impcon

Dave, I just want to say a sincere, heartfelt thank you for the extra effort that puts your company heads and shoulders above the competition. I see that you have a sincere heart and want to listen and do your absolute best to make your quality product that is as accurate as possible. Simply put, thank you. The world would be a much better place if more manufacturers of everything cared even a fraction as much as it is obvious that you do. Again, a simple, but very sincere thank you for caring enough to listen and to try harder. This should be one stunning kit when it comes out and I suggest, worth the wait.

That is SO pretty and it looks SO righteous, Steve!!! While Geranium wasn't my all time favorite color on these cars, there is no denying that you made a good choice and that this will be yet another masterpiece on your shelf.You have an incredible eye for color and that is a gift that most people simply do not have - and it is a gift to have the vision to see in your mind what the completed project will look like and to appreciate it's true potential. I tend to think that you are an inspiration to a lot if us here ( especially yours truly ) to get busy and start doing something with what we have. The colors you chose are pure late 50's and I am so looking forward to seeing this one come together. I speak for everyone when I respectfully say that we appreciate you sharing your abilities and talents with us all here. Thank you and keep up the excellent work. Your builds make a very strong case for box and factory stock builds and prove beyond doubt that keeping things uncomplicated can yield some fantastic results! just my opinion - but I think others will agree. It would be a dull world if we all liked the same things and no one has a monopoly on being right, but your builds are as classy and nice in their simplicity ( e.g. - no opening doors, etc. ) as any that I have ever seen. I admire guys who have the abilities, tools, experience and talent to go the extra mile in detail, but your workmanship rivals them all.

Wow!!!!!!!!!!!! That is one super clean and beautiful model! The foil work is incredible and the colors suit that vehicle. I think that the dog dish caps add a real touch of realism and there isn't much that can be done to enhance the simple yet stylish, clean looks of the '60 Ford IMHO. Some will disagree, but I believe that this is one of the model years of Ford is one that it is pretty hard to improve upon with fancy paint or wheels or alterations and always seems to look best in it's stock dress. This build is super well done and a fine tribute to a much under appreciated and today seldom seen marque. Perhaps the scarcity of the '60 Ford is part of what makes them so special today, but I have always liked them from day one.

Thanks for the input guys. I just bought a Cuda kit - now I have to get the rest of the pieces together. Thanks for the pointers on the tires and engine, Chris. While I really like the Magnum 500 wheels, I'll go with the Duster style stock rallys like the TV car wore once the project was completed. The Magnums were borrowed from a Daytona, I believe just to keep the Cuda mobile. Those wheels with the redlines sure did look good on it though, didn't they? I never really cared all that much for the Cuda until I watched that one being built on that television show. Like the Challengers of that vintage, those cars sure are heart stopping in black! I still think that the '70 Challenger is the by far the prettiest Mopar of that era, but watching Graveyard Carz has given me a whole new appreciation for all of the Mopar muscle cars although I have always liked them. I also really like the 67 GTX and 69 Road Runners, but the Challenger really appeals to me and has since they were new. I remember those cars and now wish that I had paid more attention to them when they were new and I recall seeing either a Superbird or Daytona ( can't recall which but I think that it was a 'Bird ) in the show room of a Chrysler dealership in Winnipeg back in the day. It seemed like a real oddity back then and I wish now that I had went in and looked at it. Of course, they were just new cars back then, weren't they? Who could have at that time imagined them demanding the prices that they do today and that the muscle car era would be so short lived? I'm not at all stuck on so called "reality shows" and I know that everything is scripted, but having worked in a place where guys goof around like those four fellows do makes the program entertaining as well as educational from an automotive standpoint. I'd like to see the program centered totally on the restoration process but most viewers want the drama and humor too, I guess. Regardless, it is one of my all time favorite TV shows and I really appreciate it being aired into its 4th season coming up. I intend on visiting that shop in person in the next year or so to meet the people and see the workmanship first hand. I have painted a few cars and I can sure appreciate the feeling of satisfaction once the project is past the "ugly stage" and painting and the reassembly begins. Until you have totally disassembled a car as they do, and then put it back together, it is impossible to really appreciate the amount of time, effort and love that goes into such a project. Seeing a car put back as close as humanly possible to the way it was originally built is a nice change from what many shops do and call a "restoration". There is a huge difference between a "refurbish" and a "restoration" IMHO. Mind you, there is a huge difference in the cost as well.

