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JANUARY 2018 Multa paucis qui coeperit finiatur After World War II, the growth of foreign sports car popularity did not go unnoticed by the American automobile manufacturers.

The 1953 Motorama would be the introduction of the EX-122 Corvette.

The rapid move from prototype to production car was due to the use of parts already in the Chevrolet production line: engines, transmission, suspension were all similar to the more common sedans and

These modifications produced 150 HP from the Blue Flame six, but also required the Corvette to be offered with only the 2 speed Powerglide automatic transmission as the engineers felt that none of GM

Earl wanted the Corvette to sell for $2000, but once production began, it was obvious this price could not be met, so the car retailed for $3500, quite a bit more than a typical Chevrolet.

1 JANUARY 2018 Multa paucis qui coeperit finiatur After World War II, the growth of foreign sports car popularity did not go unnoticed by the American automobile manufacturers. Although several smaller companies would enter the sports car field, with limited success, it took Harley Earl s vision of an inexpensive Chevrolet two seater to really capture the American market. The 1953 Motorama would be the introduction of the EX-122 Corvette. The crowd viewed the Corvette with great excitement and with support from not only Harley Earl, but Ed Cole as well, production would commence in June 1953 and 300 cars would be produced. The rapid move from prototype to production car was due to the use of parts already in the Chevrolet production line: engines, transmission, suspension were all similar to the more common sedans and coupes. The 6 cylinder engine was warmed over with the addition of three carburators and intake manifold, a different cam, and a cylinder head which raised compression. These modifications produced 150 HP from the Blue Flame six, but also required the Corvette to be offered with only the 2 speed Powerglide automatic transmission as the engineers felt that none of GM s manual transmissions could handle the extra power.the bodies were fabricated out of fiberglass, and all 300 cars were Polo white with a red interior. Earl wanted the Corvette to sell for $2000, but once production began, it was obvious this price could not be met, so the car retailed for $3500, quite a bit more than a typical Chevrolet. The 1954 models were similar to the 1953 cars, but new colors were added to the option list: blue,black and red. Interiors were still red, except for the blue exterior, it had a tan interior. The car still maintained the engine and transmission setup, which was the Corvette s Achilles heel. There just wasn t enough engine power and the handling, although better than a standard sized car, was also a bit lacking. The quality of the fiberglass body was poor, as they tended to leak. Sales were far behind the what Chevrolet expected, and the future for the Corvette seemed bleak. Internal support from Ed Cole (Chevrolet s chief engineer) Harley Earl (GM head of design) and Zora Arkus-Duntov who had become a staff engineer for Chevrolet may not be enough to save the car. The Corvette improved in Again the car looked similar to the 1955 model, but there were some important changes. First and most importantly, a V8 was offered. A 3 speed manual transmission would be available mid-year, and 12 volt electrical system for the V8. Exterior colors were up to 5, and there werte 4 interior color options. Sales continued to slip from 2400 sales (out of 3600 built) in 1954 to a paultry 700 cars in What kept the slow selling Corvette in production? Ford had intorduced the Thunderbird in 1955, and GM couldn t let Ford have any piece of the marketplace to themselves! The Corvette somehow not only manged to remain in production, but received a major update in The bodies were all new, the convertible top was improved to seal out the weather, and a new hardtop was availble. Under the hood, the six cylinder was gone, and the V8 power ranged from 210HP to 240HP. The suspension remained largely the same as a new design would have been too expensive for a low volume car. Creature comforts had also improved with roll-up windows which could be upgraded to powered, a transistorized radio, and larger interior space. Sales were still low, but improving. The 1957 model would see the addition of fuel injection which pushed the now larger 283 V8 to almost 300 HP ( it was advertised at 283 HP) and an optional 4 speed manual transmission. Zora Arkus-Duntov, who had raced in Europe before coming to GM, saw the potential of the Corvette as a race car. For the first time, the Corvette could be purchased raceready and campaigned against the likes of Austin-Healey, Jaguar and Ferrari, and often besting the foiegners. The Corvette s sales were beginning to move upward brought another body change with quad headlights and more chrome. There were more engine options, still based on the 283 V continued without many changes. Sales continued moving upward. Ford had abandoned the 2 seat Thunderbird when the 1958 models appeared, the T-bird was now a four seat sporty personal luxury car. This move pretty much made the Corvette the only American built sports car.

The final C1 corvettes were the 1960-1962 models. The old suspension was in its final years and engine options continued to expand, including one breaking the 300 HP barrier.

