1992 Brett Bodine Quaker State Thunderbird Completed!

My 100th NASCAR model! Finished 7/12/2017, this car was chosen to be my 100th completed 1/24 plastic NASCAR model because it is this car, in 1/64 scale diecast, that was the first NASCAR race car I ever had in my collection. it was chosen in the summer of 1992 because it was green. This is a Monogram kit with AMT kit decals, and a big thank you goes to Mike Herman of Mike's Decals, who helped me out when my only copy of the decal sheet was defective. All the numbers and sponsor graphics are doubled. contingencies come from the kit decals (in retrospect a poor choice), PowerSlide, JNJ, UpScale and Blue Ridge. I was unable to find a second copy of the Gilette contingency for the right side. Included in the post are the original Marchbox car that kicked off my love of the sport at 7 years old, and a reference photo of the real car that I based the decal placement on, which I believe is Daytona 500 1992.
I began building NASCAR models in 2004, finally feeling my skills were ready, though I have lost some of the skills I once had, I am still trying. I began working on this body back in 2011, I wrote it on the inside of the trunk! It has been my one and only modeling "new year's resolution" to get model #100 for three years running now, and I can finally say I've accomplished it!

 It was also the first model I used the new Molotow Chrome pen on- it appears on the fuel filler, hubs, dashboard and fire extinguisher.

Completed! 1992 Terry Labonte Sunoco Oldsmobile

It sure feels good to complete a model again! I've been in a huge rut and the last NASCAR model I finished was back in April 2014. I finished this one on 8/20/16, it represents the car Terry Labonte drove during the 1992 season- specifically modeled on the car he drove in The Winston. I set my goal for 2015, and carried it over into 2016, to finish NASCAR model #100 during the year, and now I am pretty close to that mark. For now, though, I will just be happy looking at this one! It's not my best work, there are definitely things I could have done better, but for the first time I've worked on anything in over 2 years, I can't really complain.

1992 Terry Labonte Sunoco Oldsmobile Progress

Yeah, I actually have a progress report! It feels good to write that. I have not had much progress to show on anything in a very long time; the last time I really worked on a NASCAR model was 2014. I've been stuck at 98 completed NASCAR models and I have set a goal for the past two years to hit #100. I didn't get that far but I DID get #99 almost done today. The body has been painted and ready to go for over a year, the chassis mostly ready as well, but I stalled out anyway.

Last night I decided to pull it out and work on it again, and I was able to make a LOT of progress. I got almost all the decaling done, but I was not able to finish because I had to paint the black on the C pillars, which I did after I finished decaling today. I also have not done the tire decals yet. Once the paint (clear on the latter) dries in a few days I will be able to finish decaling. I have 9 decals left so it won't take long. I have to paint the suspension, finish the windows, paint the cowl, find, paint and install a seat (I've lost THREE in the process of this build since 2014) and then it will be done.

What I brought home from the 2016 NNL East

I normally wait and post the things I got after the show pictures, but I decided to do it a little differently this year.

This is my 16th NNL East, and for the first time ever I made a shopping list of things I wanted to purchase. This was sparked by last year wanting to get something and, by the time I got to that dealer's table, it was sold out. This year, I made sure that didn't happen by making sure to go to that dealer before I even put my models on the table!

The #1 thing on my want list this year was the new Edsel Roundup from Jimmy Flintstone. He just came out with it recently, and as I am a huge Edsel nut, I had to have it. I already know what color I am going to paint it and as soon as I can get my hands on another AMT 1958 Edsel kit (you supply the hood, and a Revell 57 Ford Wagon for other parts, which I will also need to procure) it will be started. I dream of owning a real Edsel wagon, albeit in 4-door form, but I will buy pretty much any Edsel kits that are made.

The kit I missed out on last year was also from Jimmy Flintstone, he came out with a 1957 Ford Ranchero, which is a drop on conversion for the Revell 1957 Ford sedan or wagon.

I didn't realize he did two versions, with different trim levels. I couldn't decide which one I wanted, so I ended up getting them both!

I still can't decide which one I like better. I will attempt to build both of them soon. (my attempts to not always lead to success, and sometimes I do buy stuff to stash for later hoping my skills will improve)

I also got a resin conversion for converting 1989-92 Luminas to 1993-94 Luminas. The 1993-94 kit is much rarer than the earlier kit, and all that's needed to change them is the bumpers. These have fill pieces on the back bumper, because the kit bumper, which this is based on (but modified) is a horribly inaccurate piece. I didn't even notice that the extensions were there until I got back to my hotel room where these photos were taken.

I also got all the decals I planned to get, and then a couple more I didn't plan to, but once I saw them, I could not pass them up. I have not scanned them and I forgot to photograph them (I was working on 2 hours sleep and 10 hours of model show by this point...) so you'll just have to wait to see the builds! :)

For kits, I didn't plan to buy any, but, well, anyone who's been to a model show knows that planning to not buy any kits and not actually buying any kits are two different stories!
I didn't buy this one though. A friend who I met at the NNL East several years ago won it at a door prize and knowing how much I am into building NASCAR, gave it to me! I was not expecting that at all, but it's much appreciated!

AMT cheaped out on the decals and didn't include the yellow striping on the nose! Typical of all AMT 1990s NASCAR kits, the decals seem to be sized more for the 1/24 Revell kits rather than their own 1/25 kits.

Another friend of mine saw a previous post, where I mentioned getting my first Hubley kit. He gave me a Packard from Hubley that's started but all there. These kits are daunting, and I don't know if I'm quite up to building them yet. I have two now and I'm going to have to try at some point!

