Revell '29 Roadster, Late '50s Style

[Richard Bartrop]

I bought this when it first came out, but It's only recently that I figured out what to do with it.  My original intent was to replicate a famous early roadster, but the modified wheelwells meant I would have to rework them back to stock, and since Round 2 was happy to sell me a Model A roadster that I didn't have to alter,  I shelved that idea.   I decided to go instead to go for something where the reworked wheelwells were part of the design. In this case I figured it was something you'd do if you wanted fenders on a channeled body.  The other inspirations were some footage in an old drag racing film of a Deuce roadster sporting an early Hemi with a Latham blower, and this cover to a Henry Gregor Felsen novel.

 

So it's going to end up being a late '50s style rod with bobbed fenders in the rear, and cycle fenders up front.

The rear fenders are from the previous issue of AMT's '29 roadster kit.  The front fenders are from the Double T kit, as is the Latham supercharger.  The Deuce grille shell is from the parts box, while the engine, wheels, and tires are from the latest "Mod Rod" edition of AMT's '29 A roadster.

Edited July 23, 2018 by Richard Bartrop

[PARTSMARTY]

This will look cool !!!

[Ballroad]

That looks like a great build coming along. I can't tell you how many times I read that paper back in my younger days....

[Deuces]

Nice start on the '29....

I also have that book that I bought in the early '70s....

[mvadrag]

Hey, I think I read that book back when I was in high school.

Are you going to "bob" the fenders like the illustration?  That would look pretty cool.

[modelfink]

Cool build! I'll be interested to see how you progress

[Jantrix]

I like where this is going. I'll be following along.

[Richard Bartrop]

2 hours ago, mvadrag said:

Hey, I think I read that book back when I was in high school.

Are you going to "bob" the fenders like the illustration?  That would look pretty cool.

It's not going to be an exact recreation of the cover,  but the fenders will end up getting a bit of a trim.

[Dennis Lacy]

Nice project! Right up my alley. Will definitely be following along.

[Richard Bartrop]

The engine mount from the Mod Rod was slightly narrower than the space on the Revell frame, but a couple of styrene shims took care of that.

Checking how it sits on the kit suspension.  The front looks fine, but I think the rear needs to come up a smidge.

[alan barton]

This is one case where having the radiussed wheel arches actually helps because a lot of channelled cars with fenders had them welded up higher on the body. I can't wait to see how it looks with the trimmed fenders - this is a style I have had in mind ever since I bought the Revell kits.  Yeah, just a smidge is all it needs at the back.

Cheers

Alan

[Richard Bartrop]

I trimmed the fenders, though I think I need to take a little more off the front ones.

[DrKerry]

Lookin good so far!! It’s got the look!!

[Modelbuilder Mark]

Nice to see one done up with fenders tastefully.

[66belair]

That is going to be a cool build. I wish I had bought more of those 29 Roadsters and 31 coupes. I have one of each in my stash.

[Richard Bartrop]

I wanted a more period correct looking rear end, so I lopped off the back of the frame, and replaced it with a crossmember from an AMT Model A frame. The rear spring is from a Revell '29 pickup, and the quickchange center section is from the parts bin.  I've attached the new axle to the frame like the old one to make it easier to measure out all the linkages and mounting points, and to let me make scale looking hardware without having to worry if it will actually support anything.

It's tight, but the engine fits.  Revell's '29 Roadster supplied the carbs.   I made a new set of pulleys for the blower, but I am thinking I should invest in one of those Molotow pens.

As for paint,  I'm thinking a dark metallic red like the Tommy Ivo T for the body, and the same colour for the frame and running gear,  but I'm also pondering doing the frame in gold to match the engine, or even white.

[Richard Bartrop]

I trimmed the back a little, and added some quarter round rod along the bottom.  The dash is an extra part from the Revell '29 that isn't listed in the instructions.  The hole is just the right size and shape for a proper period style instrument panel, but since I don't find one in the box, I decided to build one from scratch.  Since I don't have a punch, I just thinned out some evergreen tubing and sanded down the slices to make the bezels.

 

I put the finished panel on the scanner to make a template for the gauges.  They're based on vintage Stewart-Warner gauges, though I didn't have a font that was an exact match for was S-W used.  However, since the finished gauge faces are going to be 3/16" and 1/8" across, I figured I could live with it.

[High octane]

Lookin' great so far Richard and I really like where you're going with it. I read that book by Henry Gregor Felsen so long ago, that it's just a faded memory.

[Richard Bartrop]

19 hours ago, High octane said:

Lookin' great so far Richard and I really like where you're going with it. I read that book by Henry Gregor Felsen so long ago, that it's just a faded memory.

It's been a while for me too.,  I saw the cover while looking for a Henry Gregor Felsen website,  and basically a light went on.

[Richard Bartrop]

I started on the rear suspension.  Between picking the brains of the experts here, and browsing the H.A.M.B.   I've hopefully whipped up a convincing set of period ladder bars.

For something a little different, a set of Lincoln taillights from a Revell custom '48 Ford coupe I picked up for the parts.

 

[bisc63]

This is a REALLY cool project; can't wait to see more progress! Those ladder bars are perfect.

[Richard Bartrop]

I decided to go with the finned drums from the Revell kit.   I made a set of fender supports from brass strip..

 

Getting there.  Waiting on a MCG sectioned Deuce shell for the front.

[Mr. Metallic]

This is coming together nicely. i dig the fender supports.

The "extra" dash that is in the 29 kit is actually the dash for the 30 A coupe

[Rider]

Looking the part of a real vintage hot rod. I like the fenders, brackets look good. 

[Richard Bartrop]

Thanks for the compliments!  

Rummaging through, my parts, I came across a set of wheels rom AMT's '49 Mrc that were the same style as the ones in the Mod Rod, but shallower, so I replaced the front wheels. 

 

When figuring out the dashboard it seemed appropriate to have a tach as well as a speedometer, and I'd already decided on a five gauge instrument panel, so I decided to do a little research to see how it was handled back in the day.  I came across this photo of the dash of Norm Wallace's '32 ford roadster.  An extra gauge is in a bracket below the dash, but it's the speedometer, with the tach placed front and centre in the instrument panel, so that's the setup I decided to go with.

So I scratched up a speedo, and a bracket to go with it.