RancheroSteve

It's been done (and quite well) - check the truck section. [Edit] Here:

Inching towards completion! Body is on and engine compartment and interior are finished.

Nice job! I like those 1/24 scale bikes - simple, but they build up very well. The decals were fragile even when they were new. I built a couple about 14 years ago - the one you did and the one shown below - and I seem to remember having to get a replacement decal set for one of them. I've still got a Honda and Yamaha waiting to be built.

You'll probably have better luck in some of the other places you listed besides San Francisco. Real estate has become so expensive there that it's hard for me to imagine any of those old school places that I think you're seeking being able to survive.

Chassis is together and lightly weathered. Brakes came from a late model Mustang. I separated the sway bar from the strut rods on the front suspension - much more realistic! Now I'm just about ready to get the body mounted on the chassis and get this thing finished.

Thumbs up - looks great!

Wow, beautifully done - and your photography really shows it off nicely!

The Intrepids were the last NASCAR Dodges kitted and apparently sell for a little more than the Ford/Chevy/Pontiac kits of that era, but are still reasonably available. I seem to remember there was some issue as to the accuracy of the engines, but they're probably workable.

If you really wanna be correct, Ford Blue didn't come in until 1966.

Good MC5/Michigan reference! And the story of the model is extra cool, too.

If you can do this, you can do photo-etch! Good thread here:

Engine installed in the chassis:

This one was out in 2005. It's essentially the Willie Borsch kit with a different body.

Engine is built and ready to drop in. It's the Roush unit from the Foose FD-100, with a few changes. Headers came from the Monogram Shelby 350 (modified to fit), as did the air cleaner. Oil filter and mount was scratchbuilt (the Roush motor has what looks like a remote filter connection).

There's a whole thread here - it'll keep you busy for a few hours:

Maybe the '63 because there was only one Thunderbolt prototype. Here's one I built using the MCW resin body:

In case you haven't already seen it:

I've seen it here before, but I still gasp in wonder! If I didn't know better, I'd think it was a big scale build - just superb. A few years back, one of the well-known resin casters was working on an accurate conversion kit for the Mailbox Chopper, complete with Crosley engine, but apparently decided there wasn't enough of a market. I wonder if they'll consider releasing it now?

The RetroHobby 2005 re-issues came with some elaborate and rather beautiful newly-tooled decal sheets. No idea what they have planned for this time around. Anybody got shots of the original decal sheets?

I received my copy of that other magazine in the mail today. The Round2 ad inside the front cover has pictures of the Mail Box Chopper and the Taco Trike (listed incorrectly as 1:8 scale) down near the bottom and the words, "The trick trikes are back from MPC . . collect all six!" (emphasis mine). No dates given. Looks like they're (so far) going with the RetroHobby artwork, so if and when the Black Max and Cobra Chopper happen, I'll be curious to see what artwork they use for those.

Thanks for asking - I've been making good progress on the engine and running gear. Should have something to show soon.

Very clever combination of parts! And right - they didn't have cordless mikes back then.

Kind of a primitive version of the MPC trikes, now that I look at it.

Some photos I took at the "Harley vs. Indian" show at the Petersen Museum. 23 shots at the link. https://public.fotki.com/Roullier/motorcycles/harley-vs-indian-at/

The interior is done. I put some stuff behind the seats so it wouldn't look so bare back there. The "shelf" behind the seats is just the extension of the bed floor and won't show once the body is on. Thanks for lookin'.