Custom Mike

Here's where we add some trim to the smoothed out body. I've already added in my new C pillar using a strip of styrene, so I broke out my P.E. set from AMT's Pro Shop '57 Chevy kit, stole the insert for the side trim, and stuck it to the body with some double-sided tape. Then I grabbed some half-round styrene strip, and started making the trim. The hardest part was getting the bend in the upper piece, but a little heat and a lot of cussing made it work. After gluing it down, I cut the door panel and fuel filler door lines into it, checked the look against a '57 Nomad body, and primed it all up! The fun part was duplicating it on the passenger side!

Here's our next batch of pics, the New C pillar is glued in place, some filler was added to the top side, and the door line was cut into it. I also reshaped the widow opening behind the C pillar, took the wheel arches off the driver's side, and added some filler to the back edge of the rear wheel well to match the rear fascia. It'll take some careful sanding to get it to match , but I like a challenge! I had to re-shape the top of the widow opening after removing the "C" pillar, it was just a little off.

Here's my latest custom project, I had this idea years ago, and swapped with a friend for the Magnum kit, but never got the time, seems like some other Mopar (My Concept Charger) got all my attention! The talk of the Chrysler/GM merger a while back really got me fired up to do this one, so here we are. The plan is to take Revell's 2006 Magnum SRT8 kit, make it a 2 door, re-arrange the B and C pillars, make a new C pillar, add '57 Chevy style trim, and change the "truck" nose look out front completely. I'll need to make some new interior panels, and remove the arches over the wheel wells too. The color is going to be House Of Kolors Oriental Blue, but I may change my mind on that. Enough with the words, onto the pictures! The box, I'm so good it looks just like the ones in the store, doesn't it? Sheet styrene added behind the wheel arches. I'll fill in the space between the arch and the sheet with Acrylic Fingernail Filler, then sand the arches off. The B pillar has been removed, and I'm preparing to cut the C-pillar and move it to it's new location. The C-pillar taped in place, it's going to become the new B-pillar soon.

Another killer build Peter, and my favorite car also. I had a 1:1 '62 Impala, but had to give it up. I couldn't afford to restore it, so I sold it to a guy who could. I'm dying to see the paint on this one!

I've got six for this year, a new record for me! Tamiya's Porsche 959, not an easy kit due to all the ill-fitting parts and mold lines to clean up. Dupli-Color paint... AMT's new Challenger kit, added blade bumpers using Detail Master Krome Foil, HOK Lemon Yellow paint... A rebuild of Revell's Honda Civic, nail polish two-tone paint, flocked carpeting, wired engine... Revell's '69 Talladega, full engine detail, complete brake and fuel system, aftermarket rims, Pegasus disc-brake rotors, added door lock knobs and PE door lock cylinders, color matched interior, flocked carpeting, paint by a friend on another forum (Part of a painted Body-Swap project)... AMT's '66 Fairlane, nail polish paint, Viper rims, parts box tires, wired engine, fuel & brake lines, door lock knobs, flocked carpeting, Keith Marks decals, resin '67 Galaxie 428 hood from Drag City Casting.... Revell '99 Eclipse, Pro-Street style. Shortened chassis, suspension & engine from AMT's '70 Super Bee, parts box intake,carbs & velocity stacks, scratch-built interior floor & driveshaft, flocked carpeting, R&MCo Hemi spark plug boots, Parts by Parks aluminum distributor, nail polish paint, Aluminum nitrous bottle from a friend, "Yeah, It's Got A Hemi" bumper sticker from the Revell Magnum kit...

John, this should be another killer from you. What are you going to use for paint on this?

This baby is looking sweet! Any problems with this kit so far? I've got one I want to get built sometime soon, like the other 300 or so kits in my stash!

Virgil, I want to meet you one day so I can bow at the feet of the Master! You are unbelievable, this one looks 100% real, I can't wait to see the third one you're gonna drop on us!

