Fat Brian

The T bird also changed body styles between 88 and 89 and the new body was supposed to be more aerodynamic. 88 89

I can't get you a specific measurement but I can tell you the headlights that car uses are 6 1/2 inches wide and 4 1/4 inches tall. Now that we've got some references it looks like the set back of the outer lights is about 2 1/2 inches. If you cast those I'd be in for a couple of pairs, I've got a couple of those kits I want to fix a bit as well.

Gary's email is still the same, he only takes orders and payments through snail mail though so check or money order only.

I do my best to buy from Hobby Lobby with their 40% off coupon but several kits I really want didn't end up there so I'm going to have to bite the bullet I guess. I do a lot of kitbashing so sometimes one build required several kits to complete so I do everything I can to find my donor kits cheaply. When I have to pay full price for a kit it definitely limits the number that I end up with.

Someone in the last week or two was in touch with Daniel, he has recently moved and is still getting his shop setup but he might have some already cast parts laying around.

I need some measurements of parts of the Hobby Boss M4 tractor, specifically the diameter of the road wheels and the rear idler/return wheel. I need to recreate an M4 high speed tractor chassis in 1/25 and while 1/35 Sherman tracks scale out to the right width in 1/25 I think the road wheels might be too big. I'm wanting to replicate the Virginia Beach Beast.

You'll be able to use the frame from the race car hauler kit, you'll just have to shorten it a bit but don't do that until you've got the extended hood in hand because you'll have to move the cab back to use the new hood. Of the engines Leo mentioned above the easiest to get your hands on is the 3406, it's in the Revell W900 Aerodyne kit and the Pete 359 with the 36" sleeper. A walking beam rear end can be found in the AMT Diamond Reo, White-Western Star, Road Boss, and Titan 90 kits, the Titan has the best spoke style wheels but it's getting hard to find cheap again.

Wow, that is a beautiful model, truly outstanding.

Yeah, when I dug it out it looked a lot better than I remembered. I need to try to find the Chevelle grill again so I can get it to fit right now that my skills have improved.

Okay, here are some shots of my unfinished conversion that might help you along. I cut everything a bit long and used the Chevelle hood to locate the headlight surrounds. The Chevelle grill is too narrow to fit so in the pics is the grill from the 70 Monte Carlo which I don't really like. I need to dig out the Chevelle grill again and see what it would look like to add strips in between the lights and grill because it's only about 1/8 inch too narrow so a couple thin strips might fix it up.

Yep, because I've already bought 5 kits of practically the same truck so they'll need to bring something else to the party to get me to buy more than one or two of the 4xx4 now.

There isn't enough difference between the 71 and 72 to justify buying one, especially if you already have a 69 and 70 as well. They should have made the 72 the first 4x4, they wouldn't be able to keep them on the shelves if they had.

They've just built two brand new stores near me so if they're losing money they sure don't show it, if anything they're putting Michael's out of business in my area. Michael's hasn't built anew store near me since Hobby Lobby moved in and they've actually downsized a few existing locations.

I attempted this conversion years ago with the AMT 68 El Camino and AMT 70 SS 454 Chevelle. I cut both kits right in from of the front wheel wells and swapped the 70 headlight surrounds on but the 68 body is so wide the Chevelle grill won't fit without huge gaps on each side so I tried the 70 Monte Carlo grill which fit better but didn't look quite right. I never finished it because of the ill fitting parts but I'll see if I can get some pictures of it up for you.

The Can Do lift axle is the non-steering/following type and they typically have duals or super singles, the type that do steer/follow have a single wheel mounted like the front tires.

P&P is kind of in limbo, if you call the number on the site a woman does answer and has some stuff but I don't know if it's old stock or new stuff being made. The easiest source of a 12v71 is the Superboss kit that's out now, if you have a Hobby Lobby near by it's about $25.

I know how it is, we're all our own worst critics.

This is truly incredible, the deeper you look the more there is to see.

From my understanding the kit replicates a 71 with a 302 but the instructions show a minor modification to the air cleaner that converts it to a 73.

The spec sheet for the modern version says it has two Volvo D16 engines. http://www.rosenbauer.com/fileadmin/sharepoint/products/airportvehicles/panther/TEST_Datenbltter/PANTHER_8x8_HRET_Hannover_en.pdf

What year is this fictional bootlegger operating in, that will greatly affect the options available.

I've built the Freightliner, it's not bad but take the time to true up the frame crossmembers. The mating surfaces are a little wonky out of the box and some time with a sanding stick makes a huge difference. What I do is once I have all the crossmembers and frame rails ready I tack the crossmembers in one rail with tube glue and then pop the other rail on and soak both sides in Tenax or Tamiya thin then sit it on a nice flat surface and square it up to dry.

I have around 20 of the AMT USA-1 monster truck kit I use for donors, and 14 of the Lindberg Ramminator kits for the same purpose. For kits I actually intend to build in some resemblance of the box contents I have 6 California Hauler kits.

In my opinion the best square body GM truck is the MPC/AMT version currently out as the Deserter 4x4 truck, I think it's an 84 model. The same basic truck was available as a 77-80 style step side in various kits but they are pretty pricey for untouched kits. A cheaper option for an early truck is the 1/25 Revell kit, it's a 77 step side and was out most recently in a box that says Hot Rod with a black truck with red exhaust pipes on it. The cab is a bit lacking in the window area compared to the MPC piece bit it's significantly cheaper too. The cab will go with the bed from the Deserter kit if you want a fleet side truck. There is also a fleet side long bed available in resin from Morgan Automotive Detail.

I've got other plans this weekend now.