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1965 Dodoge Coronet 500


JayC

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Well, I finally got it done. I started last week by doing some initial foiling of the chrome. One of the last things I did today was foil. I have come to not like that task at all. :P I foiled the interior where the actual car had chrome.

I took most of the shots in macro mode on my camera. The interior is a little dark, but I think it should be ok.

This model has reminded me how much I hate working with Testors enamels. Over a day later and they are still kind of tacky. I don't glob it on, either. Humbrol doesn't seem as bad. One thing I did was paint the black plastic pieces flat black. I like the look better and I always hated the plastic toy look.

I didn't get the tires whitewalled or the engine wired. Since the model has the wrong distributor it threw those plans out the window. I didn't have the right stuff for the tires, either. Those will be projects for a later date, I guess. I didn't paint the car a different color, either. By the time I got the other tools and supplies I exhausted most of my budget. Turns out I still need more! :o Anyway, enough rambling. Here are the pics. B)

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Don't mind the hair in the pics. That's the price of three cats and a kitten. :blink:

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Hey that looks sharp! I kinda like the look without the whitewalls...........gives a sort of sleeper look to it! B)

I have this kit, and I've never given it much of a look, but then I'm biased towards the original AMT '65 as I have one of those too. Just goes to show with some extra work this can be made to look real nice!

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Guest snapper

That foil job is really nice, and a good idea to bring it to the interior. I always thought of just keeping it to the trim outside. As far as your testors trouble, I have found the same issue, especially with the glosses. I have always used them though, and the testors flat black is one of my standby's, especially in the spray.

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Thanks for the compliments, guys! I think it turned out ok. I've learned a lot about foiling during this project. :P

I have always used them though, and the testors flat black is one of my standby's, especially in the spray.

I'm finding I like flat colors better than gloss colors. I kind of wish the Chrysler engine blue I used was flat. I used the Testors flat black spray to paint all the black parts. The blue and dark green were the only gloss colors I used. I used the dark green out of necessity. The instructions called for those parts to be gloss yellow, but I didn't have any. I kind of like the dark green look.

I kind of rushed this project. I probably could have done better had I slowed down. However, I used my computer desk as my workbench. I needed that space back! :oB) I'm going to have to come up with a better solution for my next project - Revell's 1/196 USS Constitution.

I wasn't sure I even wanted to do this kit after reading about it. I even thought about putting it in the trade forum to see if anyone else wanted it. However, I am now glad I did build it. I realize it may not be the best kit out there, but I got to learn quite a bit about a really cool piece of Mopar history. I sure wouldn't mind having a real '65 Coronet!

Edited by JayC
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Nice work! The thing about Testors enamels is to let em dry as long as you can. I wait a month or more before messing with the body. The first thing I do with a build is get the body painted, then I can work on the rest of the kit while it dries. Unless you have a dehydrator, ya cant rush Testors enamels.

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This build shows that, despite all the talk about inaccuracies in that kit, it can be made into very sharp model that displays great. Good work!!

(Of course, I'll probably never get past the six cylinder distributor but that can be fixed.) :)

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Thanks again, guys! I am happy with the way it turned out. I look forward to my next vehicular project.

There is one major thing that is driving me crazy. You can see it in the pics. The front of the engine isn't in the right spot (it looks detached). It has been an issue. There is a part, that is hard to see, at the bottom of the engine. It looks like a hose of some sort. The instructions aren't very clear on the placement, but I think it is in the right spot. Part of the piece is suppose to fit into the piece on the front of the engine. There is a clearance issue because it didn't go all the way back. I had superglued it to the block, but it must have come loose when I fitted the frame to the rest of the car. I would have to take the frame out to work on the engine. I really hesitate to do that because it is a tight fit and I don't want to damage the fragile foil. I don't know if the engine could be taken out of the hood or not. It's a real tight fit. If I leave it, it is going to eat me up inside. :o There are a couple other minor issues I might like to address.

