bagged '66 Nova kit that was only missing one part - the body. ? So if I want to do a bucket-seat version, I can steal the seats from there. I'm more likely to try building it as a bench-seat "mainstreamer" with a 6-cylinder engine.

The box art alone is almost worth its price! Just got the Kitty Hawk 1/48 scale XF5U-1 "Flying Flapjack." Along with its general cool and Weirdness Factor, the Flapjack inspired "flying saucer" reports in the 1940's, when people saw it flying around near the Chance-Vought factory in Stratford, CT. This is the first "mainstream" plastic kit of a Flapjack in 1/48. Special Hobby and Sword did 1/48 short-run plastic kits of its little brother, the experimental V-173 "Flying Pancake." The Sword version had a resin cockpit. Planet Models did a 1/32 full resin kit of the XF5U-1 that was big, heavy and VERY expensive.

The "Grumpy's Toy" '66 Nova had a bench seat, rear seat with matching pattern and open steel wheels. Those parts were on separate sprues. Does the latest release have those parts in it? Or just the bucket seat interior from the original release?

Great work! An idea well thought out and executed. Looking forward to seeing it finished. And I saw your idea on TV last week! (Sort of.) Here in the USA, we have a "reality" TV show named "Hoarders." About people who collect masses of random junk in their homes and yards, often destroying their property in the process. On last week's episode, the hoarder had decorated his yard with several junky old vehicles, none running and none even remotely "collectible." One was a Ford pick-up with a big camper on it. When the owner parked the truck, he wedged it into a tight space between a building and a wall. So tight that when a tow truck pulled out the pick-up, the camper pulled itself right off the truck and stayed behind. The clean-up crew called in a big fork-lift, thinking it might pull the whole camper out, but no such luck. As soon as the fork-lift tried to pick it up, the camper started falling apart. Finally the fork-lift smashed the camper into pieces, small enough to be picked up and carried away by hand.

Once I figured out that trick, it stopped me from breaking so many of the smallest bits. I use a small T-handle pin to make a "pilot hole," and that gives the tiny drill bit a head start. Some of those bits from #75-80 will break if you even look at them funny. I've had one of the "round" bit holders for years. I think it was originally X-Acto, but it has been populated by off-brand bits for years now. I had one of the "blue slider thing" sets, took out the bits and put them in the round holder, just because it's handy and doesn't take up much room. As for sources, I'll buy the #60-80 bit sets anywhere I can find them. A vendor at a local flea market had some a while back. I think I bought 3 sets from him, which should last a while.

Thanks! The virus has clobbered our local flea markets like everything else. But they are coming back, slowly. One of my best finds is still the MPC "Gangbusters" '32 Chevy panel truck. The seller said he bought the contents of an old hardware store in GA. Back in the 70's the store closed down and everything in it was put in storage. Then left alone until he found it. That was the only kit in all the stuff.

I didn't buy the Space Buggy. It was in really bad shape. I got really excited when I saw an AMT 1961 kit box on one seller's table. But...the box was empty. The seller wanted $10.00 for the empty, and pretty well-worn, box. I didn't buy that either.

For anyone else thinking of building this kit: here's a link to a Jalopnik article about a Porsche Junior tractor that has been owned by the same German family since new. It was stored in a barn, so is still in pretty good original shape. (I posted this in another Porsche tractor thread earlier, so you're not seeing double.) The young woman driving the tractor in the pic below is the original owner's great-grand-daughter. https://jalopnik.com/i-finally-got-to-drive-a-real-porsche-1797161520

I think Revell really made these kits for "O" scale railroad modelers. Since that's 1:48 scale, they also fit with quarter-scale aircraft models. I've seen a super-detailed build of the White gas truck but can't remember who did it. Here's a great conversion of the COE White into a tow truck, also using parts from the Chevy Stakebed. https://myp48.wordpress.com/2017/10/28/modeling-white-coe-tow-truck/

Thanks for the warning. OK, I won't be lazy and spray Dullcote from the can. Maybe thru the airbrush, so it's very thin. Or I could mix up a flat clear using Tamiya Clear acrylic and some of their Flat Base. Which can also be tricky. I have to be really careful with that Flat Base. Too much and it turns everything white. I usually mix the Clear and Flat Base, spray a piece of painted scrap plastic, then hit it with a hair dryer and see if it turns white. Tamiya Flat Base is useful, but a little sure goes a long way.

