Ace-Garageguy

OK, I'll buy that. Unfortunately, there seems to be a widespread perception that people in the way-back were all incompetent, and the lack of modern "technology" and apps for everything somehow made all their work excrement...when in fact, the reverse is closer to the truth. I even see this on YouTube, where watchers of what WAS a beautifully-photographed crystal-clear black-and-white movie assume the muddy and pixelated appearance, and jerking, squirming backgrounds and scene changes is the fault of the original, and not the ACTUAL fault of excessive copying and incompetent uploading. There have ALWAYS been hackers doing bubble-gum welds, but it has ALWAYS been from ignorance and apathy, not because in "the old days" we couldn't do any better.

On real cars, many people try to save money by using no-name cheapo clears over their basecoats. In the majority of cases, it's a false economy. I see many cars EVERY DAY where the clear on certain portions of the car that have obviously been "worked on" has failed. This is an extreme example, and not related directly to models, but in general USING EVERYTHING FROM ONE MANUFACTURER IS YOUR BEST BET if you haven't tested all the materials thoroughly. On the other hand, there are some modelers here who use Scale Finishes colors with other manufacturer's primers and possibly clears. Stephen Guthmiller is one such, and the quality of his work speaks for itself. I'd believe anything HE says on the subject.

Got a few more pieces of vintage HO rolling stock recently. I've always been an admirer of GM's Aerotrain Two real ones were built. When some NOS kits and factory painted shells came up, I jumped. No drives or chassis, but I can easily make some up from the multitude of "broken" and mistreated old diesels I've amassed lately. I've been collecting some of the old wooden one-of-five-thousand Ambroid kits too, as well as other makes. The most recent two acquisitions build up to look like this: ...and this: Got a nice pair of NYSW 40' boxcars too:

Broadway Limited makes some very nice locomotives, but $500 is a little steep for what I'm after. I can get a nice running non-fubarred older model for around $100, and something needing work for a LOT less.

Len, here's one thread that partially addresses it...PlastiKote as well as Duplicolor:

Exactly.

When I was in engineering school, I worked as a draftsman for a large mechanical contractor who did industrial projects and high-rise residential and office buildings. My responsibility was laying out form holes in poured concrete floors to accommodate mechanical pass-throughs, and electrical and fluid lines for industrial equipment. On one project, the engineering office in NYC would send revisions almost daily regarding machinery specs and placement, and I had to update the working drawings as quickly as humanly possible. Getting the holes in the slabs wrong would cost my employer and the concrete contractor plenty in reworks, so accuracy and timeliness was critical. I had taken "mechanical drawing" classes in high-school, so I was able to get this job while only a college freshman. The knowledge of what "mechanical drawing" was, and how it related to blueprints and different trades and professions, was common in the high-school I attended. During that period, people who asked me what I did, to whom I replied "I'm a draftsman" knew, without exception, at least kinda what that meant. "Oh...you make blueprints" was the typical response. Today, I still maintain that the concept of "draftsman", whether working with CAD or on a drawing board, is one of those concepts that USED to be general-knowledge, but is now only held in the vocabularies of those directly involved. And when's the last time anyone saw a real blueprint?

The negative changes in the PlastiKote primers were noted here on the forum, and many others, along about the time that the brand was withdrawn from CarQuest, shortly before CarQuest was overrun by Advance, and Duplicolor came in to replace PK. The online-purchased PlastiKote primers I have bear very little resemblance in performance to the plastic-modeler's go-to product of years past.

You're probably right, but even those old guys will make fine looking welds if the base metal is properly prepared, you use the right rod, and you actually know how to weld. And...I believe the old machines are vastly superior to the new versions of the "tombstone". For anyone who's interested, here's a cool old video on the history of electric welding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTzYKTMcmJo

I wonder. In general, young people in 1969 were far more familiar with what a "blueprint" looked like than today...even the concept of doing drawings of manufactured items is now alien to most.

At least in the photo, the craftsmanship appears to be good. The unnecessary kinks in the upper structure that connects the top of the rollover hoop (at the roof area) to the rest of the frame shows a lack of understanding of load paths, however. That frame would be measurably more rigid...and maximum rigidity is what you want in ANY race-car frame...if those upper tubes were straight.

That goes for the people who design the kit parts and tooling, as well. It's worse today than in the 1960s, and I'm rather hoping Revell's new ownership might correct that little oversight...but I'm not going to hold my breath.

Sorry, I don't buy it. I've been welding for more than 50 years, and that bubble-gum-looking mess was no more acceptable back then than it is now. And cars and aircraft that are older than I am don't have anything like that nasty mess either...unless they've been worked on by ignorant hacker morons. Even a correct stick-weld looks like this after the slag is broken off:

Same company, though Bell is gone and Gregg is the publisher and editor now.

I was almost as anal-retentively pedantic as a kid as I'm reputed to be now. Maybe it's PTSD, resulting from the brutalization my innocent psyche suffered when I opened a Palmer kit, that makes me so intolerant when I encounter poorly-designed, engineered, or proportioned anything today.

Still there: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Habitat_67 Somewhat similar ideas in high-density housing have been proposed...and built...using recycled shipping containers:

Exquisite work, and a fine illustration that even an "old" and relatively simple kit can become a knockout model if 1) the basic proportions are spot-on, and 2) the builder goes the extra mile to get everything just right. The re-work you did on the windshield frame is a huge improvement (I'm quite familiar with this kit), and the tire substitution gets the look right for what an early car might have been shod with in the pre-radial era. Everything about this model is superb. Most impressive.

2K clear simply means it's a two-component system, the components being the clear itself, and a hardener / activator. There's often a reducer too, a "thinner", that helps to achieve spraying consistency. 2K clear is usually an acrylic urethane or polyurethane, and the hardener is isocyanate-based...so it's BAD to get in your lungs. RESPIRATOR MANDATORY, even if you have a booth that vents to the outdoors. GLOVES AND EYE AND SKIN PROTECTION HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. It typically sprays considerably thicker than clears developed specifically for models, and though I've used it extensively on real cars, I've never felt the need to go to so much trouble for a model.

Yes, that was the party line at the time. Also at the time, the inability of the Challenger I to make its return run (to clinch the official Land Speed Record) after clocking 406.6 MPH one way was blamed on a gearbox failure. Now, it looks like it may have actually been an engine failure, but Thompson didn't want to put the blame on a partner he received considerable cooperation from. The gearboxes in the car were essentially junkyard-sourced LaSalle units. The engines, supplied by Pontiac, may have been test units that had already had a hard life before being delivered to Thompson. I had hoped to have met and talked extensively with his son Danny by now, but so far, I haven't been able to due to other commitments. Whatever the real reason, Mickey Thompson's achievement ranks as one of the most significant events in the history of hot-rodding.

Cool. Nice work. First car I ever race-prepped, for a sedan class in SCCA.

If I remember correctly, the 421 uses larger main journals than the 389. The 421 also had 4-bolt main caps. This would necessitate a different block casting, though they are very similar visually (on the outside). EDIT: Yup. Checked it. Definitely different. The 421 is beefier in other areas as well.

Very nice job on that.

Certainly worth waiting for, though. Love the concept.

Well...