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J, I just went an checked one of mine out(I gotta coupla them) an there's a pin on the front crossmember that fits into a hole that is located on the oil pan in FRONT of the sump. THEN there's a hole on top of the TRANS that fits another pin thats molded into the TOP of the trans hump that fits into THAT hole, Finally the Driveshaft fits into it's respective hole at the end of the trans. If even one of those holes/pins is OFF the engine will NOT properly position itself. Hope this helps. I know how something that trivial can make ya nutty! All in all, I think you did a GREAT job on it, I don't understand why so many guys thought it was a peice of sh!t kit, I think yours came out really NICE!!!GREAT BUILD!! :o:lol:

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J, I just went an checked one of mine out(I gotta coupla them) an there's a pin on the front crossmember that fits into a hole that is located on the oil pan in FRONT of the sump. THEN there's a hole on top of the TRANS that fits another pin thats molded into the TOP of the trans hump that fits into THAT hole, Finally the Driveshaft fits into it's respective hole at the end of the trans. If even one of those holes/pins is OFF the engine will NOT properly position itself. Hope this helps. I know how something that trivial can make ya nutty! All in all, I think you did a GREAT job on it, I don't understand why so many guys thought it was a peice of sh!t kit, I think yours came out really NICE!!!GREAT BUILD!! :o:lol:

Thanks, George. I will have to have another look at it. Maybe tomorrow. I think I'm going to try and weasel the engine out of the hood. If I can dismount it enough to slide it back some and then remove the radiator it may come out. If that don't work, I just don't know. I REALLY don't want to take the frame off. I didn't notice the misaligned part until I went to decal the engine.

You know, I actually wouldn't mind another Coronet kit. There is a REALLY nice one I would love to model it after.

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Well, I couldn't resist. I tried to get the engine out of the hood area. That didn't work. It is a REALLY tight fit. I ended up taking the frame off. That was not fun. The damage wasn't too bad, though. Only the radiator suffered casualty. It broke off its snap mount. I really wish this kit was not snap together. I never have luck with those snap things. Anyway, for those that have the kit the part that I was having trouble with was 19. It has to fit into part 8. There is a clearance issue with the engine block. I ended up cutting the nub off 19 and just glued it to 8. 8 is closer to the block now, but there is still a gap. The foil fared ok. It could have been worse. I also did a few minor touch-ups here and there. Here is another pic of the engine.

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Well, I couldn't resist. I tried to get the engine out of the hood area. That didn't work. It is a REALLY tight fit. I ended up taking the frame off. That was not fun. The damage wasn't too bad, though. Only the radiator suffered casualty. It broke off its snap mount. I really wish this kit was not snap together. I never have luck with those snap things. Anyway, for those that have the kit the part that I was having trouble with was 19. It has to fit into part 8. There is a clearance issue with the engine block. I ended up cutting the nub off 19 and just glued it to 8. 8 is closer to the block now, but there is still a gap. The foil fared ok. It could have been worse. I also did a few minor touch-ups here and there. Here is another pic of the engine.

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I wouldn't ever known about the shortcoming in your build . Nice build . Very complete . One of my friends thinks his NASCAR projects is complete after the decals are dry and he sets the body (only) on 4 empty tires . Your skill shows up in the completed project . I was very hesident to buy this kit . Being a snap kit . I know , the snob in me awoke and said ....no way . Then I held one in my hand .

I just have to tell you an anecdote from 1957 in a Plymouth Engine Plant . One of my Jr High teachers was the third shift suoervisor . From the release date in Sept . , the V/8's just weren't hitting their stride . In Dec. Chrysler Engineering determined the V/8 Distributors were made wrong . They had contained the 6 cyl. vacum advance plates . This plate had a set of incorrect vacum advance weights for a V/8 . They looked around and blamed the third shift superviser . Maybe that same guy got a job making the distributor for this kit ? lol

Thank you for sharing ....

Edited by dimaxion
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Maybe the same guy did do the distributor for this kit. :) I didn't glue the distributor, so I can replace it later on.

The other thing that drives me nuts about the engine is the radiator hose. Everytime I try to stock it into the hole it slides back. I might cut the nub off that, too, so it is more straight. I've seen another Coronet model that does the same thing.

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Thanks, Ed! I often think about what it would have been like to actually have been around when these cars were in their heyday. There are a couple '65 Coronet 500 videos on YouTube and it is a REALLY nice sounding car! :(

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