alan barton

Some years ago I picked up the MPC Jolly Roger show rod and built a screen side delivery from it. I was very impressed by the accuracy and proportions of the Oldsmobile components that harked back to its Beverley Hillbillies origins. When the BH truck was eventually re-issued, I grabbed one, not knowing what I would do with it other than knowing that it wasn't going to be a TV car anymore! Anyhow, as the whole vintage rod and TROG thing started to grow, I started thinking about doing a very early gow job using the Olds as a base. There is a picture that often turns up in discussions of early hot rodding, either in magazines or the internet, of a low slung roadster in front of a shack with the inscription "World's first speed shop". You may know the one I mean. That low slung roadster was the inspiration for my project.

Looking at the instructions and the built model at Showrods.com, I'm now inclined to think Gary did use the original wheels and tyres on his model. Thanks for the info about the Horse Hide Hauler, Paul. I was not aware of that model prior to this thread. I never saw Gary display surfboards with this model so there is a good chance it is the Horse Hide Hauler. Does anyone know if one had red tinted rear windows and the other had orange tint? Cheers Alan

Look what I got! This model was built my my late great mate, Gary Ritchie, I would guess at least thirty years ago, probably more. He loved show rods and had most of them in his collection. He would have built this in the South Island of New Zealand before he moved to Western Australia in the nineties. Just over twelve months ago his widow contacted me and asked me to arrange the dispersal of his models - he had nearly 200 built kits. It took over twelve months to find them all homes but I wanted to be sure that they went into collections where they belonged. He was a prolific builder and built pretty much anything with two or four wheels so it was a case of getting the Mustangs to the Mustang guy, the Porsches to the Porsche guy, the Corvettes to the Corvette guy, and a lot of the rods to me (which will be a constant memory of his friendship). I guess about twenty guys around Perth ended up with a part of his life time collection Anyhow, here is his surf van. I suspect he changed out the wheels and tyres and he definitely moulded the body halves together, dispensing with the flip up body idea. It has two buckets inside for seats. I have no idea if the oval rear windows were originally tinted or if Gary tinted them himself. It is a real survivor and I hope it will answer some of your questions. And might I say, another reason not to get rid of old threads! Cheers Alan

Hi Peter, I don't think I've seen this model built before. Did you know that there is an Aussie connection to Larry Huff? I believe he and another drag racer started off Golden Products in Australia. Golden products are the "soap" referred to in Soapy Sales. Their marketing scheme was known as pyramid selling and it was eventually made illegal after a lot of Aussies lost their shirt. If you can find some early seventies copies of Australian Hot Rod, Australian Hot Rodding Review or Rodsports, you will find photos of various Soapy Sales cars when they came out to run our summer drag racing season. I cant be certain if your model was one of the cars that came out here. Just a hint on your plug leads, which are very neatly fitted, try gently pushing down on the middle of each loom with your finger so that they have a more natural droop to them. Google up some photos of Top Fuel engines and you will see what I mean.You will be onto fuel lines before you know it! Alan

Good point Mark, I missed that! Last thing I what to do is spread incorrect information. Never the less, the two bodies are extremely similar and don't display the type of differences in size and contour that you sometimes see when MPC and AMT built the same car. That's what probably stopped me noticing the difference in manufacturer - they even feel the same! One last note for Pat or anyone else, there is a separate sunroof style escape panel in the centre of the roof, although I I figure it will disappear during the fastback conversion. Cheers Alan

Pat, I have some good news and some bad news for you. I just got out my original AMT annual Cougar and lined it up against a Model King Cougar Country funnycar body. It goes something like this. Length, width and height of the body are identical. It would be fair to say the funnycar was modified from the annual moulds. Front and rear bumpers, grilles and lights are identical, except that there is a chute mounting pad where the rear licence plate should go. An easy fix. Distance between front and rear wheel arches is identical Door lines unaltered. Hood is molded in place but completely stock. Wipers, handles and badges have been removed. Windshield surround is unaltered. Windshield glass has a cutout for a blower or scoop. The toughest part - the rear wheel arches have been radiussed up and rearwards with a stock-ish moulding on them. The result looks something like a 1st gen Olds Toronado. Considering that you are doing a "what-if", with the correct sized tyres you could almost get away with it. After seeing the awesome job you did on the 69, I would say go for it! Cheers Alan

