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51 Chevy Bel Air - Jet Car


Daxman

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I finished my last Jet car back in October last year. It's one of my favorite that I've built. Really proud of that one. I'll be taking it to the KC model show this year.

I took a break from models for the holidays. A few weeks ago my wife called me from Hobby Lobby and asked if I wanted a 51 Chevy kit that she found on clearance. I couldn't turn down the offer.

Here's where I'm at.

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I'll be leaving the rear mechanical parts exposed on this one. The turbines were made from wheel rims, large styrene tube, and Gundam parts.

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Lots of Gundam parts.

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It would make an interesting police car. Been thinking about it, but I'm not there yet. The main thing holding me back from a police car is the fact that it's a 2 door.

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The purple plastic is the rear of a 71 Hemi Cuda. I only used the quarter panels. I used the frame and cross member of another kit to build the top. I cut strips of styrene to make the intake vents.

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I wanted to see mechanical parts under the intakes, so I created a false compartment above the exhaust. Threw in a few interesting parts. For the most part everything under the vents will be hidden, but if you look closely, you'll be able to see.

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There's a VW exhaust in there. A turbo from a semi.

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I'll keep posting photos as I go. Thanks for looking!

 

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Hi Dax

It's great to see you working on another of your Jet Cars.

I've always liked oddball Sci-Fi  and Retro Future design. I find your work fascinating. 

Your Jet Cars are part of the inspiration behind my Karma Bug project. In case you're interested, I've included a link to the build thread.

Keep up the great work Dax!

David G.

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On 2/12/2020 at 5:14 AM, David G. said:

Hi Dax

It's great to see you working on another of your Jet Cars.

I've always liked oddball Sci-Fi  and Retro Future design. I find your work fascinating. 

Your Jet Cars are part of the inspiration behind my Karma Bug project. In case you're interested, I've included a link to the build thread.

Keep up the great work Dax!

David G.

Thanks David! The Karma Bug has come along nice! Keep the side intakes, I love them. As a wasteland vehicle, are you adding any weaponry?

15 hours ago, Jantrix said:

Where did the base come from? Looking good, I like this.

My son gave me approximately 10 of these bases. He purchased them online from a Chinese retailer a few years ago. It's basically an interlocking set of tiles, used to pose Gundam models. They've come in handy!

 

Thanks!!!

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5 hours ago, Daxman said:

Thanks David! The Karma Bug has come along nice! Keep the side intakes, I love them. As a wasteland vehicle, are you adding any weaponry?

My son gave me approximately 10 of these bases. He purchased them online from a Chinese retailer a few years ago. It's basically an interlocking set of tiles, used to pose Gundam models. They've come in handy!

 

Thanks!!!

Thanks for taking the time to check it out Dax, I'm glad you like it. I thought about adding a .50 cal or two but I don't have any in the parts box right now and they would kind of dwarf the car and disrupt the lines. I'm seeing this as more of a Sunday dragstrip expo car.

Thanks and keep up the great work!

David G.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I am pretty sure that I'm going to make this into a police vehicle. Next time I'm at the local hobby shop, I'm going to see if I can find a 50-60's police cruiser that I can kitbash. I figured that since it's a 2 door, it would be a pursuit car.  It will be weathered, but not as rusted and faded as my other jet cars.

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I cut a relief for the front turbines to tuck into. I'll need to fill the gap with styrene.

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I removed part of the backseat because I was going to mount the rear turbines in a slightly different location. Things changed and now I need to find a way to rebuild the backseat, or find something that'll cover my mistake.

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Front turbines fit into the relief. These photos the turbine is not attached in it's final position. .

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Gundam parts, large diameter styrene tube, and wheel rims make up the turbines.

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Then I found these really cool tail-fins.

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I love the tail-fins. Makes it look more like a pursuit vehicle......at least that's what I tell myself.

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Heat shields on the doors.

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I'm thinking that I'll make the roof and the doors white. The turbines will be dark steel and black.

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I like how the side trim remains above the front turbine.

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I'm so impatient that I had to rub some AK Interactive True Metal on the steel parts, just to see how they'd look.

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Thanks for looking!

Dax

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Another great looking Jet Car. You mentioned getting Police parts for your build. The Revell '48 Ford coupe and the '57 Ford Del Rio Wagon both had some parts and decals that may help with what you're looking for. Another thought would be the '80's Mustang coupe, in it's first release Revell tried their best to offer some CHP options. You may have one or all of these in your Stash or put your needs up on the Forum, I'll bet there are many who would be glad to help you out with your needs.  

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11 hours ago, espo said:

Another great looking Jet Car. You mentioned getting Police parts for your build. The Revell '48 Ford coupe and the '57 Ford Del Rio Wagon both had some parts and decals that may help with what you're looking for. Another thought would be the '80's Mustang coupe, in it's first release Revell tried their best to offer some CHP options. You may have one or all of these in your Stash or put your needs up on the Forum, I'll bet there are many who would be glad to help you out with your needs.  

Thank you Dave. I went to the local hobby shop today looking for that 57 Del Rio today. I had seen it there every single time I went into that store. Of course, now that I want to buy it, there were none on the shelf. I'll probably order it online. I was thinking about how cool that station wagon would look as a jet car. It might be a future project!

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15 hours ago, Daxman said:

Thank you Dave. I went to the local hobby shop today looking for that 57 Del Rio today. I had seen it there every single time I went into that store. Of course, now that I want to buy it, there were none on the shelf. I'll probably order it online. I was thinking about how cool that station wagon would look as a jet car. It might be a future project!

Make it into a K-9 Patrol Car. 

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I always look forward to seeing your work!  Super creative!

When you say "gundam parts" ... are there particular ones you like to raid for parts?  Seems to be such a variety.  Maybe that's a dumb question - Anyway, really enjoy seeing these :)

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 3/2/2020 at 8:50 PM, Jonathan said:

I always look forward to seeing your work!  Super creative!

When you say "gundam parts" ... are there particular ones you like to raid for parts?  Seems to be such a variety.  Maybe that's a dumb question - Anyway, really enjoy seeing these :)

My son had quite a few Gundam kits that he wasn't interested in building. He donated them along with the grey plastic bases that I use to show the cars in flight. In total he gave me 6 complete kits and a few half built models as well. I use anything that looks like it fits the ascetic of the car. Many times I modify the Gundam part to fit the model as well.

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I did a fast count and came up with around 30 Gundam parts on the undercarriage alone.

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Looks better with a coat of black. Hovercar 101 - it can always use more hoses and pipes.

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Working on the undercarriage of these hover cars is one of my favorite parts of the build. You can get really creative. Unfortunately it tends to get overlooked when the kit is complete.

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I should start displaying the cars like this.

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I added new winglets? to the bottom. I may move the location slightly.

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I need to do something to the grill. I feel that it needs to be more of a focal point. I may cut out the center horizontal bar for a more open look. Not sure yet.

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I really like the tail lights, just think something more 50's is needed. I'll probably end up changing these out.

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If you've seen my other builds, you'll know that I change a lot changes from start to finish. I'm going to start the body color paint this week. I may not go with the police vehicle theme. I really need to think this one through.

I'll keep posting pics. Thanks for the support from everyone!!

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