Monty

What else is there to say? Great job on turning a mediocre kit into a gem. Did you decant & airbrush the paint or spray it straight from the can?

Well, I'm impressed. Looks like a fantastic build with just the right amount of dirt for a rum-runner. The boxes in the trunk are a killer touch. Can you explain how you did them? Pardon the ignorant question, but which kit did you use? I don't have anything pre-1955 in my stash, so I didn't know if it was the Revell version or if you did some very nice work (especially on the trunk) on the AMT.

Absolutely beautiful build. Your paint, detailing and foil work really make your model stand out.

Why would the Toronado have a big block Chevy?

I'm not impressed. It's just another cookie cutter "pressure"-driven derivative of Overhaulin'. "We've got two weeks to polish this t*rd and get it ready for auction" etc. Although the old man seems to have some brains, their profit margins from auctions completed so far have been fairly low & at least one of them sold for well under what they had put into it. The owner's son is a 40-watt mushmouth. During the build of the '64 T-Bird, the car was brought in without an engine. No problem, right? They own a junkyard. Tell me you couldn't swing a dead cat in there and not hit 30 FE engines. (The 390 was standard for '64) But the kid, in his infinite wisdom, ends up sourcing a 351M engine for it ("Cuz it'll have around 300 HP, derrrrrrr") Not only is that not period correct, which probably helped drive some of the more serious bidders away, the 351M is a '70s smog motor that would need aftermarket cylinder heads and a cam change to get anywhere near 300 HP. OTOH, I could live at that 442 museum... I just watched another entry in the auto refurb/auction chain called Car Czar. The shop owner spent over $105,000 restoring a '69 Z28 but let it go at auction for $65K. Wonder how many more losses like that he'll be able to take?

Art, I've got a couple of those AMT Indy kits waiting to be built. Looks like you're doing a great job on yours. Post more pics when you can!

Your best bet is probably scalefinishes.com You can contact him at scalefinishes@gmail.com.

Al, what do you recommend as a black dye for Alumilite flex? A friend of mine is trying to make his own semi tires, but he's convinced that the dye MicroMark recommends is screwing up the process. (Non-dyed castings turn out fine).

http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=34403&st=0&p=349556&fromsearch=1&#entry349556 See post#5

Thanks! Looks like your Deora will need some kind of gold or silver base, as these paints were apparently meant to work over Hot Wheels' polished stampings. Also, the instructions indicate you'll need to build the paint up in light, multiple coats, so it might not hurt to have an extra bottle of paint available. I'm hoping someone who has used these on styrene will pop in and clarify a few things for us.

Drew, your wife had an excellent idea regarding painting the Deora in Spectraflame. As far as quantities go, I'd think a 1/2 ouce bottle would be more than plenty for any 1/24 or 1/25 scale kit. IIRC, these colors were kind of a candy paint; did they give you any recommendations for a base? Gold? Silver? Are these paints lacquers, enamels or acrylics? I'm sure there are others on here who'd be interested in learning about these paints, and I could probably spare you the effort of answering most of these questions if you wouldn't mind giving us a link to your provider.

Welcome to the board! Since you're just getting started, you may find this tutorial helpful http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=30842&st=0. It was written by Mark Taylor (see post #5) and it should help you avoid some of the pitfalls that beginners often encounter, as well as helping you create a better model. You'll find this board has an amazing amount of talented builders to inspire you and a lot of helpful people for almost any model-related question you might have. I hope you and your kids enjoy yourselves!

With a Rebel yell, I said More! More! More! Roger, I happen to like the white/red/blue Machine version best, but you've shown that red/black really make this car pop too! Any engine pics? If Revell would tool up their own version of this kit, I'd buy a case.

Outstanding work! If you have any other cars, feel free to post pics of them too.

BFH?

After seeing this car and the Mustang he posted earlier, it's obvious that we've added another top notch builder to the board. Welcome, and by all means keep posting. Andre', would you mind telling me what paints you used on the Mustang and Fleetline bodies? HOK? Tamiya?

I have this kit but I can't make myself build it because of the sheer number of ejector pin marks. They're everywhere - even on the springs - and I'm just compulsive enough to have to fix them all. I don't doubt that this kit may have been one of the contributing factors behind the decades-long wave of carpal tunnel cases. That, and the fact that I can't figure out how to fix the horizontal seam behind the door that results from joining the upper and lower body halves together. It's disappointing 'cuz the real XKEs are some of my all time favorites. Looks like yours is shaping up nicely, though.

You may spell your first name wrong, but ya sure build some nice models. I've got one of those Eldorados on my to-do list so it's encouraging to see how nicely they can turn out when done by a good builder. Looks like you did some impressive detail work on the speedometer. Would you care to share your technique? Thanks again for posting these pics. I hope mine turns out that nice.

No pics here either.

Post pics of the Eldorado!

This is a pic of my first car, a '72 Slylark. I still think they're great looking cars, and I wish I could have it back. It's always nice to see one done in scale, but almost all are done as pristine GSX models, so yours is kind of a refreshing change (although I'd cringe if I saw a real one in that condition). Excellent job on your weathering. I wouldn't mind seeing a mini tutorial on how you did that, especially the chassis.

My story didn't involve a hospital or doctor visit, but I still remember it clearly. Back in the early '70s, I was using one of these to modify the grille in the GMC Jimmy. Apparently I was pressing too hard because the grille broke and the knife hit the table and ricocheted off it, putting a nasty gash in my thumb. No one else was home so I cleaned the cut with soap and water and wrapped my thumb in paper towels till it stopped bleeding. Fortunately it healed quickly and without complications. I've been very careful with all hobby blades since then.

John E Bowers, JR: Those colors make that car pop! Thanks for the multiple pics. Bart: That AMT '65 was a favorite of mine as a kid. That color looks killer on it as well. Thanks for posting your pic. Looks like Dusty Rose can be used on rounder cars like John's as well as more angular cars like Bart's. I'm still hoping to see some builds done in Ice Blue Pearl.