Ragtop Man

I hope to screw up that well on mine.

It wasn't really an "if" - there was one built by DST that was soon to get the 427 SOHC, campaigned by Darrell Droke. https://www.facebook.com/groups/futuresonics55chev/posts/3929428190659830/ Attached is the RFQ from Ford to what I presume would be DST to build a '65 Thunderbolt. Good working blueprint for a replica. This is what popped up on the HAMB in regard to the '65... "In 65 NHRA changed the rules from 100 cars to meet homologation to 500 production cars to meet the rule, and that ended the Thunderbolt program. But - In 1965 the Ford Experimental garage made one Fairlane with a pushrod 427. The car was given to and raced by Darrell Droke of Downey California with success under the name "The Wonder Colt." sponsored by Downey Ford. After a few months the car was switched over to 427 SOHC power. In 1966 the car was repainted and some changes were made. The car was then driven by Jerry Harvey and sponsored by Paul Harvey Ford in Indy (still with the SOHC). Droke was now driving Mustang Funnies for Ford. Again the car was successful. By 1967 the car was supposed to be given to Ed Schmidt from Michigan. His father, Harry, owned Ubly Dragway and Ford wanted them to get the car. It never happened. Ford did a 180 and decided to go with the '67 body style. Dick Brannan believes the car was taken back to Dearborn and scrapped but is not 100% sure. Cars have been known to get out the back door. It should be noted that on a 1/29/65 Ford memo it lists two Fairlanes for drag development but nobody ever saw or knows about the second car. It may have never left Dearborn but there is one person who says Les Ritchey ('64 T-Bolt driver) got the car. So , one '65 T-Bolt was made but it became a SOHC car rather quickly so it wasn't really a T Bolt any more.

Whenever I was in there, it was a beeline to the magazine rack for the latest Car Model, Hot Rod, or Auto World catalog. When we could ride bikes to/from school, I'd detour by there on my way home if I had a few cents to pick up some bubblegum. There was also a Jack's Drugstore (building still stands, bricks and mortar unchanged) at Silvery Lane and Ford Road that had kits back in the toy corner. I think we crossed the international dateline of Telegraph to ride over there on a few occasions.

On reflection, parts are in the tool now to make a '65 straight axle gasser, as well as the base-base sedan. Doubt we see another bodystyle out of the tool, but, would love to be wrong on this.

Mikey, this is magnificent. I don't recall Jason's Pharmacy ever having kits, but my memory is a brittle as the styrene. I recall that the variety store at Telegraph and Ford Rd. next to the 'dollar show' would have kits now and then. Got the blue box ish of the Deora there - and left "Mach Won" on the shelf. Don't recall where the K+L Cougar came from, tho. That never progressed very far.

Ha, circle is unbroken... a client of mine from agency days was an engineer on the ZQ8 S-10 project. Small (literally) world!

Ah, memories... wait, what? (grins) I was very much a WW2 aircraft and ship fan at the time (some day I will post the motorized USS Enterprise ) so I missed that specific era of kits. I did win the best photo award in the Car Model Dune Buggy Contest, tho. The longnose kit always looked cool, but if it wasn't at Joe's, Harb's or the local Kresge/K-Mart... chances were it didn't exist in my world. Of course there was the AW catalog, but alas, my dreams were always of the OOPs listed - when I hadn't loaned the catalog to Mother's Worry for dissection in the lunchroom at Adams Jr. High. Ah, for the day!

Long Nose Mustang is great - always wanted one innaday, but it was not a widely circulated kit. S-Truck is interesting, but not really in my wheelhouse, save a turn as a frame donor for an early Chevy pickup ('49?)

Saw a post elsewhere mentioning that Steve will be at NNL with the the current releases, and will have news about some others not yet shared. Look forward to seeing / hearing what's in the plan!

I'd just pressed "send" when the scale thought crossed my mind. Will look for the Heller one of these days.

