MPC "White Lightning"
69 Firebird Street Rod.....actually a Trans Am

This was the first car kit I built, I had done half a dozen or so planes, so I figured it was time to start practicing with some cars. Painting a flat coated airplane is a bit different than putting a nice gloss coat on a car.
Actually the main reason I bought this kit was for the Spyder Motor Wheels it came with, which I had on the 70 Firebird that I drove here to CA in 1976. I ended up buying 2 of them because the rears are deeper (can't tell from the box art) than the fronts and I wanted a full set of regular rims.
By this time I was getting a bit more proficient with the airbrush, so it's time to work on getting a nice finish on a car.....not so easy !
This kit was not of a car that I had, I needed much more practice before starting on those. As far as the kit goes.....not a great one. fits were poor, took forever to get the 400 V8 together straight, the body took a lot of work to get smooth & fit the front bumper/valance & rear panel to it. The one piece interior tub sucks & the plastic front wheel pins are a joke and there were defects on the body that needed filling.
I'd judge it as a poor to fair quality kit. Neverless...... I did what I could with it. I thought it would be different to put the 6 cyl into it, and that engine was actually pretty nice. I painted it with plain old metallic craft paint, over which I applied too many heavy coats of Pledge.
I had found some nice fine tipped ink markers, so decided to do the trim in black. I've yet to find some nice similar markers in silver.
It turned out fine and looked really good for my first car. OK not so bad I thought....well after sitting around for a few months I noticed it started looking funny, like scratches in it.
Ah Ha !! No it's that I had put the clear on soooo thick that it began cracking all over. I just laid it on so thick that it got all cloudy....several times! Way too much, way too heavy !!! Looking at it today, a year or so later it's got cracks everywhere.... it still looks nice from a distance, it shines well enough.
So a lesson learned there.
I had several 67, 68, 70, 71, 72 Firebirds, but never cared much for the 69 Birds or Camaros. So...needless to say the "White Lightning" scheme didn't turn me on. I built the 400 for display, kept the rims for the future 70 Bird and forget where I stole the wheels & tires I used on it, maybe they were the stock ones!
Anyway.....I'll just put mostly the finished pics in and not bore you with the rest.