Spottedlaurel Posted April 10, 2023 Posted April 10, 2023 Good to see an update, and well done for persevering with the grille opening - looks to be well worth the effort! It's not something I've done yet - maybe one day.....
rickcaps55 Posted April 10, 2023 Posted April 10, 2023 On 2/27/2023 at 8:28 PM, Steve H said: Hi all, not much of an update here but there is some progress. I was not able to paint today, but couldn’t resist a mock up. I started modifying the wheel hoops, and centres. Obviously they are not quite finished, nor painted, but the offsets are close to what finished wheels will be. You can also see where the bodywork needed some extra filler to smooth out the fender bulges. I have also started the repair on the driver side taillight. I have also been fabricating a couple of hood scoops. I will show more info on these later, but basically took a single scoop, cut in half, and then reshaped it. The leading edge will mirror the shape of the hood. Still some finessing to do but they’re close. Here they are just placed on the hood not glued yet. More soon! Thanks for having a look. I love the idea for the hood it really fits that car very nice perfect !
Steve H Posted April 10, 2023 Author Posted April 10, 2023 16 hours ago, Spottedlaurel said: Good to see an update, and well done for persevering with the grille opening - looks to be well worth the effort! It's not something I've done yet - maybe one day..... Thanks Nigel, it is rewarding once complete. It’s not a “difficult” task, but it is tedious. 7 hours ago, rickcaps55 said: I love the idea for the hood it really fits that car very nice perfect ! Thanks Richard, hopefully all the elements will come together and look like they belong.
Steve H Posted April 10, 2023 Author Posted April 10, 2023 Finally, a few things in paint!! I’ve been itching to start getting some of the parts in final paint. The wheels seemed a really good place to start. Hoops are from JPS, centres are from the Foose Impala, tires are from Scale Productions. I ordered a handful of parts and a couple of engines from Iceman a few weeks ago. Great products, and excellent service. So , for this build I’m going to use his 572 cross ram engine. Haven’t played with it too much yet, but I think I will need to change the oil pan. The other change will be the valve covers, Joel’s are beautiful, but I found some ‘59 Caddy valve covers that fit his heads almost perfect. If you’ve been following, you know I am really happy about this. MOST… of the test fitting is done now. The chassis has been on and off a lot. I’m close to being able to have some paint sessions and start assembling. I’m still nervous about the final chassis to body step when I get to final assembly. It’s going to be tricky ?. The next steps will be setting track width, and fine tuning the ride height, which is already close. Once that’s done I need to tack everything in place for what will hopefully be a last mockup and see how all the parts and pieces come together. Then fabricate a front spoiler/splitter, and build the engine. Cheers, Steve 6
Slotto Posted April 11, 2023 Posted April 11, 2023 Love the pro touring look. I cant imagine pushing it thru the cones
Steve H Posted April 13, 2023 Author Posted April 13, 2023 On 4/10/2023 at 3:37 PM, KWT said: oooooh yeah... I like where this going Hi Jeremy, well… it’s going very slowly, but hopefully you will still like it when we reach the finish line. I have a long way to go, but I also feel like the “worst” is behind me. The front splitter is going to require some head scratching, and probably at least one failed attempt. On 4/10/2023 at 6:01 PM, Slotto said: Love the pro touring look. I cant imagine pushing it thru the cones Hi Steve, I have always liked, (and still do like) pro street cars, but I’m really into the pro touring look right now. Ya, this thing would be a handful in a slalom for sure… but man, it would be fun.
NOBLNG Posted April 13, 2023 Posted April 13, 2023 Looking great Steve. Nice that you are able to use the Caddy valve covers on that engine.? 1
Steve H Posted April 15, 2023 Author Posted April 15, 2023 On 4/13/2023 at 4:39 AM, NOBLNG said: Looking great Steve. Nice that you are able to use the Caddy valve covers on that engine.? Hi Greg! Yes sir, I am very happy about how well they will work. And… I still have a nice chrome pair of Caddy valve covers for a future project.? Almost got my grill/headlight stuff finished, hope to have an update by Sunday. Thanks for checking in. Cheers, Steve
AmericanMuscleFan Posted April 15, 2023 Posted April 15, 2023 Super job on the grille Steve, nothing is achieved without effort and your good work is rewarded. A good blackening would also have given a good result, but it is difficult to do better than the look of an open grille where you can see the radiator! ?
