Dave Darby

I built this one back in 1977, when I was 16 years old. I painted it a couple more times over the ensuing years, then got tired of how it looked, and stripped it down to bare plastic in 1989. After that, it sat in pieces, as you see it here, until just this year, when I sorted through all my parts, and got all of the original pieces I could find back in one place...

The wheel flares and front spoiler were made from the plastic flats they divided record albums with at the stores... That green piece is a leftover bit from a '69 Cougar that was painted with the same can of paint...




Originally painted Cal Custom Metalflake Green, I recoated it a few years later with Testors Candy Transparent Green, which made it a good deal darker. I ran the stock hood, but in 1989 I decided to do this 'update' using the scoop from the 69 Chevelle kit.




That was also when I reshaped the door windows, painted it red, and then, unhappy with the faint panel lines, stripped the body in 409. That rear spoiler is the front spoiler from the Revell "Jungle Jim" Vega funny car. Got a little rambunctious with the sanding there, didn't I? Sorry, louvers! Considering that it went through the stripper, that automotive spot putty has held up pretty well. (except for this flare...)




Here's the motor and the rolling stock (minus the back halves of the tires (had yet to dig these up, still.) Not shown are the side pipes, which I ended up painting black. They'll be replaced with chrome ones.

I think the wheels were cribbed from the "Iron Horse" Mustang kit, but the Countdown Series 66 Mustang had 'em too. Anybody got 4 good ones like these?






A little drilling, filing, and pinning got her back up on 4 wheels, with engine in place. Dig those old school thread plug wires....



Here she is mocked up...



And after searching diligently, I've found me some Plastikote Metal Flake Green in an old school can! Just like I painted it with back in 1977....



What do you think? Worth saving?

You can see more photos of the rebuild process here...http://public.fotki....vette/?show=all

Finally finished this one, after 41 days on the workbench.

Paint is Testors One Coat White Lightning Pearl.



Lucas "Flame Thrower" headlights from the AMT 55 Nomad kit. Custom Lenses from the 53 Studebaker kit.



Scratchbuilt steering column and turn signal lever. Shifter made from a straight pin. Bucket seats from the AMT 53 Corvette.



Vertex magneto from the 57 chevy kit, Plug wires have correct firing order. Scratch built fuel log and gas line.



License plate made in Photoshop that says "Cristi" - my wife's name. And yes, she is quite pleased with her belated Christmas present.



Off the bench and on the shelf!



Here is a link to the build process...

http://www.modelcars...o=new_post&f=18

My lovely wife Cristi has been on me for a few years now to build her a model, a 56 Thunderbird, to be exact, so this year, I finally
relented and started on this one. She wanted it Pearl White, so stock was not an option. And she was good with that! This of course,
gave me the excuse I needed to get rid of that Continental kit that makes the 56 look so tail heavy. Anyway, let's look at some pics,
and I'll show you the changes we've made along the way...
Up on wheels mock-up. Whoa, that ride height!



Not a fan of plastic axles, either. Luckilly, they made it easy to fix that little issue...



A little work with the Dremel...



Halfway there...



The front was handled in a similar way. I cut off the plastic axle stubs, and drilled new holes to mount metal stub axles made from
finishing nails. And here is a sneak preview of the rolling stock. AMT 62 T Bird wires in Revell/Monogram tires...



The headlights were also a bone of contention. I hate lenses with pins, and flat mounting surfaces.



So out came the drill....



Lucas headlights! From the AMT 55 Nomad. All the rage back in '62...



To Be continued...