The engine would be enlarged to 327 ci. In 1962 and power would increase again from 250 HP for a base engine up to 360HP for the fuelie.

Many were purchased for the sole purpose of racing. Sports car racing was quite popular in the 1950 s and drag racing was really becoming popular too.

The Corvette did not finish and placed 136 th out of 150 entrants. This was one of many events that the new Chevy would be entered in.

Famed drag racer John Mazamanian Corvettes and Thunderbirds at Martinsville Speedway around1955/1956 the form of Hilborn fuel injection and a GMC supercharger.

2 The final C1 corvettes were the models. The old suspension was in its final years and engine options continued to expand, including one breaking the 300 HP barrier. The body had been changed and the rear featured 4 tail lamps which became a Corvette standard.these would be the last with exposed headlights until the 2005 models. The engine would be enlarged to 327 ci. In 1962 and power would increase again from 250 HP for a base engine up to 360HP for the fuelie. Sales again were improving, now selling over 14,000 cars in Back when they were new cars,these early Corvettes were no trailer queens like most are today. Many were purchased for the sole purpose of racing. Sports car racing was quite popular in the 1950 s and drag racing was really becoming popular too. The 1954 Corvette was entered by Bill von Esser in the Carrera Panamericana race of that year. A brutal 1900 mile trek across Mexico, that would punish any car entered into the event. The Corvette did not finish and placed 136 th out of 150 entrants. This was one of many events that the new Chevy would be entered in. Once the Corvette received a V8, it would be much more competitive and be seen at many tracks acroos the country. Famed drag racer John Mazamanian Corvettes and Thunderbirds at Martinsville Speedway around1955/1956 the form of Hilborn fuel injection and a GMC supercharger. The 283 ci engine was bumped up to 316 ci and would produce around 600HP. Mazamanian would campaign the car until 1964, then sold it off. campaigned a 1961 Corvette in the Winternationals and not only won the AA/SP class, but set a new speed record of MPH The car was bought brand new and had little done to it. The car would receive a custom paint job and even a custom interior, and more importantly, eninge upgrades in Dick Thompson would take multiple SCCA race championships in 1956,1957,1960, 1961, and 1962all behind the wheel of a production Corvette. He also raced with the Corvette factory team with Briggs Cunningham and John Fitch. Fitch would take a 1960 Corvette to first place in the Grand Touring class at Lemans, a first ever class for the Corvette there. The Corvette was nearly gone by Fortunately, the right people were behind it, and an aggressive engineer (Arkus-Duntov) knew the car s potential, and was able to convince upper management of that potential. The competiton from Ford was also a boost, even though the T-bird was quite a bit more refined and sold as a personal luxury car as a opposed to a sports car, GM still saw it as a competitor to conquer, especially since it was a Ford product. The Corvette would become more refined as it moved through the decades, but is still a sports car at its core and some models today are considered to be in the supercar class, right there with the likes of Ferrari.

CLUB BUSINESS SECTION JANUARY 2018 FROM THE PRESIDENT by Rockne Riddlebarger SEASONS GREETINGS MODEL CITIZENS! VP VIEWS by Dennis Tull It s a new year and promises to be one of new experiences for me.

3 CLUB BUSINESS SECTION JANUARY 2018 FROM THE PRESIDENT by Rockne Riddlebarger SEASONS GREETINGS MODEL CITIZENS! VP VIEWS by Dennis Tull It s a new year and promises to be one of new experiences for me. Especially since I will be serving as your new vice president. This is my first attempt at reporting in to you members, so please bear with me as I get up to stride. First, I would like to thank the indispensable Randy Wilson for his many years of significant contributions of time and effort that helped ensure the success of this club and wish him well in his new home. I will be counting on seeing him at club activities, whenever his long distance commute allows, as a longtime friend and to benefit from his vast amount of wisdom and knowledge. Regarding this month s theme: Believe it or not, I was a Chevy guy while growing up, but during my 58 years in the model car hobby, I have only built 3 Corvettes. Not sure why. However, over recent years I seem to have accumulated a good little stash of Corvette kits. Now it s time to produce! I hope to get at least a couple of these little gems out of hiding. There is a great variety of Corvette kits available, so hopefully we will have a big turnout at the meeting. Should be fun! Don t forget to reserve vendor tables early this year for the 2018 Cincinnati Challenge. It s only 3 months away! MEETING NOTES by Kevin Belanger We had 28 members for the pizza party and gift exchange. FROM THE EDITOR by Mike Jinkens The Corvette could have been a footnote in automotive history had it not been for Belgian born Zora Arkus-Duntov. An engineer by trade, he was also an avid race car driver. These two talents lead to the Corvette s success on the track and in sales. He also had a Ford connection, his company developed the ARDUN cylinder head for the Ford flathead V8. This head would give the Ford engine overhead valves and a hemispherical combustion chamber thus creating better breathing and more power. These heads were meant to be used on truck engines, Ford experimented with them, but opted not to produce them due to cost, so the few that were produced ended up in race cars and hot rods. His company would fold in 1949, and Duntov went to England and worked for Sydney Allard whose J2 racing sports car used the Ford flathead with ARDUN heads. He would come to Chevrolet in 1953, and would eventually become the head engineer for the Corvette.

