Straightliner59

Thank you, everyone, for your kind words! Chris, it feels great, to finally finish a project, again! Bernard, you indeed said those last few items would really make it complete, and you were so right! It was after that, I decided to take a stab at those splash aprons. Really glad I did those! John, I appreciate that, a lot. I strive to achieve something realistic, with my projects. I spend a lot of time and effort researching the elements that go into a build. Thankfully, with the internet, that's much easier! Case in point: B&M's Hydro Stick was introduced in 1960. I was a little reluctant to use it, here, until I red that it was being developed in '59. That prompted me to go with it. Bill, you should dig that project out! It's a great kit for building something that captures a feeling or look, without going totally nuts on it!

Hey Alan! Thanks, man! There's no engine, but, I love the kit! I've built two of them, and have another one I started several years ago. Revell's SnapTite '70 Chevelle is worth having, too.

Vince, Tom, Roger and Ricky; Thank you all, for the kind words! They are much appreciated!

I am happy to announce that, for the first time in 15 or 16 years, I have completed a model! Revell's SnapTite '34 coupe is one of my favorite kits. Inspired by the Mooneyham/Sharp 554 coupe, the 7-11 coupe and the original 15 Oz. coupe, I built this in an attempt to capture the spirit of those cars, in scale. I think I just might have pulled it off! Is the model perfect? Not even close. Even going through these photos, I've noticed a couple of things I need to clean up. It's built to comply with NHRA's 1960 rules for A/A. I drew on my memories of some old businesses from the town where I went to high school, (and attended my first several drag races) for the "Thanks to:" list. Conrad's Engine Service is an ongoing tribute to my Dad. This is the first time I've made a set of decals that actually look decent. I made them all, except for the smaller contingency type decals and the skull. The interior is paneled in aluminum sheet, the roll bar, seat and dash are all scratchbuilt. There's not just a Hydro-Stick decal on the car--I scratchbuilt a Hydro-Stick shifter for the interior. The scoop is hand formed from .005" aluminum flashing. The tach was turned on the lathe. The front splash aprons were formed from "Tooling Aluminum", available from many craft stores. I burnished the tooling aluminum sheet over the molded in plastic aprons on another kit I have. Once they were formed and trimmed to shape, I used an awl, to create the screw heads that hold the aprons on. After all these years, it's great to finally have something new in my display case! I feel like I accomplished exactly what I set out to: A bitchin' '34 Ford coupe, that's the essence of the three iconic cars named above. Hope you guys like it, too! Comments and criticisms are welcome!

David, I am all settled in, and I'm happy, too!grin My shop is small, but set up nicely, although I had to store some of my parts, and old (OLD) projects in my bedroom closet. Just need to get my paint booth ducted, before winter. Thank you, JC! They really do have a badass look to them!

Thank you for the kind words, Terry and David! I am pretty happy with its overall look, as well as the way some of my experiments worked out. Hoping to finish it today, and post a thread for it over on the Drag Race forum!

Thanks, Bernard! It was supposed to be finished before I left Minnesota, but...won't be long now. Thank you for the kind words. I appreciate them!

This project is nearing completion, as all I have left to add are a handful of small pieces, a couple of product logo decals (I'd call them contingency stickers, but, what would they have really been worth in 1960?), and some touch-up. She has her warts, but I like the way it sits. I made all these decals, except for the skull, which came from an aircraft sheet. I don't know if anybody else has used the inkjet sheets from Blinggasm, but I am very happy with the results. I got both clear and white, through Amazon. The clear is very thin, and went down without a problem. I "built" the Texaco logo from scratch, using PhotoImpact Pro, and printed it on white. I manipulated various fonts and added the lines with PI Pro, as well. Those were printed on clear.

Coming along nicely, JC! I've been hankering to build a road racer, and this is inspiring,

These should help with the sleeper mounts. Excellent work! Shame on you for making me want to work on a truck model! :-)

Nope! Its formula allows it to be bent by hand, and retain its shape without applying heat. I remember the rod with the wire, but don't recall if it was Evergreen or Plastruct who made (makes) it. You want to use some finesse, in bending it, but, I love the way it behaves.

