popeye the sailor

you did a nice job on this one as well.......looks sharp!  well done on the engine and paint work  

...and with an adjustable spoiler.........you did a super fine job!  this is a great scale to do some really cool things   

good stuff!.........there are so many that can do amazing work!  

I built the 'big beautiful girl' some time back........didn't end up as the intended model,  but it still looks good.  I have the inner gear door open......if I had known that     always liked this plane.......looks good no matter how you dress 'em up     those gears are more resilient than you think.......dropped that model a couple of times........the gear doors came off! {go figure}  she's a little dusty,  but I did the paint with a brush.

I remember the days when there was no rivets at all.........or panel lines.   the plastic was a silver laced gray.......white......a sort of turquoise....black..... .and a cream color........oh,  and red {I just recalled one model I did}.  your process looks a lot smoother......great job   

it's hard to do striping,  unless it can be done with everything apart....I get the similar overspray and seepage here and there.  ya did good  

thanks OC.........I have so many blog....... Blogger......Word Press,  and Weebly.  most of them are build logs,  but whenever I found something that was worth writing about,  I would.  I love to write.......I think you'll get a kick out of it   

it's a nice kit.......the hard plastic for those who like that sort of thing.  another thing I found out,  was that in 1958,  the Belvedere and the fury was the same model car......one had different features than the other.  the body was the same style.  in 1959,  the body styles went their separate ways and became their own distinct models.  I though it odd,  during the research and again when I saw the name Belvedere molded into the rear quarter panels.  there's little flash to deal with.  I've done some clean up to the body,  as well as assembling the main parts of the engine

for some reason,  the sprue with the exhaust parts is warped.  above,  I cut out the cast off tabs on the body,  and assembled part of the front suspension.  note the Ghost through the rear trunk deck.

the tires are assembled...just a little touch ups for the back sides of the rims.......they should roll.  they have a button style insert that shouldn't be cemented.  I won't be dechroming any of the plated parts...the balance is pretty good.

the dominant color is red,  but I'll still paint.  if it was a dark plastic.....you could likely get away with it,  but with light colored plastics,  it has a sort of transparency,  that can be a turn off.  when I was younger,  I never gave it much thought.........if I only knew then what I know now   

these are the decals........they scream pro mod........either that,  a stock car     the only ones I will use,  are the license plates.  more on this soon

just for chucks and grins,  I looked at the movie bio,  to see what really happened to produce a possessed car.  you would thing that someone connected with the building of the car,  would be the root.  true.......two auto plant workers died because of the car,  but it had already been built,  being prepped and readied to be driven out of the plant.  so how did the car become possessed?   ........a rogue fan belt.........self conscious body.......disgruntled radio....hard to say.  they don't even give any reason........all that is known is that as long as the car is driven and loved,  it's happy.  it does tend to change the present owner to the reflection of it's evil self,  before it ultimately kills them.  unloved.......and the car falls into disrepair,  until some other sap shows up..........didn't have to work too hard on Arnie  

no.......sorry,  not my son..........he has a Santa Fe.........that's bad enough  

here is a kit with an interesting story.  I have been fascinated about the history of models and the molds that made them....companies going out and the new ones that take their place.  Companies change hands and molds move around even faster.  take the 1:72 Fujimi Stuka I built a while ago........three other companies produced that very same model.  this is also a prime example of how companies repurpose molds to suit other model subjects.  I started writing blogs on this subject.....this particular model is the second installment.  it all began........

the admiral and I were at Michael's craft store this past week.......she likes to do puzzles and wanted some puzzle glue,  so she could mount one she liked.  there was confusion over the frame for it,  so the idea was to get exact measurements of the puzzle,  so to get the correct frame.  honest......I didn't say anything.....but she said that we could look at the models too {she knows my obsession well}.  looking them over......they were kinda scant for anything really interesting....Hobby Lobby has a better selection,  although I think they are even thinking of dropping the idea of carrying models.  I was deciding between two of them,  when the admiral pointed to Christine........the AMT logo quite prominent.   the art is what caught my eye.......looking it over,  my mind started to wander.........this would make a really cool looking pro modified   I shouldn't have said it out loud though,  because the admiral got negative about the idea,  stating that she wanted to see her as intended.  

buzz kill!  this kit would be perfect.......it even includes decals!  of course,  I didn't know what the decals looked like,  but I'm sure they pertained to the subject at hand.  the subject of movie cars {and trucks} is pretty extensive in the modeling medium,  although there are only a handful of movies about angry autos.  you don't see the Plymouth Valiant that Dennis Hopper drove in the movie "Duel".......instead,  you see Ghostbusters,  the Dukes of Hazard,  Night Rider, The A Team, Rambo.........the list goes on.  yes....and for all you do-gooders.........Batman!    Christine to me.......is right up there with "Carrie"....good scary fun.