WINNER S CIRCLE by Curtis Epperson THE 2017 YEAR END CONTEST RESULTS FactoryStock 1 st Bill Owen Jaguar XKSS 2 nd Bill Owen 56 T-bird 3 rd Bill Schneider 75 Gremlin X Customs 1 st Tom

2 nd Bob Kilgore 41 Plymouth sedan 3 rd Bill Owen 55 Chevy Straight line 1 st Tom Selvaggio Firebird Funny car 2 nd Paul Schneider 73 Dart sport 3 rd Paul Schneider 64 Dodge Comp

Owen 32 Ford Hot Rod Curbside Street 1 st, Dennis Tull 56 VW 2 nd Bob Kilgore 78 Volare 3 rd Dennis Tull 61 Ford Galaxie Curbside Comp 1 st Jeff Spraul 68 Dodge Dart Pre Dec Jeff

1 st Rockne Ethanol Oasis 2 nd Rockne War Rig, 3 rd Curtis Epperson Red Baron Collectors Diecast 1 st Jeff Myers 04 Chevy SSR 2 nd Jeff Meyers 2011 Camaro 3 rd Curtis Epperson

4 WINNER S CIRCLE by Curtis Epperson THE 2017 YEAR END CONTEST RESULTS FactoryStock 1 st Bill Owen Jaguar XKSS 2 nd Bill Owen 56 T-bird 3 rd Bill Schneider 75 Gremlin X Customs 1 st Tom Selvaggio 70 Cuda 2 nd Ron Scheffel 37 Ford truck 3 rd Tom Selvaggio Fireball 500 Street Machine 1 st Ron Scheffel 67 Plymouth. 2 nd Bob Kilgore 41 Plymouth sedan 3 rd Bill Owen 55 Chevy Straight line 1 st Tom Selvaggio Firebird Funny car 2 nd Paul Schneider 73 Dart sport 3 rd Paul Schneider 64 Dodge Comp other 1 st Bill Owen Penske PC-6 2 nd David Ginandt Harvick #4, 3 rd David Ginandt Austin Dillon #3 Street Rod 1 st Rockne Peterbilt Rat Rod 2 nd Curtis Epperson 29 model A 3 rd Bill Owen 32 Ford Hot Rod Curbside Street 1 st, Dennis Tull 56 VW 2 nd Bob Kilgore 78 Volare 3 rd Dennis Tull 61 Ford Galaxie Curbside Comp 1 st Jeff Spraul 68 Dodge Dart Pre Dec Jeff Myers swept the class: 1 st C5 corvette 2 nd 37 Chevy 3 rd C Commercial 1 st Rockne Short Haul Livestock 2 nd Rockne Chevy M-80 3 rd Kevin Belanger Kenworth K 100 Miscellaneous 1 st Rockne Ethanol Oasis 2 nd Rockne War Rig, 3 rd Curtis Epperson Red Baron Collectors Diecast 1 st Jeff Myers 04 Chevy SSR 2 nd Jeff Meyers 2011 Camaro 3 rd Curtis Epperson Tri-five Pro-mods Out of box. 1 st Ron Scheffel 70 Buick.2 nd Curtis Epperson Ecto1 3 rd Dennis Tull l 69 AMX Out of box plus 1 st Bill Owen BMW M-12 2 nd Bill Bench 66 A/X Mustang 3 rd Bill Owen 57 T- bird. MODEL OF THE YEAR Rockne Riddlebarger The War Rig

IN THE GARAGE: Plenty of first generation (C-1) Corvettes for the model builder. The first kit came in 1959 from SMP (AMT) and represented the 1959 model.

