Claude Thibodeau

Hi! Everything old is new again, goes the saying... Sure goes for vintage Funny-cars! When I got back to modeling in 2014, my first "re-entry" built was this scratch-built Mustang, inspired by the famous Mickey Thompson xperimental monocoque F/C that was the cover car of Hot-Rod back in 1970... Used a Going Thing Polar light body (already good proportions) and used a few parts from the kit, plus mucho scratch-built. Not an exact duplicate, more of an hommage... Not perfect, but certainly better than my original attemps at 15, that was "crude", of course. Goes to proove that you can do virtually anything with some styrene and some time at the bench! CT

Hi! Very clever, and nice execution to boot... CT

Hi! Great conversion, bravo! CT

HI! One of my favorite design, the 53 Stude... but this time, converted to a contemporary custom Roadster! AMT trash bin find, that missed the hood. Therefore, a 49 Ford unit was modified to fit, and blended with a customized front end. Rear tulip panel is made of removed roof panel. Full width flush-fit rear stoplight and custom roll pan. Extended sills, scratchbuilt door panels & console. Custom removable hard top. Tamya's pearl + Testor's wetlook clear. Stude engine straddled with custom Weber injection from 65 Grand-prix. Fully wired. Custom alum exhaust. Maisto rolling stock. Hours of fun with styrene! CT

Hi Sir! This is very impressive. World class built, for sure. Bravo! CT

Hi Dave! Hurting your eyes is the last thing I would attempt to do... Glad they survived my post! CT

Hi! Thanks for the comments. Indeed, the frame is almost the same wheelbase as the bug... But it needed to be Z-ed (stepped-up) in the front, to get the correct stance. The track width of the Willys IFS dictated that I use very narrow rolling stock in the front, however. The interior tunnel & floorpan ended up reminding me of the VW "thing", a basic utilitarian buggy that you may remember. I wonder if the some units still roll around today? CT

Hi! A mash-up of various leftover parts from previous projects... Frame & IFS from Willys 41 coupe, 1/24 VW coupe body with roof removed & replaced by 1/25 cabrio roof. Scratchbuilt: floor pan, tunnel, dash, rear deck, door panels, windshield posts, gas tank, 4-bar rear suspension, wood pallet for cargo, frt & rr hinges+ 29 roadster nailhead engine with modified headers & radiator. Fully wired & hosed. Parts box wire wheels & tires. Tamya acrylic custom mixes, with Testor's Wet look clear. Hours of fun with styrene! CT

Hi! Great rod! Brings me back to the cigar store where I was buying Hot Rod Magazine in the early 60's... Nostalgia... CT

Hi! Very clean built. Impressive interior... but the exterior paint wins the trophy. The consistency of the gloss and smoothness, even with so many creases, rivets, folds and all: Bravo! CT

Hi! Thanks for the comments. Much appreciated! All hail Steeve Stanford! CT

Hi! Sweet... a real time machine... CT

Ooops... This pic is more to the point. Sorry! CT

Hi! Nice concept, will be unique. I recently used that engine on a rat rot. The wiring of distributor & spark plugs was not so hard to do. I used plug "booths" on the existing "studs" instead of drilling them. Much easier. Good luck! CT

Hi! Instructive tutorial. Thanks! CT

Hi! Convincing technique. I see you "reinforce" your opening contours with what appears to be half-round extrusions. That sure adds rigidity. CT

Hi! Interesting addition. Judging from the light spots on the side of the body in the first pix above... the thickness of the body seems minimal. Or is it just because there is no coating/primer on it yet? Is it fragile to handle? What's the material? CT

Hi! I built real rods for a living... and working the tight quarters in 1/1 is often a pain in the neck... So, at this scale, it borders on nano-science. You would need a "Honey I shrank Codi" machine, might come handy. Keep on, magnifico! CT

Hi Sir! One word: fantastic. Bravo! CT

Hi again! After a good look at the opening pix... it might be the blackout contour I added to the rear glass that emphasizes your perception of "depht" for the rear of the glass. These contours on modern windows were not the practice back then... but since it was a custom, I felt free to make it a bit more contemporary. Voilà! CT

Hi! The Riv being fairly wide, my first idea to graft the eternal 63/67 Vette rear roof section proved impossible: too narrow. Hence the same part, but from a bigger scale donor vette, albeit with many modifications. I suspect the models you describe would face the same challenge... CT

Hi! Thanks for the comments. To Peter's point, it was indeed impossible to get the glass to sit flush with the molding, as on Mr. Stanford's drawing. Ink and paper allow miracles, I guess. To the "pointy" bumper, I was tempted, but sanity prevailed. Maybe next time. As to the pix, I was playin with a new camera, and the bright sun tested my abilities with the adjustement to avoid "over-exposure". I have since discovered the trick, and I may do further better pix. The show table pix were done by a fellow modeler who posted his favorite cars on his Fotki. Many thanks... CT

Hi! Thanks for the comments! The most complicated part was "folding" a new glass... Ended up using thin acetate, to conform to compound curves in both axis... Gluing it in place was the worst. Used BONDIC UV setting glue pen. It held up well for 2 years now. As per Mike's request, more vies below. Including the concept sketch. Apologies for my pictures... I'm not good at that! CT

Hi! The great Steve Stanford authored a Rodder's Digest feature story titled RIVIERA REVERIES. He imagined a 66 Riv, with the rear window treatment of a 71. I gave it a try, using a 1/20 RC 66 Corvette rear window as a donor. Mucho modifications, but looks the part, I think. Hours of fun with styrene! CT

Hi! Thanks for the quick reply. I see it is the VANTASTIC issue... Very well done! CT