customline

Steve, I think you may have an alcohol problem ?. I gotta follow this one; I have an itch to start my '70 Impala. I'm kinda glad I didn't cut the roof off it ?. Paint looks great; at what point are you employing the "Scratch X"? Is it better than Novus for a final polish in your opinion? I know it's got to be cheaper.

?

I have the Lindberg kit. I believe it is the same tool. It's a pretty good kit regardless of the brand. The decal sheet is a big plus with the factory labels, scripts and badging. Check out the pix below.

Yup....I saw that one. Probably built for a foot-loose playboy with three kids . ? Has there ever been a kit or resin body of a Vista Cruiser? ?

But is it the greenhouse or the.....the...bird catcher?.

I can't put a handle on this one : how about "Qustom" ??

Naaah.....

I was lucky enough to get a heads-up about the clearance issue involving the dash width so I spent some time with that today. Thank you, TJ, you saved me from a whole bunch of very loud vulgar language. I had to shave the ends of the dash and that seemed to take care of it. But then I wondered about the glass thickness so I installed the glass into the frame and tried it again. ? Nope....in order to get it all to fit I had to remove material, a little at a time, from the front edge of the dash and from the bottom edge of the glass. This is where a Dremel comes in handy. Got my grille and wheels washed and...... I entertained the "swing-away steering wheel" idea. ?

I've got an interesting "what if" for ya........pretty cool, huh?

So what are you tryin' to say, Charlie? 345 horsepower ain't enough for you? Good ? grief. OK, so tell us what you got there ?

Had to do it. Not just the handles, either. Side trim must have been an option because half the '62s don't have it. I think they look better without it. So much for one coat of primer ?. Got the engine almost finished but I'm gonna do a dip stick. Black-washed the wheels and grille. Removed the fender badging....OK, I didn't see any way those front badges could possibly be workable. So it's a restoration and I'm waiting for a set of N.O.S. scripts and badges. I can drill some holes....? I put the rear end together and found the mold of the springs was shifted enough to make clean-up impractical. A common situation. Lots of small parts need cleaning-up but the big stuff is fine. When I opened the bag that the parts came in I found the front suspension had suffered some sort of mishap in packaging. It was twisted severely. I attempted to straighten it out and I eventually got it installed after cutting the sway bar. That stuff happens and it was still usable so "no harm, no fowl."

I have done it on other cars but on those with "normal" handles, which are fairly easy to drill out. You're right, though, they look darn good the way they come.

That's a very cool 'Bird, Dennis. I can't tell from the photo but did you open up the door handles? I'm thinking about trying it but it looks like it might end badly for me. Thanks for sharing!

Welcome to my nightmare ? . Your interest is appreciated, Steve.

The scripts on this body seem pretty faint but I am going to try foiling them before the primer goes on. Thanks for your interest, Tim.

Yeah, that's a jewel, Charles. Thank you!

I know, right?

Oooo.....red......I wish you had said that....um.....sooner. as far as flat black goes, I have used it on occasion where appropriate for a whole car. This '40 coupe is painted with satin black. I know, I'm splitting hairs but the effect is somewhat different. And the first coat was a bit O.P. so I wet sanded with 2000 and re-coated on a dry ( like under 50% RH) day. Ya gotta watch out for blushing with this paint because whatever you get, that's it. No polishing. There is a sheen that needs to be even in order to look good. I have used the same paint on another project and polished it down to look like old, neglected, original black paint on a Model A coupe.

Your foiling prowess is apparently about 8 levels higher than mine but I appreciate your suggestions and I just might try it. Thanks!

Yup. Preaching to the choir, Dave, and I do appreciate your interest. I will certainly try out the trim tricks. I've known about them for a while but haven't the opportunity yet. When I get a kit in my hands, the second thing I do is BING it. I download a big batch of jpg files and just brainstorm on it. Hey, so what?

That was the idea, David. Gonna open up a little here, Dave.....this Ford design is equal, in my mind, to the styling of the '64, (full line..all of 'em....).....and the '56 Crown Vic. The '40 coupe is magical. The smooth curves of the coupe's roof is reminiscent of a Beagles head. It looks like a damned puppy to me. There! I said it!....sorry....it's an icon, David. OK, ☺️ thanks, David!

Yeah. I don't know what happened there ?. I painted the engine black so don't bother to talk me out of it ?.

Oh I dunno, Steve....it looks like a hair-puller to me but maybe I can work something out. Most of it looks like fun, though. It's a whole lot better than the old screw-bottoms I've been dealing with lately. Fun is where you find it ?.

I guess I need to type something here. ? .....OK, I screwed it up. ?

The thing I see that could be troublesome is the chrome trim that runs along the top ridge. My foiling skills are good enough to do most jobs but this one will test me. This kit is not a level 2, In my humble opinion, due to the skills required to make an authentic replica. Look at the cool stuff below. The windshield fit is perfect! And the way the chassis locks into the body at the rear? You gotta love that! And hanging pedals? You don't get that on most kits ?. And they gave us a swing-away steering wheel to make real if we so desire.