Scenes from our twelfth pseudo-virtual meeting in
February:
Due to public health and safety concerns and Maryland
State restrictions on gatherings aimed at preventing
the potential spread of the Corona Virus, the Greenbelt
Community Center where we meet has been closed to meetings
since March, 2020. We have had really good results over
the previous eleven months with members and friends
sending us photos and descriptions of the model cars
they would have brought if we'd had physical meetings,
or just any model cars or projects they wanted to share.
This month we're doing it again.
Paul Lee celebrated Black History Month by building
something different in order to recognize and honor
the valor and accomplishments of the Tuskegee Airmen,
the first Black military aviators in the U.S. Army Air
Corps. He built a replica of one of the Redtail P-51
Mustang airplanes that they flew on more than 15,000
sorties in Europe and North Africa during World War
II. Named after the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama
where they received their flight training, the Tuskegee
Airmen earned more than 150 Distinguished Flying Crosses
and helped encourage the eventual integration of the
U.S. armed forces.



Along with his Mustang airplane Paul Lee wrapped
up a Mazda R-7 and a Cadillac Escalade towing a Speed
Boat this month.





Back in August Steve Buter showed us photos
of an in-progress Monogram 1932 Ford Deuce Five-Window
Sport Coupe he'd started to restore along with a Jimmy
Flintstone James Dean figure and Wurlitzer juke box.
At that time the Ford was was just a frame and body
in primer and on cinder blocks and the figure and jukebox
were raw, unpainted resin. Now, they are done. Steve
endeavored to restore the car to as much of its original
1959 release as possible. It came to him in two Ziploc
bags of parts that he purchased from Rich Meany's "Boneyard"
at two separate MAMA meetings. Between the two finds,
there were nearly enough parts to completely reconstruct
the (near) iconic Monogram model. He kept the underside
of the chassis intact with the space where a battery
case once existed. Also kept intact was the 45 degree
angle hole above the differential where the drive gear
from an electric motor was hidden behind the seat at
one time (you could motorize this model in its earliest
incarnation.) Steve preserved the circa 1959 Monogram
logo as well, but it's largely hidden by the 1/20 scale
Lindberg driveshaft and U-joints (Monogram identifies
this kit as "1/21 scale"). Close examination of the
original box art showed the header pipes to end abruptly
beneath the car. Steve fashioned aluminum tubing into
pipes that run to the rear of the car. The tail lights
are police roof lights from two MPC faux cop car 1949
Merc kits. The kit's original push-to-snap axle ends
were long gone so Steve used a few sizes of aluminum
tubing to replace them and provide for something he
generally doesn't do: wheels that roll. He says it was
a refreshing change from most of his model cars/trucks
which he fashions to stand still. As he aquired it,
the front axle was broken in the Ziploc bag and the
shocks were missing. Only one radius rod was present
and it was broken. The headlamps were also missing.
He replaced the missing and broken parts with suitable
items from his patrsbox and fashioned radius and steering
rods from aluminum tubing. The front and rear push bars
are also scratchbuilt from plastruct and aluminum tubing.
The build does have one aftermarket part: the generator
on the otherwise all-kit motor is a Replicas and Miniatures
offering. The James Dean guy and the juke box were painted
with acrylics. The "approaching road hazard" sign is
scratch built.Steve built the Wayne gas pump from R&D
Unique about twenty years ago. It came as a single hunk
of cast resin and included white metal nozzle hardware,
a soft black rubber hose section, and a transparent
plastic globe with decals. It had vertical shaft bored
through it from top to bottom so that one could wire
up a tiny bulb through there and light the globe on
top. He bored out the gauge face section out all the
way through the casting as well so he could illuminate
the face-plates as well.





Dan Chicorelli sent us this photo of his 1941
Willys Street Rod with its detailed blown Hemi engine
exposed so we can see the fine detailing he did.

Brian Schindler has completed project NOVACAM
(Camaro side panels on a Nova.)




Brian has also just started in on a 1971 GTX. Here he
shows the mild restyling he's done to the rear and shares
a hint of what will wind up beneath the hood.


JC Reckner says he's having a hard time focusing
on any one build. Last month he started a Lancia Beta
Montecarlo - Short Tail Version based on an old ESCI
kit. That project has now turned into a pair of Lancia
Beta Montecarlos - both short-tail (shown in white)
and long-tail (shown in red) versions. You can read
much more in-depth information about these projects
at: https://race-car-models.proboards.com/thread/2408/lancia-beta-montecarlo?page=1&scrollTo=23079.



Mal Douglas has his 1964 Chevelle wagon gasser
up on four wheels. The blown small-block Chevy engine
is mostly done with the fuel system plumbed. Mal originally
bought the built wagon from Rich Meany at one of our
Mid-Atlantic NNL shows. Underneath, he has adapted a
1969 Olds 442 chassis with racing suspension parts and
hand-made poseable steering. Mal says he is missing
our meetings!