AMT would also reissue the 1960 kit as a 1959 model several times over the years too. Revell would offer a 1960 model, but this kit had a multi-piece body.

MPC would later tool up a 1960 model, which is currently available.

AMT/ERTL would replace the MPC 1957 kit with an all new tool in 1996.

Both of these kits have not been considered AMT s best efforts.

This kit is considered the best 57 Corvette kit available.

builder, like the 1/43 scale kits were. In 1977, Monogram released a series of metal bodied cars in 1/24 scale.

These kits had plastic parts for the suspension, interior and engine often colored keyed to match a correct interior color.

5 IN THE GARAGE: Plenty of first generation (C-1) Corvettes for the model builder. The first kit came in 1959 from SMP (AMT) and represented the 1959 model. As part of the annual kit line-up, these would be updated until 1962 model year. The 1962 Corvette kit would be re-issued several times through the years. AMT would also reissue the 1960 kit as a 1959 model several times over the years too. Revell would offer a 1960 model, but this kit had a multi-piece body. It too has been re-issued a few times. It is also a 1959 model like the aforementioned AMT kit. MPC would introduce a 1956/57 Corvette kit in MPC would later tool up a 1960 model, which is currently available. These kits all had multiple build options and were pretty accurate, but the 1960 model has the wrong interior for that model year. AMT/ERTL would replace the MPC 1957 kit with an all new tool in The 1970 s were a low point in the model kit industry, but AMT managed to produce two all new kits of the 1953 and 1955 Corvettes. Both of these kits have not been considered AMT s best efforts. Monogram would also introduce a 1957 Corvette at this time, with a well sculpted body and a fuel-injected engine, which the MPC kit lacked. This kit is considered the best 57 Corvette kit available. In an effort to attract more adults to the model kit hobby, the management at Monogram thought metal bodied kits would be appealing to the serious model builder, like the 1/43 scale kits were. In 1977, Monogram released a series of metal bodied cars in 1/24 scale. The first cars were the 1953 Corvette, the 1956 Thunderbird, A Jaguar XK-120, and an MGTC. These kits had plastic parts for the suspension, interior and engine often colored keyed to match a correct interior color. Although novel, these kits were not big sellers, working with the metal bodies was fussy, and getting the epoxy to hold the parts together was sometimes a problem. On the flip side, these kits were well done, and most have been retooled in plastic. The 1953 Corvette proved to be an excellent kit and can be built as a 1954 model as well. It was last issued in the late 2000 s and had some extra parts to also build the 1954 model, and decals for the Carrera Panamericana race car. Monogram also produced a nice 1958 Corvette in their ProModeler series of kits back in the 1990 s. These kits have since been reissued and there is a also an updated 1959 model. Another recent release we saw a 1962 model, actually two kits, a hardtop gasser and a 2-n-1 kit of a roadster.

6 C.A.R THEMES January 8 - Corvettes February 12 - Plymouth March 12 - Dodge Brothers April Years of Ford Trucks. May 14- Ford Torinos. June 11 - Bonneville Salt Flat cars July 9 - Broncos,Blazers,RamCharger: first SUVs August13-Jeeps. September 10 - Chevy Impala October 8 - Same Kit Night: AMT 59 El Camino. November 12 - End of the Year contest December 10 - Pizza Party/ Gift Exchange. UPCOMING EVENTS Feb 17, 2018 Blizzcon. 44th Annual Columbus Model Contest and Swap (IPMS) Arts Impact Middle School 680 Jack Gibbs Blvd., Columbus, OH, Contact: T. J. Misiolek tjmisiolek@columbus.rr.com March 10, 2018 Roscoe Turner IPMS Contest/Swap Raymond Park Middle School 8575 E. Raymond St., Indianapolis, IN, Contact: Erik Fox kriegkafer@hotmail.com March 17, 2018 Buckeye Classic Contest Swap Franklin County Fairgrounds 4100 Columbia St. Hilliard, OH Contact: Matt Gedert (614) Mcgedert@Gmail.com Newsletter: CARTIMESEDITOR@AOL.COM Club info: CINCINNATIAUTOREPLICAS.ORG

JANUARY S MEEETING IS ON MONDAY JAN 9

JANUARY S MEEETING IS ON MONDAY JAN 9 JAN 2017 Multa paucis qui coeperit finiatur Starting with the excellent Revell 49 Mercury kit, Tom added details to the engine and interior and modified the wheels and tires. A slick House of Color Violet