Ace-Garageguy

No...it's because if EVERY timid little moron tweeting or texting on his mobile device left 2 or three car lengths between himself and the next car when stopped, traffic jams would be three or 4 times longer, and nobody would ever get home from work.

Ah yes. One I know upside down, inside out and backwards.

Then you should like this little youtube video about Gerald Wingrove's work. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbyoTU-ucxM

"Soldering" and "welding" are two entirely different processes...soldering uses a low-temperature filler material as a metallic 'glue' to join parts, while welding actually melts and fuses the base metals together, usually with a filler too, but at a much higher temperature...and you're not likely to be hobby-bench-welding aluminum alloys. Straight aluminum (non-alloyed) can be welded with hydrogen / oxygen and a small torch...this is how real aluminum bodies were constructed early on...but it's best to learn oxy-acetylene welding on steel first, as you get some color-change of the metals to help you judge heat. You don't get any such warning when gas-welding aluminum...just a big hole. There are several solders made for joining aluminum alloys that should be suitable for model work, and they work with a propane, butane or mapp-gas torch, but I haven't experimented with enough of them to make any useful recommendations. Here's one... http://durafix.com/index.html Soldering brass to brass is fairly straightforward, so long as you have the right tools and materials. The train and slotcar guys were doing it routinely (me too) 50 years ago. Get the right acid-core flux, the right lead/tin solder, and a decent iron or gun and you're golden. You don't need anything magic. There's tons of info on specific solders and fluxes on the model RR forums, and even tricks like using different heat-range solders to join detail parts to a brass model without melting adjacent work. Sticking aluminum to brass is trickier and requires different solders and fluxes. Just Google "solder aluminum to brass" and research it. As usual, you'll find a lot of "advice" from people who haven't actually DONE it, but little in actual practical repeatable (and verifiable) information. Some say Alumiweld will do it, and supposedly this will too... http://www.harrisproductsgroup.com/en/Products/Alloys/Soldering/Lead-Free-Solders/Al-Solder-500.aspx Here's another one... http://muggyweld.com/aluminum-to-brass-solder There's always epoxy for joining dissimilar metals, but even then, aluminum resists working happily with most glues, and because of this, exotic and expensive adhesives have been developed just for gluing aluminum in the aircraft industry. The number one rule when trying to solder anything is to have the joint area CLEAN and free of any surface oxidation.

Here's a build thread by Marcos Cruz for some more insight... http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/48379-53-ford-victoria-custom-project/ ...and his finished product. Doesn't get much better than this...

Yes, there may be subtle differences between the 330 P4 bodies and the 412P bodies, differences sometimes appearing in the front air intake openings and exhausts, the side air intake shapes, and the base of the windshield /wiper configuration. There are so few of these cars in existence, it's probably best to research a particular chassis number for its appearance at the time you wish to represent it, for the most accuracy.

I do a lot of chops and other heavy mods. I use conventional liquid cement to get everything stuck together and aligned perfectly, and then use the epoxy-fine fiberglass cloth reinforcement method Foxer mentioned. I've been doing the 'glass reinforcement for many years, primarily because I had materials made for 1:1 aircraft in stock...and they're MUCH stronger than anything you can get for hobby work. That being said, ANY hobby-shop 30-minute epoxy made for RC models should do you just fine. You can get the very fine fiberglass cloth there too. Be sure to get at least 30-minute stuff though. The shorter cure time material is nowhere near as strong. This is not the best photo in the world, but you'll see the reinforcements on the pillars and the roof center. Here's the build thread if you want to see the rest of the mods on this one... Here's another one... If you do this right, you can get plenty horsey with your bodywork and paint-polishing with NO FEAR of cracking at the seams. Scale 4" chop on a '70 Chevelle, scratchbuilt front pillars...

Hey Tom...just try to focus on the positive. Doesn't "my work year ended with whipped cream and a cherry" sound a lot happier?

That's rare and collectible spider webs and fecal matter, son.

Whoa. I've always loved that rocketship design, and have thought long and hard about trying to build it. You've done a great job here. Nice work.

Yup, one of my favorite moves too. And the fool who keeps at least 2 car lengths in front of him when he's stopped. Then there's the monkey-morons who signal for a turn because the car in front of them is signalling, but go straight and turn off the signal when the lead car turns. Who taught them that little bit of stupidity?

