53 replies to this topic

[crazyjim]

Pretty neat.

[lotno249]

Looking great so far. I can't wait to see the rest of the build.
DJ

[Ace-Garageguy]

Very cool Bill!

This is how I cut my Olds body also to accept the Revell '54 sedan delivery rear section.

So is your plan to bond it all back together, and then chop the roof?

Yup...maybe. Is there a link to your sedan-delivery swap? I'd love to see that one!!

[wrecker388]

First off, FORGET what I said about opening the doors and decks first. Noooooooo. It became apparent pretty quick that I'd have a floppy, unmanageable mess by doing that.

I figured that out when I tried to open the panels on a 53 Bel-Air.Let's just say that that body is beyond scrap.

[Ace-Garageguy]

Hey Bill ...sorry we kinda hijacked your thread Man..so sorry

No problem. I wanna see it too.

[Ace-Garageguy]

I figured that out when I tried to open the panels on a 53 Bel-Air.Let's just say that that body is beyond scrap.

No real problem to open them, just there wouldn't have been anything to support the body when I cut the roofs (rooves?). I briefly considered building the cars up on their respective chassis to support them with the panels cut out, but that would have taken more time and I was gettin' frisky to see how it all would work out.......

[ScaleModelAddict]

Fantastic precise work.

[Tom Setzer]

Bill, That is what I would Call MASTER BODY WORK! You Are A True Artist! I LOVE IT!!

[Road Runner 79]

I like both of them . Nice to see how well they fit together !

[SnuzBox]

Nice work, keep posting progress pictures.

I am planning on doing a similar swap so I can build a scale version of my 1:1 kustom. (seen in my avatar)

[Ira]

GREAT PROGRESS BILL!!!

Nice Slicing...

Edited by Ira, 21 April 2013 - 04:39 AM.

[charlie8575]

Looks nice, Bill. I'm seriously toying with trying this and building a club sedan myself if I can find an acceptable representative of an Olds 6.

For curiosity, you were suggesting that the AMT plastic is a bit thicker. How is sanding the two roof sections possible without creating warpage?

I'll be watching this.

Charlie Larkin

[BKcustoms]

This is turning out really nice! Your cuts are much cleaner than mine were lol. I can't wait to see the chop, it seems like it would be difficult to chop a fastback and keep the flow of the lines intact but I'm sure you'll pull it off perfectly.

[Ace-Garageguy]

"For curiosity, you were suggesting that the AMT plastic is a bit thicker. How is sanding the two roof sections possible without creating warpage?"
Charlie Larkin

 

 

Charlie, I'll let you know as soon as I get the transplanted parts stabilized with epoxy and glass cloth. The seam across the roof needs to be as strong as possible to shave the AMT part into the Revell section, and if there's a drawback to doing the swap this way, that's it.

 

This is turning out really nice! Your cuts are much cleaner than mine were lol. I can't wait to see the chop, it seems like it would be difficult to chop a fastback and keep the flow of the lines intact but I'm sure you'll pull it off perfectly.

 

Thanks Billy. I'm thinking I'll probably finish the stock-height roof swap and pull a mold of the roof-skin before attacking the actual chop. I like this version so much, I'd lke to get this one in color fairly soon, and really take my time working out the chop. I took my time getting the cuts worked out for this, and I think it's payed off. I've been looking at 1:1 chops on this shell, and as usual some work better than others. Just gotta decide how low to go to get the flow.

Edited by Ace-Garageguy, 01 December 2012 - 08:45 AM.

[TooOld]

After studying your photos I've convinced myself that I can do this  ,  so both kits are now on my list .  Your cuts are so clean ,  I guess I need more practice with the old knive !  Very nice work !

[carrucha]

I like the progress so far.  I might try the same conversions.

[1930fordpickup]

Looking good Bill ,

[dragcarz]

Bill.......any progress ???

[Ace-Garageguy]

Thanks for the interest. This is progressing slowly, but mostly it's been the basis for some experimental filler and reinforcement techniques. I had originally intended to copy the un-chopped version in resin, but several folks beat me to it.

[Ace-Garageguy]

I made the cuts where I did in part specifically to line up the drip rail and the lower reveal molding. This left the side window from the AMT roof not matching the Olds opening.

 

 

With a little 1:1 research and some fine tuning of the rear window opening, we get this...

 

 

I also mentioned that the cuts were placed to get the roof widths close to matching. This is with just minimal narrowing of the AMT section, and there's no need for the slices some guys are taking out of the rear section...

 

 

Everything is coming together very nicely, as planned. It pays to carefully analyze, measure and think through a heavy mod like this. The work it saves on the actual build and the improved quality are definitely worth the head-scratching time. There are also small styrene 'wedges' or 'place holders' in the gap on the roof-cut. They're there to keep the two sections aligned. I'll be filling the seam initially with Loctite CA gel, which shrinks a little as it sets up. I've had it pull parts slightly out of alignment before, so this is a little cheap insurance. Once the gel sets up, I'll fiberglass the inside. It's possibly overkill, but nothing ruins a day like having a seam split after it's primered.

 

Edited by Ace-Garageguy, 21 April 2013 - 04:51 AM.