Scale Auto October 2017

Once a car guy, always a car guy! Revell, Monogram and Aurora may not have been my first words, but you can be sure that by the time I was 7 or 8 they were a big part of my vocabulary. Those were the car kits I grew up building, and while I built WWI and WWII planes and a few jets, the majority of my model builds were cars. I’ve been a car guy as long as I can remember. I’ll bet you have too. I started by playing with Matchbox cars, the old steel-wheeled ones that were so basic, yet so cool. They represented cars from England and the U.S., which broadened my view of the car world. Next up were the plastic Monogram kits of the 1930s…

Regarding the Sleeper In the April 2016 issue there’s an article written by Bob Downie, about his build of the 1957 Ford Ranch Wagon Sleeper. Where did he get the plastic performance products, wheels and tires he used? -Brian Powers via e-mail Hi Brian, I just got home from a long day playing with Mazda Miatas in the mountains — 500 miles and tons of fun. I purchased the Performance Detail Parts wheels & tires I used from vendors at model shows and at a former hobby shop in South Carolina. They’re available from a number of online retailers, I know my friend Jack Hodgkins at Model Roundup carries the lineup. Great quality stuff. Model Roundup is at: www.modelroundup.com or 888-635-2511 Thanks, Bob Farewells to Jim This is a letter…

I’m a subscriber to Scale Auto and read each issue from cover to cover more than once! I find the Classic Kits column informative. Seeing the August 2017 issue brought back memories of the Mako Shark. Back in the mid-1960s, some U.S. kits were available here in England, but they were expensive and not easy to find. I remember Airfix, the British kit manufacturer, had an arrangement with MPC to repackage some of its kits for the British market. At that time, the Airfix kit range was sold here in the popular chain store, Woolworth’s. I remember the Airfix versions of the MPC kits costing about 30% less, which was quite a lot at that time. In 1966, I remember buying a ’65 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, complete with drag racing…

Welcome to another engaging episode of Tips & Tech. Once again we’re going to begin with my favorite segment, Reader Feedback. Reader Feedback: I read your comments in the June issue and I wondered if recommending the use of MEK (Methyl Ethyl Ketone) for hobby purposes is wise. I fooled with it about 25-years ago, mixing up an MEK/sprue seam filler using MEK obtained from a friend in the aerospace industry. He used it to clean and degrease circuit boards. Later, I asked about the risks. After initially saying it was “pretty safe,” he followed up with a call to let me know how flammable it is and how it will spontaneously ignite now and then. I immediately tossed out my homemade filler. Of course, lacquer thinner and other solvents…

Our tip this time comes from astute modeler Stan Weeden in the U.K. Stan has come up with an impressive method of making automotive light bulbs that add the type of detail we just love. They not only add a perfect touch behind the clear lenses of vintage autos, but they also would look great placed on a workbench as a classy dioramic touch. Here’s how he does it: Remove the outer insulation from a piece of telephone wire to reveal the several single insulated wires inside. Cut off about 1 inch of one strand and remove the sheathing to expose about 1/4 in. of bare wire, then twist the loose wires together. Cut a 3/8-in. x 1/4-in. piece of aluminum foil and wrap it around the sheathing to represent…

Create Leong’s beautiful Hawaiian Roland Leong moved to Southern California from the island of Oahu in his younger years and immediately started building his own dragster. After a terrifying crash, Leong decided to create, not race, and burst onto the pro drag racing scene in 1965 with his famous ocean-blue, rail dragster with “Hawaiian” spelled out on its sides in a bamboo font. With Don Prudhomme as the “hot shoe,” they won the NHRA Winter Nationals in sunny Pomona, Calif. and later the U.S. Nationals. This bundle of victories was a first in drag racing history. Then, to prove it wasn’t just luck, they repeated the performance the next season. This time with Mike Snively piloting the Hawaiian. With Leong’s attention to detail mixed with a lot of polished and…