Exactly.

Yeah, as long as the blower motor itself has a 3-wire grounded plug, and is correctly grounded.

That's cold, Harry.

I loved the movie from the beginning. I'd liked scary monster and space stuff as a kid, but hadn't seen anything worth watching for years. The first Star Wars film was so much of a quantum leap beyond anything done in the scifi genre ever before, it was like an entirely new kind of film-making. The special effects were absolutely groundbreaking and so beyond state-of-the-art at the time, and as Jantrix already mentioned, the details were so complete and convincing, that the movie, for me, accomplished 100% of one of film's primary goals...suspension of disbelief. I never thought any of the later ones came close to the first film in scope or originality, but I'm looking forward to seeing Han Solo as an old geezer like me.

I agree. Looks BMW-ish. I like the swept-back windshield and the vertical rear door and glass too. Swoopy in front, useful in back.

Franklin Mint (die-cast) has one in 1/24. You might try to find a damaged one for the parts, and cut them down slightly. Or find a decent one and repaint it to match your inspiration. The 2000 Christmas edition can be had for around $30. Several builders on here have made stunning models from damaged die-cast starting points.

Here ya go. Obviously having "fun" or he woulda quit after the 4th or 5th one. Yup, it should be FUN and nothing remotely resembling "work", which implies (apparently to some) not-fun things like quality craftsmanship, understanding and respect for form and line, technical-correctness, etc. SO...if this is your definition of "fun" within this hobby, that's fine and dandy. It's not my definition of "fun", it doesn't have to be, and that's fine too. To each his own. The bottom line is that each and every participant in this hobby probably has a slightly different definition of "fun", and they ENJOY different aspects of building differently, and some more than others. I personally usually enjoy challenging myself to continually raise the bar on my own work. I like difficult modifications and long-term projects. I don't do it for approval or recognition or competition. I do it for ME, and all the builders whose work I greatly admire (and who continually inspire me to do better work) I'm certain do it to please themselves first. They're having FUN. What I'm tired of is the same old implication that striving for personal excellence in this hobby, OR IN ANY ENDEAVOR, and taking on challenging work can't be viewed as "fun".

Nothin' says "class" like pallbearers in matching yellow jackets and a bat-cake at the grave-site.

I Googled the image, didn't feel in the mood to cheat. Interesting vehicle. If it was orange with big black spots (a la ladybug), I know a girl who would love it.

I think I know her. Small world. Thank God none of them look like me either.

Close as I get to a "build journal" for models is the notes I keep with them as they're progressing, and the occasional WIP I put up here. Real cars, different story. The book on the '47 Caddy I'm wrapping up filled several legal pads, hundreds of photos, notes organized and typed up every couple weeks or so...but I have to do this to get paid, and so somebody can service the cars when I'm dead and gone.

If you actually look at what's in the photos, it's apparent many of the models are really dirty...the kind of grime that comes from years of open storage. The newest subject is the red circa-2001 Mopar-looking thing second down, top left...so this builder was still working at least as late as that. The shaky detail painting implies either a very young or a very old builder, or someone with impaired motor control. The work all appears to have been done by the same person, but the colors are interesting...as though the builder was given one color to work with for each model. The modifications, though very poorly done, appear to me to be too ambitious for a very young builder...especially the woody conversions, which wouldn't have much relevance to a child... The obsession with station-wagons (the one exception being the stretch-limo, third down from top right) is interesting, but so is the apparent complete and utter lack of any appreciation of form and line. And it would seem to me that anyone with the least semblance of a rational, critical-thinking-capable brain would have given up on this particular hobby after the third or fourth attempt having failed to produce anything remotely resembling good work. My first guess was that these may have been built as a kind of occupational therapy by someone with problems...but...after looking at the seller's site, it appears this particular builder did many more models at a similar skill level. Probably not a kid, judging from the others. The $99.99 asking bid is insane, as are the prices this seller has attached to other models on his auction site obviously from the same builder's collection. Apparently the seller has no more idea of what constitutes "good" and "value" than the builder had of the meaning of "craftsmanship". If this is really the best someone can do and they enjoy it, fine, but it chaps my backside to see some clown offering this trash for money. Whatever. It seems Ebay has an entire sub-culture of idiots selling worthless garbage to idiots. Ain't technology grand.