It's this thing right here! Released about 1970, I think. If you go to eBay "Completed Items" and search for "der Guber Wagen," a couple of them will come up. None are for sale on eBay right now. Here's the box art, and a random build-up I found on the Internet:

The nightmare of chroming a '59 El Camino. It's a beater project, so I didn't need ultra-shiny chrome. I used BMF Matte Aluminum for easy stuff like the side trim and the strips around the bed. But using BMF around the windshield frame, roof and rear/side roof pillars drove me crazy. A silver Sharpie and Molotow didn't work much better. Out of desperation, I finally did this: 1. Carefully brush-painted all the trim with Testors Glosscote and let it dry completely. 2. Brush-painted over the Glosscote with some very old Testors Silver. So old it has a "35 cents" price on the label. As this stuff gets older it gets thicker, which made it easier to control. The Silver is enamel and Glosscote is lacquer, so the two paints didn't react with each other. That worked and gave me some shine on the chrome, but not a bright "showroom" shine. That's exactly the effect I wanted. When all the weathering is done I'll put on a flat clear coat over everything, which should give the BMF and the painted trim about the same amount of shininess.

True, unless they're over-restored. I found this Porsche Jr. at Jalopnik. It belonged to the same German family from new and was usually stored in a barn. The Fraulein on the Porsche is the great-grand-daughter of the original owner. Here's the article: https://jalopnik.com/i-finally-got-to-drive-a-real-porsche-1797161520

Flea Market Day! Found a cheap Revell '49 Mercury custom, with the chopped top. Open but all inner bags still sealed. I didn't have that kit and would like to build a "work in progress" custom with weld/cut lines on the roof, etc. And even cheaper, a Revell "der Guber Wagen" snack car. One of their many VW-powered, Model T C-cab thingies. It's the "Young Model Builders Club" version that came in a mailing box. Missing the instructions and decals. It has 2-piece tires, and one-half of a rear slick and a front tire are also MIA. Looks like all the plastic parts are there. The chrome tree is untouched but the plating is wearing off, not unusual for kits this old. I have the insane idea of using der Guber Wagen's body with an AMT '23 T van, to build a stock snack or delivery wagon. But these kits go for pretty big bucks on eBay, so I might sell it. EDIT: other kits spotted at today's flea market: --Revell '48 Ford Woody, partly built, possibly missing parts. Seller wanted $10. Not even worth negotiating for parts, IMO. Sealed '48 Woody kits don't go for much more on eBay. --Monogram Space Buggy, 1969: glue-bombed, partly painted and decaled (badly) and the box was half-eaten by rats or something. IIRC, this was originally the "Willy Ley Space Taxi," until Monogram lost its Willy Ley license. --Several AMT and Revell NASCAR kits, some sealed and some open. The seller was asking $15 each and his price was firm. Optimist.

The ultimate Elvis car movie is "Viva Las Vegas." In the garage and racing scenes, we get to see about a billion dollars worth of iron at current prices. Here's a partial list, the link below takes you to all the cars at IMCdb. 1958 Ferrari 250 GT Berlinetta LWB 1959 Balchowsky "Ol' Yaller" MkII and MkIII 1959 Elva Mk.IV THREE original 1962 Shelby Cobras (CSX2019, CSX2024 and CSX2038, rented by the studio) 1962 Elva Mk.6 Maserati And the weird little 1961 Daimler SP 250, which had a Hemi V-8, though a really tiny one. https://www.imcdb.org/yourcomments.php?formovie=58725

For anyone else new to this company: Dan Models does a ton of 1/35 scale stuff and is very well-known in Military Land. They make everything from water bottles and beds with mattresses (!!!) up to full 1/35 scale kits.

The Airfix Tribute Forum is another good one. Since Airfix has made model kits in every genre, it's big and busy. The "Aircraft" forum alone has over 27,000 posts. And if you start missing cars, they have a forum for car kits too. They also have a sale/trade forum. https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/airfixtributeforum/

