Bernard Kron Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 (edited) After stumbling around for a few days trying to figure out what to start next I've settled on another attempt at a full bellypan channeled Deuce roadster. One of my favorite hot rods of all time is the Bob Longman channeled '32 Ford Roadster featured starting on page 28 of the July 1952 issue of Hop Up (or pg. 552 of Hop, The First 12 Issues).: I did my first attempt at a bellypanned channeled Deuce roadster about 18 months ago. It resulted in a build which, while it looked OK, just wasn't low enough, and, after an awful lot of work on my part had a bellypan that hardly showed. The stance was a little tail-dragging for my taste, too. Here are some pics: I'm sure you can see what I'm referring to. It's way too tall and awkward compared to my inspiration. That build was based on the 1/24 Monogram '32 Roadster (recently re-released) and had a fake chassis glued to the sides of the body and no drive train behind the engine. This time I'm using the Revell 1/25 kit and will attempt a more detailed build. For starters here's a mockup of the assembled Revell Deuce roadster body. The bellypan has been "painted" in using Photoshop as a general guide for the fabrication I'll have to do. My plan is to make a z'd frame channeled so that the bottom of the rails are just inside the body line and then add styrene below it to make the belly pan. The rails will be pinched so that they finish up hidden behind the grill shell. There's no discussion in the Hop Up magazine article about how the front axle is mounted, but it appears that the frame rails end on either side of the shell, implying a standard crossmember mount rather than a suicide setup. My model will have a full rear roll pan and be flathead powered, like the Longman car. Here's the mockup: Despite the fact that this is my second go-round on a bellypanned Deuce, something tells me this will be a challenging build. While it's not my intention to build a perfect replica, I hope I can capture the graceful lines and simplicity of the original. Thanx for lookin' B. Edited December 20, 2010 by gbk1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tumbler75 Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Hmm, The first attempt looks good on all 4's but I can see where you are coming from. I can't wait to see your "second" attempt at this with this new build. Keep us posted. I'm watchin' for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exesivefire Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 I am watching this one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alyn Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 I'm always watching You come up with some great project ideas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modellpularn Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 Hey, I think the first one looked pretty good. Even if it wasn't what you had in mind.... This new project looks promising. I'll be checking in to see the progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raul_Perez Posted October 20, 2010 Share Posted October 20, 2010 It looks like you're off to a good start, Bernard!! I'm glad to see that you've finally decided what to build next and have gotten started. While I'm looking for a suitable primer source, (or a replacement), I'm going to start on the '51 Chevy convertible that will sit on the Wagon Rod chassis. I'm sure you'll finish this build long before I finish another one of mine... Later, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W-409 Posted October 21, 2010 Share Posted October 21, 2010 This is going to be nice, I'm really sure about it! Your skills are awesome, just can't wait to see this finished... That's a good start. BTW: That finished Roadster looks very good too, you build great old school models! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Myers Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 You nailed it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curt raitz Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 and away we go... lookin' purty dang good Bernard we just gotta keep on buildin'... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raul_Perez Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 and away we go... lookin' purty dang good Bernard we just gotta keep on buildin'... Did you loan him some of your elves? At the pace he's building, I think so... Later, and away we go... lookin' purty dang good Bernard we just gotta keep on buildin'... Did you loan him some of your elves? At the pace he's building, I think so... Later, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hemi Posted October 22, 2010 Share Posted October 22, 2010 Well I like the look of the first one,But like you said if your not totally happy with the way it came out,keep trying till you get it the way you want it.I'm sure it will come out great,I cant wait to see more on this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis Lacy Posted October 25, 2010 Share Posted October 25, 2010 I really dig the first roadster, I think it has a lot of style! As for the new build, if you compare the straight-on side view of your model with the same view of your 1:1 inspiration, it appears as though your model is slightly higher in the front, and slightly lower in back (even taking into account the rear tires on your model would scale out to a larger diameter than those on the 1:1.) If you study the 1:1 it becomes very obvious that the hood is quite a bit longer than stock and the radiator shell is way out ahead of the axle. The 1:1 undoubtably has a stepped frame at the very front to get it super low, but it's hard to know exactly how it was done since there appear to be some custom fairings covering the front of the frame rails. The radiator and shell were probably mounted out ahead of the frame and suspension so that they could get as much radiator height as possible. Probably if you Z'd the very front of the frame the height of itself it would get your ride height where the 1:1 is. You may also consider using a Revell '40 Ford front dropped axle assembly since the spring is down in front of the axle instead of above it. (This was a fairly common practice back in the day.) Just cut the stock wishbones off behind the axle and fab up some long hairpins. (The ones on the 1:1 look like a safety nightmare by the way! ) Refer to my build thread on TRaK of my chopped '32 Sedan for how to easilly make some up that would be long enough to emulate the real ones. I'm watching with a lot of interest, B! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted October 26, 2010 Share Posted October 26, 2010 i think that first one is pretty sweet looking too! about the ride height situation, i see the front end coming down a bit more and then it would look much more like the prototype. im looking at the profile photo of your model and comparing to the profile of the prototype...i notice that the rear wheel line that was formed by the fenders now missing, and looking at it in relation to the top of the tire. i think it looks pretty close. thats why i think either mounting the front axle higher on the frame, or getting one with more drop to it might improve your outlook a bit. meanwhile though, No 2 is certainly looking good too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Kron Posted October 30, 2010 Author Share Posted October 30, 2010 Thanks for all the kind words and comments!. I've been hacking away at this thing for a while now and I'm starting to make some headway. I decided to make the belly pan and chassis as one piece. I began by making stepped side rails from styrene strip, the inner strip forming the actual chassis rails and the outer strip the vertical surface of the belly pan. Then I formed the rails to conform with the body and clamped them in place so that they "remembered" their shape. Once that was completed I glued styrene sheet to the bottom and filed the edges so they were rounded and blended with the rails to create a single unit. Finally I built up some z'd rails at the rear to hold the rear axle. I haven't decided yet whether I'll do a full detail rear end. It's seems pretty silly since the whole thing will disappear under the rear bellypan… I also got several other parts completed. The Revell '32 kit front axle was cut down to two leaves. The bellypan/.chassis front crossmember is raised to the top of the frame rsails and notched to receive the tab from the axle. I also made a rear rolled pan. The bellypan kicks upwards to meet it, just like on the Longman car. Finally, I cut up the interior to fit the channeled frame. The channel is about 5 scale inches. Here are some very rough mockup pictures showing the results of the work so far. Thanx for lookin' B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
curt raitz Posted October 30, 2010 Share Posted October 30, 2010 [/quote lookin' great Bernard, my only suggestion is: ya may wanna recess the spare tire into the rear belly pan for greater ground clearance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raul_Perez Posted October 30, 2010 Share Posted October 30, 2010 (edited) lookin' great Bernard, my only suggestion is: ya may wanna recess the spare tire into the rear belly pan for greater ground clearance... Wise guys...always wise guys... Du beau boulot!!! Edited October 30, 2010 by Raul_Perez Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Kron Posted October 30, 2010 Author Share Posted October 30, 2010 (edited) Thanx guys! ...Du beau boulot!!! Wise guys...always wise guys... Edited October 30, 2010 by gbk1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Kucaba Posted November 2, 2010 Share Posted November 2, 2010 Hi Bernard, Where did you get the wheels on this build? THX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Kron Posted November 2, 2010 Author Share Posted November 2, 2010 Hi Bernard, Where did you get the wheels on this build? THX The wheels and tires are from Modelhaus and are item T-640: "T-640 set of four treaded street rod black wall tires, two 6.00.18 fronts and two 8.00.18 rears with Artillery (Milk Truck Wheels) Ford 8-spoke "Desert Wheels" as shown in The Rodders Journal #36 and 18" wheel back rings" ( http://www.modelhaus.com/index.php?page=4&c=0&y=0&pt=33&part=1&Submit=Search ) They're also available in a set of four rears with a ribbed tread, strictly for dry lakes and salt flats work, as item T-647 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Cranky Posted November 4, 2010 Share Posted November 4, 2010 Sweet! I love it. Keep it going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raul_Perez Posted November 5, 2010 Share Posted November 5, 2010 Inquiring minds think that it's time for an update... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Kron Posted November 8, 2010 Author Share Posted November 8, 2010 (edited) Thanx guys! I'm finally making some (small) progress on this build. I got sidetracked by a chopped '37 Chevy build off on the TRaK board. The underlying issue with a project with this much scratch building is the sequence of final assembly. Everything you do beforehand must be done with that in mind. My hope is to do very little painting and finishing before all the subassemblies are fabricated and test fitted. The result is things are going fairly slowly. I've decided that I won't detail any parts that will ultimately be invisible. This will make things simpler and improves the chance that I'll nail the stance and proportions I want. This means there's no rear suspension to speak of, just a simple axle to locate the rear wheels. Additionally the drivetrain stops at the end of the bellhousing. As a result I've made some small spacers to set the rear axle height, added a rear cross brace, cut a simple styrene rod to length to serve as the rear axle, made a pair of filler panels for the rear wheel wells, and cut some notches in the front frame rails to properly locate the engine. Not very exciting stuff, but absolutely critical to getting this build right. One thing I'm wondering about relates to a change I've decided to make. Ed Fluck at Drag City Casting makes a nice louvered hood for the Revell '32 series and I've decided to use it to match the kit's louvered side panels. The question is do I louver the rear deck? (Ed makes a nice louvered rear deck piece, too – and I've got 'em both.) Waddya think? Here are some (not very exciting) pics of where I'm at now. I hope that next time things will look a little more interesting. Thanx for lookin', B. Edited November 8, 2010 by gbk1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raul_Perez Posted November 8, 2010 Share Posted November 8, 2010 Looking good, Bernard!! That's a lot of louvers...but it might help to balance the overall look of the front if the rear is also louvered... You're right in not wasting time and energy detailing what will never be seen, (except maybe in a picture), after its all buttoned up. A chopped '37 Ford??? I'll have to visit the TRaK site to see what else you're up to Later, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Kron Posted November 8, 2010 Author Share Posted November 8, 2010 (edited) ...That's a lot of louvers...but it might help to balance the overall look of the front if the rear is also louvered... A chopped '37 Ford??? ... Once I committed to the Milk Truck wheels the look of the build began to change when compared to the inspiration 1:1. It took on a more agressive, less polished, tone. The louvers sort of fit in to that. I agree that if I go with the louvered hood, then the louvered deck starts to make sense. The build-off on TRaK is for '37 Chevies it's based on the chopped body that Ed Fluck offers at Drag City Castings. Here's my first mockup: Edited December 3, 2010 by gbk1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raul_Perez Posted November 9, 2010 Share Posted November 9, 2010 ...The build of on TRaK is for '37 Chevies it's based on the chopped body that Ed Fluck offers at Drag City Castings.. Your earlier post said '37 Chevy...but I was thinking '37 Ford... Later, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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