   Anyway.....we got home,  and right away,  my mind was going.......where does this model come from?  I found that the model is actually produced by Round 2,  but why the AMT logo?  well......firstly.....keen to note that Round 2 models are actually made in China...they make that clear by an ink stamp copyright,  instead of the mold imprinted date stamp that older model manufacturers did.....still do if viable.  Round 2 tends to remove them,  which makes it harder to trace their history.

    I looked up the model on Scalemates.......this subject in an old one.  Johan came out with the first on the subject in the late 50's.  it seems that Johan and AMT started out as die cast toy makers........they also made promo models for car dealerships.  they were metal with an automotive finish,  that gave the customer a visual experience when buying cars.  some time after the plastic model kit craze started,  AMT produced this model kit in 1983.

I am not familiar with this series,  but I looked at some finished models,  and the way that the carbs and high hats protrude from the hood,  made me wonder if there was an engine in there.  there was a period of time where a lot of the detail {engine and undercarriage} was molded,  meaning a lower parts count.  of course....during this time,  modelers were clamoring for the more detailed model,  and the model medium was evolving at a very fast rate to make them happy. 

     AMT also had a snap together kit of this subject as well......I may have seen that instead...dunno.   not seeing a definite date stamp makes this hard to confirm, but I'm pretty sure these are the molds where Christine comes from.  one can probably tell by the sprue numbers.......I dared not go to that extreme,  since the admiral was getting perplexed with my obsession as it was.  but.......if your going to go out on a limb....you may as well do it for a good reason!    looking further down the time line,  in 1993,  Revell produced the model I envisioned......the Richard Earle's '58 Plymouth Fury pro modified "Christine"! 

you guessed it...... all hell broke loose!  Amazon and E-bay was first......E-bay had two.......a broken kit for $30.00,  and another for $65.00.  E-mailing the guy about the complete kit took time,  so I looked in Etsy and Mecari....they had nothing.  I even sent an e-mail to Alan Bussie @ old model kits.  meanwhile,  the seller from E-bay replied that the model had already been sold.........shaz-but!   Alan replied that he had only handled one such kit in his business's existence,  and since his enterprise has grown as large as it has,  he had stopped doing reserves.  as my efforts were falling around me,  like Army men,  I thought of the last ditch remedy for the itch I have,  and it was pointing towards buying the broken kit and scratch producing the parts I needed.  I took another look in E-bay and saw another one.......this one was listed at $80.00 {time to get the taste tester,  me thinks}.  I hit the 'buy it now'......and I got it....much to the chagrin from the budget director.  the reply notification came quickly.........I got it!    checking the tracking number provided,  I could see the model by Thursday,  the 10th............the postal service being my friend {at the moment},  delivered it on the 8th.......yesterday! 

doing the traditional parts check,  seeing that along the the bottom box side panel,  it appears to have been razor cut,  I'm happy to report that all the parts are here.  whoever owned it assembled part of the engine and a few other aspects without painting anything........a bit of a cliffhanger,  but not too tough a challenge,  I'm hoping.  there are some parts that are chrome plated,  that require paint,  so I will need to do some chrome removal.  I've already taken the engine apart........good thing the person wasn't into scraping the chroming off the parts before gluing    the intake manifold did break though....not too serious,  but enough that I didn't want to use it........  as luck would have it,  I happened to have the exactly manifold in my spare parts box!  I've done a few more things,  but I'll save it for the log {I've got some pictures too}.  when the rolling of the credits was done,  and the admiral was calmer.......as I was tinkering with the model,  she asked if there would be any more surprises.......I guess she meant,  "is that it?"   "dunno.........there could be a sequel

hello gents.......her are a few more pictures of the tank.......almost forgot I took these.   they were still in the camera.   I did the odds and ends,  like highlight the grates and rear vents with flat black.........headlights........tools and cables.......just finish things.  the decals are on it now,  but I've yet to do the weathering thing......I will when I calm down.  frantic search....don'tcha know  

yep.......been kinda crazy 'round here........enough that I truely believe that the admiral wanted to kill me   but I persevered   there is quite a story here.....so much so,  that I even wrote a blog about it..  I'll tell ya the story in the next log   {you'll love it J}

the size of the model is what knocks me out!  your ability to go this small Greg amazes me.....it's absolutely beautiful!  I find this scale confusing......there are the 1:350 that are around three feet long........and then there are these.  how is this so?

