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Pro-Touring/Resto-Mod '70 Camaro.


Dragonhawk1066

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I bought the 1970 1/2 Z28 kit when I bought the Baldwin-Motion kit in order to build the Gumball Rally Camaro, as I needed the stock hood and small block motor not included in the Motion kit. With that project done, it's time to turn my attention to building the Z28 kit. It's going to be Pro-Touring/Resto-Mod styled with a Cowl Induction hood from Lex's Scale Modeling, the LS motor from a Revell Chevy SSR kit and the custom rims/tires from the Revell '67 Chevelle SS396 Streetburner kit. The parts layout before the motor was pilfered for the Yellow Camaro:DSCN4244.thumb.JPG.c443d53e543fcaf97f9fc797a8175124.JPG

Here we see that this kit has the same mold issue as the Motion kit, so I fiddled with a small piece of styrene and some putty to attach it to the fender,  and after some sanding I have a repair:

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Next up, I shaved the door handles, and emblems. I'm still undecided on removing the drip rails from above the doors:DSCN4493.thumb.JPG.0e53f456eb81719cd746584fb9397abe.JPGDSCN4502.thumb.JPG.ca21562dc4fbd906e16e89f46fa73311.JPGDSCN4498.thumb.JPG.f097a7672877cdd381f4b405bb4b4616.JPGDSCN4499.thumb.JPG.d045f6820e3f14dcb10473349dc41ac7.JPG

Some test fitting showed me that I needed to raise the fenderwells up in the engine bay. I wanted to still have the fenderwells, so I carefully cut them out much like one would cut out doors and trunks and sanded them to sit flush in their raised location. I used some Bob Smith gap-filling insta-cure to ensure no gaps when I prime the body:DSCN4505.thumb.JPG.575931bcdf0d08d2a877487f4d335e6a.JPGDSCN4508.thumb.JPG.5d386d4a56ffeaca70d51b29b7e16af8.JPGDSCN4514.thumb.JPG.1691b4ed5e00c7c1e21ebba7c256bb07.JPG

I had also previously dropped the front and rear bumpers in a bath of LA's Totally Awesome overnight to strip the chrome and attached them to the body so I can get a clean and uniform all one color look for the body:DSCN4515.thumb.JPG.3c0988276c98658479ed35b5e4ef61b5.JPG

Edited by Dragonhawk1066
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I like your design plans for this. Great idea to raise the inner fenders instead of just cutting them away. The factory front spoiler on these always looked like they just came off of a Trans Am race car. I would think that a true Pro Touing car would be more concerned with the smooth body as opposed to the rain dripping on you getting in and out of the car. 

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On 6/30/2020 at 10:08 PM, Deuces ll said:

I'll watch!!!.... ??

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On 7/1/2020 at 1:52 AM, Spottedlaurel said:

Looking good so far, I like the sound of your plan.

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On 7/1/2020 at 10:25 AM, espo said:

I like your design plans for this. Great idea to raise the inner fenders instead of just cutting them away. The factory front spoiler on these always looked like they just came off of a Trans Am race car. I would think that a true Pro Touing car would be more concerned with the smooth body as opposed to the rain dripping on you getting in and out of the car. 

Thanks! I really wanted to keep the fenderwells, I hate the "open wheel" look, and I agree the front spoiler is very attractively aggressive on these cars. I've got it in primer now, but I think I will trim off the drip rails and re-prime before paint.

On 7/1/2020 at 10:26 AM, AmericanMuscleFan said:

I'm glad to see that this "donor" kit will have a second life Craig!   Pro-Touring is hot these days and I'm more than happy to see this Camaro body style receive this kind of update!

Even on a cheap kit, I hate the idea of not building it even after "borrowing" some parts, lol. I always liked the body style of the '70-'73 Camaros and Firebirds, and I think they look really good with the Pro-touring update, and although I normally don't like the over-sized wheels and tires, up to a certain size is an eye-catcher.

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Had a problem with my Stynylrez gray primer spitting out some chunks while priming the body/parts, so after I was done I decided to shave off the drip rails from the roof area. I then laid a few thin coats of white primer down after wet-sanding the gray to remove the chunks and any other blemishes. Then I laid down the Testors Graphite Dust base coat. The blue spoon in the 4th pic will be the body color, Tamiya TS-53 Deep Blue Metallic, and the last two pics show the shaved drip rail area. I still haven't decided on how I'm going to paint the stripe on yet, or if I'm going to use the Tamiya TS-26 White or the Metallic White (looks like Pearl White) Craft Paint I just bought. I am currently putting the finishing touches on the interior and engine paint, so I hope to have pics of those later next week.

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Edited by Dragonhawk1066
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7 hours ago, espo said:

I like your base coat well enough I'd go with that, but I do like that dark blue also. Would white decals be a consideration for the stripes ?   

Thanks, while I do like the Graphite Dust basecoat, I do have a specific paint scheme for this one. For that reason, I haven't got any white stripe decals that would work for what I have in mind, although it would be much easier just doing decals, lol.

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I got most of the interior done over the weekend, and got the body color on today. I still need to finish detailing the steering wheel/column and shifter, add the gauge decals. Then I'll apply some satin clear for a leather-like sheen. The paint ended up a little darker than I wanted, but I did use a darker base than I anticipated, but it will still do the trick for my theme. I used Tamiya TS-53 Deep Metallic Blue sprayed over Testors Graphite Dust because I  ran out of TS-42 Light Gunmetal, which would have given me a shade or two lighter outcome. Next, I'll mask off and paint the white stripes and get started on the chassis and suspension. I'm also going to add a custom exhaust using some 1/8" styrene tubing that I just got recently, so that will be a fun learning experience as well. Lots of those in this one for me. Oh yeah, the interior is more of a true red, for some reason I can't get my camera to capture the actual color red. Hopefully more by the end of the week!

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More progress...Stripes are done for the most part. Next is a coat of clear, then mask and paint the window trim, then more clear. Also, I finally got the gauge decals done and was able to finish the interior. After I get the body cleared and wet-sanded/polished, I can install the windows and the chassis/interior assembly so I can get to the engine/exhaust/suspension part of the build. I'm doing those parts last so I can adjust the ride height without having to pop the interior/chassis in and out of the body. I'm also trying to make a custom exhaust out of some styrene tubing, so still a bit of a ways to go yet.

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23 hours ago, matthijsgrit said:

Kinda like a Grand Sport Camaro. Lovin' it!!!

Yup! I was trying to decide what color to paint it and this scheme just called to me.

 

2 hours ago, Cpt Tuttle said:

Wow, I sort of get a little 90s flashbacks from the graphics, and I only mean that in a positive way when they are this tastefully done. I like it.

Thanks Mattias!

 

2 hours ago, doorsovdoon said:

Good job! I love the interior, and the graphics are nice with that colour.

Thank you Gareth! I wasn't sure if I liked the interior at first, but it has really grown on me.

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