AmericanMuscleFan

Hello everyone! I made some progress on the front frame components while making the rest of the elements from Chris Alston's upgrade kit. I have tried to reproduce as best I can using the few photos I found on the Internet as a reference since I do not have precise dimensions other than the size of the frame members which are 3 x 2 inches. I think it's very acceptable but you can judge for yourself, the target image is the first photo from my previous update (last week). I still need to make the attachment points for the upper A-arms and the shock mounts (on the frame), so those will be the next parts I work on. Comments and questions are welcome. See you soon with more progress, Francis One of the lower control arm on the wise, the holes for the pivots are 0.020" I made an opening on each piece before closing one of the sides with a thin strip of styrene. I carefully aligned the four pieces in the vise and made an angled groove for mounting to the frame rails. To make sure the parts are properly aligned I inserted a 0.020" drill bit into the pre-drilled holes, the mounting arms should be perfectly parallel and aligned. View from a different angle. I then added the round tubes which create the K-member. View from below. View from a different angle.

Yes and it's a good time to go back to my cave to work on my project. Your Bugatti is amazing, just the wooden templates are works of art in themselves! ? We haven't finished drooling!!!

Nice job Niko, I love seeing someone take the time to sand or put putty filler over the small casting defects. ? I remember building the street version of the kit when I first started modeling, probably the late 60s or early 70s and having a hard time with it. It was a very complex kit for the time and good practice for sharpening your dexterity. ?

Thanks Bob! I used liquid cement like Bondene or Tenax so it's easy to align the pieces (strips) before gluing them, the liquid melts the plastic by capillary action. I only had to sand the sides but there are still a few barely visible joints that the primer and paint should hide. I've made progress on the other parts of the front frame but have to get back to work for the next three nights, I'll post the photos of what I made in the next few days. Francis

Thanks Keith! I love this Mopar body style so much, rest assured I will do my best to take this old MPC kit to the next level. Francis Thanks Scott! Nothing really impressive done on the front frame so far but this Alston kit will be really fun and challenging to build I think, stay tuned! Francis Thanks Daniel! I would have loved to make the entire front frame in brass but the connection with the styrene floor pan would perhaps have become a fragile point where the choice of adhesive is limited to 2-part epoxy. The whole thing will be painted in the end anyway, so styrene I think was the way to go (It's also easier this way, I think I'm getting a little lazy). ? Francis

Hello everyone! Now that most of the major interior components are made (except the seats and roll bar), I'll move on to making the front frame. I also want to work on the engine bay, so I need the frame rails in position to create the radiator support and parts to mount the grille as well as making the front valance. This is the first part of this update to show you the fabrication of the basic elements, the other structural parts are still in work in progress at the moment. I found some photos on the web of a very cool kit that several guys used on A-Body's and I will try to reproduce it as closely as possible based on the images since I was unable to find the dimensions of the elements that compose it. I think the name of the kit is "Chris Alston 3x2" and it's exactly the kind of racing upgrade I was looking for for my project. Comments are welcome as usual. See you soon, Francis The target . I made the frame rails using the lamination technique because it is stronger and gives rigidity to the whole thing. I was afraid that the joints could fail by joining 0.080" x 0.125" strips at an angle. The frame rails after some curing time and minor sanding. Frame rails glued to their final position on the floor pan. I will only have to adjust the length when the radiator support is at the fabrication stage. I added the typical round reinforcement tubes as seen in the target image.

Daniel, thank you so much for taking the time to tell me the main points of this incredible story. Finally the guy (I'm talking about you) is as interesting as the models he builds, it seems that I never stop being surprised by the members of this community. ?

I don't know this seller, I've never done business with them. It won't do much for Keith's research but I'm not a consumer of resin products despite the fact that there are some very nice things out there made using 3D technology and resin reproduction.

Thanks Bob, that's what I thought too. I could have made the panel with aftermarket round gauges as seen most of the time, but keeping the original look can't hurt... ? Thanks Andrew, I'm going to try not to run away until next spring! ?

