Ace-Garageguy

I haven't cared too much for them since encountering engineering wizardry like a timing chain falling into the sump when you remove the water pump (and almost no supporting service data available at the time to head off that particular fiasco), roller-bearings on suspension control arms (nice and precise and low-friction when new, but did you ever hear of grit and water on the roads, guys?), and a power window regulator that was made with a bazillion tiny ball bearings in a tube, driven by a worm screw. Open it up to repair it, expecting to find a spiral-overwound cable like sane engineers might use (as usual, no factory service data was available at the time), and half the bazillion little balls fall into tiny black holes, never to be seen again. Porous engine block and wheel castings. Some factory welds under the beautiful skins that looked like drunk chimps with stick-welders did them. Timing belts that are too fragile to withstand a sub-freezing engine start. Convertible tops that self-shred at over 70 MPH. I'll leave it at that. Don't get me wrong...I think they're wonderful and fascinating artifacts. But I'd much prefer an old Porsche if I actually needed to get anywhere.

I certainly didn't mean anything negative about Norm or R&M. I've spent hundreds of dollars for his stuff, which is beyond doubt some of the best in the business. On the other hand, it takes considerable craftsmanship and skill to translate real parts into an accurately scaled printable format, and to be as committed to achieving an exceptional quality final result as Randy Ditton at Model Builder's Warehouse is. The 3D "printing machine" doesn't work all on its own There's plenty of room for both old- and new-school approaches to producing high quality aftermarket bits.

I finally bought the chopped coupe, and it looks good...though I haven't compared the measurements with those taken from a real car...yet. There are several threads here regarding the Revell 1/16 '34 Fords... http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/130357-revell-116-34-ford-whos-built-them/ http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/72178-116-34-ford-coupe-questions/ http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/129563-116-34-ford/

Very nice indeed. Have you seem Model Builder's Warehouse Weber downdrafts? 3D resin printed, exquisite.

Looks like a very young one. There are a lot of 'em around here. They're cute and smart and greedy and extremely destructive. They'll kill kittens and raid bird's nests for eggs and young. They have strong forelegs and sharp claws, are excellent climbers, and will rip and shred wood, insulation, and anything else around to make their homes. They did thousands of dollars worth of damage to my last house before I even realized they were living in the attic and between the cathedral ceiling and the roof skin. They've become a serious problem in Buddhist temples in Japan, where they were popular pets for some time. Buddhists try not to kill animals, even pests, and some of the ancient temples have been heavily damaged. They're moving back into urban areas in the US, and have adapted to living quite well out of dumpsters...so well in fact, that the ones in some parts of Chicago are so overweight, they're developing the same kinds of health problems fat lazy humans get. Last but not least, their feces can transmit a nasty parasite, raccoon roundworms (Baylisascaris procyonis), that can cause blindness and brain damage in humans. Raccoons are cute, smart, and kinda not great to have around. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/07/170724142035.htm

I don't think this one's been mentioned yet...AMT '34 Ford 3-window. It's another one that's so bad, it's not even a parts donor. There is literally nothing in the box that's even close to an accurate rendition of anything on a '34 Ford...with the exception of the body shell itself. And even that takes substantial rework to look decent. Odd that this piece of trash is still on offer for around $50, as a "rare" kit. NOTE: The kit shown below shares NOTHING with AMT's other '34 Ford kits. It's always been a mystery to me why NOBODY ever managed to get a '34 Ford car done right in 1/25 (Monogram's 1/24 kits are decent though). Revell's is way underscale, about the right size for a '34 Fiat. The Monogram snapper's hood is way too short. The two from Aurora have serious proportion and dimension issues. AMT's sedan has lotsa issues, and the 5-window, though not horrible, still takes significant mods to actually look like a '34 Ford. EDIT: I have to go along with the C111 mentioned above, too. It was probably the single worst disappointment I've ever had on opening a model car box. To get an accurate-appearing model, it will be about as much work as starting with a block of wood.

Done.

I asked Santa for an elf. Christmas stockings indeed.

