Pierre Rivard

I fixed my big boo boo with the roll cage and dash fighting for space. Interior may not pass inspection but it is finished.

Thanks for providing valuable insight Chris. I have extremely limited knowledge and obviously making mistakes here. I'm dating this build to a 1995-2000 run and (wrongly) assumed rules were not as strict then. If you are shooting for 250, does that mean you already have your red hat?

Brown or unpainted fiberglass inside, black padding for the driver seat, brown/bare fiberglass for the passenger "seat"

I started with Gofer lever type belts but ended up using only the 4 elements latching together (end of each strap). The shoulder adjusters were excessively fragile so I went to spares for these. The Gofer straps are also too wide for my taste (about 3mm) so I went with narrower straps from the spares.

And not so great stuff that needs serious fixing. After I mocked up everything I decided to make a change the front cage post... and forgot to check again. Dash panel butchery in process...

Thanks Niko, the interior does not look inviting but it was on purpose for this build. Funny.... I thought I had stolen this from you? The shifter is just a pin from the jewelry section at Michael's, the booth is inspired by MarkJ's method. Steal is such an ugly word... Good tip Noel. I need to try that. The braid belts don't look too convincing. Thank Mark for that. Pretty easy and effective. Thanks Phil. I like to try new ideas. Might even do a Deuce! 😄

The fuel tank does have a nice metal motif. Your efforts to color/texture variations really works here. Double bonus points for doing that on a part that will be covered by the body.

Thanks Jim. Same here, such a beautiful race car Got mine on E-bay, waiting patiently for a reasonably priced sealed box. Bonus picture, with the big dog of 1966. Luke or Dark Vader?

The chassis set up looks very promising. The rear axle & spring arrangement looks exactly like the one on the early 50's Goldenrod. Are you setting this build with removable panels (or complete body) to allow a good view of the chassis/drivetrain/cockpit? Cool project!

Adding insulated mats. Made a paper pattern and replicated on medical fabric tape. Tape was painted gray, then dry brushed aluminium, then added PE fasteners.

Making a few additional dials for this beauty. Integration of components has a nice... home made feel?

PE buckles are fighting me again. I wish I could find a brand where all the parts work. Anyhow... we have seatbelts on our ratty seat.

Sure is. This stock body C3 last ran in 2000 with a 303 cid twin turbo, perhaps with a bit of nitro and ached a 2 way average of 270mph. Who has time to look at all these gauges... Thanks friend. Mine will have a few adds but pretty spartan in comparison. Definitely off the beaten path Ken. I did add some weathering to the interior trim btw.

It is a nice chassis, and with working steering. Impressive vintage kit for sure.

Just caught up with this one as I don't visit Nascar often. Your body mods are spot on. A favorite race car of many but such a disappointing kit. You are doing your absolute best with it and it shows. Brave man!

Thanks for the suggestions Ken. I may try a few of these. I'm keeping interior trim with this car as it supports the narrative for the type of quick build production based race car I aim for. Perhaps today all salt cars have these removed but I am dating this as a 2000ish entry. Two examples of salt car interiors from the era that kept some of the stock interior trim. First is a Ford Maverick that ran in the mid nineties in the production or classic category. Second is the famous C3 Corvette Sundowner, it had a long career and last ran in 2000 in the GT class.

Thank you Charlie. Not a lot of accurate mechanical details here but this project is an enjoyable paint & weathering experiment.

Crisp reflections in a paint job don't lie. Perfect!

Indy roadsters are cool, so this is one more interesting build to follow. I admire your ability to handle 3 projects at the same time. Please tell us more about the kit origins and what the "upgrade plan" is (wheels & tires, engine etc)

I am a huge fan of your build Jim. The frame, suspension and engine are so precisely made they look real. Your work with various washes make all these "metal" parts very lifelike. The polishing of the body done to achieve a period correct patina oozes realism. Did I say I'm a huge fan?

Another great one is starting to take shape. I like your approach to each component set, like that beautiful rear axle/diff, treating it like a scale model by itself. The idea of creating something special starting with the legendary 55 Chevy and dropping a Novi engine into it is beautifully mad. Carry on Master Charlie, we're all... eyes!

Thanks Mark. It is actually pretty easy to do, much easier than trying to achieve a nice shiny paint job. It's a lot of fun too! Hi Dave. The concept of this build is the making of a salt race car from a barn find, solid but not pretty Nova. I know... it's weird... Thank you Andy Open to suggestions Ken. I tried dirtying the vinyl trim with washes, any idea what I could do to improve it?

Not much to see but looks like some sort of low back bucket and a separate flat headrest attached to roll cage.

Have you considered brushing on dry pigments (graphite or charcoal)? It's easy to apply and wipe off excess with a humid Q-tip.

Beautifully done Mario. It looks very real and brings memories of our youth with the bright two tone paint jobs.