Monty

I would think this would be a huge success for, say, Revell or Moebius, especially if they offered a correct series engine and a more detailed chassis. If memory serves, JoHan occasionally put the wrong year interiors in some of these as well, so having that corrected would be great as well.

I love creating memes for the Off Topic and Politics sections of other boards I frequent. To that end, I've gotten fairly good at finding pictures that help "sell" the message, but the (few) meme generators I've tried (mostly memedad) can't seem to work with .gifs. The motion freezes once you start inputting text. Is there a better meme generator out there that will work with .gifs?

Words fail me in expressing how much I hate that thing. Here's the one I owned for 20 years.

Age-wise, that looks like it would be a possible stablemate for the original Mako Shark (1961?)

A couple kits that kinda resemble the picture you posted. MPC's kit goes back to 1966 and has been rereleased a number of times. From what I've seen in various model forums, about half of them show the builder had an issue making the hood fit down properly on the lower fenders. As much as I'd love to build this car, I'm not sure my "plastic surgery" skills could correct an issue like that. The other one (there may be more, IDK) is a 1/32 kit from Monogram. I only recently learned it existed, and it may actually be a re-boxed Aurora kit. (Monogram had also acquired the molds for some 1/25 Aurora kits and released them in the '70s under their own label.)

IIRC, it's a Mako Shark

Wow, you certainly did have a prolific, creative year! Lotsa eye candy here, but this one stands out to me Would you mind telling me which exact paint (ex: Model Master #1319) you used? I've been looking for that shade for an upcoming build but hadn't seen anything close. Thanks!

Congrats on another great build! That may be one of my all time favorite shades of gold. Question: I looked up these HOK paints and they're way out of my price range. Even the 4 oz bottle is over $35.00. Is there a cheaper way to buy these or do I just need to suck it up and save up?

I guess I see the list I'm looking for as being similar to 1:1 hot rodding, which more or less started off with people modifying flathead engines up to the point where American car companies started offering OHV engines. Now, if I understand it correctly, you can buy 1,000 hp cars ("Corvette and Mopar) off the showroom floor. Yeah, T-Jets weren't the fastest HO cars ever, but what, at the time, was faster? Maybe a Tyco with better rear tires? Just like the original small block Chevy, Aurora Magna-Traction cars could be "rodded" (properly matched and shimmed magnets, better armature etc) to absolutely fly, but just like the 1:1 cars (LS V8 engines), better things evolved. My knowledge of the hierarchy drops off after the late '70s and the advent of the first series of G-Plus cars. I guess I'm wondering if anyone knows the stairsteps from that point to Wizzards.

Thanks guys! Gotta love a cheap, easy solution!

I'm one of those people who've gotten to the place where they really detest chromed molded-in headlights and want to replace them instead of trying to doctor them up with paint etc. The biggest issue I've run into is finding a rounded, concave item to attach the lens to. Example: I've heard of people using the "baby moon" hubcaps from AMT's '56 Ford for this, but I'm hoping to find something more readily available. Any ideas? If you have a source for appropriately sized lenses with correct-looking striations I'd appreciate a link for that as well.

MCW probably offers Indian Fire Metallic in a lacquer, which I know you prefer. They also have it in enamel https://www.ebay.com/itm/225214195940 That said, it sounds like you solved the puzzle by identifying the period-correct color. I posted my answer just in case yours wasn't readily available.

The Gaahleri Swallowtail comes with .28, .5 and .7 needles. Review:

Steve, if you or he can't come up with that paint, how close is Ford's Indian Fire Red?

I've been away from HO racing for a couple decades now but I occasionally check out some YouTube videos and eBay listings just to see what's out there. Growing up, I was aware of the Aurora Vibrators series, but never owned any as the T-Jets had replaced them by the time I started. At some point ('71?) Aurora came out with the slightly larger-bodies A/FXs, while Tyco had the Tyco II (2-button pickup) chassis. Aurora's Magna-Traction cars were my favorites (fast and easy to work on) while the G-Plus cars (late '70s?) were a whole 'nuther level of fast, but not as easy to work on. I don't know the specific timelines but Tyco had the HP7 and 440X2s out, and they seemed to run decently, but after buying a Marchon set, racing was almost boring (tons of speed, perfect magnets - never lift). Shortly after, I kinda dropped the hobby and pursued my 1:1 car interests. I see now there are replica T-Jet chassis (with or without a traction magnet) X-traction cars (Magna-Traction twins that are slightly less powerful), Super G-Plus, Mega G-Plus, Wizard, Bulldog (best?) and probably a dozen more I haven't heard of. How would you rate the various chassis that existed and/or now exist?

I'd heard that Tamiya panel liner could damage enamel paint jobs* because it's based on enamel reducer. This is a concern to me because 95% of the paint I use is enamel. Any truth to this, and if so, what would work better on enamels? *I did a little research on my own & came across some Brit modeling sites where this was being discussed because it was eating their paint (Humbrol enamels) or in a few extreme cases cracking the actual plastic on their gundams.** **Don't know if that's the correct term and reeeeeaaallllyyy don't care.

I don't know much about this aspect of our hobby but I wondered if there might be a market for what I'm going to propose. 3D printing seems to be the new path to obtaining cars and parts that were previously unattainable, but (speaking for myself) not all of us can afford the printers and some (me) seem to suck at technical things. My question was whether I could buy a file and send it to someone to print out and ship to me for a fee. I've seen a few YouTube videos of models that were 3D printed that no model company is ever going to tool up, but I can't swing the buy-in on the printer. If what I'm proposing is already available, I'd appreciate any article you can provide that explains the process and maybe who to use.

Every bit as enjoyable as the last one you posted. I was curious about something though. Why do you think there were so many intentionally misspelled words? For example, look at the wording on the front of Santa's rocket sled. It's not like they're trying to avoid copyright issues 'cuz those wouldn't come into play here.

The show existed before the lineup of Clarkson, May and Hammond but wasn't anywhere as entertaining. The best and final version may have resulted from a change in writers and producers, but the final product was some of the best television I'd ever seen. (The memory of 6'5" Jeremy Clarkson driving that tiny Peel P50 through the halls of the BBC just popped into my mind). By contrast, after giving it a chance, I felt the American version of the show was nothing short of unwatchable and best reserved for repeated airings in the holding cells of death row prisoners (Yeah, yeah, 8th amendment, I hear ya).

Leon, glad to hear you're pleased with your new 'brush, especially when spraying enamels, as they are almost always my go-to paints. Some say the optional fan cap (+/- $25) makes the whole process even better.

IMNSHO, MPC wasn't known for going the extra mile detail-wise on most of their kits, but like JoHan, their classic cars are a whole 'nuther matter. Kudos for clean assembly and great paintwork.

They've issued Goodyear Polyglas and Firestone Wide-Oval tires in packs before, so we know it's possible. While these are convenient when sold this way, more often than not the tires are all one size & usually not that much bigger than stock. That's where sidewall decals from Fireball Modelworks and the Dutch guy come in.

Thanks for chiming in. That's good to know. Nice to see a little more variety in the tires offered in kits. If I'm not able to score a set on eBay I'll see if someone here is interested in doing a trade.

A friend of mine just told me they're probably sidewall decals from our favorite Dutch guy, Xrayniner (?) who happens to sell that design among others Unlike the 1:1 tires, these aren't likely to be recalled 😁