RC Bashers

So y'all have seen my story about the first glue-together model car I got as a kid.... and still have today. Well, here's another one from my modelling firsts-

After I got the Vette model, I was hooked on the 1/24 & 25th scale cars & trucks. I got more kits over the next year or so, & somewhere along the line I got a Monogram GT350 Mustang kit. I decided that I didn't really like the car in its stock kit form, & I had a set of mags out of another kit that just looked better suited for my tastes. I'd never swapped parts between kits before that point. I also painted it a little more wildly than what the box showed. Then I figured heck, why not swap this cool motor with the big 'ol blower from yet another kit in there as well. And that meant hacking a hole in the hood, too- something else I'd never attempted.

I showed it to my Dad when it was almost completed, & he said if I was going to get into customizing them, then I should look for ways to make parts from things laying around. To show me what he meant, we took an old electric razor guard & fabbed it into a custom grille.

So while digging thru my built kits out in storage, I came across the Mustang. Its still pretty much complete, minus the blower equipped mill that it'd had & the razor-sourced grille. From this build on, I don't think I ever built another straight as it came from the box.

I'd thought about tearing this one down & restoring it as well, but have decided its survived pretty much in-tact and I'm gonna leave it as she sits. My only addition will be to replced the grille & to put a blower on the engine that was originally included with the kit. Yes, I still have the original motor, believe it or not. Matter o' fact, its in the Mustang now.

Nice vintage. They're pretty brittle and flimsy when they get that old right?

It really depends. Mine are mostly '80s vintage, & have held up very good. The Datsun that I used as the basis for my Micro crawler has been in the worst shape of the old ones I've really messed with- & even it is surviving the rocks. This Mustang is actually in good shape from what I can see. The "rubber" tires are prolly the weakest links.

Some of the ones from back in the '60s & earlier have a reputation for being really brittle or easily warped in storage.

diggin the Halibrand rims there TJ.