Steve H Posted April 15, 2023 Author Posted April 15, 2023 7 hours ago, AmericanMuscleFan said: Super job on the grille Steve, nothing is achieved without effort and your good work is rewarded. A good blackening would also have given a good result, but it is difficult to do better than the look of an open grille where you can see the radiator! ? Francis my friend, thanks for checking in! It was definitely worth the effort, and because the grill and front bumper will be painted black, I really wanted it open. There will be some colour behind the grill that should add some interest….hopefully! Always appreciate you taking the time to comment sir. Cheers, Steve
Steve H Posted April 15, 2023 Author Posted April 15, 2023 As promised, got a bit more done on the grill area. I’ve never been able to get realistic looking headlights from the chrome units. I have seen, and tried a few different methods, but my results were lack lustre. So, for this build I knew I’d be adding headlight buckets and clear lenses. I initially thought I’d be making my own buckets, there have been a few good tutorials on here recently. However… yet another dive into the stash, and I got lucky with some perfect reflectors and lenses. We started with this before any mods… After opening grill, and with new donor parts waiting to be meddled with. The reflectors are from an Accurate Miniatures gran sport Corvette, the lenses are from an El Camino kit. The Corvette lenses were a touch too small in diameter. Here the buckets are just “resting” in place, I will glue them in after I paint the grill. The “bulbs” will get a dab of clear blue after they are glued in place. Hard to get a focused shot with a lens in place, but you get the idea… I’m getting close to being done with front end mods. Turn signals, and front splitter are next. Signals should be easy, splitter is gonna take a bit more time. That’s it for now, thanks for taking the time to have a look. Cheers, Steve 8
Steve H Posted May 15, 2023 Author Posted May 15, 2023 Hi guys, still slowly progressing… The grill and bumper are now complete, as is the rear bumper. I will add license plates at final assembly. I did a full mock up which revealed a few areas that need some tweaking. The dash/windshield area needs some finessing, and the wheelbase also requires a small adjustment. I will be working on getting those two issues fixed then do one more mock up then paint and assembly…. Thanks for having a look 5
Steve H Posted May 17, 2023 Author Posted May 17, 2023 On 5/15/2023 at 6:37 AM, dino246gt said: WOW! That is looking great! On 5/15/2023 at 7:35 AM, H.A.K said: Lookin good sofar On 5/15/2023 at 10:20 AM, rickcaps55 said: Those bumpers came out awesome perfect.!!! On 5/15/2023 at 10:32 AM, SpikeSchumacher said: Awesome! Hi guys!! I truly appreciate the comments. It is hard to get time at the desk this time of year, so progress is slooooooooooowwwwww. Thanks for having a look, and for the support. Cheers, Steve 2
Claude Thibodeau Posted May 18, 2023 Posted May 18, 2023 Hi Steve! Great work, I can't wait to see the whole enchilada! CT
Steve H Posted June 15, 2023 Author Posted June 15, 2023 On 5/18/2023 at 6:12 AM, Claude Thibodeau said: Hi Steve! Great work, I can't wait to see the whole enchilada! CT Helloooooooo Claude! Sorry for the very late reply. Life has been keeping me away from the hobby desk. Thanks for the kind comment, and believe me, I can’t wait either. Still hoping it will look something like the original vision I had in my head. Hope all is well over in your “neighborhood”. I’ve been missing my forum friends, but this time of year I’m busy with other projects. I do miss the hobby time tho. Take care my friend,, Cheers, Steve
Claude Thibodeau Posted June 15, 2023 Posted June 15, 2023 10 hours ago, Steve H said: Helloooooooo Claude! Sorry for the very late reply. Life has been keeping me away from the hobby desk. Thanks for the kind comment, and believe me, I can’t wait either. Still hoping it will look something like the original vision I had in my head. Hope all is well over in your “neighborhood”. I’ve been missing my forum friends, but this time of year I’m busy with other projects. I do miss the hobby time tho. Take care my friend,, Cheers, Steve Hi Steve! All is good here. Styrene will wait, go on with the other things. Best to you! CT
Andy Oldenburg Posted June 15, 2023 Posted June 15, 2023 Hi Steve, Great work on the bumpers? Quality work takes it´s time, so better going sloooow than messing things in a hurry. Take a Zen approach and go to the next step when you feel really good with your results. Am looking forward to the next pics!
Steve H Posted August 1, 2023 Author Posted August 1, 2023 On 6/15/2023 at 8:32 AM, Andy Oldenburg said: Hi Steve, Great work on the bumpers? Quality work takes it´s time, so better going sloooow than messing things in a hurry. Take a Zen approach and go to the next step when you feel really good with your results. Am looking forward to the next pics! Thanks Andy! Love the Andy Cap avatar by the way. My parents are Scottish, and there always seemed to be Andy comics around when I was young. The problem for me is that on a project like this I need to “stay in the groove” to keep momentum, and that requires more desk time than I get in summer. However… I have done my “final” full mock up, and everything seems to fit. The engine is going to be snug, really snug for under hood clearance, but I believe it will fit. I had to play with the wheelbase a bit, while frustrating, the adjustments were fairly simple to correct. I’m hoping to get some paint work done this coming weekend. I will post an update as soon as I have something to show ?. My apologies for the late reply, haven’t been on the board for a while. Cheers, Steve
jaftygas Posted August 4, 2023 Posted August 4, 2023 I think this build is super clever altogether! Don’t lose momentum, and keep going.
Steve H Posted August 6, 2023 Author Posted August 6, 2023 On 8/4/2023 at 4:52 PM, jaftygas said: I think this build is super clever altogether! Don’t lose momentum, and keep going. Thanks Joe, I appreciate the encouragement. Spring/Summer craziness is starting to slow down a bit, so hopefully more progress soon. Cheers, Steve
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