Yeah, all the above. And scrambling common words is rampant, with few folks apparently knowing (or caring about) the difference between to, too and two, its and it's, who's and whose, there, their, and they're, roll and role (I read a car "journalist" the other day rabbiting on about the "roll of the driver"), bowl and boll (someone selling sheets going on about "cotton bowls"), sight and site and cite (how many times I see "web sight" written is beyond belief), pair, pare and pear, and I even saw somebody who obviously meant "kudos" writing "coodles to you". Lotsa folks using apostrophes for plurals too: car's for more than one. I don't know how you can get out of grade school without knowing this stuff, or being able to read and understand written instructions...or ANYTHING...but say something about it, you're the grammar police. Communicating accurately USED to be a sign of having had a decent education, and was part of the ticket to well-paying work. Now it's becoming a lost art. Thing is though, it's not hard, and it helps keep one from instantly seeming to be an idiot. Funny thing on the web a while back, a young office employee got her knickers all wadded up and went home crying to mommy because her boss had the audacity to correct her spelling on a document. In business, it's generally considered advisable to have your written communications reflect a certain level of professionalism, but this girl started screaming her creativity was being "oppressed" by the patriarchy, and that HER way of spelling was as valid as anyone else's. OK. Next. And then there's fractions, percentages, figuring a tip or making change without an app...

Thanks Carl. Yes and no. I have parts and tools and cars spread all over town, so I've been using her to get everything consolidated at a central location for loading a big truck, and getting a transporter pickup arranged for the cars. The old GMC will probably be the last vehicle I'll move, and drive her out West with a light trailer in tow.

PM me your address and I'll send you some.

Remarkable how much "old" information is still as useful as when it was "new".

I really like the styling too. I think it was done during one of GM's styling high-points, as there are a few other GM vehicles from the period that I think stand out. The ride and handling of them always impressed me, for what they were, and more than one non-truck-savvy woman has remarked "gee...this doesn't ride like a truck at all". Close to the end of the time in the US when trucks were still primarily trucks, and not fashion statements. The clean design looks good dressed up and tricked out, and they're big enough to function as a "full size" pickup.

Steve, not a response to the specific post I'm quoting, but I buy the stuff in bulk, always have multiple sizes in stock, as I build custom wiring harnesses. If you know the sizes you think you want, I'll gladly send you some samples to play with so you don't end up having to buy an assortment with a bunch of stuff you don't need.

Steve, I've seen heat-shrink tube anywhere from about .005" to .015" in wall thickness. It depends on the diameter, the manufacturer, country of origin, etc. But you can fine it incredibly cheap on eBay (Chinese)...WAY cheaper than getting it in small sections locally, or from an electronics supply house. Yes, you can build up the diameter easily with the stuff, but each successive layer will soften detail more. The idea above of building up the diameter and then re-wrapping your part with wire, then another layer of shrink, seems to be a very good one if you want to preserve the crispness of the detail.

You're welcome sir.

The real ones are spiral-wound. Wind some fine wire over an appropriate sized flexible base wire. Shrink the appropriate size heat-shrink over all of it. Done. EDIT: Shouldn't this be in "model building questions and answers"?

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2499334.m570.l1313.TR8.TRC0.A0.H0.X1963+Tempest.TRS0&_nkw=1963+Tempest&_sacat=2580

Just made a pot of my world-famous End of the Year Chili. Never the same twice, always including whatever's in the pantry about to go out of date (or what isn't more than a few months past it), the week's leftovers, and whatever meat was on the most deeply-discounted sale. A steaming mess of sweet-hot mouth-searing goodness. Now for the fresh cornbread...

Common-core spelling (and drawing correct inferences from available data) at its finest...not you, the STPO sign. Just wanted to make that clear.

My current daily gas-hog. 305 / 5-speed. She had two cracked heads from being driven with no water by an idiot. I saved her from the crusher for $100, kinda went through the top end, and she's now pushing 300,000 miles. Slated to get a new engine shortly, back-dated to V-belts. For some reason, she's among my absolute all-time favorite vehicles. My "nice" truck, a '92 Silverado in the background, is also getting a new engine shortly (after a lifter exploded, jammed in its bore, and cracked a chunk out of the block at 250,000 miles).

Cars and aircraft...most recently after having also done heavy composite repairs. And a little "art"...

Be sure to include $200 and a self-addressed padded box too.

Ahhhhh...the old rolling stop. I know it well.

I never had to grease the seat to get some togetherness.