1961 Pontiac Ventura Drag Car

[Brutalform]

Had this kit sitting around for a while so I decided to take a look at it, after reading from some builders, that it needs a bit of attention. Bill (Mr Obsessive) posted a tutorial a while back on correcting the wheels and windows. Since I won’t be using the 8 Lugs for this build, I started to fix the windows. This won’t be a stripped down drag car, but will feature a full interior, with the added safety equipment. I saw a really cool looking Ventura on YouTube, that just so happens to race at the local tracks in my area. I’ll find a pic of it later to post, to show where I got my idea to build this. I know a few people have built this car, and it’s been out for a little while, but I’ll still show what I’m doing just in case a new member might like to build the car. And most important, won’t be disappointed when it’s built, because I’m my opinion, this car needs to have several things checked, and/or modified, before painting is even considered. I’ll post a link up to Bills tutorial later. More so than other car kits I’ve built. So, here’s some 61 Pontiac Ventura….

Edited October 30, 2021 by Brutalform

[Brutalform]

And a pic of the car that inspired me to build. 

[Brutalform]

I sanded off the emblem from the rear panel. The car I saw on the video doesn’t have the letters there. 

[Brutalform]

There is also a problem with the hood drooping a bit low, so this is the easiest way to address this. A small piece of stock glued under the hood. Once painted, it will not be noticed under the hood. I’ll get to the grill fitting later on. But now the hood sits right. 

[Brutalform]

My build won’t have rear tires as quite as large as the real car, but some mods have to made to the rear no less. A bit of cutting in the rear wheel wells, and a slight narrowing of the frame rails, was need to help shoe the tires in. The frame mod was pretty simple because on the side that meets the chassis, it’s opened up, where you can easily cut the frame to narrow it. I had to add some spacers to the rear springs, and cut the ends of the rear end off, and add some Evergreen styrene rod. Using wheel backs from Scenes Unlimited. Going to use some wide Convo Pros on this car. The backs of the rims were sanded down to make them fit the tires better. I have a pair of matching rims for the front coming from EBay. The front will use the Moroso drag special tires. 

Edited October 30, 2021 by Brutalform

[Brutalform]

Once the control arms are added, the rear will sit straight like this…

[Brutalform]

Just a little more fine sanding in the rear area, and then I’ll add some sheet styrene to the wheel wells where I cut away the original material. The rims were soaked in bleach to remove the chrome. I’m going to paint them with Testors Stainless buffing to see how they turn out. Kinda looking for a nice aluminum look. 

Edited October 30, 2021 by Brutalform

[Brutalform]

A link to Bills fantastic tutorial on the window mods. Thanks Bill. I would have responded sooner but the post is locked. 
 

 

[Scott8950]

I've been wanting to pick one of these up.

Nice job and I'll be following this build.

Will you be building new frame rails?

Edited October 30, 2021 by Scott8950

[Zippi]

Looking good so far Tom.  That pic of the 1:1 that your getting your ideas from looks sweet.  This should be a nice build.

[MrObsessive]

Tom, I'm glad my tutorial was of some help..............your windows are fitting very well! ?

That was one of the first things that jumped out at me as a potential problem. I had seen some that were built, and having seen the 1:1's quite a bit over the years and having tons of reference pics, I knew the glass should fit much more flush.

Keep up the great work!

Edit: Unfortunately, the original thread got locked due to a killjoy that had some rather not so nice things to say about Moebius. No kit is perfect........not even Tamiya's as good as they are. With just a bit of work, these can be made into real gems.

Edited October 31, 2021 by MrObsessive

[David G.]

This looks like a fun build, you're off to a great start.

David G.

[TarheelRick]

Going to be one fun Poncho build.  Those are definitely some wide meats on the rear, really like the way you fit them in.

[Brutalform]

On 10/31/2021 at 6:03 AM, MrObsessive said:

Tom, I'm glad my tutorial was of some help..............your windows are fitting very well! ?

That was one of the first things that jumped out at me as a potential problem. I had seen some that were built, and having seen the 1:1's quite a bit over the years and having tons of reference pics, I knew the glass should fit much more flush.

Keep up the great work!

Edit: Unfortunately, the original thread got locked due to a killjoy that had some rather not so nice things to say about Moebius. No kit is perfect........not even Tamiya's as good as they are. With just a bit of work, these can be made into real gems.

Thanks everyone. Its definitely a fun build. Thanks Bill. I’ve even looked at some pics of the actual car, and from what I see, is, the glass appears to sit a tiny bit below the body lines. I’ll work on the window channels a bit more, before I begin to primer. I’ll most likely mask off the channels to keep the glass fitting as it should. 

[Brutalform]

There were two alignment holes in the radiator support that allow the pins on the rear of the grill to slide into. (Sorry no before pics). These were clipped off and sanded smooth. I still have to take care of the sink marks on the radiator support, even though they will be hidden by the grill. Then the rear of the grill needs to be sanded as well, or the grill will stick out with a considerable gap. Now the grill is fitted properly up against the fenders. 

[Brutalform]

Painted the rims with a Stainless Steel Buffing. I might go around the edges with some Molotow to give a shiny, polished, aluminum look. 

[Brutalform]

The tops of the frame that will be visible from under the hood needed to be filled. A bit of strip styrene glued in, and some putty should do the trick. 

[250 Testa Rossa]

Can't wait to see how this one turns out. I have the same one that will be built bone stock. 

[espo]

I like your theme on this build. I also relied on Bill Geary's information when I built one. The back side of the headlight buckets can also get in the way and need some additional sanding for clearance. Great looking detailing on the wheels and tires.     

[Brutalform]

On 11/7/2021 at 12:54 PM, espo said:

I like your theme on this build. I also relied on Bill Geary's information when I built one. The back side of the headlight buckets can also get in the way and need some additional sanding for clearance. Great looking detailing on the wheels and tires.     

Thanks David. Yea, after trial fitting the grill several times, it fits pretty snug. Didn’t really have to do too much on the buckets, except where the mounting pins were. 

[Brutalform]

I know, many builders hate to see a scoop on a old classic automobile, but this one is going to be a drag strip warrior. Found an old scoop in my parts bin that wasn’t ridiculously large. 

[Brutalform]

I decided to use the engine pieces from a 55 Chevy Pro Sportsman kit, pretty much for the safety bell housing. I initially was going to remove it, and add it to the kit supplied engine, but decided to keep it there and just saw off the kit supplied trans instead. 

[Brutalform]

Just a mock up to check to see if the trans, bell housing, and headers all fit in the chassis. I plan on adding header down turns later on in the build. 

[Brutalform]

Had a set of Fireball Modelworks carbs laying around. They are actually race Hemi carbs, but since I already have them I plan to remove the vacuum secondary chamber, and remove the air horns. I plan on removing the angled mounting flanges from the yellow manifold, so the carbs sit straight, and fit nicely under the scoop. 

[Scott8950]

It's coming together nicely