115 replies to this topic

[cobraman]

Does this kit only have the twin blown motor option or does it have a stock hood and motor also.

[Wicky]

this ones only got the blown engine and hood , no parts to build it stock if you wanted to .

[Jantrix]

I built the Salty Dog version as a kid. Nice to see it again. Hows the decals?

[Wicky]

somewhere between poor and unusable I'm afraid ( they're starting to crack ) , but other than the numbers and class decals I've got the others in my stash anyway , I'll come up with something .

[W-409]

Can I still join in with '56 Studebaker Commander? It'll have '75 Dart Chassis and interior and it will be basically Street Car. It's a shame that I can't take part to the meet, but it's bit too far away....

[Casey]

Absolutely, NIko, anyone is welcome to join. All you need is a Studebaker.

[W-409]

Thanks, Casey! Here are some pictures about the start. Not much done yet, but I'm going to use '75 Dart Chassis and interior, as mentioned above. The chassis needs some work, but it's possible to fit inside that Studebaker body. Not sure about the engine yet, I have one Thunderbird engine and many, many Glue Bomb engines that needs to look what fits the best. But engine will NOT have a Supercharger, Pro Charger, Turbos or anything. It will be just basic Street Car.

Well here's the body:



What I'll use for the chassis and interior:

[Danno]

Well, Niko, since you bring up '56 Commanders ... here's mine:




Phantom Kansas Highway Patrol cruiser.




I really have to take some new pix of this one.

[W-409]

Wow, that's cool! Is it built from AirTrax kit (or body) too?

[Danno]

Nope.

Art Anderson's All American Models resin (mastered by Juha Airo) with '53 Studebaker engine, drive train, suspension and various other donor parts.


Thanks!!

[martinfan5]

Nice job on it Dan, it look likes the top part of the roof in middle is dipping down, was that like that on the 1:1? or is that the resin just losing its shape?

[Wicky]

got some paint and decals on it



didn't want to go over the top with the decals , after looking on the web last night for classes and finding the C/GS class ( the kit decals ) is actually for stremliners , I went with C/BGCC class , I'll clear it tomorrow if it stays dry then it's time to sort the chassis out , after a quick mock up the rear needs lowering and maybe a different rear axle .

[Crazy Ed]

Hey Casey, Any progress on the Turbine Itnava ?

[Casey]

Hey Casey, Any progress on the Turbine Itnava ?

Not really. I tinkered around with the engine, as I didn't care for the molded in details and the location of the mold seam, and scrounged some LEGO pieces and kit pieces which might look better that the Homet's turbine when assembled.

[Michigan Madman]

Nice job on it Dan, it look likes the top part of the roof in middle is dipping down, was that like that on the 1:1? or is that the resin just losing its shape?

Not Danno, but that's gotta be drooping resin. The 1:1's were straight across the top. Still looks great, though.
Juha does a lot of master work for Airtrax, and he did the AAM master as well... wonder if those bodies are based off the same master?

[Michigan Madman]

Well, hopefully there will be (another) Avanti in the works here shortly- I've got a few very untoward ideas in mind for one...

[Danno]

Not Danno, but that's gotta be drooping resin. The 1:1's were straight across the top. Still looks great, though.
Juha does a lot of master work for Airtrax, and he did the AAM master as well... wonder if those bodies are based off the same master?

Chuck's got it right ... the roof started sagging some time back.

I bought the body from AAM at my first GSL ~ "The Reunion" in 1997.

This model debuted at GSL in 1999 and appeared in that other magazine in 1999. No droop then.

I didn't take it to GSL in 2001 and regretted it, because Juha showed up with a factory stock build from the first generation of casts from his master. I thought it would have been cool to see the two of them on the table together.

I recently acquired some old magazines and stumbled upon the six page spread (March 2001) on Juha's conversion of an AMT '55 Chevy into the '56 Studebaker Commander master used to cast the AAM resin kit. Quite an accomplishment!

[Casey]

Well, hopefully there will be (another) Avanti in the works here shortly- I've got a few very untoward ideas in mind for one...

The more untoward the better.

I finally got around to sanding the filler I added to the underside of the body shell, and it will need another skim coat to make everything look smooth and even, but it's progress.




I assembled the turbine engine halves and sanded the seams a few weeks ago, after deciding to just stick with the kit engine:

[Casey]

One more skim coat, now sanded, but needing one more coat in a few areas. I think I'll hold off until I decide what to do in the corners, though. Eventually I will add a full belly pan which will tie the lower nose and tail sections together, but I need to decide on a few other things first:




I did some more sanding on the turbine engine, and attached the intake funnel and exhaust pipe(s), which will probably be changed to a more horizontal setup, but it's a starting point if nothing else. I won't be using all the adapters, brackets and reversing motor included with the Howmet kit, but I think a quick change rear of some sort will remain:




Here's a topside shot showing the turbine engine's size in relation to the body shell:




It should be a near perfect 150 pound counterweight, sitting to the left of the driver.

[Crazy Ed]

Yea! The Turbine engine is back in the build