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Hello All, after seeing "Rare Vair" at SEMA 2021 (pictured below), I was inspired to try my own rendition in 1:24 scale. Details on my build are under the same title as this thread in the WIP section. In summary though, I began with an AMT Chezoom, threw in some parts from an AMT '69 Corvair, added drivetrain and suspension from a Revell Foose '65 Impala, a few bits from a Revell '29 Model A Roadster, and the hood from a Revell '08 Shelby GT500. (Since our member Claude Thibodeau has nicknamed me "Dr. Frankenstein" for mashing parts together from different kits, I wanted to live up to the moniker! ) What you see below is the results of my efforts, which I have named "Unsafe At Any Speed" as an aspersion to the hack who wrote the book by the same name. These are what I call the "beauty shots": Paint was the ubiquitous Tamiya TS-8 red, TS-14 black, and TS-13 clear. For the first time, I tried my hand at sanding and polishing the paint to reduce orange peel (having some level of success). I also tried BMF in the form of Scotch 3M foil tape 3311, which I found at the auto store. Being slightly thicker than commercial BMF, I found it easier to work with my tired and clumsy hands. The grille work came in the form of Detail Master DM-2590 honeycomb grill #1. Finally, I gave it a go with wiring the engine and the use of Tamiya Panel Line Accent for the shut lines. Below are more detail photos of how it came out: Overall, I am thrilled with how this model came out, and it is easily the most complex build I have ever done. Enjoying the company of the members of this forum has spurred me on to improve my skills with each build. In this case, I am particularly happy with how the drivetrain came out, as well as the interior, and hood. I am least happy with my painting skills, the fact that I forgot to put disc brakes in before permanently gluing the wheels in place, and the devil's creation known as BMF! For those interested in more pictures of Rare Vair, how this build came together, or the pluses and minuses of the AMT Chezoom kit from my perspective, check out the WIP thread. And finally, I have to send a shout out to Misha Koslovsky whose version of Chezoom inspired me, and which I look eagerly forward to seeing completed.

At SEMA 2021, I ran across a beautiful custom Corvair at the Meguiar's booth named "Rare Vair" completed by a gentleman named Lonnie Gilbertson. I took a few pictures and decided it would have to be a future model build. For my version of the build, I got the AMT Corvair "Chezoom" Funny car, as well as the AMT 1969 Corvair kit, and quickly discovered neither were ideal for my project; the Chezoom kit as it turns out is cobbled together with a Corvair body on a "Hemi-Under-Glass" frame and drivetrain. This means the engine is a Chrysler hemi, the wheelbase is off and requires cutting the rear fenders, there is no transmission whatsoever as the driveshaft exits the clutch housing and goes right to the differential (as our own member Misha Koslovsky found out during his build), and because it is a funny car, the front suspension is very rudimentary. The '69 Corvair on the other hand has lots of extra racing parts and a better detailed interior, however its unibody chassis would require extensive modification to go from rear engine to mid engine configuration. Not to say it cannot be done, as Scale Auto Garage has a gorgeous video online of one done with a Ferrari Testarossa engine, drivetrain, and subframe. Because I was going for a race car for the street vibe, I decided to use the Chezoom kit, and maybe steal a few parts from the '69 Corvair. Starting with the engine, I set aside the hemi engine and sourced a Chevy (I believe a 396?) and manual tranny from a Revell Foose '65 Impala. To figure out how the engine would mate to the differential, I did some research on the actual "Hemi-Under-Glass" and learned that it used a very novel marine gearbox called the Casale V-drive to redirect power from the tranny to the diff. Since the Casale gearbox looked to my eyes like the front and rear covers to the blower from a Revell '29 Model A Roadster, I stole those from my kit and together with some finagling of the Chezoom subframe, came up with my drivetrain:

Guys, I know this has been done a million times, but I was so pleased with the way the Chezoom chassis fits underneath the '62 Bel Air. The paint is fighting me, but at least now I've got motivation to do something about it!