BigTallDad

In 1961 I was a senior in high school and this was my ride. It's a resin kit, using the Fleetline as a donor kit (due to the longer package shelf); the resin body as well as the donor kit had numerous issues and I reached a point where it was just "Git R Done" The frame was so badly warped that I had to resort to wiring the model to the base of the display case.

Thanks for the positive comments. This is the drill I used to cut the tiny brass tubing in the "Drilling distributor caps" tutorial http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=101796

I typically use a battery operated VSR for a TON of my work. You don't need a major woodworking shop to do this! I built a "cradle" to hold the drill and a "saddle" for the speed control. The crank screws in, via the tee nut, presses into the saddle and increases the speed on the drill. I can go from 15 rpm (on a Makita drill) to the max speed of the drill When you put the drill in, it looks like this This is a 4 stage antenna that I turned using the drill/cradle and a Dreml with a grinding bit Whitewall tires, even the narrow ones, are easy too As are the nifty stripes on the wheels (a similar approach could be used for air cleaners) The nice thing is the "hands free" approach; you put the part in the drill, set the speed, and you have both hands available to hold tools, paint brushes, etc. You could also make it into a lathe by bolting the cradle to a board, use a drill bit to bore out a hole in another piece of wood (which then becomes the tailstock), attaching the tailstock, and setting the distance. The drill isn't fast enough to be a true lathe, but a Dremel with the desired bit overcomes the lack of speed.

Thanks Harry. I'd like to clean this one up and submit it to the magazine. How do I do that (the submission, not the clean up). Do you think it might have a place in the "How To" area?

I didn't use any BMF. All the chrome you see was provided in the kit.

When I was sixteen (and rainbows were still in black & white) dad bought me a 1947 Chevy Fleetline. A little poetic license with the engine colors But the plug wires are in the correct firing order (which is actually on the kit's exhaust manifold in raised letters; see previous pic, to the right of the oil filter) And the bottom side, taken through the clear plastic base The cigar-smelling interior Had that '47 Chevy for about a year BTW the Galaxie kit is SUPERB; ya gotta build one of these

I tried 1/64" on my current project, a '48 Sportsman convertible. The 1/64" just wasn't thick enough for my taste, so I've stayed with 1/32". Maybe I'm a little rusty in the math area, but I would think 1/32" in 1/25 would equate to .75" on a 1:1 which is about right

As an aside, the kit with yellow box art represents a skill level 3 kit; I think (but I'm not sure) the other small image is also a skill level 3. The larger image is a skill level 2.

I do that a lot myself.

Here's another approach to bending wood. I can't stress enough the need to pre-shape the wood. This will give you an idea of the curves front-to-back: Even the vertical pieces are curved, owing to the bulging mid-section (sounds like a lot of people I know) on the body. Just for the heck of it, here's another pattern in a light shade of wood; feel free to copy it for your projects.

After drying overnight, the pieces were then treated to several coats of Min Wax polyurethane varnish. Since Min Wax is amber in color, the result was a piece that actually looked like wood and had a slight hint of wood grain. If you recall, the decal was printed on white decal paper; to prevent the white edge from showing, the decal was cut slightly undersize (the wood will cover the white edge). Because the body area is a compound curve, the decal was also split at the door opening, thus allowing the decal to lay down more easily. Next comes the challenge of attaching a piece of wood to a plastic body that has several coats of paint as well as a decal. Using an Xacto with a #16 blade, small holes were drilled; I did not go all the way through the plastic, just enough to permit me to place a drop of gel CA (slower cure time, to allow proper alignment) using a fine tip on the CA bottle. I used double-sided masking tape on a coffee stirrer to position and place each piece of wood. There is a suggested order of installation: The top and bottom horizontal pieces go on first Vertical pieces, including the curved piece at the front of fender, are next The horizontal pieces in the center are last When all was said and done, the decal portion received a brush coat of Pledge with Future. During the custom-fitting process, I took extra effort to ensure the nifty welting would be visible even with the wood in place. While this might not be correct technically, I like the end results. Here's the finished model http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=101729