Happy to be of help JC. I had an instant sense of deja vu when I saw your mock-up and figured you would get a kick out of it. Cant wait to see yours finished. And is it just me or do those graphics on the real car look like old AMT decals? Cheers Alan

Thanks Dan, I'll have to keep an eye out

Hi JC, I've been very much enjoying the progress on this model so far. I have an early Falcon that had a front clip transplant sitting waaaaaay at the back of my bench,eventually to be a period high school custom. I thought you might like to see this 60 that I spotted in a tourist town just out of Phoenix back in 2014. I suspect it had a Chevy in it, you needed a stepladder to climb over the camshaft but he was already quite a distance from the suburbs high up a mountain and he wasn't afraid to drive it! The stance is remarkably similar to your project. Hope you enjoy it. Cheers Alan

I have been enjoying your story so far Ron. As you know, the good news about 1/12 scale is you can add so much detail - the bad news is you HAVE to add so much detail! Obviously you are up to the challenge with the amount of awesome parts you have produced so far. Further to the comments about your floor and firewall, I have had a lot of success using printer's aluminium plate. It comes in at least two thicknesses and if you have an old school (not digital) style offset printer in your neighbourhood it shouldn't be too hard to scam up some left over sheets ( I am very fortunate to have a model making mate who has provided me with a lifetime supply!) It offers it's own challenges in construction but there is no paint in the world that looks as aluminiumy as aluminium! It will really set off the interior of your gasser! As an ex-draftsman< I too appreciate your clean drawing style. Cheers Alan

The only version of the Switcher's 32s that I don't have is the roadster. Can you tell me if this roof is the stock one from the kit? It strikes me that for anyone wanting to build a 32 Sports coupe, this roof would be a great head start. Like everyone else said, i really like your subtle, not overdone weathering. It would look great in a barn scene diorama! Cheers Alan

A stunning finish and completely believable. I could see this running on the salt against that similalry styled early T -Bird from way back when. Cheers Alan

I'm really enjoying your methodical approach to the design of this coupe Justin. It will probably look so good in primer that you won't want to paint it! I know that a lot of people are going for track noses on 32 and 34 coupes these days but in my opinion you did the right thing leaving the 32 grille on it. I have a decent collection of really old rod magazines and frankly, most of them ran stock or filled grilles rather than full custom efforts. I think you are on the money with this one. I do admire your craftsmanship on the window reveals after your chop. I have quite a few unfinished chops on the bench simply because I can't seem to achieve the neatness around those mouldings that you display here Cheers Alan

Hey Chris, AB here, good to see another Perth modeller on this site! That is a very clean job you did on the T bucket. I'd love to hear about the way you did the rust on the Tudor as I have seen cars in the south-west on farms that looked that rusty. Are you aware that AMT did a beautiful kit of a 28 Model A Tudor many years ago? While rare they are still available on the usual auction sites for reasonable prices (especially compared to the prices we pay in Perth!) If you find a cheap tatty one, most of the trim pieces like bumpers, grille and headlights can be found in the current AMT Mod Rod kit which is still available. It would be great to see you do your family Tudor as a model. I can't for the life of me remember if your Dad put a Chevy or a Ford in it but if it is a Windsor I would be happy to give you a spare one out of the Revell 32 kit and you would be on your way. Cheers Alan

This is a really interesting combination of the Ala Kart with the stock A roadster body, Dan. The gold paint suits it perfectly. When you go to glue the windshield and dash in place, be sure to lay the windshield back a few degrees so that it is a nice match to the roof. The traditionalist in me can't help wondering how such a cool early sixties custom would look with cool early sixties wheels. Wide white walls, with Chromies, or thin whitewalls with Raiders would be interesting alternatives. Cheers Alan

Off topic I know but your roadster is looking slick as, Ace!

