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Post by mrmike on Feb 21, 2019 18:18:28 GMT -5
My lastest project is Tamiya's Jeep Grand Cherokee Ltd. and the return of McNally, Boston PI. The story is titled "Bad Karma". Anyone described in this story is not related to anyone living or deceased. The Build When I opened this kit, I was surprised by the glossy plastic. I decided not to paint the body since the swirls are minimal and I can polish the body to my liking. I'll research this so I can add plug wires and add any other details.  The glossy body!  The wheels and tires were assembled and detailed. The Story McNally drives out to Quincy and an abandoned warehouse where a potential client ask to meet him them. The call sounded suspicious at best and being that it was in the midst of winter, he drove out in his '73 Bronco. He pulls into the parking lot and gets out of the 4X4 with his Smith & Wesson Model 66-2 .357 Magnum at his side and walks over to the warehouse entrance and he looks in through the broken door at the smelly mess inside. After a few minutes of looking around inside, he hears a woosh and an explosion outside and he runs out to see his Bronco going up in flames and smoke. He pulls out his cellphone to call the Police and the Fire Department just as a bullet hits the wall behind him and he takes cover behind a stack of pallets on the dock and fires the .357 Magnum in the direction the shots may have come from. McNally will return... |
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Post by BUCKY on Feb 21, 2019 21:12:26 GMT -5
I have one of these in the stash, and I owned a '96 GC Limited with 5.2 and Quadratrac 4x4. Very nice Jeep!
I'll be looking in on this build!
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Post by mrmike on Feb 21, 2019 21:38:12 GMT -5
Thanks Keith! The Story McNally and the QFD Fire Captain noticed that the gas caps where lying on the ground, suggesting that someone had stuffed rags into the filler necks and lit them like a Molotov Cocktail aka a fire bomb. He will have to go down to the Quincy Police Dept. and fill out a lot of paperwork and then he calls a cab to make the trip back to Boston. Once he gets back home, he drives his Challenger SRT8 over to Vic's Sales and Service to find another 4X4. Vic says he doesn't have any and to check back in a couple of weeks. McNally drives over to a news stand and grabs a copy of the Truck and Auto Want Ads to start a search for another 4X4 for the winter. The Build I wanted a grille guard for this Jeep and using a couple pieces of sprue and the bumper overriders from the Yodel Plymouth Fury, I fashioned a grille guard.    McNally will return... |
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Post by mrmike on Feb 22, 2019 9:30:01 GMT -5
The Story After eating dinner, McNally sits down in his easy chair to look through the Truck and Auto Want Ads. He finds a Jeep Cherokee and calls the number and it goes to voice mail and he leaves a message. A few minutes later his phone rings and it's a salesman from a dealer and he is invited down to the dealer to look around. His reply was, "No thanks." After several tries, he finally gets an ad for a Jeep Grand Cherokee Ltd. and the person is a private seller who agrees to show him the Jeep at 10 AM in the morning. The Build I think the grille guard sticks too far out from the front bumper, so last night I trimmed the bumper guards and and refitted it. It looks 100% better!    McNally will return... |
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Post by BUCKY on Feb 23, 2019 2:55:53 GMT -5
Cool story developing, here! And I agree about that grille guard...it does look much better, now!
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Post by BUCKY on Feb 23, 2019 3:07:35 GMT -5
The GC Limited I had looked like this one:  Char-Gold Satin Glow, with gray insides, 5.2 V-8...that's a 318 to you and me!! LOL Quadratrac 4x4. Kinda wish I still had it! |
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Post by mrmike on Feb 23, 2019 14:33:41 GMT -5
Keith, I starting to discover and uncover the differences between Liters and Cubic Inches. 5.2 Liters was a 318 V-8. 3.9 Liters is a 238 CI V-6 that I had in my 2nd Gen Dakota. 3.7 Liters is a 225 CI V-6 that I had in my 3rd Gen Dakota. I really miss my 2nd Gen Dakota as it was a standard cab, short wheelbase pickup with lots of grunt and enough low tech to keep this shade tree mechanic satisfied for a while.
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Post by mrmike on Feb 23, 2019 22:24:48 GMT -5
The Story The following morning, McNally gets into his Dodge Challenger SRT8 and drives to Winchester, but not without stopping at a drive-thru and getting a sausage biscuit with egg and a large coffee. He arrives at the address given by private seller, a girl named Casey Westerfield, a Boston Police Officer who works the night shift. "You look familiar to me," she says. "Didn't you use to protect that Hollywood star?" McNally says, "Francine Aaron. That was a couple of years ago." Casey shows McNally the Grand Cherokee and after looking the Jeep over and taking a short test drive around the block, without license plates, a little haggling and they agree on a price. McNally will get the remainder of the cash and they will conclude the deal tomorrow. The Build I spent the afternoon polishing the Jeep. Some Novus 2 and what a shine!  I started work on the chassis.  I finished the engine minus the distributor which is not included in this kit. I guess I'll have to make one!  McNally will return... |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2019 23:45:02 GMT -5
Nice progress, Mike. I really like the fact that you were able to get a good, usable finish on the body by just polishing. Steve (goofy62) had previously told me that was sometimes possible when no excessive swirl marks were present. It's something I'm going to want to try at some point.
Looking forward to the next stages!
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Post by BUCKY on Feb 24, 2019 0:43:29 GMT -5
Some of the older kits were molded in a very shiny plastic. No need to paint them. The problems cropped up with metallic plastic. Swirl marks were just about unescapable with those. It is a shame, because they would have been very sharp, all polished up!
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Post by mrmike on Feb 24, 2019 8:59:21 GMT -5
There are a few swirl marks on this Jeep body, but I am not worried about them as they seem small to me. The less painting I can do, the better I like it. I found a Parts By Parks aluminium distributor with blue wires in the parts box and I'll add it later.
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Post by mrmike on Feb 25, 2019 11:02:27 GMT -5
The Story McNally is investigating the murder of Boston City Alderman David Camillo. He was trying to push a bill through the City Legislature requiring all older buildings in Boston to be rehabbed if possible instead of being torn down. The Alderman's death may be connected to the attempt to kill the Boston PI. This bill has many people angry because of the many clauses held within. Not all of the clauses are related to rehabbing old buildings. The Build I attempted to paint the coil springs that are in the kit with one taking flight over the bench and disappearing. This morning, I search and couldn't find the spring and I dove into my tool box of extra screws and bits and pieces and found a similar shaped, but longer spring that I cut up into fours and painted them red to match the sway bars.  I found a Parts By Parks wired distributor and drilled a hole into the engine block and mounted the distributor with a bit of CA. Next to drill holes for the plug wires.  I've been detail painting the chassis and trying to get the front sway bar located properly. It's a tight fit here.  McNally will return... |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2019 12:27:16 GMT -5
I'm not a Jeep guy, but I'm following along because it's something different. Very nice work so far, Mike.
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Post by mrmike on Feb 25, 2019 13:52:30 GMT -5
Thanks Steve! I've been wanting to do something different. Pickups, vans, SUVs, muscle cars, sport cars, economy cars, whatever appeals to me.
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Post by BUCKY on Feb 26, 2019 13:57:12 GMT -5
Nice recovery from the "flying parts syndrome"! I always say, "Build whatcha got in the stash"!
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