Rex Turner started this 1996 Mustang Cobra a
few years ago and now it is finished. It’s box stock
and painted in Blue Galaxy Colorshift spray paint. In
1996, Ford made Cobra coupes painted Mystichrome but
not any convertibles. Rex wanted to build this kit in
a cool color so this is the result. Rex says he hopes
to see his MAMA buddies at at meeting soon. I think
we all hope to see you, Rex (and each other) at a meeting
soon, too.





Cary Buter is back into the model car hobby
after a 40 plus lapse. If his last name looks familiar,
it's because he is Steve Buter's brother. Cary's son-in-law
gave him a 1963 Chevrolet Impala Low Rider die-cast
kit and a 1966 GTO plastic kit for Christmas. Cary has
been back into model railroading for about five years
and had been thinking about getting back in to model
cars and trucks as well. These gifts gave him the "push"
he needed. Cary said that the low rider made for an
easy start with its pre-painted/decorated body. As for
the GTO, he's finished the engine and will be painting
the body when the weather gets a little warmer. Cary
owned a full-size 1966 GTO back in the 1970s so he plans
to paint this model in the same shade of yellow as that
car. He also has a set of "very close to scale"
coil springs for this kit that will be for appearance
only.






Kevin Buter Now, if this guy's last name looks
familiar, it's because he is Steve Buter's other brother.
Steve, Cary, and Kevin all grew up building models from
an early age. Kevin says his model building has been
off and on through the years as he's also a model railroader
as well. The pandemic has gotten him back into model
building during the last year. he has been building
1/8 scale Pocher models. He built his first one in 1975
and he now has seven of them, two of them are not completed
and one is going to be rebuilt. The pictures he shared
here are three shots of his completed 1932 Rolls Royce
Phanton II Drop Head Sedanca Coupe and three of his
i-progress 1935 Mercedes Benz Cabriolet convertible.
So far, he's completed the chassis and is now fitting
the body. Kevin says that he is looking forward to the
time that meetings will be live so he can meet us and
follow the lead of brothers Steve and Cary by becoming
a MAMA member for life by walking in the door.






Don Stone returns this month with another Richard
Petty car. Based on an old MPC 1971 Plymouth NASCAR
Series body and an after market hood, Don fitted it
over a Polar LIghts chassis. He says it was a pretty
tight fit, but he got it on there. Don applied Tamiya
paints and Power Slide/Yesterdays decals.




Kenny Kovach is here with three works in progress.
First is a Camaro Funnycar project based on a Competition
Resins Body and a Revell Jungle Jim frame. This asphalt
burner rides on wheels and tires from Kenny's parts
box and will feature Old School Chevrolet Power. Second
is a Chevrolet Camaro Pro Stock racer that Kenny resuurected
from a glue bomb he purchased at NNL East. It features
a scratch- built roll bar and hood scoop. He used "Tamiya
Masking Tape for Curves" to make the sharply-defined
two-tone paint scheme in Model Master Fathom Green and
Testors Pure Gold Lacquer. The third project is Bill
"Grumpy" Jenkins' Pro Stock Vega. Base on
an original issue kit that his son Kevin found on eBay.
Kenny has added scratch-built rear wheel wells and parts
box wheels and tires. He says he spent lots of time
masking that Testors White Lightening Pearl w/ Dupli-Color
Dark Garnet Red Pearl Stripes paint scheme.














Next one in is Kenny's son Kevin Kovach who
also has three works in progress. First is an unusual
Corvette gasser. The car rides on a frame, interior,
and wheels and tires from a Mustang Funny Car kit. Even
more unusual, it also featuires a Ford 427cid engine
and transmission. The rear wheel wells have been radiused
and the fuel injection system is plumbed with craft
wire. Second is a Chevy II Nova Gasser. The straight
axle front suspension and stripped interior are scratch-built
and the rear wheel wells are radiused. Kevin's parts
box supplied the wheels, tires, big block Chevy egine,
and Hilborn injection. Third is a rotted out 1969 Yenko
Camaro "Barn Find." This one started out as
a glue bomb that Kevin built some time ago. In rebuilding
it to this state he used Dremel fine carving bits to
create rust holes and applied Citadel Typhus Corrosion
and Ryza Rust for weathering. The wheels and tires for
this one also came from Kevin;s parts box.















Lyle Willits dropped in with his latest build,
"SHORTY." It's an AMT/Lindberg 1934 Ford Pickup
riding on a modified Revell Rat Roaster frame and related
running gear. The top's been chopped and the bed shortened.
Scratch built parts include the fuel tank, interior
door panels, and peep mirrors. Lyle applied his masterful
woodgrain painting technique to the bed with water based
acrylics. The taillights are from Bob Dudek and the
wheels and tires are from a Revell Model A kit.






Rex Turner stopped back in with this newly finished
1976 Mustang II Cobra II. It’s a blend of an MPC King
Cobra kit, resin and photoetch parts, aftermarket decals,
and some parts from other kits. All it needs now is
a Farrah Fawcett figure sitting on the hood.





How about having some Valentine's Day cookies?
