Misha

Found some more info on the web from a page from Henry M. Gunn High School: The Surf Woody The Surf Woody is a custom car that was built in 1965. It was the combined work of three great automotive icons, George Barris, Dick Dean, and Tom Daniel. Tom Daniel is a well known automotive designer/illustrator and he originated the concept of the Surf Woody when he drew the initial sketches for Rod & Custom Magazine. George Barris, the original car “Kustomizer”, ran a shop in southern California that built and modified cars for those that wanted something different as well as the television and movie industry. He liked Daniel’s concept drawings and set out to build the Woody. Dick Dean worked for Barris and was an excellent fabricator and customizer in his own right. Dean would oversee the construction of this project from start to finish. The chassis was scratch built from 2 inch steel tubing. It utilized early Ford Falcon front suspension with rack and pinion steering. It was powered by a modified small block Ford engine with a crossram intake manifold topped with dual Holley carbs. The engine also had a pair of Paxton centrifugal superchargers to help squeeze the air and fuel in. An automatic transmission topped with a Hurst dual-gate shifter fed the power to a very short driveshaft and an independent rear suspension system adapted from an early Borgward or Mercedes. The body was hand built using small diameter tubing that was later skinned with steel sheet metal. The headlight assembly out front rotated in place much like an early Corvette. The rear of the body was also hand fabricated and included Thunderbird taillights. The “woody” upper body was constructed of chromed rectangular steel sections filled with walnut panels. The top was stitched vinyl and incorporated a surfboard rack. The windshield was from an early model T that had been narrowed and modified to fit the dimensions of the woody. The gas tank was a polished early style aluminum beer keg mounted behind custom made seats. The edges of the windshield were graced with lanterns while the interior was stuffed with many state of the art accessories of the day, such as a French phone, a portable television set and a reel to reel tape player/recorder. Steering and throttle controls were controlled by a joystick. The Surf Woody graced the covers of Hot Rod and Rod & Custom magazines, was seen on several television shows and was displayed across country at many car shows. The AMT model company marketed a 1/25 th scale plastic kit of this car in the mid-sixties as well. Eventually the car was stored in a warehouse where it fell into a sad state and was eventually auctioned off. It has not been seen since. There are rumors that the original car is in private hands and is slowly being restored in southern California. The Gunn High Auto Students are trying to replicate the Surf Woody using magazine pictures and the AMT model kit as a guide.

Walked out of HL with the reissued Surf Woody wondering why it felt heavier than most kits, especially remembering from my youth that the parts count wasn't all that high. While having a couple of these kits in the stash from an earlier release, it was hard to resist the original packaging, plus the 40% coupon made it irresistible. Upon opening the kit I was very pleasantly surprised by the contents, the kit itself has four slicks, pad printed with double lined whitewalls, something that was missing in the previous edition, then there was the usual miniature cutout box #97, original appearing instruction sheet and an updated decal sheet with interior panels featuring a surfer scene. Then, adding weight to the kit box, was the additional material! A fourteen page booklet on the Tom Daniel creation and built by Barris, with great detail photos, and a card stock package which builds into a display platform reminiscent of the hobby shop displays the companies would offer the the hobby shops. These additions really surprised me as I didn't notice any mention of them on the box. Whoopie! Overall I'd say it a great release of a kit that until recently had been lost to history, and kudos to Round 2 for adding the extras. Cheers Misha

Will there be a WIP/Primer category at the DSC? ? Thanks, Misha

Looks great Jim! Especially like the mods you've made to it. Trimming up the headlight covers makes for a huge improvement in its appearance and the wheels are perfect for it. Thanx for showing it, Misha

I'm on board as well! Need to find the kit though, gonna check out Hobby Depot in Tempe. Was at the Hobby Bench last week and there was no sign of them. Imagine it'll be quite awhile before Hobby Lobby or Michael's get them in (just as well as I'd sooner support the local hobby shops). Cheers Misha

Neat work Bruce, that rear suspension is very intriguing! It's great to see how the competition is heating up, great ideas out there and a rich variety of builds. now to get back to the workbench. Cheers Mates, Misha

Welcome Joe! You're certainly well ahead of the game, the wiring and paint detail is well beyond where I began my first model way back, my goodness half a century ago now (that is a surprise to me when I put it that way) looking forward to more of your work, Misha

Pretty Wild!!! Be checking in on the Express. Cheers Misha

That certainly brings back memories! What a great idea for a scale version. Does any one produce decals for the Inch Pincher? Imagine that the best choice for the Bug would be Tamiya's version with a stretched Type 2 from Fujimi? Gonna file this under modelling ideas for the future. Cheers Misha

I find that an airbrush gives me greater control, allows for a wider range of paints, and cuts down on that cloud of overspray from a can. In the distant dark ages I used rattle cans then bought a double action Paasche VL, a real workhorse, and a cheapy compressor that pulsated like a bucking bronco! Since then I've added a second VL and an Iwata for finer work, plus a studio Iwata compressor with two feeds and near silent operation. Having said that, I still use Tamiya primers rattle cans for ease of operation and no clean up. I've recently set up a workbench in our winter abode in Scottsdale and I'm back to using Tamiya cans as my spray rig is up north. On calm days I can be spotted in the condo parking lot spraying. The main point is that I agree with Pete J. above that owning the right tools doesn't guarantee a good job, yet it encourages one to do better and obtain finer finishes as one develops their skills. Cheers Misha