Go for it! For all its many faults, on eBay you're selling to people who might not have any kind of hobby shop or scale model swap meets nearby. Here's the procedure I use for listing kits, in 4 steps. 1. Take photo(s). eBay does its own photo hosting, so I put my photos in an 'eBay" folder on the PC. I number each photo in sequence to match the number of the listing. e.g., if the first kit I'm listing is an AMT '40 Ford, that photo is 1.jpg. Sometimes I need more than one photo, so I number them 1a, 1b etc. That means I don't have to waste time searching thru my photo folder for "40Ford.jpg." 2. Write Title and Description. At a minimum in the Title, I include the manufacturer, kit number, description and scale. Example: "Lindberg #73067 Dodge L-700 Tilt Cab Tractor 1/25." The Description is the sales pitch. I mention good stuff, but also any damage or missing parts, etc. Example: "Hard-to-find AMT snap kit of the '96 Dodge Ram Dually heavy-duty pickup truck. Great for conversions or building a weathered, beat-up work truck. STILL SHRINK-WRAPPED." I write the Titles and Descriptions in Notepad, then copy and paste into the eBay text boxes when I'm putting up the sale. Much easier than trying to write them on the fly, when I might forget something. 3. Get shipping box, weigh and measure kit. THIS IS IMPORTANT. For every listing, eBay needs a package size and weight to calculate the shipping cost. Don't sign up for any eBay shipping or label-making programs. It's easier and cheaper to do all that yourself. Get a tape measure and a cheap postal scale from Office Depot to measure and weigh your boxes. You can also buy Avery labels at Office Depot. They include printing templates for word-processing programs. The US Postal Service will deliver free shipping boxes right to your door. Just go to the USPS website and create an account. You'll probably still need some odd-size boxes. You can get those free from stores in your area. 4. Go to eBay, click SELL and start listing! You'll have to do the following, in sequence: --A. Add "Listing Details." Copy and paste your Title. eBay offers many extra-cost things here, like a Subtitle and Second Category. I ignore them. --B. Add Photo(s). Navigate to the folder on your PC where the eBay photos are stored and put them in the template. You can have up to 12 photos for each item. --C. Under "Item Specifics," add anything Required. --D. Under "Item Description," copy and paste your Description text. --E. Under "Selling Details," select a format: "Auction-style" or "Fixed Price." Auction style is better for old, rare kits where you hope for a feeding frenzy. You can choose a Duration for the auction, the default is 7 days. Fixed Price is "Buy It Now." If you select Fixed Price, you can let the buyer make offers. I don't do that, because I'm lazy and don't want to negotiate endlessly with cheapskates and chiselers. Fixed Price listings don't have a duration, and will stay up until the item sells or you cancel it. --F. Add PRICE! And "Payment Method." To keep things simple, I only accept payment by PayPal. --G. "Shipping Details" is next, including size and weight of package. You can add a "Handling Cost." That's included in the Shipping cost and the buyer does not see it. Now it gets tricky... WARNING: BY DEFAULT, eBay assumes you want to ship to every country in the world. If not, you have to manually "Exclude" countries. For right now, I'm only shipping in the USA, so I exclude everywhere else. Exclude "North America," unless you will ship to Canada and Mexico. --H. At the bottom of the page, click the "Preview" button and make sure the listing is right. If not, go back to the Listing page and make changes. Click the "Save As Template" button so you don't have to re-enter all this stuff again in the future. Finally, click the "List Item" button. And you're off and selling! eBay will ask if you want to list a similar item. Select "Yes" and it will take you back to the item you just finished listing. You can edit the info for your next listing. LAST WARNING: sometimes a buyer wins more than one kit. When they do that, they often pay for each kit individually. That means eBay will charge them the full shipping cost for EVERY item. (It also means you have to find a bigger box, re-pack, measure and weigh it.) I put this in all my listings: "IMPORTANT! If you buy more than 1 item, request a total with combined shipping. If you pay instantly for multiple items, you will be charged shipping on EACH item. If that happens, I will refund your excess shipping thru PayPal."

MAN trucks were a pretty common sight when I lived in Egypt. Here's one of the monsters hauling a trailer. Inspiration for those who might like to build a foreign vehicle. The NIKE swooshes should be pretty easy, but you're on your own with the Arabic lettering.

Looking great so far, and I'm stealing ideas! Here's another anecdote for you... C. Gayle Warnock had a LOT of Edsel stories. He was on the Edsel marketing team. Mr. Warnock wrote 2 books full of Edsel lore, "The Edsel Affair" and "The Rest of the Edsel Affair." Some of his stories are enough to make you think the whole Edsel project was just jinxed in some awesome and mysterious way. For example: when it became obvious that the Edsel was a sales flop, Ford panicked and had a high-level marketing meeting. One of the people in that meeting was a crusty old-timer who had been in FoMoCo sales for decades. Whenever a car didn't sell, he always made the same sarcastic joke: "Let's give away a pony." Some of the younger execs in that meeting didn't know he was joking, and thought that was a great idea. So suddenly Ford was going all over the country, buying ponies. Which meant they had to feed and house the ponies, and pay people to take care of them. The Pony Project cost tons of money and didn't help Edsel sales one bit. And the first lucky kid to win a pony? He lived in an apartment in New York City.

After striking out at Hobby Lobby and Ollie's, today I stopped by the only remaining hobby shop for many miles. (The Hobby Connection in Easley, SC.) Found the AMT-Round 2 International 350 Payhauler, a big monster I've always wanted to build and weather. Also a Revell Custom Cadillac Lowrider. This shop is usually full retail price, no discounts. The Cadillac was $24.99. That seems fair, especially after I took a gander at eBay. One optimist is asking $102 for that kit.

A couple of those Nova kits went for $150 "Buy It Now." Others got bid up to nearly that much. It was also interesting to me that in my sale, the Nova and the MENG Ford F-350 were 2 of the most expensive kits, but also 2 of the first kits that sold. Within a couple hours of the sale going up, IIRC. If the system will co-operate, here's an eBay "Completed Items" search on the Trumpeter Nova showing what they sold for. https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sop=1&_sadis=15&_stpos=29672-9125&_from=R40&_nkw=trumpeter+63+nova+&_sacat=1188&rt=nc&LH_Complete=1