Karl LaFong

Alan, Many thanks for a well written assembly process. I'm now looking forward to building this kit! I'm going to stick with the small block, but I plan on replacing the slicks with some dirt track tires. I've been building cars since the 60's, and the vehicle in the video looked like one of my creations, circa 1965. I've made some progress since then... Keith

Great job on this! There's a NSFW review of this kit on YouTube that basically says that this kit is rubbish, but yours is a strong exception to this video. Did you assemble the deck and side body parts before painting? I don't see a seam (and that's a good thing!)

Which, of course is fictional. But, what if Ford had never manufactured the Torino? The '69 Thunderbird could have been an alternative - it actually had a shorter wheelbase (114.7 inches) than the Torino (116 inches). It also had the aerodynamics of a brick... This one is a kitbash of the AMT 1969 Thunderbird/Allison Thunderland and the Johan 1972 Nascar Torino. WIP is here :

I finished applying decals and some other odds and ends. I just need to add the hood pins, exhaust dumps, and rear window straps, and it'll be off to Under Glass.

The fit of the hood was pretty bad, so I substituted a Modelhaus hood I found in my parts stash. I'll have to hog out the front wheel wells a bit more - I wish I had discovered this before painting and assembling - one of the joys of parts swapping. The decals are from the Petty Polar Lights Torino kit.

I finished the interior, with the exception of the fire extinguisher and seat belts, it's straight out of the Torino box. I also added the windows and front and rear bumpers - now it looks like a '69 T-bird. The holes in the hood are for the hood pins. I do have to fix the gap between the grill and hood.

I wired the engine and painted the body. The long black wires are future oil lines. The Johan chassis had plenty of flash and fiddly assembly, but it does look good when painted and assembled. (I do have to straighten out the front sway bar!)

Any chance that the interior racing parts from the 70's vintage Camaros and Firebirds will be included? I can see a future dirt track street stock!

What do you get when you combine these two kits? Hopefully the 1969 Petty ride that never was. Luckily the wheelbases of the two kits are very close, so major hacking wasn't required. I sanded off the side trim and windshield wipers, radiused the front wheel openings, opened the gas tank cover, and added the spoiler from the Torino kit. While the front end looks like it's too high, when I glue the chassis pan to the body it should sit lower. The color will be Tamiya French Blue. Petty ran dark blue wheels in '69, but I liked the look of white wheels (my fantasy, my choice). The Johan OHC engine was built as a 429. I wish the molds for the Torino could be found!

Looks great! What a cool idea.

Wow!!! I'll repeat what other said - great build and photography!

Nice! Where did you find the RonJon decal? I've been going to Long Beach Island NJ for 40+ years and pass the store on the way in and out of the island.

The latest version of the kit has both clear and tinted windows. Beats trying to tint with paint!

The decals in the latest issue of the AMT1965 Lincoln inspired me to do a surf wagon. After several false starts, including a straight ahead convertible, I finally finished it. I was going for an early '60's vibe, so I switched out the bench seat for buckets, the steering wheel from the AMT '51 Chevy, center console from the Johan '64 Rambler American, surfboard from the Revell 1937 Ford truck, scuba gear from the Monogram Blue Bandito, and photo-reduced copies of Surftoons and Surfing magazine. With the exception of wheels from the '67 GTO Weekend Warrior, and window decals, the rest of the build is out of the box. The license was made with Acme Plate Maker, and the exterior paint is Model Master Turquoise enamel, decanted and sprayed with an airbrush. The woodgrain decals were a bear to apply!

I got her painted and attached the body to the frame. The dangling wires are from the interior gas tank; they'll be attached to the fuel pump. The engine location looks wonky because I haven't glued it in position yet. I couldn't find a matching set of front shocks, so I'll be using the ones from the Atlantis Mooneyes dragster, combined with #4 crimp tubes.