Neat idea David! The illustrations are drop dead gorgeous, especially effective are the side stripes to differentiate the Mk II and Mk IV liveries. The Gulf colours look great too, yet over the years they have appeared on a range of vehicles and have become somewhat passé. I would add the original Series 1 scheme with white body and blue nose. Being a new kit and a snap kit it would be enticing to give it a go, as most of the effort would go into the paint schemes while allowing for an easy and quick build. Haven't seen the kit itself yet on the shelves, though believe it's molded in a dark blue? Saw the 1:1 white version on a turntable at Barrett Jackson this year, it is a stunner! Great idea for a community build, hope there is enough interest. Cheers Misha

Just cleared off my bench to take some photos of my K5 Blazer WIP for the AussieBall this year. This is my temporary bench in Arizona while escaping from the Pacific NorWest's wet wintery blast. Very basic tools and rattle cans down here. In a few weeks be back on Vancouver Island and back in my hobby room! Cheers Misha

Okie dokie, went back and trashed some of my earlier photos, see if that helps... Not sure what effect that has on my previous posts.

Going to give it another shot for downloading. Signed up for Fotki... Let's see what happens! It's more complicated than I thought... Have to,do,some research, sorry! Misha

K5 Blazer - Entry #18 Chassis Update G'Day Mates, Been busy with family visits to AZ from north of the 49th, so haven't had that much time at the bench. Have worked on the chassis and it's nearly ready for primer! Added on the front mount for the Roo Bar and winch to attach to and have fabricated the connecting mounts for the roll bar cage. It's not to regulation just to bolt the cage to the sheet metal floor, it has to tie into the frame so that the entire structure is one piece. Also switched the steering gear around to the starboard side to match the RHD interior. Going to mount the pedals and brake m/c plus booster from the 67 Camaro kit to line up with the steering and dash. Made a pattern from card for the skid plate in front then fabricated in plastic along with attachment points on the chassis. Used half round strips to add strengthening to the plate. Ready now for any kangaroo or ditch excursions in the Outback. Washing the body parts in preparation for the first primer coats and then shooting TS-34 Camel Yellow for the body with a tan top. Next on the build list is the roof rack that will be connected to the roll cage. The frame and cage will be finished in TS-38 Gun Metal. All paints are Tamiya rattle cans, as the air brush rig is back on Vancouver Island. Only a few weeks before flying home, will catch the Desert Scale Classic here in Phoenix on April 9th. Cheers for now, Misha Whoops! Can't upload the pics as even one exceeds my 9.16MB, not sure what to do, as I don't use any other program for photos.

Using the Blazer kit for my entry in the AussieBall this year's Cannonball on the forum. It's great to have this kit back, yet I'm facing the same quandary with the off road wheels included. Once I get back to Vancouver Island I'll search thru the stash for something more appropriate. It's a mystery how they combined six and five lugs into the kit. I also picked up a second kit largely for an extra set of tires (even with five included in the box) as one was somewhat miss molded, plus I want to carry two spares on board. The Blazer is lifted a scale five inches, will mount a full roll cage mounted to the chassis, have the steering shifted over to RHD and have a number of mods and additions for this trek across the Outback. Check out the thread on Community Group Builds. Cheers Misha

Great start Michael on a classic kit! Looking straight and all four tires on the ground. Would you describe the issues as you build and how you get around them. This is a great vehicle, yet a daunting kit with the dual engines and all the chrome. Built the Roth cars as a kid, found them difficult (except the Surfite) and now have contemplated having a go at them yet thinking of stripping the chrome off to help glue it together and then Alclad. I'll be following you build with great interest. Cheers Misha

By the way, what time do the doors open? Wouldn't want to miss out on anything. Cheers Misha

Nice work Jeff on wiring and plumbing your Hemi. Alternator is attached to the block avoiding the dreaded floating one. The paint work turned out very well. I would offer a suggestion to make your plug wires lay more naturally, especially the driver's side where they are looping up into the air, apart from that it looks terrific! Quite interested in seeing what you'll wrap,around it. The style suggests an S/Stock class racer??? Cheers Misha

Great shots Tom! Thanks for taking the time to document so many unique and expertly finished models. It was neat to see many entries that were featured in the forum pages as WIP or Under Glass. It looks like the show was a winner, congrats to the organizers. Looking forward now to the Desert Classic in Phoenix. Cheers Misha

Thought I was going to miss the event, as we were going to head back to Vancouver Island on the first, yet last night the plans changed ?! The DSC was one of the main reasons. Very happy to be able to attend and meet fellow forum members. Can I still get into the "stinkin'" badge deal? Looking forwards to the show, Cheers Misha

Whoa! Can I have the keys to this Woodie? Beautiful job on this one, the extras really add to it. Love to have it my my stable. Congrats! Misha

Great build Gary. It's a really nice change to see a stock build of this Dodge, rather than the LIttle Red Wagon. Congrats, Misha

Eye Popping!!! What a great concept and look, the stylin' is perfect especially the box. Missed the build thread, gonna go check it out. Thanks for sharing this beauty. Cheers Misha

Beautiful build Mercelo! The paint finish is gorgeous, always difficult to do black and you aced it. Under the hood detail is very well done congrats. As this is your first post, welcome aboard and we all are looking forward to seeing more of your work. What's next on your bench? Cheers Misha