Modlbldr

The pie section was pretty simple to do. I cut above the trim line back along the front and rear fenders about an inch and a half taking more out of the leading edge and pushing it and gluing it back together. These photos show a little of what I mean. Then i realized that I would also have to lower the trunk to keep it below the rear fender peaks. So, I scribed out the side trunk lines from the back to just in front of the trunk line parallel to the rear window. I also scribed out the rear trunk line which opened the trunk up on all sides but the back. This way it was still attatched but free to press down below the fenders. The interior is all custom with a scratch made center console with cup holders front and rear. The seats are from a die-cast Ford Explorer (the rears have had the backs modified to recline more. The speakers are also from the Explorer and the door panels are made from styrene sheet and half round. I'm not sure that I like the door panels and I may redo them. Plans are for a two tone paint scheme. Either red/black with silver pin stripe divider or red/silver with black divider. I've gotten some chassis work done so far but the suspension in the rear may change. My hope is to get this one finished by the middle of this year---after I finish the JWAC Beetle. Remember-I'm a slow mover. But, I do have dreams!!! Later-

Tonight I gave a go to the start of an air bag system for my long put off 66 Nova. I started this project (Like most of them) quite a while ago. I haven't done anything on it for over a year. I'll give you some details about the build in a minute. But first, the start of the air bag. I bought a couple packs of ten #60 O-rings from Home Depot the other day for $2.27 a pack. I cut a short length of 3/32 aluminum tubing and glued a short piece of styrene into each end. Then I cut a couple of circles from styrene sheet and drilled a 3/32 hole in them. I slid one circle on, then the O-rings and then the other circle on. Quite simple. Mine will still come apart right now for future painting (this was all just a test). Now for the photos of the stalled Nova. My idea was for it to be a VERY subtle custom. The 66 has always been very square and boxy to me, although still a beautiful design. My idea was to pie cut the front and rear fenders slightly along with a minor chop to the front of the top creating a gradual slope in the body from front to rear. I didn't want it to be seen unless it was next to a stock body or you knew what you were looking at. More to come. Later-

Jared- Any progress on this? I just picked up a couple of packs of O rings from Home Depot yesterday. They are #60's (1/4 in. O.D X 1/8 in I.D. X 1/16 in thick). They were $2.27 for a box of 10. I got two boxes. They may be a bit smaller than yours but I wanted them for the front and back of my custom 66 Nova so they have to fit inside the A-arms. Let's see some updates. Later-

Simply stunning in that color. Very nice work for sure. Later-

Juergen- Great! You're finally building a model of it! I know you'll do it justice. Take lots of photos. Later-

Well, I PM'ed Highway on those scoops and hopefully he comes through on them. If not, I'll be looking for a set from someone. Till I get them I'll be working on the interior and trying to get it finished. Later-

Thanks for the replies guys. Now I just need to find a set of those. I found a guy's site that has hundreds of pages of photos of both current lowriders and old ones from car shows of the 70's. Here is a link to it. http://www.flickr.com/photos/80643375@N00/ I haven't made it to all of his pages but up around the mid 600's are some sweet photos of 70's lows from car shows of the day. Later-

As I had mentioned a while ago, I had plans to add some parts to the interior from a Fujimi Porsche. The front seats will work well. I plan to use the steering wheel too. Today I found a couple other parts. The piece on the left is a console piece that goes around the gear shift lever. The piece on the right is another console piece that goes around the E brake lever. Just a couple of pieces to add a little interest to the bare interior. Hopefully I can get these side scoops ironed out. Once i get the shape of the hole right I can glue sheet styrene behind them and putty them like I did with the first attempt. It worked well enough. Just not shaped right. Then I can get on to primer. I hope you all are as happy as I am that progress is happening again with this one. Later-

OK. I got some small work done in the last couple of days. The first pics are of the side scoop that I had started and didn't like. The problem to me with this scoop is that it is too tall and the front bottom curve is not shaped correctly. So, I cut out what I had done and I've added small strips along the bottom to take out some of the height. Now I should be able to reshape it with a little sanding. I think that if I remove a little material from the bottom starting at the point and leaving the very bottom filled in it should make it look longer and not as tall. I've also finished tubbing the trunk area for the front suspension to fit. Next up is some ideas for the interior. Later-

I finally got some work done on my JWAC build. Now to go post the photos. Later-

It's a BANNER day in my house!! My wife is making cinnamon rolls......with cream cheese frosting!!!!!! YIPPPPPPIEE for me!! Later-

Nice build Phil. I may have asked before, but where did those wheels and tires on the 70 Impala come from? Later-

Cool build. Looks like a Chrysler Sebring from the rear. Later-

That looks great. love the 65-67 Fairlanes. I've got a couple that I'm just waiting to get to. Yours looks fine! Later-

Would you two need a roommate????? I love cinnamon rolls with icing. My wife doesn't think that I need them. Oh- And Bart- What is this word, Org....., Organi.... I can't say it. Not even sure what it means. I just wait for everything to dry and about once a month I take a razor blade and scrape the top of the desk. (Think I'm kidding?????) Later-

WOW! The workmanship on these are great. The paint on both is beautiful and those wheels look good too. I have a set of wheels like those. Now I know what they will look good on. Thanks for sharing. Later-

Jairus- I'm thinking that may work but my initial concern was that the bottom of the front of the scoop seems to flatten out a bit as if the contour changes. That was what held me up for so long although It ma be able to be fixed by filling it in with a little putty. It's probably a lot simpler than I'm making it out to be. I've got to run to the P.O. right now but I plan to work on it and post some photos later. (I know.... I've been saying that for days now.) Later-

Walther- Good to see that you're back to work on this. I can't wait to see what progress you'll make. Ain't it funny how quickly a year will pass? Later-

That looks really nice. Great weathering too. What kit is the back of the cab from? Later-

Jim- Will do. Although as stated, I'm not liking the progress so far. Later-

Mike- I'm not sure that I'm following your suggestion... If I am, I' not sure if it would work. The bottom front edge of the scoop curves up so it's not exactly th same on the bottom as the top. I bought some brass tube that is shaped like a tear drop (imagine a somewhat smashed tube)thinking that it might work to form it. The work that I have done so far in styrene and putty is not good. I'm going to make the hole a little smaller and try the brass tubing- hopefully tomorrow. I'll try to get some photos up then. Later-

Jim- I'm having problems with the side scoops. I was hoping to find an existing kit with a similar scoop that I could just "cut and paste" into place. Unfortunately I haven't found one and my version isn't working out. I made the holes too big (I think) and may have to do some filling to get them to the right size. Right now I am only working on the driver's side until I figure it out. No sense in making twice the mistakes. I think that a "cut and paste" scoop is going to have to come from an exotic car like a Ferrari or the like. Got any ideas???? Later-

Well, It's been a long time since I've updated this. I got sidetracked building a 50 Ford for my cousin. Now the Beetle is back on the table and work has started again. I've managed to get all four wheels on and the ride height is just where I want it. I've gotten a little progress made on the interior. I'm trying to decide whether to do the interior in light ivory and earth or in white and light blue. I'll get that figured out soon. Tonight I am working on finishing up the tubs in the front trunk area. Progress is slow but should pick up soon. Pictures to come when I get a bit more substantial work done. It doesn't look much different that back in August. Later-

Definitely send it to me and start all over. That's my $.02. Just kidding. It looks great. Get back to it. Later-

Trey- It seems a bit early to offer any criticism since there isn't much going on yet. What is there looks just fine. Are you going to add any plug wires? Keep at it and it'll turn out fine. Jut take your time and don't rush things. Later-