Longbox55

Even a Model A engine will need lots of alterations to be made into an N tractor engine. Nothing interchanges on the 1:1, as the tractor engine is designed around 1/2 of a Mercury V8 rather than being based on the earlier A/B 4 cylinder.

Another conversion, the Elenco 4x4. I have also seen a conversion for the US spec version of the Ferguson (post merger with Massey-Harris as the tractor was in Massey colors) that is similar, but used a Jeep axle instead of M-37 Power Wagon.

Funk V8 http://www.oldfordtractors.com/funk.htm

The brake and clutch pedals are different, the 8N has foot rest platforms under the pedals, grille, Ford script on the hood sides, Ford script on insides of rear fenders depending on year, Radiator cap and filler coming through the hood, battery/fuel tank access door on hood. Fortunately, there's lots of good research material out there for the N tractors. In my case, I also have a 1:1 '48 8N sitting 1/2 apart in my garage.

Cool. I need to get a few of these, partly because I'm a tractor nut, but also because I want to convert one into an N series Ford. That'll take some work to do, but the basics are there already.

The Lindberg F-150 is a '97, and does not have a TTB front end. '97 was the first year for the torsion bar IFS for Ford, and was only used on 1/2 tons.

I'll believe it about the Bronco when I see them at the dealerships. This isn't the first time they said they were "bringing the Bronco back", this has been going on for over 10 years. GM has been doing the same thing with the Blazer/K5 concepts that they've been doing since '02.

I would question the durability as well. While we don't generally handle them once built, but there is going to be handling of painted parts during assembly and finishing. Being that this paint is aimed at graffiti artists, I would think it would possibly be made to be easily removed by those who don't want said graffiti on their buildings/railcars, etc. Would it be a durable enough finish to stand up to say, wet sanding the finish out for polishing? Or perhaps even holding up to solvents for detail painting or handling while doing BMF?

If you can find one, the Welly '53 Chevy tow truck has correct for stock wheels. They're the 18" split rim option. It also has a reasonably accurate bed, though it is more of a '50s style. If you go that route, you will want to make sure you get the Welly and not the Jada. While they are very similar, the Jada has oversized wheels that are not very accurate. Another option for the wheels, if you can find them, would be the Modelhaus Vintage 1 ton Dual wheel set, which is correct for the 17.5" single piece wheel option that started around 1955. Unfortunately, they are no longer being made. On the bed, if you want to go a tow truck route, would be to use the bed from the Midnight Cowboy, which would go very well with the '60s Chevy body. For factory stock, you will need to stretch the frame for the longer wheelbase, 133" for the 1 ton dual wheel truck. The rear suspension would also need to be changed to leaf spring. Unfortunately, there isn't a source for the Eaton HO72 axle that's accurate, but the rear from the Miss Deal kit is pretty close in basic shape and size to fake it. The front suspension would need to be raised a little bit too to get the stance right. The transmission should really be changed as well, the only source I know of for the correct SM420 are the old MPC '68-'72 Chevy kits, but the TH400 was available in 1 tons that year if you wanted to go automatic. Here's a source with the dimensions and all options for 1965. https://www.gmheritagecenter.com/docs/gm-heritage-archive/vehicle-information-kits/Chevrolet-Trucks/1965-Chevrolet-Truck.pdf

Art nailed it. But, as others have mentioned, 1/25 does pop up from time to time, it just depends on what you're looking for (current or vintage) and if you're ok with die cast. That said, there is a line of Bobcat die cast that are 1/25, mostly current production models plus a 1958 Melroe (first year of production) that are very nicely done. With a little detailing, they can be made very nice. I have also seen some Kubota die casts in 1/25 as well. If you have one nearby, Tractor Supply would be a good place to check here in a few weeks, as they should be getting their Christmas stock in. In plastic, things are more limited, and in some cased, very spendy. Ed mentions the John Deeres and the IH from Ertl, there was also a pair of Massey-Ferguson 1155 tractors, one a stock ag tractor, and one customized pulling tractor that Ertl offered as well. I have also seen several M-F tractors from Heller on Ebay, mostly European spec, but could be converted to US spec without issue. Heller has also recently issued a Ferguson TE20, which was also sold in the US as the TO20. With some work, it can serve as a basis for a Ford 9-2-8 N, as many of the parts for the Ferguson were pretty much copied from the Ford.