Hi Bernard, loved both of your TROGs! Like everyone has been saying, the Gilmore colour scheme looks so right. There has now been a beach race in Australia called Rattletrap, on the east coast and I believe there has also been one in the U.K. - Pendine Sands perhaps? Anyhow, it is obvious that this is a very popular back - to - our - roots movement right now that is capturing the imagination of 1:1 and 1: 25 rodders alike. I'm going to suggest our club looks at doing a beach racing theme diorama for our next public display. The cars are so easy to build and the accessories like pylons and control towers would also be straight forward constructions. I think this is a logical and sensible progression from the often caricature like "rat rods". I can't wait to see what others come up with! Cheers Alan

Hey, nice spots. I live about ten minutes from Scarborough Beach and used to work at the Pitstop Bookshop in St George's Terrace just a block or so from where you worked. Did you ever go in there? It was the best automotive bookshop in the world but sadly closed towards the end of 2013. Glad to hear you enjoyed your stay - it's my favourite place to come home to!!! I've got a lot of friends in the Bunbury Australind area - there is heaps of hot rodding activity down there! Cheers Alan

Hey Ted, where and when were you in Perth?

Thanks for the compliments guys, I'm really glad you like it. I can't take credit for the boat tail idea as, like Tom explained, I am sure I saw it on a T model speedster in maybe a late 60's or early 70's R&C magazine. Either way, this model nearly built itself - I just kept finding bits that looked the part and carried on from there. I think that helped with the "built it in a week before the event" flavour I was looking for. Ditto with the paint - I wanted it to look like a quickie enamel job (in Australia we call it a "coat of jam") so I did not spend much time on paint prep. It works for me! Cheers Alan

I admit to not being the tidiest of builders but about every two weeks or so I give the model bench a full clean and tidy up and start again. I can't remember why this Lindberg 29 T body (yeah, that's what they call it on the box) was out at all but as I put all my bits and pieces back in their right place it suddenly dawned on me that maybe I could build a Race of Gentlemen style car. It's pretty obvious that Lindberg seriously plagiarised the bucket style body of AMT's 29 A Ala Kart. Even the mould lines are in the same place. This one had been glue bombed and painted with a hot paint that had damaged the plastic so I really had nothing to lose if it didn't work out. I thought of running a gas tank out the back but then thought of a boattail speedster look. I had a really manky 40 Ford hood that some misguided soul had covered in a nasty type of contact cement. Most of it was at the back edge and that was where I was going to have to trim it to fit the bucket body so that worked out fine. The frame and suspension is an almost stock AMT 29 unit. The front wheels are Monogram 30 Model A while the rear are AMT 29s. There is a slight difference in diameter giving just a hint of "big n little" rubber rake without getting too carried away. (This is the first time in fifty years of modelling that I have ever used a stock set of Model A wires!)Likewise I sliced about 1 mm off the top of the front spring - just enough to give it some attitude. I used the organ pipes off a Revell banger along with the AMT grille shell, radiator and steering wheel. Paint is a Tamiya Dark Green with a Tamiya military green for the engine. The seat was drybrushed over the already rough plastic to give a distressed leather look. Decals came from the Revell 29 Hiboy. So I started it on a Sunday night when I was meant to be packing up and ended up completing it on the following Sunday. I was thinking of doing full brake rod detail and a bit of wiring but it was more fun to just concentrate on the look and not get stressed out with details. Maybe on the next one....

Wow, I really wasn't expecting anyone to say yes to having had my vacforms. The guy (I must hunt for some paperwork for his name) tracked me down through a photo that Roy Sorensen ran in his old Plastic Fanatic mag. This was all before the internet (1992 or 1993 I'm thinking) so the process using snail mail was quite drawn out but we got there. If you look closely at my grey primered example, you'll see it has no scoops next to the headrest. Once I sent a prototype off to the guy he pointed them out - the reflections on the photo of the real car had hidden them but I suspected they were there! I even discussed it with several mates and we ended up deciding they were an illusion! Turns out they weren't so I made some up from Bondo, as you can see on the moulds. That would be the version that you had. My vacformer has been a PITA for a while and I keep promising to buy new rubber for the seals in the hope of fixing the problem. Looks like I got a reason now. PM me and we will talk. And Bill, the biggest problem with the flange around the edge of the tank is that they are so very thin that most people's efforts to reproduce them turn out way too clunky. Not that I have done much fibreglassing, but if I were to tackle it I would simply lay one half of your tank on a greased flat surface and lay the glass over it, spilling out on the flat surface. When that cured I would just trim it by sanding and filing to the appropriate shape. Cheers Alan

