Ace-Garageguy

I depend on timely parts delivery for my business, and have constant issues with the PO here and out-of-state mis-routing just like you do. It's only going to get worse as competence becomes less and less a hiring criterion, and gross incompetence isn't a reason for termination. Speaking of which, I was behind a local PO truck yesterday on the way to the shop. I've rarely seen a vehicle under less apparent control, and if the driver wasn't drunk or otherwise impaired, he/she/they/it should be hospitalized.

Huh?

The "Sudden Death" Mustang II is really pretty trick, serious engine setback, all kinds of cool stuff...and the only Mustang II I ever looked twice at. I think I feel a hankering for another kit coming on...

You would win that race, most likely.

Paint scheme looks great. Nice job, sir.

It really helps to understand the functions of things, and "traction bars" and "ladder bars" do entirely different things. There's tons of misinfo and misunderstanding out there. "Traction bars" (whether they're the original "Traction Master" style or the "slapper bar" style) are intended to limit leaf-spring "wrap up" under hard acceleration, by preventing the axle from rotating around its own center, relative to the car. The stock trailing arms on the '62 Bel Air do essentially the same thing, being welded to the axle housing, and pivoted forward on a line that would be about where leaf spring eyes would be. But as they're mounted at an angle to each other laterally, they also keep the axle from moving side to side relative to the car. They're kinda half a 4-link setup. Sorta. "Ladder bars" also prevent the rear axle from rotating around its own center on acceleration, but because the forward ends are much farther forward, they take the rotational force from the axle and turn it into a lifting force where they mount, raising the front of the car to aid in rearward weight transfer (all of this is somewhat oversimplified, but it's correct in concept). "Ladder bars" on a coil-spring car would probably replace the stock trailing arms (odd binding of everything, rough ride, and parts breaking occurs if they're not designed right and used in conjunction with stock trailing arms). Because long ladder bars are usually parallel to each other, something more would be required to control rear axle sideways motion, like a Panhard bar or Watts linkage.

IIRC, it was Donn Yost who pioneered, or at least popularized, that technique many years ago, and I mean many. Mr. Yost has lotsa how-to vids on YT, as well as books. Your answer is surely to be found among them somewhere, grasshopper.

Man, I envy you that one. I've never even been on the same field as one, much less see/hear one take off. Pretty cool, sir.

But TRAINS !!! YOU GET TO DRIVE TRAINS !!! How cool is that?

OMG !!! OMG !!! You've violated the primary tenet of using the internet. What you're SUPPOSED to do, Mr. Smartypants, is mindlessly rebleat whatever anyone else says, and NEVER UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES TRY TO FIND OUT THE TRUTH FOR YOURSELF !!! OMG !!! OMG !!! OMG !!!

Ago go dancers always aroused my attention, but not as much as Playboy Bunnies with their cute little cottontails.

Well, maybe some folks have lower thresholds of "excited".

Unfortunately, the downside is that you have to have a brain.

http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/forum/3-wip-model-cars/

"Done workin', gone to da Bahamas mon" is what I'd like to have on my shop door...but I'm still chained to a Chevelle.

You have to remember that a well-optioned original Hemi Challenger in clean-one-owner "survivor" condition is worth a ton of money anyway. Having some murky street-racing backstory just sweetens the pot. Remember also that what you choose to race determines a lot of your "rarely beaten" status. If I were to "street race" my '89 GMC pickup with a 2bbl 305, 5-speed, and only pick on 6-cylinder trucks with automatics, I'd most likely be "rarely beaten" too.

ctruss's post makes the important point that there is no one right way to get great rattlecan finishes. His procedure is similar to mine, but differs in several specifics as well. EXPERIENCE and PRACTICE, paying close attention to the results...with your brain in gear...will let you develop procedures that work well for you, every time. And don't expect cheapo hardware-store or big-box store rattlecans to produce outstanding results by just hosing the stuff on. You often CAN turn out show-quality jobs with el cheapo paint, and sometimes a particular color simply isn't available in anything else. But using rattlecan products not intended specifically for modeling is always going to take careful experimentation, with each different product, to get top-quality results.

Most helpful info.

Getting great results with rattlecans is more a question of experience and practice-practice-practice than anything else. The proverbial "mist coat" is, in my opinion, often misinterpreted to mean a dry coat shot from relatively far away. For me, this technique has proven to initiate orange peel that no subsequent wet coats will alleviate entirely. I'll shoot a "medium" wet coat first, see how it lays down, wait 20 minutes or so (with temp and humidity taken into consideration), then shoot (usually) two more full wet coats, 10-20 minutes apart. Some colors will require more coats for full coverage, and separate body parts should be ON the car for the final color coat or two, to ensure a perfect match between panels. This is even more important on metallics, pearls, and micas. Duplicolor lacquer is more aggressive ("hotter") than Tamiya and Testors, so there's always the possibility of swelling over bodywork, or areas where the molded surface of the base plastic has been broken, even if the part has been carefully primered repeatedly and block-sanded. This is not a disaster. Just let it dry a little longer, then sand the affected area with 800 or so, wet, wipe it down, and spray another coat. Repeat as necessary. The hood below swelled repeatedly where the ornament and peak had been removed, but patience won out in the end, and this is 3 full wet coats of a Duplicolor "mica" green, no polishing, just exactly as-shot.

Great looking boat. More info please.

Yup. Mid to low 9s like Sudden Death is "legend" fast. No way an optioned-out stock Challenger, even a Hemi car, is going to touch that. And maybe the Ghost was indeed a street racer, but it certainly wouldn't have been among the fastest.

8 inches is less than a Subway footlong.