ea0863

What a great tidbit of information, thank you!

The chrome trim is at a whole other level on this build! How do you do it to get the lines so perfect?

Just WOW! And those colors work so sweet together...

What a stunner! But now I have to find the pics of it with the custom rims just out of curiosity

Stunning color choices, and at least for me, the second set of photos actually do the car more justice. Well done!

Francis, so sorry for your loss. For whatever it's worth, most of us do this hobby for fun or relaxation. Others do it to a higher level to challenge themselves or for competitions. But the rare few such as yourself take it to an artform. Those creations that take you so long to make are, for me at least, on par with any other form of exquisite art that inspires me and motivates me. Even if all you made were ten such cars in your lifetime, it would be worth travelling to go see them!

Beautiful design and beautiful execution. I could totally see this vehicle running the salt flats! Thank you for the inspiration and for posting Claude.

Love it!

Great looking car Mario! I drove one of these when I was working at Speed Vegas, and I can tell you they are a handful - - - all horsepower and playful rear end!

Love 'em both, especially the Chevelle with side pipes. Why didn't I ever think of that?

Why thank you Sir! It is downright embarrassing where I am in comparison to the finest builders - such as yourself - in this forum. But, it does push me to learn new things and perhaps do better on the next build.

Ralph Nader attempted to make a name for himself with that book. In essence, he attacked the early Corvairs as being "unsafe at any speed" because under specific circumstances, they might roll over. Later Corvairs fixed the issue, but by then, the damage was done. That is the very basics of a very complex and controversial topic/book.

Hi Matt, I just finished a custom Corvair and have some parts left over. Let me know if there is anything specific you will need. I will be following this build with great interest!

Hello All, after seeing "Rare Vair" at SEMA 2021 (pictured below), I was inspired to try my own rendition in 1:24 scale. Details on my build are under the same title as this thread in the WIP section. In summary though, I began with an AMT Chezoom, threw in some parts from an AMT '69 Corvair, added drivetrain and suspension from a Revell Foose '65 Impala, a few bits from a Revell '29 Model A Roadster, and the hood from a Revell '08 Shelby GT500. (Since our member Claude Thibodeau has nicknamed me "Dr. Frankenstein" for mashing parts together from different kits, I wanted to live up to the moniker! ) What you see below is the results of my efforts, which I have named "Unsafe At Any Speed" as an aspersion to the hack who wrote the book by the same name. These are what I call the "beauty shots": Paint was the ubiquitous Tamiya TS-8 red, TS-14 black, and TS-13 clear. For the first time, I tried my hand at sanding and polishing the paint to reduce orange peel (having some level of success). I also tried BMF in the form of Scotch 3M foil tape 3311, which I found at the auto store. Being slightly thicker than commercial BMF, I found it easier to work with my tired and clumsy hands. The grille work came in the form of Detail Master DM-2590 honeycomb grill #1. Finally, I gave it a go with wiring the engine and the use of Tamiya Panel Line Accent for the shut lines. Below are more detail photos of how it came out: Overall, I am thrilled with how this model came out, and it is easily the most complex build I have ever done. Enjoying the company of the members of this forum has spurred me on to improve my skills with each build. In this case, I am particularly happy with how the drivetrain came out, as well as the interior, and hood. I am least happy with my painting skills, the fact that I forgot to put disc brakes in before permanently gluing the wheels in place, and the devil's creation known as BMF! For those interested in more pictures of Rare Vair, how this build came together, or the pluses and minuses of the AMT Chezoom kit from my perspective, check out the WIP thread. And finally, I have to send a shout out to Misha Koslovsky whose version of Chezoom inspired me, and which I look eagerly forward to seeing completed.

Great detail on the engine. Just remember to put a few drops of Dom's blood, sweat, and tears on the valve covers too

To finish out the project, the front suspension came from the '65 Impala and rims/tires from my stash of parts of unknown origin. Thus endeth the saga of this build which I named "Unsafe At Any Speed". Look for the finished product on the Models Car page soon, and thank you for your interest.

The body was next up, and got quite a bit of deburring, sanding of mold lines, and debadging. I noted that the body in the Chezoom kit was identical to that of the '69 Corvair kit, and both seemed to come from old and tired molds. Because of the need for a large radiator under the hood, intake and exhaust grilles were needed on the front of the car and on the hood. I chose to go an unconventional way by incorporating the hood from a Revell Shelby GT500 and by opening up the front lower valance.

Oh Dennis, you have GOT to finish that build! I love love love the mods you made to the body. The flying buttresses, the hood, side intakes are awesome!

Thank you James for the encouragement, and the chuckle I will be posting the completed car shortly and will be interested to see what you and our fellow members think.

Thank you Raoul for the information. This project has opened up a whole new world of learning for me regarding Corvairs and conversions.

Next up was the frame, which I lengthened by 5mm to match the wheelbase to that of the Chezoom body. I also lengthened the interior tub by 4mm which gave me more "leg room" for this street racer. The seats I borrowed from the '69 Corvair kit and modified to fit. When all was said and done, I wound up with a pretty comfortable interior (note the center console from the '65 Impala ), along with drivetrain, bespoke exhaust system, and pushrod rear suspension.

Hi Misha! I've been following your build with great enthusiasm and have "borrowed" some of the great cues you are incorporating into your Corvair. I cannot wait to see how it is going to come out. Mine is actually all but done, and I am writing up a WIP to document what I learned along the way. That, and I'm still trying to figure out how to work this site

At SEMA 2021, I ran across a beautiful custom Corvair at the Meguiar's booth named "Rare Vair" completed by a gentleman named Lonnie Gilbertson. I took a few pictures and decided it would have to be a future model build. For my version of the build, I got the AMT Corvair "Chezoom" Funny car, as well as the AMT 1969 Corvair kit, and quickly discovered neither were ideal for my project; the Chezoom kit as it turns out is cobbled together with a Corvair body on a "Hemi-Under-Glass" frame and drivetrain. This means the engine is a Chrysler hemi, the wheelbase is off and requires cutting the rear fenders, there is no transmission whatsoever as the driveshaft exits the clutch housing and goes right to the differential (as our own member Misha Koslovsky found out during his build), and because it is a funny car, the front suspension is very rudimentary. The '69 Corvair on the other hand has lots of extra racing parts and a better detailed interior, however its unibody chassis would require extensive modification to go from rear engine to mid engine configuration. Not to say it cannot be done, as Scale Auto Garage has a gorgeous video online of one done with a Ferrari Testarossa engine, drivetrain, and subframe. Because I was going for a race car for the street vibe, I decided to use the Chezoom kit, and maybe steal a few parts from the '69 Corvair. Starting with the engine, I set aside the hemi engine and sourced a Chevy (I believe a 396?) and manual tranny from a Revell Foose '65 Impala. To figure out how the engine would mate to the differential, I did some research on the actual "Hemi-Under-Glass" and learned that it used a very novel marine gearbox called the Casale V-drive to redirect power from the tranny to the diff. Since the Casale gearbox looked to my eyes like the front and rear covers to the blower from a Revell '29 Model A Roadster, I stole those from my kit and together with some finagling of the Chezoom subframe, came up with my drivetrain:

Beautiful car done to a perfect level of detail (in my humble opinion). I too was wondering whether you used a detail-up kit, and if so where you got it. If no kit was used, all the more kudos for your mad skills!

Totally put a smile on my face, and I love the details you incorporated.