Zoom Zoom

Hey Ken! Glad to hear you have more hobby time. I missed Spartanburg, have had a health setback so am on the mend for a bit and hated missing it. Hopefully back to full steam by Simpsonville in May. For those that don't know him, Ken is an amazing builder. I have the pleasure of being the caretaker of a few of his models.

In the early 2000's I got my exam/2 pairs of glasses at a local (fairly new in a wealthier suburb) Walmart with a competent optical department. The sunglasses are long gone, but the regular glasses are still in use. My distance vision has improved over time and the old glasses are best for watching my TV in my living room and are good for use as a potential backup. They're actually better than the glasses I got a few years ago from Warby Parker locally, though the sunglasses I got from Warby Parker are perfect. The Walmart pair have also outlasted several pairs from Lens Crafters. YMMV. Next time I'll use Costco.

In 1962 some AMT promos like this did indeed have separate hoods and engines. They used the same spring-like hood clips as kits. This is 99% likely to be a promo.

Stunning displays this year and as usual a ton of subjects that can be built in scale.

That's how I rattle can or airbrush bodies (been doing this for decades); I start by covering lower areas around grilles, rockers, wheel openings, and move upwards so that upper surfaces like decklid, hood, roof, pillars are done last. Color through clear.

Looks like it's from a '59 Pontiac Bonneville.

Here are some RADwood links: Hagerty RADwood Website CNET Jalopnik If you're into YouTube, there are lots of RADwood videos from the events around the country to see. It's a younger crowd than most typical car shows. We're all talking about how we keep the younger generations interested in cars and model cars, they're actually very interested in cars. Especially because of stuff they've seen in video games. Anything to keep the car passion alive...

I went to RADwood Atlanta last year riding shotgun in a buddy's 3.4 liter converted Fiero. It's not just stock OEM cars, it's also period-correct cars from the era. If the build is based on a car/truck from 1980-1999, it's good. So if it's a wild pro-street car from that era, go for it. Crazy S10 or Ford Ranger mini truck ideas? Cool! That Revell Mk. VII pro-street just got reissued, great subject for the theme. There were several safari-style Porsche 911's there built by Leh Keen. He drifted his personal car around the track at Lanier Raceplex...slowly LOL. Got a period-correct SCCA racer or LeMons racer idea? Go for it. There are so many potential kit subjects out there, and some of them are really nice. Got a T-Bird Super Coupe kit? There are some new, fresh anniversary decals out there for them. There are a lot of '80's and '90's era NASCAR subjects. RADwood in NC was at Hendricks Motorsports Complex this past summer.

The ACME Southern Nationals had a RADwood theme in 2022, it was a very popular theme with a lot of cool models built for it. So many kits available either current or vintage and you can pick a lot of the vintage issues up from show vendors pretty dang cheap, even sometimes sealed for less than Ollie's current prices.

Probably the gap is to get your hands in there easily as I'm sure it's a heavy hood.

Definitely old school, but the quality is second to none. ReplMinCoMd@aol.com 317 Roosevelt Ave Glen Burnie MD 21061 410-768-3648

Norm was set up at our ACME show on the 28th, I saw a video from the vendor area and he did have at least one set of this interior on the table for sale.

Congrats buddy for winning "Best Corvette" theme this Saturday at the ACME Southern Nationals! Spectacular build, as usual! Sorry I wasn't too talkative Sunday morning before checking out of the hotel, I went straight home and slept for most of the day after my "fun" night of food poisoning LOL. I felt fine by 9 PM and back to normal today. What a blast we had at the show!

Salvino's may not be using vacuum metallizing if the normal chrome strippers won't work. Trumpeter model car kits had plating that didn't respond to the traditional products used to strip kit chrome.

The Jo-Han entity at the show yesterday is completely different than Okey's.

This is a completely different entity than Okey's adventure. If you're ever in Dayton, OH the Atomic City shop is a very cool place to visit.

It's astounding how often Revell does stuff like this. I have to wonder if there are any functional eyeballs present in the room when reviewing CAD files and test shots, etc. I hadn't noticed the elongated front wheel opening because my eyes cannot unsee those sad/saggy drip rails. That's not that hard to fix, but c'mon, it shouldn't have happened in the first place.

There is no argument you have absolutely mastered the use of this paint. You probably are of the roughly 1% that don't really need some of the hobby products I suggest for builders that are not able to get your results and end up frustrated with the whole process. I'm trying to help them get into a mindset of trying products made for hobbyists that have a track record of excellent results. Your models are absolutely outstanding, carry on! Your approach to modeling is admirable, you slowly, methodically tackle each issue along the way. Most modelers don't have that level of patience. They often fail to realize how much mileage under one's belt is required to get to where you consistently get great results.

Base white has more pigment than the white fine surface primer for rapid coverage of multiple (any) colors of plastic. It also dries smoother with a bit of gloss. My best example of the base white usage was on this build; the body was molded in white. The separate engine compartment was molded in black. It needed to be body color, and I was painting the body in a metallic blue. I primed the engine compartment in base white and was able to then paint it along with the body panels in blue with no mismatch. Base white was the way to go.

It's quite good, but IMHO Tamiya's base white is even better. Hardly anyone even knows it exists.

Tamiya has a new Base White in a small rattle can. It's amazing. Very pigment-dense, covers multiple colors of plastic with ease, has a light sheen, it dries so incredibly smooth. I wish they sold it in a larger size can.

Mr. Hobby Mr. Black Surfacer 1500 in a rattle can...or jar for airbrushing. It's amazing.

Good tip ? FYI an inside radius is commonly referred to as a fillet radius or more commonly a fillet. Car designers/clay modelers/engineers etc. just say fillet. Easier to type as well. Not the same spelling as a filet mignon or a Filet-O-Fish ?

Can't answer your question directly because I don't use that product. How obsessive are you about your final finishes on your models? How many do you build over the course of a year? It's hard for me to wrap my mind around builders insistent on using ginormous "inexpensive" cans of various automotive primer/colors when there are amazing products out there for hobbyists to use. They save $$ in the end because they don't cause issues with plastic crazing and they tend to lay down so smooth you don't need to do all that much sanding, if any. If you follow directions you're far more likely to get a really nice finish (from average to show-winning) w/o multiple rounds of stripping/re-finishing. I've seen countless examples of this scenario play out. I joke about model car guys doing this repeatedly so they can brag about how many dates they have had with a stripper in the past month ? I may be known as the airbrush guy but I love Tamiya and Mr. Hobby rattle can primers/surfacers and nearly every project I work on I use them. They do their respective jobs admirably, making life easier in the long run. You spend less time on the paint finish leaving more time for detailing work.

Great stuff.