I've borrowed a page from the Chevy book and created a sort-of-Woody. Here’s a Chevy coupe with wood side-trim, and this was my role model. I used 1/32" plywood, available at Michael's. Next I searched the web and found a wood grain pattern that was pleasing to me. I played with this image in MS Paint before I actually printed it. Since the color on the model was to be dark blue, the decal was printed on white paper, to minimize the paint “bleed through.” Please feel free to copy the image if you desire. The rear fenders on the Revell kit are separate and not molded into the body (which is correct); before I attached the fenders, I applied some masking tape to the areas where the wood would (is there an echo in here?) be placed. Then, using the flat (not pointed) side of a pencil, I delineated the area to be covered in wood. The tape was then removed and reapplied to a flat sheet of clear acetate (translation: blister pack). The outline was then cut out and, after test fitting, tweaked to the final shape. While most of the wood is straight, the curved portions on the rear-quarter panel needed TLC hence the template. The fenders were then attached and I applied the welting, along with several coats of Tamiya TS-13 Clear. After cutting the plywood, I realized that I had no idea how wide to make each piece of wood. Back to the drawing board! After several attempts, I came up with an eye-pleasing dimension; after setting a drafting compass to this dimension, the corresponding edge of each piece could be marked. Each piece was then rough-cut, making sure each was oversized a little bit. Since the side of the car body is curved, each piece needed a slight curvature to reduce the stress on the glue joint that would ultimately attach the wood to the body. A band saw was used to cut an arc in a scrap 2” x 3” piece of wood. Pieces of wood were then soaked in water for several hours, then placed in the kerf and the two pieces clamped together.

That can be arranged, until I run out of raw material (contact me offline). I have but one rule...pay it forward.

Very nice work on that '57!

Thanks, but I really didn't pick the colors...those were the colors of my 1:1 that I bought used in '63. Sorry, but I don't remember what paint I used, but it was probably Krylon; I hadn't yet learned about Tamiya.

I'd strongly recommend the AMT Pro Shop kit 8455 (yellow box art) in 1/25. The kit includes photoetch as well as ignition wiring. Here's one that I made into a convertible

Thank you. That's Model Master chrome-silver paint.

No, this is the AMT Pro Shop (yellow box art) kit with the top removed. The boot came from the '55 Chevy convert (Monogram) kit, but had to be widened.

What scale?

I used to have this car 1:1; I couldn't find a convertible kit at the time (there is on available now) so I bashed a couple kits to get this. I used clear satin to tone the gloss down after this pic was taken The base kit had 2x4bbl carbs; my 1:1 had a 2bbl, single exhaust Starting to come together Ready to fire it up! With the spare, scratch-built jack, etc The undercarriage Finished model, in a "closed" stance For show

I'm not quite sure how that applies to using thread for welting. Can you help me understand?

This is probably another one of those "Duh, why didn't I think of that?" moments. What you'll need...chrome tape (auto parts store), labels (Office Max etc.), hole punches (I used to ones from Harbor Freight, but they aren't as crisp as the leather punches from Tandy). Start by cutting the chrome tape using the larger punch. Size will vary depending on the size of the actual light, since dome lights are typically larger than courtesy lights. I'm a great fan of double-sided masking tape, the type you get at a golf-supply house for installing new grips. Here's a strip of tape with the chrome dots installed; do NOT remove the backing from the dots! This allows just a little more control than trying to hold the chrome dot while installing the white dot. Carefully separate the white dot from it's backing and place the dot at the tip of an Xacto blade; this makes centering much easier. After all is said and done, you'll have something like this. Here's where the Tandy leather punches would yield sharper cuts and better results. The double-sided tape is nice; when you pull the completed assembly off the masking tape, the backing for the chrome stays on the tape so you don't need a magnifying glass to separate the chrome tape from the backing. I installed the courtesy lights (not included) on the '48 Ford Woody I'm working on (circled in yellow). If you want a thicker "lens" double-up the labels before you punch them out. As an aside, you can also use the chrome tape to make the dots for keys (door locks, trunk locks, etc.) but you might want to consider using dull coat, since the tape is brighter than BMF.

Thanks Ace, for the compliment on my '40, and it's nice to be on an adult forum once again.

I found the brass tubing at my local hobby shop; if yours doesn't carry it, maybe they can special order it. I've seen other tutorials where hypodermic needles were used, but thankfully not everybody has access to those. What did you use to secure the two diameter stainless steel tubes? CA, resin, or what? I went with the brass approach because the solder is (more or less) permanent.

Super build! It's nice to see another Woody fan. Did you use decals, real wood, or both?