Thank you for posting these photos Steve. For being "a little long in the tooth", that car looks pretty sweet to me, I must say! The color is indeed nice and your build is a fine tribute to what is without a doubt, my all time favorite automobile. I can not honestly say that there is one feature about a '59 Chevrolet that I do not like although some people do not care for them. To me, they are eye candy - especially in stock form. I can remember going to swap meets in the early 80's and having people actually laugh at me when I asked if they had any '59 Chevy parts. I remember one guy laughing and saying, "Who would even want one of those?" Time does have a way of changing things, doesn't it? I am grateful to have the 1:1 ones that I have and regret selling some of the ones that I did over the years. Thank you again.

I would suggest that Emmanuel really raised the bar with this one as to creativity and the hidden possibilities that lay within so many kits that were never released in stock form. Included in that list is the '55 Ford panel truck. But this Chevy sure proves that when the dream is big enough and the desire strong enough, the facts don't count and we are limited only by our own imagination. I keep coming back and looking at his creation here and the more I look at it, the more I appreciate the novel approach and the talent displayed in the pictures. Again, very nice, quality workmanship!!!!!

Unusual is what makes things unique and wonderful!! This should look really good.. Just wondering if you have ever done a '59 Impala hardtop or convertible, Steve..??? If so, would you kindly post some photos and share it with us - if not, perhaps you may one day consider doing one? Just a thought....

The '59 Ford was voted "the most beautiful automobile in the world" at the major car show in Paris, France, so the proportioning and styling must not have been too bad. While not my all time favorite car, I really do like the styling which is pretty conservative compared to some of the other makes of that era. It's unfortunate that the omnipotent bean counters seem to fail to see any potential in reissuing these old kits as opposed to the dime a dozen Chevelles and Mustangs and such. They keep reissuing the '57 Ford over and over and have even tooled a new two door post but the '58 and '59 seem to be largely forgotten and under rated. Oh well - ours is not to reason why, is it? Yours will be a nice build, Steve.. maybe it will help draw some attention and appreciaition to these cars.

Would you be so kind as to post some pictures of the kit please.. My neighbor has a 1:1 - he may be interested in getting one as he does build models from time to time as his life allows..

The original movie car was indeed devoid of billboards. But the car that I want to replicate is the Cuda that was restored as a "tribute car" on the Graveyard Carz series. It had the 340 billboard treatment - black on black. It's a very subtle, clean contrast that really adds something special to that car over the movie car. The movie car is OK but the restored one with the proper rally wheels and louvers and nice paint - wow!! I think that it would make an awesome project. By the way - Kieth Marks does have the '71 340 billboard decals... thank you for that lead.

I recently watched the Graveyard Carz Phantasm Cuda project and am thinking about trying to replicate that car. It looks so totally awesome in triple black.. but my questions are as follows: Which kit would be the best starting point as to being accurate proportionately? The car will be a 340 car and not the kitted Hemi one - what would be a good donor kit for the proper non-hemi chassis and engine? Is there a black "340" Billboard decal for a 71 Cuda available from an aftermarket supplier as it seems that that kit is only available in Hemi form? I'm not a Mopar guru so is there anything that someone who has done a project like this before can advise as to difficulties, unavailable components - decals, etc??

Looks great George!!! Is that a 1/2 ton cab conversion or a resin one from Modelhaus? Do you remember the old Wheeler's Gulf fuel truck similiar to yours that used to be in our area? It was blue and white had a 409 in it if I remember rightly...

Now THAT is SWEEEEEEEEETTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!! How refreshing and unique to see a stock build of this car.. and the workmanship is awesome!!! Who says that stock ain't beautiful or it's dull??? You really did a nice job on this - love the detailing - especially on the hub caps! It's the little things that really make a difference!

Jim, that information would be nice as I have a '64 Fairlane annual that I would like to build as a bench seat Fairlane 500 hardtop rather than the usual Sport Coupe. If it took two decal sets to do both seats - then so be it, but the pattern would really add a touch of realism. Maybe some other guys would appreciate the additional Thunderbolt parts as well.

Ah - so - that's the story. Thanks John. Steve, I am so looking forward to seeing some WIP pictures and of course, your finished product. Your builds are always awesome - super clean and pretty much factory stock. You are a man after my own heart!

VERY nicely done and your care and attention show in the finished product. The '64 Comet was without a doubt, the prettiest Comet ever produced - bar none!! You have taken a relatively uncomplicated kit and turned it into a masterpiece!! I concur that your friend Todd would be most pleased with your efforts.

Amen, brother!!!!!!!!!! That makes a few of us!!! It's a mystery to me why no one has cast that car yet.

