ScottsGT

Check this out. Package I’m watching and waiting on. Look at the times. Must be stuck on some conveyer belt like luggage at an airport baggage claim.

Beautiful work!

Looks like it’s time to man up and place those preorders, boys. I just did. With FedEx shipping, just a few bucks shy of $400 Yea, that’s gonna sting for a while.

Yea, I think all the dust I didn’t blow off before taking pics adds to the weathering. 🤣 But my goal was a very subtle weathering. Sometimes I feel less is more. Thanks for the kind comments!

Finally done. https://forum.largescalemodeller.com/topic/20689-p-40k-finally-done/

Finally! Spring projects had me pumping the brakes on this project. Don’t know why it surprises me. Happens every year at this time. Spent the past couple of days focused on getting it done.

I love it! People think all of a sudden they’re invincible against mud and trails because their car/truck has a little sticker on it “All Wheel Drive” or 4x4. They don’t realize a certain amount of knowledge goes with that. One of my favorite sayings…”A Winch will just get you stuck further out in the woods or trails.” I watched my son and his friend learn this the hard way. Unfortunately they dragged me into the drama a time or two. Happiest day of my life was when I took the Samurai away from my son.

Yep, any Dodge needs tow hooks. 😜

Rolled across the stage today at Mecum. High bid was $275,000. Everyone discussed holding the reserve above $300,000. The owner got cold feet and lifted the reserve when it hit top dollar. My son and his crew are a bit upset because of how the boss lied. They already had it scheduled to take to Atlanta to a GM Muscle car dealer that said he could get them $325k all day for it. I told him at the end of the day, your boss is a car dealer. Keep that in mind. They pulled about $75k profit, but left money on the table. My brother was the same way when he was selling cars. EDIT: I forgot about the buyers fees. Actual sale price was $302K.

Yea, he’s a real piece of…….. work. Only reason he didn’t go to jail is because he had four lawyers, including mine, telling him to surrender the Trust to me or the judge would decide where he spends the next 5-7 years sleeping at night. At one time Mom even lied to a police investigator about the time he took her into the bank to get added to her account. Bank manager is required to speak to the account owner alone before proceeding. He lost his temper in the bank and got loud with them, making legal threats, etc. They immediately sent them on their way and called the police. Mom brushed it all off as a misunderstanding. He was always her favorite and she would have handed him everything if he had simply asked. All she wanted to do is make sure he didn’t go to jail. Needless to say we’re no longer on speaking terms. Damned shame since we had so much in common. Both of us are into vintage cars and he’s also a model builder.

Good to hear from you Chris. I was in the same boat with Mom before she passed. Long story, but it was my brother taking advantage of her finances and I had to step in to protect her from getting drained as well as my future inheritance. I was mostly concerned about Mom, but he had structured a Trust where he would take it all. His impatience is what took him down. I found sitting at the bench was a great mind cleaner that took all that burden off my shoulders for a few hours. I’m sure your pen turning is the same. BTW, I almost went down that rabbit hole. I already have too many hobbies as it is. Glad I put the brakes on that one.

Crazy idea. I’ve fixed bad silvering by airbrushing on a coat of Leveling Thinner. Try that?

LOL! I’m actually saving to buy the new Lukgraph Duck that’s coming this summer.

Two more gone! Made a package deal for the old Revell Stuka and Revell B-26 and sold them together.

I’m eaten up with the stenosis. My MRI image shows that my spinal column in my lumbar area looks like a string of sausage links. We have my neurosurgeons personal cell number to call him immediately if I’m heading to the ER with any issues so he can have his team in place.

Some Tamiya decal adhesive and softener would fix that up.

Stay strong Mark! Arthritis is no joke. It’s been flaring up in my upper back lately causing me to walk with a tilt to one side. I didn’t realize I was doing it until my wife pointed it out. It’s so bad in my lower back that my lumbar is fused in the wrong position. I also went through a phase where my left hand was giving me issues so bad I couldn’t use it while building. I know the VA won’t help with this, but look into testosterone injections. If you can find a non-VA Dr or a men’s health clinic to prescribe it, it works wonders with joint pains. PM me if you’re interested in more details on TRT. I just had a follow up Monday and had my levels checked. I was almost at 1200 😱. No wonder I’m chasing my wife around like a teenager at 62. 😁 Doc told me to back off a little on my injections.

Example, I sold a kit on eBay. Dropped it at my local po after doing the eBay shipping system. It showed it was still sitting at my local po for 4 days. Then all of a sudden delivered in VA. Nothing in between.

In their defense, some post offices are accepting packages and either not scanning them in, or their system isn’t registering with the tracking system. Sprue Bros use to have a disclaimer posted about this issue. But yea, it could be Hobbylinc. I’ve been reading about issues with them across all model forums As far as them blaming the current administration, pretty stupid on their part. PO has been a shit show ever since the Christmas rush was over. This was before the Inauguration. If anyone is to blame it’s that last guy that just stepped down as PMG over the entire operation.

Just sold another on eBay. One less big kit in the stash. It was my 1/48 AC-130A. I still have the DC-130 and an H model that came in that 3’ long box from Testors years ago.

Celebrity X. Sister company to Royal Caribbean.

And FYI, this morning was my first morning back home. Post weigh in after the cruise with all the fine dining, desserts, alcohol consumed, etc over a 16 day period? Zero net gain. Not sure what to credit with that. All the walking or the European food without all the additives like HFCS instead of real sugars. I was amazed at the difference of food in Europe. So much better.

We were supposed to make a stop before Liverpool, but the ship was a day late getting out of dry dock from upgrades. Our Sunday departure turned into a Monday departure and they had to drop the first port we were supposed to get. We got a $700 credit, so we figured what the heck, let’s pit it towards a drink package and spend an extra $700 so we were both covered. It was an easy decision after we bought two Corona beers and the tab was $25. Besides, they were offering a 30% discount on the first day. Shetland was cool! We went to the old ruins that dated back 4000 years in time and progressed through history. It was the original “man cave” they built out of stones. We still need to file for a refund on the extra night of hotel cost. And considering it was Kings Day weekend in Amsterdam, hotel prices were jacked up accordingly.

Interesting thread over on LSP. Getting shot down big time due to the cost. That’s the side I’m on myself. Just no way to justify another Phantom at that price point. I built my B model for right at $300 USD back in 2015. That was the Tamiya kit, intakes and GT Resin B conversion. I wish RPM all the best luck in this adventure as I’m sure a few guys will flex their wallets and go there. But will it be enough to keep RPM in business?

We sailed from Amsterdam on 4/28 and first hit Liverpool, then on to Wales, Ireland and a couple stops in Scotland. Last being Shetland islands. It’s been an eye opener! But fantastic weather this entire time. All the locals were celebrating because of the unusual bight sunny skies and warmer weather. I told them all don’t get use to it. I’m taking it home with me when I leave!