torinobradley

The build process is going to differ from project to project and from person to person. I don't build much out of the box so the process I use is since everything will have to go together in the end, I work a little on the motor, a little on the chassis, a little on the interior, a little on the body and so forth. There are endless numbers of modifications, depending of course on your scope of the project, that need to be taken into account when building. On a box stocker or close, I would look for a build thread or two of that kit to see what issues others have encountered with it. Then adjust my build accordingly. Test fit everything, build the sub-assemblies such as motor, rear end, body pannels and such that will need to have seams addressed and are to be mostly one color, prime, fix any issues, paint and assemble using the instructions not so much for assembly method, mainly to ensure you don't miss anything like the tie rods or battery, then start putting it all together in whatever order seems most reasonable. You have to think about things like will the chassis fit into the body with all the body panels in place, how about with the interior glued in? All the more reason to consult a build thread if available. Some builds are incredibly simple while others are insanely complex. As always, you have a huge information resource in this forum and chances are, more than a few have built the same kit you are working on and have run into the same issues your experiencing, so just ask if you get in a tight spot. Good luck and let us know how you get along!

I do the same non-power sanding method to scuff up the tread and then go over the tread area with a small brass brush to get rid of the shine between the tire treads. That way, the sidewall has that just armor alled sheen to it and the tread looks like it is a road going vehicle.

Only the last pic is a tunnel ram. The other two are direct port injection with bent tubes and a log style manifold with four carbs. I just thought that last engine was cooler than cool. Will have to put that one on the future projects list for sure. Oh, about the mag. It is titled Mopar and they had it in the parts department on the counter. This was the Jan/Feb issue. Lots of nice muscle car pics as well. Decent for ideas to be sure. Glad I picked it up.

Was it maybe a '68? Did the instrament panel have four 'pods' going across it? Four headlights? The Torino came with 390s but I don't think the little Falcons could take that sized motor or came with them.

Drool...

Looks more like a 5%... So, at the end of "Gone in 60 Seconds II: Your Actual Mileage May Vary", this little hot rod out MPGs the police cruisers in a slow speed chase and and jumps a speed bump to get away???

While picking up a part at the local Dodge dealer, on a whim, I picked up a Mopar magazine (not a big fan, but for free, hey). What a surprise. The first page I opened it to had these wonderful pictures of a couple of rare firedome research engines, including what might be the first hemi tunnel ram!!! Just wanted to share em with ya... Notice the intake is just like the one in the newly re-issued Double Dragster?!?! I see about getting my scanner up and running to post the whole article. I think I know what I want to put in my next hot rod project. I feel like a vintage tunnel ram would be appropriate... How about putting one of those in a double dragster?

Was at the local Chrysler dealer yesterday picking up a part and they had the Mopar magazine in a free box so I grabbed one figuring I could give it to my son. The first page I opened it to had a couple of beautiful Firedomes on em from the '50s This was also in the article. It's the exact intake in the Double Dragster kit! Enjoy!

How did you end up doing the galvanized metal chain cover and can we get a closeup of that? Awesome job, BTW...

Just wanted to invite you guys out. Sorry for the late notice. More details at www.alamosquadron.com See ya there!

In these pictures you can see the modified frame, the photo-etched body supports, engine mounts, clutch bracket as well as the lower control arm strentheners and front frame bracket/skid. This chassis has so far eaten up the most time on this project but I want it to look awesome. A lot of time was spent trying to ensure everything lines up so the clutch pivot arm will sit right, the shifter and linkages will be in the correct place and so forth. I will cut off the kit trans mount now that I have the motor mounts installed and create a more realistic looking one. One other thing I was working on was the instrament cluster. The kit supplies us with a clear unit that is about twice as thick as it should be and the guages are little marks on the lense covers. The detail set provided one is photoetched and lacks the 3-D-ness of the real unit. The option I chose was to use the kits clear panel and modify it for the gauge decals on the VRM sheet. That way, if you wanted to, you could read the odometer! One last thing I did was remove the molded in air boxes for the rear brake cooling ducts. This way, I can make more realistic and HOLLOW looking ducts so when the rear tires are off, they look amazing... Other projects in progress are the vent box under the cowl vents complete with wiper control arms, cutting the dash 'wings' off (actually part of the door panels), working on the gas filler interior cover, figuring out how to build the grill, modify the front turn signal area and creating the missing lower portion of the firewall so the front outside body mounts actually connect to something... Hope you enjoyed this little taste of what I have been doing. As always, comments are welcomed and encouraged.

