Modlbldr

My story for the build was that this guy drag raced his years back and then updated to a newer ride. Shortly after, his buddy ran his Willys down the wall in a drag race, tearing up the front sheet metal. Being the good friend he was he gave his buddy the nose from his old ride. Years later, and a few more pulled parts, here it sits, neglected. Later-

This is looking great! I'll be watching too. I found one more way to deal with the poor fit of the hood and fenders when I built mine. Lol! Later-

Thanks! I've been keeping a close eye on your Beretta build. You're doing amazing work on it. I had thought about doing the door framework in styrene but wanted to try brass for a couple reasons. I have a ton of it from my buddy's supply and I want to teach myself to solder. I thought the door and trunk framework would be a relatively straightforward project to start with since it is mainly just straight bars and wouldn't require anything to be totally accurate and plumb. I think I need to try a smaller diameter wire though and try incorporating more bends (make the perimeter in one piece) rather than so many individual bars with many solder joints. It's all a learning experience! BTW- I got a bit more time to work on the chassis last night but nothing photo-worthy. Later-

Great looking color combo. Nice work on the mild custom. I may have to do a similar grill idea on my 64 GP. Someone heavily glued the grills in and I broke one trying to remove it. Making it flat instead of the slight curve it has in it may be the easiest solution unless I can find a replacement. Love where you're headed. I'll be watching. Later-

That is looking great and I love that color and stripe. It's a shame about the streaks. Keep after it! Later-

I drug this out from the spray booth a d up to the desk today. On my way I took it outside for some glam shots. Man, I like this color!! Going to polish it out in a couple of days and begin the BMF. Later-

Great work you're doing to modify the kit. I always liked the look of the Beretta and really liked this kit when it came out. You are making it so much better. I have peeked in on this project for a while now and just now sat down and read through it all. I am building a modified body 69 Nova that my friend started. I've been using the 55 Pro Mod chassis and working it over to fit. Reading through this build has helped me immensely to see what I need to do. Thanks, and keep it up. Later-

To fix the short foot well, I cut the firewall off, added almost 1/8 inch of styrene and glued the firewall back on. I am not re-attaching the tranny hump to the firewall because in my 1:1 example the forward portion of the tranny hump is missing to expose the Lenco tranny. I like the look of it, so I am going with that in my build. Both problems fixed. I'll remove the extra bit of styrene in the floor in the morning once everything has firmed up good. I'm off to bed. Later-

Here's where it's at tonight. I had a couple of issues with the interior tub. If the rear tubs were in place, the cabin floor was not level. It rose up in the rear. Also, the cabin was almost 1/8 inch too short in the foot well. To fix the rising floor i cut the trunk floor free and cut about 3/32 off of the bottom of the rear of the wheel tubs. This allowed the rear of the cabin to sit level without the trunk floor hanging below the rear fenders. Later-

The 55 Pro Sportsman I bought was missing the tube frame. I thought I had unused parts for a Pro Sportsman Firebird in my stash but wasn't sure if I had gotten rid of them. After searching, I realized that I had moved them on but I found this glued up frame that I didn't remember having. This morning I cut the frame off the chassis and checked the wheelbase length using my narrowed chassis pan. Looks almost spot on! Now to clean up the road rash from the frame and get it ready for paint. Later-

Thank you David. I forgot to post the pics of the final paint and clear. Waiting for the clear to harden completely, then wetsand and spray a final coat of clear. Later-

Looks like you're off to a great start. Later-

Making progress tonight. Got the engine painted, assembled and installed. Yes, there are no wires. This was supposed to be a quick build. So, to keep with that idea, no wires. It's coming together! Later-

Thanks! Gotta find some wheels for it and clean up some of the decals. Then the Galaxie should be ready for the shelf. Later-

Thanks! That's the reason I love this site. So much useful help! Later-

Thanks! I appreciate the info. You're right. The bucket fits perfectly. Later-

Thanks! After a closer look, you are correct on the interior bucket. Definitely not for the GTO. Doesn't even fit inside since the body has the retaining posts for the glass or interior. I thought the 63 may be a Revell. I seem to remember one with an opening trunk. This just had the look of age but I think the pearl white paint may just be yellowed from cigarette smoke. Later-

Finally got a package USPS that was sent to me from PA to KY on 3/7/22!! Here is what was in it. I think I'll just get some steel wheels and tires for the 61 Galaxie and get it on the shelf. The 68 or 69 GTO has a molded in hood and the seat pattern is different, if im not mistaken. Not sure the maker on it. The 442 is the JoHan Tinker's Toy, if I'm not mistaken because it came with a set of the decals. Paint looks good on it. I don't know anything about the 63 Impala with an opening trunk. Never seen one. The paint on the 70 Impala isn't bad. I'll need to respray the roof. All of this shipped for a great, low price. If you know any specifics on any of this, let me know. Later-

Thanks guy! I appreciate it. Later-

Made some good progress tonight. Busted out the portable spray booth and got the final coats on the body and painted the chassis. I need to clear coat it now. Then I got out the Molotow chrome and brushed some of the suspension parts. Also, upon further inspection of my kit and parts that I bought off of a friend, I realized that I am missing the rear half (the resonators) of the exhaust system. But, Sam I Am is stepping up with the parts I need. Thank you! So, for now I am at another stand still. Later-

I got a built up J 2000 to see how it would work using the chassis and suspension on the Nova. Pic #1 and #2- It was narrower and shorter than I thought it would be (just as one person on this site said it would be). So, I got an unbuilt 55 Chevy Pro Sportsman kit in the mail yesterday to see how it would look. This morning I got up early. I made coffee before my wife and the dog got up and sat down for about 40 minutes to begin working on it (you know- the peaceful part of the day) Here is what I found. Pic #3 and #4-The 55 floor pan is about 1/8 inch wider and it will need some removed behind the rear wheels. Also looks like I may need to lengthen the floor a bit to get the fire wall where it needs to be. Probably as much mods needed for the 55 as for the J 2000 but the 55 has much more detail. Pic #5 and #6-With a bit of eyeballing, some measuring, cutting and sanding I started making progress. Then my wife got up.... oh well, time to get the dog up and start my day. Later-

Sounds like a blast! I'd be too tempted to want to take everything on the table home with me though. Love digging through parts boxes for treasure. Later-

I like this. A lot of great looking mods your doing. I'll be keeping an eye on this. Later-

My older brother and I made builds like this all the time. We had a huge box of leftover parts that we would rummage through parts for our project. I remember a 55 Chevy and I was missing the hood ornament. I dug through the box until I found a tiny airplane from an aircraft carrier model. It was a bit out of scale but looked almost identical to the real hood ornament. We used pieces of plastic bread ties as lift blocks under the leaf springs or axles to lift the suspensions. One time we built a rail dragster and instead of putting a rear wing on it we put a rear seat from a car on the uprights to give it a place for passengers to sit. Yep, to be a kid again!! Later-

Post a pic here. Would love to see it. Later-