The final 1953 Corvette model.... [PIC]

I figure I was about 8 years old (1954) when I gor my first '53 Corvette model. It was huge, maybe 14" long or so. It was by Ideal and had working headlights with a "D" battery located inside the engine. Later I found I could stash my cigarettes in there. LOL It came with a clear bubble top and I remember my dad had to help me assemble it. I found it recently when I was moving and its condition was such that I really couldn't restore it. Then, eons later, I got FM's version which was OK, but with the old tech and low parts count, I always wished for something better. Well, this DM LE is everything I could have hoped for. What happened to FM's '53? I kitbashed it with a Revell plastic model, added exhaust extensions and grill face and mesh screening, found aftermarket metal wire wheels and tires, slapped on a Revell decal sheet and turned it into Bill von Esser's '54 Mexican Carrera Panamericana entry. After posting some pics here, the Corvette guru at DM contacted me and asked if I would send him the model and then did some serious research to ensure accuracy. I actually corresponded with von Esser niece who used to hang out and sweep up in his Chicago speed shop back in the day. She didn't really help provide any technical info on the car, but I enjoyed her anecdotes of who used to hang out there. Some people you would expect... like Steve McQueen... others surprised me. I would never have thought Dave Garroway with his ground breaking morning show in the '50s (you old folks like me might remember the chimpanzee, J. Fred Muggs who was a regular on the show). I always thought of him as the quintessential nerd and yet he was a real gearhead. OK, enough reminiscing, here's the DM '53.