...or routine maintenance     looks very nice!

superbly done!  

love to try camo like that.........daunting     you have such cool pictures!  

look'in good.......I see it comes in a tube.  how do you put it on....brush or rag?

cool....you can't have enough subjects to test your theories on    especially when most P51's were bare metal to begin with.  good to see you decided to take a walk down Nostalgia road with me     if you really want to go down the hole.......the Atlantis kits I bought had rivets that you could cut your fingers on    as said,  there are plenty of upgrade kits that you can get to spice them up......but they can be aggravating to install.  these are nice kits though....no doubt that you'll do well with her  

   oh I'm all set Patrick.......I was just referring to your rather hefty parts stash    these older kit surely can benefit from a stash such as yours,  and I'm aware you dwell in the world of 1:72.  I actually had fun with those two tiger tanks.......I can see why you like that particular scale.

these older molds were acquired by companies like Round 2 and Atlantis.......I'm sure there are others.   so far from what I've experienced,  no retooling has been done to any of the kits I've purchased.  rest assured that there will be plenty of nostalgia out there for everyone!   

well hello J.........good to see your look'in in    actually,  I wasn't planning to do any weathering on it........no camo for it to speak of.  I could have done more....like hollow out the muzzle and choke on the gun.  but I did highlight the venting on the deck and back end.  come to think of it.......I did buy 2 bottles of Testor's CreateFX........bottle of mud stain and a bottle of rust stain.  perhaps I will have a go........good that you caught me before I took the gallery pictures   

wait till you see what I just bought?!?!?!

look'in really sweet Kevin.  you can also do a browse in your local craft stores.   you might find leather strip in rolls,  or you may be able to find bags of leather odds and ends pieces

too much thinner perhaps?  the spots are tell-tail for spatter.

thanks for the head's up Ken.......there is some nice history that goes along with the decals    I book marked it !

thanks Egilman and Ken     yea....the fix for the lead bogies went well.   I ran a hollow brass tube through the body,  and then the brass rod through that......the rod was the same size as the I.D. of the tube.  compensated with a pair of spacers,  slid on the bogies and hub caps,  and that took care of it.  

   I didn't do any painting to hide anything..... with the tracks on,  the repair can't be seen at all!  big win!   older kits aren't really that bad.......if one has a stash of parts like backer has,  you got it made    there is a lot of upgrade stuff out there,  if you want to add extra detail.  I didn't do any filling of seam lines......the underbelly was the worst of it,  and if it's not picked up,  it won't be seen    it is pretty much done now.......I should have final pictures soon.

  I'll make sure I do them in better light    thanks for look'in in.....with all the projects I have on the go,  I was hesitant posting it.  but with all the tanks that have been showing up,  I couldn't help it {curse you OC}.........

I should get back to Leopold.........I may just do some scratch building,  to make use of those tanks  

looking good OC.......weathering looks really nice!

that a nice looking luggage rack on the back of the turret.......really nice detail     paint looks great  

thanks OC......I'm in the process of modifying the lead bogies.      it's a good fix........ran a hollow shaft through the body.  ran a longer solid shaft through the hollow tube.......a pair of spacers,  and put on the bogies and hub caps.  the tracks are back on already!  I'm not particularly happy with the drive gears, because they are a bit wobbly too,  but the heck with it..........if they have a problem down the road,  I'll deal with it then.     this tank was the third and final tank built in the Patton series.  named after George Patton...it had to be tough         

after the track issue was finished,  the top deck was cemented in place.  I had it upside down on a box with enough weight on it to counter the residual warp that might still be there.  that went well.......both sides stayed down.  but the track problem isn't solved completely    because of how tight they are,  it might take longer,  but I fear that either the leading ......or even the drive gear bogies would finally break.  well folks.........the leading bogies have enough of an alignment issue that they might become the weak link.  I have some thicker brass rod........I'm going to see if I can modify them and keep them movable at the same time.  perhaps I can even reposition them to produce even a little extra slack    we'll see how that goes........