There's a place in England that sells bendable styrene rod. In the U.S., Midwest used to market it as "Super Styrene". Alas, it is no longer available here, as far as my research has led me. I ended up buying it here: http://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/acatalog/raboesch-styrene-profiles-1000mm.html You can bend this by hand. It works great for headers, roll bars, sway bars, etc. I used it to make the sway bar for my Malibu. I've used it in other applications, too, and I love it so much I actually ordered some from the U.K., when I began to run low.

My so far ever-evolving plan is to use the AMT grille, which is shown, attached below. I've only just cut it out of the rest of the part, and sanded it, to fit. I am leaning toward using the entire AMT hood, sectioned crosswise somewhere behind the headlights and the front of the scoop, and adding a (roughly .125") strip from the same area of the snapper. Of course, I hadn't noticed the "roundness" of the grille, until you mentioned it. As soon as I looked at it, I knew what you meant, so thanks again for your commentary. The engraving on that chassis is pure art!

Update: I got the hood cut out of the SnapTite body, and installed the inner fender wells. Rear shocks are built from aluminum tubing. The "eyes" are glued to the shocks with JB Weld. There's a small amount of material that needs to be removed from the back seat area of the AMT tub, so that the Revell side panels will fit in the interior properly. Next up, I am going to begin working on the cowl/firewall assembly.

Thanks, Glenn! It's definitely the most effort I've ever put into a front suspension. Your words are much appreciated! That snap body is really nice. Wish they'd use it as the basis for a full detail kit!

I have a friend who always used contact paper for masking when he was lettering race cars. I think that might work better than frisket paper, and it's a lot cheaper, too!

I'd like to thank Mr. Gribble...er, Shackleford for his input and interest in this project. Without it, I'd never have noticed/learned of the shortcomings of the AMT body.

I've decided to go with the Revell SnapTite body. It's much nicer, and actually fits the AMT chassis better than the AMT body does--check the alignment of the tires/wheels in the wheelwells. It will work with the AMT interior tub (I favor it, because it doesn't have the rear seat, which is legal for MP, so long as the area's "finished"), which I will fit with the side panels from the snapper. I got two photos taken before the tacky glue bond came apart, and the front suspension collapsed--again! Can't wait until THAT assembly is finally assembled and mounted. Alas, that's going to be a while, yet...

Thanks for the kind words, re: the suspension. I think I have about 30 hours in it, and that might be conservative! I am still interested in seeing your rear window treatment. I started working on mine, but am not sure I'm going about it correctly. The body sides don't look to be too difficult to correct. That said, I am giving the Revell body some consideration. Here's the car finally on the wheels...

For the first time, I have all the wheels on the chassis. I'd say the chassis was on the wheels, but I forgot to tacky glue the lower A-arm assembly to the chassis, so this will have to do, for now. Next up, I will turn the front rotors, and get the front brakes set up. I haven't yet decided on discs or drums, for the rear.

How's the Revell body? I picked up one of their snap kits, today, and that body doesn't have the side issue, at all. Looks great, in fact, in that regard. The character lines just fade down into the fenders. If I am going to go through all this work on the front suspension, then, it's pretty important for the body to be right. Ordered these nuts and bolts, online. I think I am going to use them to do the final assembly on this suspension. Yeah, they're tiny!

Sounds great! I see it, now that you've explained it. It is almost undetectable, in photos of the car, and I went and looked at a bunch of them. I am looking forward to seeing your work on the corrections. I have a Monogram kit, too, so I'll get it out and take a look at it. Thanks for taking the time to help me with this!

Thank you for the kind words, uh, Rusty. Or should I call you Dale?grin I'd like to see what you're doing. I'm mostly a dragster guy, and don't always see the things that are wrong with body lines, etc., of door cars, so I'd welcome a few pointers, if you're willing to help me out.

A little progress. I discovered that I didn't like the stance, once the slicks were in place. The rear of the car sat too low for my liking, so, I carved a couple of .080" blocks for the upper control arms. These effectively raised the car two scale inches, and it made all the difference I needed! Also, you can see the front shocks and springs in place, and the steering, with the fasteners cleaned up. Also visible, on the lower A arms are the "standoffs" for the sway bar. Most of the work is done on the driveshaft loop, as well. Growing ever closer to chassis paint! Speaking of which, I ordered a can of Mulsanne Blue, for the body. I have also discovered that I have no need for the scoop, so will simply borrow the stock hood from another kit.

Thanks, Wayne! Nice start on your S/C digger!