66 Nova Pro Street - My Return to Model Building

[GeeDub]

I'm back into model building after a very long hiatus.  My kit building niche is Pro Street, Pro Stock, Pro Mod, drag - street/strip. 

I am building models as a form of therapy/quality of life enhancement.  I have multiple myeloma (blood cancer) and take oral chemo daily.  Most days I feel like dung, some days better than others, but it is far better than the alternative.  I use model building to keep my mind occupied which in turn helps forget about how bad I feel.  This being said to indicate the level of build/finish is not aimed at show quality, but rather functional used looking cars. 

My first of about 25 kits to build is the AMT 66 Nova Pro Street.  I've only got an iphone to take the pics, so quality will not be the best.

Part I

Here is the engine

I have drilled the spark plug holes in preparation for wiring the distributor.  Unfortunately, the provided distributor is very small and I doubt I can adequately wire it.  I welcome any suggestions, recommendations or tips.  I may end up buying a pre-wired distributor, providing I can find a size that will fit without looking too oversized.

I've got the body painted but have one area on the left front quarter panel that needs work. Those images will come at a later time.  

 

Thanks for looking!

Edited June 26, 2020 by GeeDub
(edited to fix a censored/word not allowed and cropped the image)

[Deuces ll]

The engine looks great!....

I plan on using the tunnel ram intake from my '66 Nova kits on a AMT '70.5 Z/28 Camaro motor.... The intake fits like a charm!....

[Flatout]

Looking good so far Glenn...a prewired distributor is definitely the way to go, they make it much easier to wire up a 1/25 scale engine.   I know what you mean about model building being therapeutic, for me the rest of world disappears when I’m building.  Best of luck with your health issues and your model.

Aloha...Pete

 

[mustang1989]

Glad you're back at it Glenn. That photo of that engine looks pretty dang good to me for being taken with a cell phone camera. Ex-alcoholic here. Modeling is VERY therapeutic for me.

[Tom Geiger]

Go for it! It’s a great project and the satisfaction will make you feel a bit better and look forward to the next step!  
As far as the distributor, I don’t know if you were looking to drill 9 holes in the kit’s unit or if one big hole will work for you. That’s what a lot of prewired ones are anyway! 

[GeeDub]

Thanks for the tips.  I'm going to try several different pre-wired distributors on future projects. I got one in today that is pre-drilled and I added the wires myself.  The stock distributor for the 66 Nova is just so small, I ran out of space trying to drill 8 holes around the perimeter.  Trial and error, of course, and I need smaller hands. 

I hope to have the wired distributor installed tomorrow and will upload a picture or two.

 

 

[GeeDub]

Part 2

I finished wiring the distributor and engine. This is all of the engine detailing I am doing on this build.  It was a task for these poor eyes and shakey hands, but I got her done.  I'm pleased with the outcome. I haven't done this since I was about 10 or 11 years old, when I glued black sewing thread to the distributor and plug locations.  

Thanks for looking.
 

Edited July 1, 2020 by GeeDub

[GeeDub]

Part 3

I had the hardest time getting the engine into the bay. Perhaps it would have been easier if I had left the headers unattached and glued them on after the engine was positioned correctly. You will notice the engine is not lined up correctly, it is a little crooked.  Try as I might, I could not get it to center due to the headers obstructing block alignment.

I am using a roll cage and seats from an AMT 67 Chevelle Pro Street kit.  I wonder why a roll cage or bar was not included in the Nova Pro Street kit.  You would think it should be a must have item. I certainly do.

The front suspension parts are very small and appear to be fragile.  I will have to be extra careful when I attach the front wheels so the spindles don't break. The fit of some items on this kit are troublesome. If more of the models I plan on building have similar issues, I could see myself perhaps attempting to scratchbuild a tubular pro street/pro stock style frame or two.

I will have some touch up painting to do before the body goes on. Slow going but fun.

Thanks for looking!
 

Edited July 3, 2020 by GeeDub
removed duplicate word

[Flatout]

Great work on the engine wiring Glenn, the rest of it is coming together nicely too?

[slusher]

Looks fantastic!

[MeatMan]

Nice start! Can't lose with a Nova.

[GeeDub]

On 6/26/2020 at 7:16 PM, Snake45 said:

BTW, here's the Cyclone frame. I had to add two more frame rails to it so I could use it in the Mustang. 

The more I look at this frame, I think I will purchase some styrene rods and tubes and try my hand at scratch building.  I have a few extra pro street kits that will provide the tubbed rear area.  I just need to figure out how I will go about building the front suspension(s).  This will be a whole new thread after this 66 Nova and the '68 Z/28 are finished.  

Edited July 4, 2020 by GeeDub
I just realized I posted this in the wrong thread - it should be in the Eliminator II thread. My bad.

[Southern Fried]

Lookin' good. That's a great kit to jump back into building. There's a few "bumps"...but your on the right track.