Okay, time for an update. I have been working on and off on this thing trying out new stuff and fixing things that don't look right. Seems I will have modified each part I pull off the sprues. I took a look at the rear end half-shafts and driveshaft u-joints. Real ones have an inset that has a clip in to hold on the u-joint caps. I didn't like the little bumps on the models parts so I took out an appropriate sized drill bit and went to work. Once the holes were drilled, it left a conical bottom so I sanded the backside of the drill flat and used it like a punch. I filled the cavity with putty and then used the back of the drill bit to make a flat area just below the surface. The plan was to take some really thin wire and make the little clips but it seems much better as an Idea. Kind of hard to create a 1mm clip, even with the smallest tweezers. My other idea options would be decal or photo-etched but we will see what works out. Here is my replacement spare, thanks to Harold at Historic Miniatures. Great stuff this is... After seeing the progress on another Grand Sport, I was inspired to make some modifications to my wheels and mounts. I grabbed some resin knock-offs and the kit wheels and went to the local hobby stores. I found some fine threaded 3mm screws that appeared the correct size and got the matching drill and tap. The results are thus... I'm waiting on some photo-etched brake disks, solid for the rear, vented for the front and will modify the model to have removable wheels. There will be so much detail that I think it would be a crime to hide some of it with the wheels and tires. I noticed that one of the un-restored cars had no inspection plate over the bellhousing so the flywheel was exposed. I have a flywheel from one of the Blueprinter parts pack motors I was planning to use but then realized I had a more visually stimulating idea. I pulled out some of the watch gears I purchased in a lot and found one that was the right size. Then, cut a plastic backing for it. With a bit more detailing, I'm sure it will be perfect. The five spoke vs six design won't matter much as you won't see all that much of it behind the oil pan. Just enough to make it look good. I also started work on the interior tub. The 004 raced with no carpet in the '64 Sebring so some sanding and shaping were in order. It's not done yet but you can see where it's going. I got some needle files and attacked the spindles in the hopes of giving them a little more accurate shape. Will also put on ball joints, nuts and washers to make them more presentable.

Sorry guys! I'm sure it was an error on someone's part. The Dealnews site had always been reliable. That is, up until now. Figures that my first post about a good deal is a flop...

I believe it was you that sent me this one. Many thanks! Now, I don't know which way to go with it. Do I build it as the real one or do a custom job. I have some big an dlittle wires from Pegasus that I want to put on a little roadster so might go that direction. This one is turning out great!

With my leadfoot, I tend to hit the govenor on pretty much every car I've owned. Most of the time it's at 95mph (stupid govenor...) Long ago, I was racing a Trans Am with a '78 Ford F150 with a camper shell and then noticed the speedo was all the way around back up to 35... That's about 150 with bias belted tires. I bet that TA was wondering WTF!!! Also had a friend's Maseratti Gran Sport well over 100 but didn't want to push it. Not my car and all that. My brother wouldn't let me drive his new GTO. He new I'd run it hard and fast...

http://dealnews.com/Tower-Hobbies-coupon-10-off-25-or-more/346576.html?iref=fpy Just thought you guys would want to tknow.

My suggestion would be to start with a base med silver gray color, then, misting a darker gray and lighter silver over it and if the results are satisfactory, then hit it with a shot of dullcoat to even everything out. I did granite this way when I did figures. Seemed to work out well enough. Worth a try on some scrap. Do share your results and good luck!

I have this kit as well. The real car is owned by Michael Anthony, bassist for Van Halen! It was built by Foose and Boyd. It looks great with those wheels.

Good lookin car you got there! Those wheels look right!

Okay, all this hype and the wonderful pictures got me to pull the trigger. That, and the local Hobbytown already had the kit priced at $45.00. I currently don't build a lot of drag cars but am into land speed racers, traditional hot rods and street rods so this wonderful box of nifty parts is chock full of those types of parts! Thanks for the detailed reviews!

Nice! How about "Banana Splitz" for a name? I have used the VTH Engine Enamel in the past and with a coat of white, it seems to cover pretty well. Has a nice gloss right out of the can as well. I will have to try out the india ink/future idea. I have one of these in the queue and, like you, I will have to make it my own...

If you have a Hobby Town or other larger hobby shop that handles large scale trains (or look them up online) check out their G scale train stuff. The G scale is 1/28th or so and there is a pretty good variety of things to choose from. You may find what your looking for there.

Those taillights are an interesting bit to paint. There is no lens, just little notches in the body where the light shows through the body colored louvers. I had painted mine a silver blue so all I did was put some acrylic glass stain in the slots. I would suggest using a fine brush and some water based silver paint to paint each louver, wiping the excess off as you work and once that is fully dry, use some clear red acrylic paint and again, wiping off the excess. Should work. The headlights for this kit are chrome and ugly. On this, I suggest looking at some real lights, painting some thined down black, gray and blue where they reflect on the real ones then going over them with some thinned elmers glue to take some of the chrome-i-ness out of it. That's what I do, anyway. Good luck and post pics when done!

Nice! I like the "ram air" intake!

As with any swap, in scale or 1:1, there will most likely be some changes to be made. Considering the '53 kit came with a hemi as an option, I don't think there will be an issue with the width. Your changes will most likely be where the oil pan sits and the transmission. If I remember correctly, the trans on the kit engines is the short little ones where the parts pack 427 has a longer four speed. If there is no interference from the firewall, floorpan or frame mount, it should be easy. But if there is interferrence, you might want to use the trans from the kit engine ont he parts pack 427. You may also need to turn the oil pan around or cut it down to size. Now, sometimes the stars do line up and it's just a straight drop in. I hope that is the case here, but if not, don't give up. With some work, patience and imagineering, you should be able to do the swap. You can always ask the board if there are any other questions.