Wow Daniel, it's certainly a great honor to have a model on permanent display in this temple of drag racing history! It is also a good proof of your dedication in your subjects. By the way, thanks to Andy for educating young people in their sixties, I conclude with admiration that you have a beautiful pedigree my friend! ?

You're right Ron, both methods produced great results, I think the gold base produced an even more "candy" look but obviously the final coat of red plays a vital role in the end result. Keep up the good work, the subject you chose is right up my alley! ?

It's not easy to recreate a rolling work of art to scale but you are certainly one of the few who can embark on such a project, it will be epic! ?

I have seen some for wedge engine on Reliable Resin site but the logos are black instead of white (inverted). I have never purchased any of these so I cannot comment on the product. http://www.reliableresin.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=228

Good start (or restart) Ian! We often lose a lot of things after a move, fortunately this beautiful chassis has resurfaced, it will be another great project. One of the advantages of this type of build is that most of the details (no matter how many you add) will be more easily visible unlike a door car. You have something to keep you busy this winter! ?

Great project Ron, the color is superb!? Do you think a silver base instead of gold would have produced such a beautiful result? I imagine the way you did it is the technique used to produce candy apple red on a real car.

Excellent work Daniel, you have been on this forum much longer than me (and probably a modeler) but I assume this is your most detailed project to date?

Thanks Daniel, you are the only one who approves so it will stay on bare aluminum! ?

Thanks Trevor, you should see more activity in the next few weeks, my fingers are itching to build more elements for this other long project I've embarked on. Francis

Thanks Bob! To answer your question, I simply progressed slowly by filing the piece gradually until it fit the hole. You can see in the photo when I was milling that I had drawn lines to define the maximum height and width, I just had to file the two sides at angles until they were fit the space I had planned. The dash panel is brown on the real car but I'm thinking of keeping it aluminum finished because it will give it more of a drag racing look, what do you think? Francis

Thanks Tim! I agree that it's good to get back into the hobby after a fairly long hiatus. This is undoubtedly also the case for you and I look forward to seeing you again on your superb build when you can do so. Life often forces us to focus on more important things, this is just a hobby but it certainly brings its share of positivity to get us out of everyday life. Francis

Thanks Bob! It’s good to get back to this project and I will definitely have more to share with you in the coming weeks. The high season has started! ? Francis

FANTASTIC build Tom! Maybe you "rarely finish anything these days" as you mentioned, but this one is a pure home run! ??

Fantastic work of art Charlie! ? There is no more beautiful trinket to put on a period piece of furniture. ? Sorry for my long absence from the forum but I should be more present now to come and contemplate your prowess as a great master. ?

Thanks Daniel, it's just another piece in the puzzle!

Hello everyone! It's been a long time since I last updated this thread and I would first like to thank you all for your patience and your indulgence during my prolonged absence, everyday things have taken up all my time. I'm back and I hope to get back to my usual pace (slow but steady) for the next coming months and bring you new updates frequently if time permits. Today's update is for the dashboard. The donor body for this project didn't have one, so I decided to make one that replicated the basic look of the '72 with the rectangular speedometer. So I started the build with one that I found in my parts bin that came from a Revell 68 Dart.. This isn't my favorite Dodge dash, but I thought it could be a nice challenge to build and would provide a more original look with the cluster as it was that year. I don't have the gauge faces at the moment but I will do some testing on my HP printer and show you the results later. Your comments are welcome and appreciated. See you soon, Francis I used the dashboard from a 68 Dart as starting point. I modified the cluster area and remove the engraved gauge face on the donor dashboard. I also made the opening for the heater controls and modified the hole for the glove box opening button. created a rounded strip to fit each side of the radio as seen on the original 72 dash. I fabricated the cluster bezel using an aluminum strip. After few hours of filing, sanding and test fit the cluster looks pretty good to me. You can also see that I was forced to move the ash tray to be aligned with the radio. I still need to machine the control knobs but the radio opening will stay as is because it will be a drag racing car. I made some locator pins to mount the dashboard inside the body. Viewed through the windshield opening, the alignment looks good and in the right place. Seen from the rear window, I think it will do the trick! And now from the passenger door. If the printed gauges are acceptable, I think I'll start to like this dashboard! ?