I saw this on your Fotki page Virgil, and was hoping you'd post it and tell us what you were up to. Thanks for the tip, now if I ever get the nerve up I'll know how to do some really cool weathering!

Absolutely beautiful paint, and those brake rotors look incredible! I'm waiting for the next update!

Sounds like a plan, it should be a real show-stopper when you get it done. Are you planning on modern suspension and rolling stock?

Darin, do you even have to ask? This should look great once you get it rolling, what are the plans for the front and rear ends?

Mike, this is just killer work! I can't wait to see more on this one!

HOLY ######!!!! John, I surrender to your superior talents, this is just perfect! My jaw was scraping the floor so hard I didn't even notice the upside-down decal until I read the replies. This is the single best model I have ever looked upon, you are the Master!

Looks great so far Darin, is it going to be stock or is it getting some modern rims & tires? I use Duplicolor Primer/Sealer all the time, it's a little thick from the rattle cans, and you have to go lightly on the new Revell kits with it or you'll burn the plastic. Or you can buy a quart of it at Advance Auto like I did for about $20 and reduce it for thinner coats, it's really good stuff.

Sounds good, I added blade bumpers to mine to make it look better, I'm waiting to see what you do. I noticed your front & rear fascias and hood fit better than mine. It took a ton of sanding on mine to get the front and rear to match the body, and my hood still sticks up slightly in the front. I guess I should have waited for the full detail kit....

I built one of these when they first came out Joe, a nice, quick and easy build. The "rubber" seats are kind of funky, but they work nicely. When you trim the flash off of them, rub the seat with your fingers until the line goes away, and they look great.

Yeah, I've used it, and can honestly say that it's the worst of the Dupli-Color Mirage line by far. It really isn't a color-shifting paint compared to the others at all, more of a big iridescent metal-flake than anything else. But like i said, what you did looks better than any other time I've seen it used, take that spoon out in the sun and see how it looks, I'll bet you'll like the results.

Rob, how many coats of the Ice did you spray, that looks 1000 times better than any other time I've seen it used. It usually ends up being a freaky "Bass Boat" silver, but yours looks killer!

Chuck, forget the H1N1 license plate, the USDA Choice mudflaps are the best part! Great work from a twisted mind!

Gorgeous color and killer rims, this should be sweet!

That's the biggest concern I have too Ed, not too many people want to do anything different to a '57 Chevy. It's almost considered a sin to change it, and I fully understand, it's one of the best designs to ever roll out of Detroit! But me being me, I just have to do something different, and the hood seems like the safest thing you could change and not screw up the car entirely.

Thanks for that little tip Steve, I was gonna get started on molding the scoop tonight, now I'm gonna do like you said and see if I can't get the smooth one cast first!

Mike this is the new tool '57, the really good one. I can't find anyone with anything but Pro-Street style '57 hoods, so if you can remember who has it, let me know. And I've tried my hand at resin-casting with horrible results, so I'll leave that to guys who can do it, I might as well throw my money out the door when it comes to casting.

OK guys, I'm gonna post this here to get some opinions. I'm building a special version of AMT's '57 Chevy for a friend in the near future, and wanted a different hood. I can't find any modified hoods that eliminate the two humps on the hood, or have something other than a massive "Outlaw" style cowl induction scoop, so I'm gonna make my own. I filled in the two "gun-sight" locations, then filled in the back side of the hood's two humps and sanded it all nice and smooth. Then I stole the "stinger" style scoop from a scrap '67 Corvette hood, but removed the center point, making the scoop open all the way through. Here's where it sits as of now, I haven't attached the scoop to the hood yet, since I'm not sure if I'm going to close off the back side yet, so I just mocked it up for these shots. Let me know what you honestly think of this, don't hold anything back, I want to know if it would be something you would buy if it was available in resin. I have a caster in mind, and if there's enough interest, I'll let him know and send it off to him for casting.