f1ford48

Sorry to do this to you Harry. the first comment I had on this post was about the gas tank being too high. I dont know why Aurora put the step in the frame but the real car didnt have it.what I just did on mine was get rid of the base that tank and tool box mounts on.sawed it level to back of seats where the frame steps down] cut the lower part of the tool box down and the tank mounts should sit directly on the frame. on the real car you can see the gas caps are at the top of seat back level. you are probably going to boot me off your post for this but I think its important. [i feel like Columbo here] heres what I did to mine.......

will it run? lets clean it up and see.........

it BOGGLES THE MIND doesnt it?

all 1/24-25 scale junkers.

more progress..... #1-front crossmember made up. #2- radiator cap #3-temporary set up-showing hood top hinge and moulding around cowl. #4- louvers added and those massive exhaust ports-also undercarriage details such as flywheel and oil pan. #5-taken a bit earlier in the build-still a long way to go to look like the real thing.

THANKS Fellows-for the nice comments-I am glad to find some people who appreciate this stuff! Now -piping going on bucket seats. and completed seat-once it was toned down with dull coat it turned out fine.

OK-ill knock it off-this car looks so good is all!

heres a little Stutz trivia for you guys.[cant help myself] the car in the photo Harry posted above was a Harrah Collection car. now in the National Automobile Museum in Reno. I saw it at the Ironstone concours 2 years ago and talked with the caretaker. if you look close you will notice the wheels and chassis are a different shade of red than the hood and body.the caretaker said that is how they were originally. he also told me that the cars were originally hand painted. pre spraygun era! Just for fun.......FS

I just noticed something else-the plate on the floor below throttle spoon. it actually is an indented casting to hold your heel because the throttle spoon is so close to the floor. heres a pic. Radiator looks great and is correct - most Bearcats had painted radiator shells but they were brass underneath.

the way I see it no one is ever going to know but you- the majority of people will be blown away at just seeing the car the way it stands.

very cool- I want to build something this scale.

just like the real deal. if you are going this far you may want to include the clamps that hold the spring in alignment [dont know how far you want to take it]-heres pics of a real one. great work Harry!

the seats were a new challenge for me-totally scratch built. #1- after building the bucket frames it was time to figure out the upholstry-here I had cut out an imitation snake skin wallet that had Diamond tufts that were pretty close-but no contour -I had to figure out something better! #2-what I ended up doing was using wine bottle foils to to get the pattern that was original to the car. I formed them over a diamond tuft seat from the parts box. then filled in the underside with latex calk to hold the shape of the cushions and backs. the results were very nice.the flap under the cushion is for a cubby hole under each seat for tools. [as per the real car] #3-shows the section of plastic seat I used for a pattern.and part of a wine foil.now I needed some piping to go around the edges. for this I gutted some 14 ga. electrical wire ,sliced it lenghtwise and formed it around the edges of the bucket [not shown yet] too bad this was not the right color because it looked like real leather to me. after this was all figured out it seemed like an easy and effective way to make seats. Gerald Wingrove carves his out of wood I believe. with great results also.

with the chassis nearly complete it is time to start work on the body- #1-hood,cowl and dash built up of balsa wood #2-checking radiator for fit #3-temporary set up on frame to check fit and make more adjustments #4-here the back part of body-12 pieces-being glued on. #5-I got the wood grain effect I wanted for the dash by just thinning some testors brown #6-gas tank in place on body...

back to the chassis build.... #1-pitman arm and drag link being bushed and a castillated nut added for detail #2-front end showing rivet detail added to frame horns-[pin heads] the brass piece on the cross member will be the crank support. #3-front axle is veneer from kit with card strips glued to edges to simulate the I beam #4-all the leaf springs have pins in the shackles. #5-rear frame horns being changed-the left side is the more authentic style. and rivets added again.

cool shop truck

the model is a curbside-however with an open wheel car the detailing on the undercarriage is just as important as up top. #1 shows scratch built oil pan,flywheel cover,flywheel,drive shaft and transmission case[epoxy putty]! #2 adding detail to the transmission.the silver colored wheel is an external contracting brake drum. #3making the jackshaft mounts from kit patterns #4chains and sprockets being made up,I bushed the sprocket shafts with brass tube for strength and movability. #5Transmission and jackshafts with chain drive almost complete. history-these Locomobiles had manganese bronze transmission cases

in that case you did a great job also on the odometer.the glass really helps bring out the detail.

WOW-thats as good as it gets on the dash-nice touch with the bezels- I admit I have used the epoxy for the glass as well. is the speedo from the MERCER? it looks familiar.

Hi Skip-yes the drivechain works-it actually has tiny links and can be'' broken'' and lengthened or shortened. also available are sprockets-its high tech plastic. my source is micromark on that. I think they are offering the chain now by the foot. these were massive drive chains on the Loco-may be too big for the Bug.

the radiator and gas tank are real brass and copper-I will use brass whenever possible in the build. the core on the radiator is speaker perforated mesh and is pretty close in scale. the gas tank is 1 inch copper tubing.the ends hand cut and filed into a perfect circle to fit inside tubing for detail. the ends were also slightly convexed. the seats have balsa wood bases and sheet aluminum bodies instead of card supplied in the kit.

the car is based on a kit by Hudson Miniatures.released in 1949. the instructions are like blueprints to scale and perfect for a scratch build. the only part from the Hudson kit that I will use will be the body-[ hood,cowl and bucket seats] here we see the original kit and beginnings of the frame and underpinnings kit bashed from various 1/16 antique cars.

just a few small details and a repaint. added dummy spots and windshield division bar....lots better!

totally rebuilt using some stress and more authentic colors-paint makes all the difference!

well done -I like the service station too....