Ace-Garageguy

Did some additional mockup work with the Pontiac engine, all the actual parts that will be used for the model. Lengthened the wheelbase slightly too. First thing was to make a 2-part firewall that would slide over the frame rails. It's not yet quite perfect, but it will be. Then I built a setup that allows the upper and lower sections of the body to snap together, with a nice tight line between the parts. I replaced the existing rear axle mounting plates with new ones fabbed from .020" stock, made front engine mounts that would pick up the block mounts close to the pan rails rather than using a front engine plate, and added a few necessary crossmembers. With the rear axle in place, I was able to mock up the engine, with a dummy centerline glued to the block and running through the trans. The pinion angle is now right, so I could build a rear engine-plate. No universal joints on this setup, everything solidly mounted...so getting the angles right here matters. Also visible is the new push-bar structure.

Thanks again to everyone for your interest. The engine will be based on the vintage Revell Dream-Car Turbine engine kit. It's shown built-up on the left. It doesn't really look like any real turbine I've been able to find, and my research and some input from somebody who ought to know (info from one of Revell's guys) confirmed this. It's kinda similar to some older APU turbines with external combustion chambers, but there are also nonsense parts on it that have no close analog in reality. So, it will be modified to look more like something that actually existed, with an appearance that would be consistent with the function of a real engine. One of the things I snagged from a junk box at the last NNL event here was this chrome tree from the old Johan Chrysler Turbine, and some of it, probably the regenerators, will make its way into the engine bay on this thing.

Getting the roof panel-lines scribed wasn't working as cleanly as I would have liked, and I shelved the model until I could work it out to suit my need for quality. I eventually found just the right mix of epoxy and Cab-o-Sil that would take sharp lines without flaking on the edges. Then I had to find a better method for getting the lines on the left to match exactly the lines on the right. Few things spoil a model quicker (in my opinion) than poorly scribed panel lines, and since these were on the top of the car, very obvious, they had to be right. I laid out the edges of the new lines with a piece of stiff aluminum tape, well burnished down. The new photo-etched razor-saw blades I got a few weeks back made the perfect scribing tool, keeping the lines straight and true. She's ready for primer on the roof at this point.

Some people have difficulty painting. It irks them. S'okay. I can lay slick paint out as well as anybody on the planet, but I've yet to master BMF. That kinda irks me.

Same cost-engineering crew that saved a few bucks on carp rivets figured they could save a LOT by leaving off the tops of the watertight compartments.

Yes, in Georgia there's a law on the books prohibiting the sale of "raw" unpasteurized milk for human consumption, but there are also a number of farms that sell it as "pet food" and advertise on the web. With a DIY pasteurization option, boutique milk oghta be worth $20 a gallon, eh?

I'm surprised nobody's started a DIY boutique moo shop. You brings your own bucket, and you squeezes out your own milk. Oughta be worth 15 bucks a gallon, at least.

Current condition of the SS United States

This is a million bucks for the maiden cruise, probably in the most luxurious cabins. The prices will probably come down to be competitive with top-line cruise ships when she's in regular service. Some cruise ships today sleep as many as 6 in a cabin, for the cheap seats. Far as the engines go, they'll most likely be built along the same lines as other large ocean-going vessels today...either diesel / electric (like a locomotive, but bigger) or gas-turbine / electric, either type running on diesel fuel.

How cool is this? http://www.damngeeky.com/2016/02/12/39551/titanic-ii-to-set-sail-from-china-to-dubai-in-2018.html

Got one of these, specifically for the tires and engine. Nice kit. Got another vintage Revell Buick nailhead, too.

That's a SOLVENT type glue you have there, and it literally welds the parts together by dissolving the plastic, and allowing the molten edges to fuse. There's no way to "dissolve" the bond. You CAN, however, try tracing the bond-line multiple times with a sharp X-acto knife, going a little deeper each time. I frequently use that method very successfully to disassemble old nasty models. Bill Geary (MrObsessive) has an excellent point too.

Yup, good looking chop, for sure.

OK, maybe that one could use an altimeter.

I don't think that's at all fair to Art. He has a wealth of knowledge, both about the history of the hobby AND automotive history in general, and he's willing to take the time to share it. Some people like to have more detail available, and Art often fills in the blanks and explains things in more depth. It doesn't have anything to do with "proving how much you know". He's just generously trying to help foster understanding of the whys and hows, for modelers interested in going a little beyond the simple what. I would think an educator would grasp this.

I realize you're probably looking for an engine with stock components primarily, but just for your future reference, both of the engine-only kits below have very nice performance-oriented smallblock Chevy engines. As Force has already noted, all the smallblock Chebbys look much the same externally, and as also noted...EXCEPT for the '55, which lacks the oil filter boss and engine mounts of later engines. That means you can build an engine to represent a 265-283-302-305-327-350-400 from the same basic parts...block, heads, front cover / water pump, oil pan. This vintage Revell engine kit is labeled as a 283, but makes a fine base for any of them. It has a Potvin-style front-driven blower and a 2-4bb carb option too. No stock induction or exhaust, but it does have a decent front cover / water pump. pulleys, an excellent 4-bladed fan, and a bellhousing. Generally available for about $4 if you shop around on Ebay. This current-production AMT-labeled kit is a re-release of a '60s kit, also has a nice performance oriented smallblock. Again with a front-blown Potvin style setup, and an optional single 4-bbl.

Put me down as having a hankering for '50s BOP cars as well. I've bought several promos and very simple Johan Oldsmobiles and Pontiacs to use as bash fodder, but I'd love to see new-tool complete kits. Just tell me where to send my money.

Cool. Tens of millions of dollars worth of warplanes turned into thousands of dollars of aluminum scrap. Swords into plowshares, fighters into beer cans.

PS. Here's a search tip that may help you get more relevant results, too. There's a LOT of rats and patina on the forum.

You're in the right place...and welcome to the forum. We're ALL still learning, so everything you go through will be of benefit to many people here.

If you want to do rust, google "Dr. Cranky rust video". Here's one on the "salt" method a lot of guys use.

Glad to help. I didn't mean to glom all over your build thread. I'll be happy to pull those photos down if you want.

Surprising they piled 'em up to scrap like that. A lot of F100s and F4 Phantoms ended their careers as target drones. Weren't those 84s J-65 powered? Maybe the engines were pulled for A4 spares.

Here's a tutorial I did eons ago on zeeing that Revell frame. A zeed frame is absolutely necessary in the rear to get a car that low. Another way to get those Revell frames low is to build custom up-and-over rails in the rear, and to modify the front for a "suicide" spring perch. The stock Revell frame is in the foreground, the modified and much lower one in the background. This lets you get the car very low. I've left this one with sufficient ground clearance to be street-drivable, but that same frame will go lower, as low as your reference photo.

Yeah..."and like a good neighther, State Farm is there"...