I just looked that truck over again, and noticed something I missed earlier, the radio is NOT the factory radio. It's an aftermarket radio, A Custom Autosound unit to be exact. I should have noticed it right away, too, I have the same one in mine. I also have an original factory radio from a '56, and the difference is noticeable. As I said in my earlier post, nice truck, but hardly an "all original unrestored survivor" as they claimed. If I could see the serial numbers, I could easily tell what is and isn't original to that truck.

Great place to look for OOP, been there a few times myself.

Most likely, those have been repainted from original, most likely during a rebuild. It's not unusual for a rebuilder to paint all their engines one color as a "branding" of sorts. Jasper for example, used to paint all their engines a pale green, regardless of what kind of engine it was.

Definitely JoHan, but pinning it down to the exact kit might be a little more tricky as they used that same engine assembly in several different kits, mostly different years and variants of the Chrysler 300. The color doesn't help much to pin it either, as JoHan was known for having the kits molded in whatever color was available.

You're going to be in for lots of alterations to make the pickup parts work. The entire front end of the larger truck is longer that the pickup counterparts, and it pinches in at the front, which is noticeable narrower as well. The rounded wheel wells are also much wider than is appears in the picture of the 1:1 due to the angle. Here's a better picture of a similar truck.

Good theory, and I can certainly speak from experience about warehouses doing just that from when I worked for a major retailers automotive department as a mechanic. Not only would merchandise be improperly stacked on the pallet, wrapped so tight that the boxes were warped, but they would stack tires on top of them, too! Lost track of how many times we got damaged merchandise we couldn't sell, not to mention broken oil bottles, partly from being crushed, partly from the driver throwing them off the truck because he didn't want to take the extra 5 seconds to carry it down to the doors to prevent damaging it. However, as far as Hobby Lobby goes, we used to have one in the mall were the company I worked for was located, and was in there on an almost daily basis, usually early enough to see what was coming in before it went on the shelves. Their model shipments come in the same way that regular hobby shops do, always boxed inside a larger lot box, and mostly delivered by UPS.

Just taking a wild guess based on what I see, it looks like it is the Oldsmobile engine from the '80s issue Revell "Chopped '32 Ford Sedan" Those kits is modified reissues of the Orange Crate

I don't disagree with you on that. The other 2 replicas of it I have, a 1/64 Hot Wheels (packaged with the Deuce) and a 1/16 scale Ertl, also have similar inaccuracies to the real car, but are concept accurate to the time period. In the case of the Hot Wheels, it's basically a stockish body '55 with a supercharged small block in it. The Ertl has the body and suspension correct to the movie car, but has a W block in it with dual quads, in this case mounted on a tunnel ram type intake. I really do not have a problem with them being concept correct over actual car correct, though I would have liked to at least seen the Revell have the beam axle under it, since it is noticeable in the movie. As far as the engine, and this is just personal opinion, I would think that a 371 or 394 Oldsmobile would have been more appropriate to be period correct, given that both engines were very common in gasser type cars.

I thought they were both pretty good, too. The Deuce is more accurate to the actual movie car than the '55 is, though.

Yes, there are strength differences in them. Super Clean is the strongest of those you listed, with Purple Power being next strongest, I'm not familiar with Drivers Choice, and found the Awesome brand to only be good for stripping chrome, as it did little to nothing to paint.

https://www.gmheritagecenter.com/docs/gm-heritage-archive/vehicle-information-kits/Chevrolet/1957-Chevrolet.pdf Body dimensions are on pages 7-17.

For those that are interested, here's a shot of the rear suspension and crossmember from the Milner '32/

I've been using Tamiya for some time, and have never come across that issue. Perhaps the plastic still had mold release on it? It might also be an issue with the plastic itself, some plastics are known for not holding paint very well, or possibly that the first coat wasn't fully dry yet. One thing I would ask as far as technique goes, are you priming the parts or applying direct to bare plastic? Priming the parts first will give the paint a better surface to grab on to.

They pop up on Ebay from time to time, but tend to go for crazy money. Best bet if you want to find one more reasonable would be to check out the model shows. I've seen them for under $40 (I paid $35 for mine) at the swaps.

For a more simple "back in the day" style exhaust, it wasn't uncommon for the stock manifold to simply be cut between cylinder 3 and 4, ends plated off, and a downpipe welded onto the front half of the manifold to make a split "header" for the Chevrolet 6. Alternatively, if you have it in your stash, the AMT '51 Fleetline sedan kit does have both a decent Nicson dual carb intake and reasonable set of late style Fenton headers.