Becuause I dig modeling pain... what if I'm sitting on a Monogram re-release of the very credible Aurora E-Type? Would that window upper do the job? I have no idea how that would fit or where any cuts would be (or if there would be) can't access any of my modeling stuff now for a test grok/fit. The Heller Jag is an interesting call, will have to track one down for a look one of these days.

Sublime. As in, damn, I wouldn't change a flyspeck. Keep smacking them home runs, Mikey!

Agree 100% - the AMT kit lines up very well with contemporary pix in HRM and others. Have heard voices here and on Spotlight rather slagging the AMT '40, but a very clean (fagile!!!) built turned up in a box of builts, with the orignal instructions and it sure looks good to me. Much more likely to get finished than the more detailed but more fiddly Revell '40.

Help me understand the tin box thing... are those really that collectable where they add value to the contents?

Yes - My saving grace for moving over here to Podunk-by-the-Sea. They got one of errrvathing, or so it seems.

Jay, this is awesome so far! You found great solutions for the hood and backlight from common or discarded parts, I can see it coming together already!

This is the project I was recalling. Still very cool build.

Is that something we know for sure, or is that speculation? It would be a heck of a smart business play - I can't think of a good reason NOT to. The WOF Chevelle struck me as a pretty good looking replica, but I have also seen (here, Spotlight, others) a fair bit of criticism directed at same for roofline, daylight openings, etc. In a perfect world, the '69 Chevelle would slide under it like silk sheets.

I remain disappointed that Revell was not fully considering the "interoperability" (as the techs say) between Snap and Detail for many similar/same subjects that were released over the last several years. The WOF '57 Bel Air coupe FINALLY nailed the subject after every kit maker swung at it at least a few times; but there is a boatload of Dremel work to adapt it to their excellent '57 Bel Air Convertible. Ditto the '63 WOF splitter and the '67 detail kits - so close, yet so far. And I fall back to Tim's terrific story of a few years ago about adding detail kit parts to the snap together '14 (?) Mustang promo. As I have chastised others here and at other boards and forums - we are modelers, not just assemblers. None of the above are beyond the skill of most readers. But dang, think how much easier it would be if tabs lined up and parts swapped like those crazy Trophy kits from 1963? I don't think it's just me... but I could be wrong about that.

Nothing but net! Superb build, the colors and cleanliness are outstanding.

Awesome concept and build! Really fine execution of the idea, too, it is all of a piece, so to speak.

Just to be clear, once tooling goes to China, it stays in China. Any enterprise undertaken in China is done in parntership with an enterprise connected to their gubbmint. They are not the most open minded people in the world for such things. For the future of the hobby, hope that cooler heads prevail. I don't know all the economics of what cost would get assesed, but I don't foresee a 54% increase in the retail price - but it would sting, it would slow sales and it would definitely cause the chains to revisit a lot of what they keep on the shelves.

Yes - not sure if it is just for display, or it was in the contest. My pics are lame compared to the build. That kit rarely gets any love - but this was done entirely like I'd hoped to do one of mine in the day - raidused wheel wells, piecrust, slot mags, up in the front, blown mill under the hood, very nice job with the red paint that looked factory - perfect surface reflection like a real car, not a barstool. I'm goofy for the build, it really hits a nerve for me. Passed the pix to Steve G., who is a closeted T-Bird fan to take a look at. While I doubt pennies fall from heaven to support this, it would be great to get some money to clean up the tool, maybe open some gates and restore some parts - much like the '55 Nomad cleanup.

Gorgeous!!!!

Looks really good - I had the same issue with mine (bowed roof) and it is still sitting in the box after painting about 30 years ago... There IS a post (or series of posts) on FB in a Ferrari builder's group on how to 'fix' the shape of the front end, fender cutouts, etc. The finished build is great... but I lack that level of skill to take a crack at that invasive of a update/conversion. Yours looks terrific, and would be a proud centerpiece anywhere. Nice job!