GeeDub

Thanks for the tip, Casey! After researching availability and costs on ebay, I believe I will pass on that and probably go with aftermarket strut front and 4 link rear suspension kits. These should cost about the same as the 57 Bel Air Street Machine, and since I already have all of the styrene items needed to create the chassis & roll cage, would be the more logical choice. However, I will definitely keep the 57 Street Machine on my list in the event I come up with a future need. Thanks again.

Space for headers is a definite and desired benefit. Thanks for the info, Mark. I have noted that front strut and 4 link rear suspension sets are offered at a few aftermarket parts sites online. A little pricey but quality makes that less of an issue. I will look into this further as I get closer to my first scratch build chassis project.

Yes, I have a stack of extra pro street & pro stock kits for this very purpose. However, I have a few car kits that have longer or shorter wheel bases. This is why I am planning on scratch building a tubular chassis or two. Thanks for the details, Casey! Much appreciated.

I forgot to ask... Do most tubular chassis use rack & pinion front suspension setups? I guess that is the term for the type with struts that contain the spindle as well as the shock.

Ah, yes indeed. I forgot about the NASCAR designs to handle high levels of stress for long periods and also making all those left turns. If the models are designed accordingly, then they should look a bit odd on a drag chassis.

Sorry if I was not clear in my original post. Yes, I am planning on building a tubular pro street/stock/mod style frame. I am trying to determine what will be the best way to go for the front suspension. The detailed parts from the above link are just too costly for a complete front suspension. I am looking at robbing parts from another kit. I do have some spare AMT & Revell 67 Chevelle Pro Street kits, so robbing the parts from them is an option. I was also looking on ebay for suspensions and found quite a few different versions (makes/models of vehicles donating the parts). In particular, I was wondering if the few 1:25 NASCAR parts would be of good use.

Very nice creation of a backwards approach!

I have not had much success searching for info on what is the preferred choice(s) for front suspensions when scratch building a chassis. In particular, pro street/pro stock/pro mod are my primary interest. I don't see much available on the aftermarket sites that I am familiar with. I guess it would be a good idea to start with the front end of the car the chassis is being created for. However, I know some of the kits have poorly designed front suspensions that are not worth using. I am looking at several AMT 1:25 NASCAR front suspensions that might be a good choice. Anyone who has built a chassis for a drag car, I would greatly appreciate your input in this area. Stay safe & well!

That looks great. Excellent work!

Nice!

Very nice!

Very nice. I'm impressed with your work and patience, especially with the front suspension. Well done!

Looking real good! My only dislike, and this is just my own personal opinion, is the front tires. I personally prefer skinny front tires on drag cars. Perhaps not top fuel dragster skinny, but none the less. Standard width road tires being the max I would go with. As I understand the reasoning for skinny front tires, there is less resistance on the track surface which results in faster reaction times/getting the car moving quicker .

That's great info, Deuces. Amazing about the accumulated rubber. What is your average run time between rear tire changes?

I'm re-thinking my original story line for this car. Originally, I wanted it to be a pro street build, somewhere in the late 80s that the owner and a couple of his buddies built and maintain to run on the strip on weekends, but drive to work during the week. With this in mind, I decided to give it a weathered look for the engine, engine bay and undercarriage. You can easily see this in the images above. However, I'm not certain these pro street cars were hardly ever actually driven on the street on a regular basis, and always seemed to maintain a pristine appearance. So, now I am thinking I should give it a cleaner appearance. What is the general consensus of fellow forum readers?

Nice.

Part 3b I've got the interior ready, just need to do a bit of clean up on the roll cage then glue it in place. Next will be Future coating the glass and finishing the body. Thanks for looking.

I agree. There is so much detail in that small package. Amazing.

Looking forward to seeing the results of your new 3D printing setup. I wish I had the eyes and steady hands to do the high degree of detailing with pe parts. In the alternative, I very much enjoy seeing the pictures and following the creations you and other builders post here.

Part 3a Things sure slow down as the build starts getting closer to the end. I was hoping the rollcage would fit without modifications but I knew the odds were slim. Dry fitting proved I would need to remove the side horizontal bars/tubes and shorten the front and back vertical main bars/tubes to allow it to fit within the interior tub and also within the body. Next, I had to remove a portion of the rear lower cross bars/tubes for drive shaft hump clearance. I screwed up trimming that portion and had to create a curved section to look decent. I'm not certain it is realisic but it works for me. Here is a picture of my apartment workbench This project is taking far longer than I expected. However, I am taking my time and having a lot of fun building the car. Thanks for looking.

Sweet!!! I'm doing the same car with some minor changes. Hope it looks as good as yours when I'm finished.

I agree. Nicely done!

The more I look at this frame, I think I will purchase some styrene rods and tubes and try my hand at scratch building. I have a few extra pro street kits that will provide the tubbed rear area. I just need to figure out how I will go about building the front suspension(s). This will be a whole new thread after this 66 Nova and the '68 Z/28 are finished.

Part 3 I had the hardest time getting the engine into the bay. Perhaps it would have been easier if I had left the headers unattached and glued them on after the engine was positioned correctly. You will notice the engine is not lined up correctly, it is a little crooked. Try as I might, I could not get it to center due to the headers obstructing block alignment. I am using a roll cage and seats from an AMT 67 Chevelle Pro Street kit. I wonder why a roll cage or bar was not included in the Nova Pro Street kit. You would think it should be a must have item. I certainly do. The front suspension parts are very small and appear to be fragile. I will have to be extra careful when I attach the front wheels so the spindles don't break. The fit of some items on this kit are troublesome. If more of the models I plan on building have similar issues, I could see myself perhaps attempting to scratchbuild a tubular pro street/pro stock style frame or two. I will have some touch up painting to do before the body goes on. Slow going but fun. Thanks for looking!

That is one heck of an agreement. I can't wait to see what you create once you have your 3D printing shop set up.