[mustang1989]

Progress is looking good so far Glenn.

[GeeDub]

Part 3a

Things sure slow down as the build starts getting closer to the end.  I was hoping the rollcage would fit without modifications but I knew the odds were slim.  Dry fitting proved I would need to remove the side horizontal bars/tubes and shorten the front and back vertical main bars/tubes to allow it to fit within the interior tub and also within the body.  

Next, I had to remove a portion of the rear lower cross bars/tubes for drive shaft hump clearance.  I screwed up trimming that portion and had to create a curved section to look decent.  I'm not certain it is realisic but it works for me.

Here is a picture of my apartment workbench

This project is taking far longer than I expected.  However, I am taking my time and having a lot of fun building the car.  

Thanks for looking.

 

Edited July 7, 2020 by GeeDub
Fixed a broken link

[GeeDub]

Part 3b

I've got the interior ready, just need to do a bit of clean up on the roll cage then glue it in place.

Next will be Future coating the glass and finishing the body.

Thanks for looking.

[GeeDub]

I'm re-thinking my original story line for this car.  Originally, I wanted it to be a pro street build, somewhere in the late 80s that the owner and a couple of his buddies built and maintain to run on the strip on weekends, but drive to work during the week.  With this in mind, I decided to give it a weathered look for the engine, engine bay and undercarriage.  You can easily see this in the images above.  However, I'm not certain these pro street cars were hardly ever actually driven on the street on a regular basis, and always seemed to maintain a pristine appearance.

So, now I am thinking I should give it a cleaner appearance.  What is the general consensus of fellow forum readers?

[Deuces WiId]

Most of these old engines aren't exactly air tight. They have stamped oil pans and even stamped valve covers for the most part. They build up a good amount of crank case pressure when you rev these engines out, especially if they have a PVC system or a little breather pushed into a valve cover. They're going to push a little oil out and road grime is going to stick to it. Every little place where you can't wipe with a rag is going to be pretty dirty.  Good places where dirt likes to hide is on the engine block under the headers, around the timing cover behind the water pump, china rails always leak a little, around the base of the distributor and oil sending unit, starters are a good catchall, the transmission tunnel is impossible to keep clean, and inside the frame rails and floor boards can get pretty nasty. There's always 10 pounds of rubber built up in the rear wheel wells when I scrape them out no matter how much I try to keep them clean in between tire changes. 

Basically everything you can easily touch and see is spotless, everything else is surprisingly disgusting. 

[GeeDub]

That's great info, Deuces.  Amazing about the accumulated rubber.  What is your average run time between rear tire changes?

 

 

[Deuces WiId]

I start keeping a close eye on my radials after 20 passes, I'm happy if I get 35 passes on them. That's a Mickey Thompson 275 Pro Radial, I've never drove them on the street.  I use Nitto drag radials on the vette and get around 20k miles out of them most of the time, all street miles.

I've never worn out a pair of bias slick. I've put a few on the Nova due to the tires leaking out all the air and rim sits on the sidewalls for an extended period of time and cutting the sidewalls, or dry rot. It's probably been over 15 years since I've made a pass on a drag strip with big tires. I drive the nova around with 33x14r15  and it shakes so bad on the street that I normally have to turn around and pick up pieces of trim out of ditch after some spirited driving. I would hate to see what it would do at the track, but I also have a manual in it and its not doing much to help the problem. 

[Metaldrumm]

Looks pretty good ,carbs are crooked but overall pretty good.?

[mustang1989]

Coming together nicely so far. Nice modeling area as well. I started back into the hobby with a set up similar to this a few years back.

[Deuces ll]

On 7/9/2020 at 9:13 AM, GeeDub said:

Part 3b

I've got the interior ready, just need to do a bit of clean up on the roll cage then glue it in place.

Next will be Future coating the glass and finishing the body.

Thanks for looking.

Looks pretty good... I'm curious about the trailer in that last photo..... Can you please post some pictures of it????.... Thanks a bunch!!!..... ?

[GeeDub]

18 hours ago, Deuces ll said:

I'm curious about the trailer in that last photo..... Can you please post some pictures of it????.... Thanks a bunch!!!..... ?

It is the Testors Hot Metal tandem axle trailer.  It is 98% metal, a few small parts are plastic.  Also, it is 1/24 scale, so a bit over sized for my favored 1/25 cars.

That is why I have the sheet of styrene across the floor of the trailer.  To me, this makes it appear a bit more realistic with a 1/25 car.  I still need to paint the styrene sheet and probably the fenders, too.

It has been discontinued and I don't see any available for a reasonable price when conducting a brief search.

 

[Deuces ll]

Ah, ok.... I have one of those....

I've been trying to locate a thread on this site that I've seen some years back where a gentleman built a model trailer from the AMT "Diamond in the rough" kit.... I can't seem to find it.... I'm bummed.... ?

Thanks for posting that picture!!.... ??