Every time someone does a post on bellytankers I feel guilty because my vacforms have been a W.I.P. for WAYYYY too long. The tanker was scaled up from the dimensions quoted in the 1962(?) Hot Rod magazine article on the 360D car shown above. I also have a version with a flat bottom. Some cars seem to have done this to get the whole show a little closer to the ground. The Vesco - Nish streamliner was commissioned by a guy in the States who bought twenty off me. He was somehow associated with the team and provided me with a calendar that had enough photos and dimensions to work from. Kicking myself now that I never copied the calendar before returning it to him! Did anyone here ever buy one of these off him? Probably the thing that put this on the backburner was doing the clear parts. Anyone who has ever done any vacforming will know that the tiniest spec of dust on a clear vacform will look like a tennis ball in scale! Still, I know more now than I did then - it's at least 25 years since I made these moulds, so maybe it's time to drag them out and try again. Cheers Alan

That's why I come here Bill, I learn so much! Thanks for taking the time to explain that (haven't got to watch the video yet as I have a glacially slow internet connection, company probably owned by the brother of the Honda dealer!). I didn't realise just how many ways there are to adjust OHC valve clearances. Mind you, it's academic really - I don't think they had any intention of inspecting them or adjusting them - and still cant believe they missed the opportunity to stiff me for an imaginary valve cover gasket while they were at it. Cheers Alan

My wife and I had never had a new car until in our early fifties so we were rather excited about it. That didn't last long. We bought a new 2009 Civic because we had an amazing run out of an 82 Accord that we finally retired at 535,00kms, (over 300K miles) simply because a carby kit, battery, tyres, rego and insurance that it needed was probably double the value of the twenty seven year old car. I seemed to be challenging the dealer at every service. The stuff they made up was amazing. Your power steering fluid is dirty - $25 for flushing fluid, $39 for PS fluid, which was over the twice the walk in price at any parts store. And this at 25000km. The price of oil at each change was chosen from a dart board. At one stage 3.7 litres of "Honda" oil was $2 cheaper than 5 litres of fully synthetic mineral racing oil at a Shell service station, surely the most expensive place to buy oil? You can't make this stuff up. At fifty thousand kms we were charged for checking valve clearances. Just how would you do anything about it on an overhead cam engine - machine the head? And if you really inspected them, how come you didn't charge me for a rocker cover gasket? Then they reckon they had detected carbon on the back of the valves. I challenged the service manager on this one. Just how did you see the carbon on the back of the valves? Did you feed a fibre optic cable down through the manifold? We have ways, was his answer. They would charge me $125 to "clean" the said valves. To which I asked, how can you remove and dismantle a head, clean the valves, reassemble it, refit it and tune the engine for $125? Yep, they were going to tip a can of magic down there. Morons. Then there was the A/C pollen filter. Fair enough, it needed to be serviced but $75 labour to change it? The owner's manual says open the glove box door, remove the filter, replace with a new filter, shut the glovebox. How could you spent 30-40 minutes doing that? But it gets better. When I finally finished the warranty period, I never returned to these professional rip off merchants but went to a friend's one man mechanical repair shop. On a recent service he said, hey, went to replace your pollen filter BUT THERE WASNT ONE IN IT'S TRAY! So I was majorly overcharged for nothing. While under warranty, the cigarette lighter fritzed out. Hopeless if you want to connect GPS, battery chargers etc. We asked them to check it at a service and they did and said it was fixed. About six weeks later I noticed our taillights were out. Seems like old cars always had the taillights on the dash lights fuse so that you knew when they went out - not anymore it seems (probably saves .25) So I get home, remove the cover on the cover on the cover of the fuse box, do Olympic level gymnastics under the dash and identify the fuse for the taillights, only to find it hasn't got one anymore. For $1,000,000 bucks and a trip for two to Disneyland, can you guess which fuse was alongside the taillight? Yep, the cigarette lighter....... My phone call was so, lets say animated, they sent a "mechanic" out to my workplace to replace the fuse. Yep, could have replaced it in five minutes myself but I felt better screwing them over for once - it was a 60 minute round trip from the dealer's shop. Then the cig lighter failed again. Waited three months for one to come from Japan. Just after warranty period ended, it fritzed, again. And keep in mind, I am only touching on the highlights here. Never mind, I will never buy another new car as long as I live and here in Perth, I make a point of telling EVERYONE I know the name of the dealer. Especially if they have a Honda! Not all the criminals are in prison or Parliament! Cheers Alan