That blue with the pearl white is gorgeous!!! I agree that you should clear those colours to bring them to a glossy finish and add some real depth to them. Try using the same primer that you used on the Ford on a piece of sheet styrene and then shooting some of the colours on a piece. Use a large enough are so that you can mask some of the color as it came out of your gun off and then clear the rest. You may be amazed and very pleased with the results. I am a "stocker" - I like the factory stock look and colors, but your choices of that blue and white here are totally off the charts in my eyes!!! You may find that a well applied but not overly heavy extra coat or two of clear may add even more depth to the colours and change the tone noticeably. I'd suggest several test shootings to see what happens. I'd just love to get my hands on a couple of bottles of that blue and the white as well.. Unfortunately, we have no Walgreen's anywhere near us.

Looks great!! I have one of those bodies that I hope to get at one day... I for one, truly appreciate the basically stock configuration, by the way. Nice build!!! Hmmmmmmm.. So - which '59 Chevy would that be???? Just curious..............

I own a 1:1 '59 Fairlane 500 two door hard top "Club Victoria" and couldn't agree more about the wrap around rear window being more stylish than the "Thunderbird roof line" used on the mid year introduced Galaxie. While the Fairlane Club Victoria sported "Fairlane" scripts on each rear quarter panel and on the trunk lid, the word "Galaxie" replaced the quarter panel scripts on the upper scale Galaxie models. But oddly enough, the "Fairlane 500" emblems remained on the trunk lid of the Galaxie whether the car was a Fairlane, a Galaxie or even a retractable hardtop - which also bore the Galaxie side name plates but had the Fairlane 500 emblems on the trunk lid. The gold coloured - "500" emblem was situated directly beneath the trunk lid Fairlane script with the center "0" hinged on a pivot that allowed it to be pushed to the side to allow access to the trunk lock. Also, the Fairlane had tasteful, small fender ornaments with a gold ball on the top of each one while the Galaxie had larger round ones with what appears to be a thunderbird enblem in the clear plastic "lens" On the interior, the upholstery patters were different with the Fairlane door panels and seat covers being more - shall we say - "conservative" - yet very attractive - than the Galaxies with its "busy" colours and upholstery patters. Also, the emblem on the glove box door says "Fairlane" on the Fairlane models while the Galaxie door is appropriately branded. There are some extra pieces of bright work on the Galaxie dash but speaking for myself, I much prefer the Fairlane over the Galaxie. That Fairlane 500 wrap around rear glass just seems more '50's than the thicker Galaxie C pillar. As for why the Galaxie still retained the Fairlane trunk badging - I have yet to find any information that would suggest the reasoning for that. Growing up, my best friend had a black Fairlane 500 2 door Club Victoria and I can say with certainty that even back in the late sixties/early 70's, there were a lot more Galaxies hardtops around than there were Fairlanes. I've really liked these cars since they were new and when I had the chance to buy the one that I have now, I jumped on it because other than the exterior colour being silver as opposed to black, my car is virtually identical - right down to the red and white interior and the 332 engine as the one that I spent many happy hours cruising the streets of Winnipeg in back when I was a lot younger. I was so sorry to hear that the black Winnipeg car was sent off as scrap many years ago now but mine is safely tucked away and will go to one of my sons when I leave this old world.

Both trucks look great - I especially like the blue one!!! It looks like you got a good shine on the blue truck especially and the opened grille adds a nice, realistic touch. Nice work Rick..

Wow!!! One of my favorite GM products and in the prettiest colour that they came in IMHO!!! You really did that one nicely and it looks sweet. Have you considered another in that colour but with a white vinyl roof and white interior? Or black?? Those cars, like most of that era, look so good with a vinyl roof.. Good job on building your car stock - there is niothing that can be done to those first generation Monte Carlos that can in any way mprove on the factory, stock look. Sweet!!!!!

That really looks great!!! You just gotta love those old Johan kits..

You really made the right choice on that colour as it looks stock and right on that car. It's nice to see a build where an attempt is made to make the model represent the more common, at that time, mundane colours. Reds and blues are nice, but many of these little trucks left the factory in more bland colours but seeing them in those colours today is a real treat. Hmmmmmmmmm.. no six cylinder in that kit eh? I was looking at a resin 170 six cylinder and transmission on Ebay this morning but it's over $14.00 plus shipping. That really adds to the cost of a model. After looking at your build, it occurred to me to buy a couple these kits - one to build stock and one as a curbside and the engine would go into a Falcon convertible that I just got. But no six cylinder = no Ranchero kits for me. I sure do like your build though...