Ollie's stores have models, and they are on sale for $8. We don't have any Ollie's around us, but a friend and fellow TNMCC member does, so he grabbed an El Camino for me. I am known as El Camino Billy, but I never got a copy of this issue of the kit. (I have built one of the original issue, and have another in progress, but this boxing is new to me). This is not the first time he has helped me out when I needed it; years ago when I destroyed the windshield for a Tamiya Volkswagen Beetle, he hand delivered me a replacement!

Having friends in the hobby is awesome, truly.

I wasn't planning on buying this kit at all, ever. But, Revell was there at the show and talking to them, I didn't get a very good feeling that the non-prepainted NASCAR kits we were promised are actually going to happen, so I got one from Mike's Decals, the #1 source for NASCAR kits and decals. (This is not a paid advertisement- it's the truth!)

I'm going to have to learn how to strip plastic...

Lastly, but the first two kits I bought....were two of the Revell Highway Pioneers! I've wanted to get my hands on them for a while, and was literally just thinking about them the night before the show. Low and behold, there they were...the first time, in my 16th year at the show, that I've ever seen a single unbuilt one of the kits, and then there were two of them!
They use a single box for 5 different kits, I got the 1909 Stanley Steamer and the 1910 Buick.

The Series II kit dates to 1952...making the Series 1 kit the oldest kit in my collection, I believe. I don't know what year it was issued- I would have to locate my copy of the Directory for that- but it has to be before 1952. My oldest kit before yesterday's show was from 1954, I believe, but I do have some old ones that were not dated anywhere on the box or instructions.

The kits are still sealed inside, but I would really like to build them. The question is, can I? The tires have melted and may have taken a few parts with them. Between the two kits I have only a few usable tires. I will need to find out if anyone makes replacements.

Not pictured: I also picked up another Dinner Bell kit, also from Mike's Decals. I've got a bunch of them, and I needed more. I love the 1988-92 Oldsmobile and I want to build a lot of them. I added a new set of decals from Mike for the kit, so I got one- he only had one there, or else I would have gotten more. I will probably mail order some from them if my skills hold out well enough for me to not get frustrated and say "The heck with it" for a while.

Every person who went to the NNL also got a cool mug celebrating the 30th Anniversary of the show. We got two of them as both my mom and I went to show. At least one of them will see regular use for years to come; I rarely drink anything that's not water but when I do this will probably be my go-to now.

I didn't think to use both for the pictures though, I took three photos of one mug and combined them with PhotoScape. I also used one of them to get the resin Lumina bumpers home safely as well (resin still in the bag!). It worked perfectly.

And that's it! It's a far cry from my earliest years of the NNL- I once brought home 45 kits from a single day- but my days of buying things like crazy are well past. I came home with everything on my shopping list, and then some, but I didn't spend more than I wanted to.

Jeff Gordon 2004 Brickyard 400 Winner

With today being Jeff's last Cup race, I thought it would be a good time to show the only model of his I've ever successfully completed...even if I didn't do a very good job. The blue I chose is far too dark. I wish I could remember which color I used, so I know not to use it again.

I was working on sanding off the molded in lower grill on the nose, and sanded through the bottom of it. Luckily, Jeff hit some debris that took a chunk of the nose off in pretty much exactly the same spot. Close enough for me! The only change it required for me to make was to add the Brickyard 400 decal to the tires.

I've tried to build several of Jeff's cars- I've started a half dozen of them- but they always run into some issue...the same issue...paint issues, which drives me insane and is mostly why I've stopped building.

Yes, this one got a full engine. Rare for me. I must have taken this photo before I put the headers on. If I did the engine I would have done them, too. I took these photos back in 2007 when I finished the model so I don't remember why I didn't include them in the photo.

I am not happy at all that Jeff is leaving, and hopefully, if I ever regain my skills, there will be more models of Jeff's cars to follow.

I was published in Scale Auto's 2015 Contest Cars!

For many modelers, getting a model photographed at a show is just about the highest honor you can receive...especially at an NNL, which is not a contest and does not do awards. I am lucky to have been photographed multiple times, and most of the times when I've been photographed it has been published. I am extremely lucky in this regard...I know multiple modelers who I consider better builders than myself who have never been photographed at all, let alone published.

I believe this is my 6th time being published, although to be totally honest, one of the times I was published was when I was submitting the show coverage. (MassCar one year, but I don't remember which year).

It comes 10 years after my first publication in the 2005 Scale Auto Contest cars...both of which were NASCAR models, naturally.

The model was quite obviously my Brad Noffsinger Buick, the only model I've completed in the last 2 years. I have to admit, seeing this in print makes me want to build some more, I have not had the motivation to touch anything for a while.

Here is the cover of the magazine it is from.

NASCAR-1988 Brad Noffsinger #98 Sunoco Buick

I have not posted for a few days while I thought about how I wanted to go about it. I thought about going in order of completion, or even going in order of subject matter, but I decided to post my most recent build now, just for the heck of it really.

I completed only two models in 2014, and this is the only good one. Noffsinger competed in only 12 races in 1988, but he DNQd for several more. Sunoco left for Billy Hagen's team and Sterling Marlin in 1989, and Brad Noffsinger never ran another Winston Cup race.

I had been trying to get somebody to make these decals since 2004, and they were finally made in 2014, so I had to build it. I have the Olds in progress too, but it's too cold to work on models right now, as I paint outside.

This also turned out to be the 98th NASCAR model I've finished, and for the 3rd year in a row, my goal in 2015 is to hit 100. I have finished one a year for the past three years so it will be amazing if I can actually pull it off.

Enjoy the photos!