mrmike

Eelco, the 426 Max Wedge was an outgrowth of the 413 Wedge engine. As for the 426 Hemi, I don't know if it used the same engine block or was an all new design. Erik, I watched the video and I loved how the Dodge spanked the Mustang everytime until the tranny let go! I got the engine wired and exhaust manifolds mounted. I still need to add the coil and air cleaner housings. The chassis is done, but I fear i may have to tear the front suspension apart and reverse the spindles to set the nose height properly. I have found a few errors in the instructions so far and this might be another one. I had painted the interior componants with Model Master Insignia Red and found the color to be way too bright for my liking. I repainted them with Aqueous Russet which darkened the color more to my liking. I am having paint issues with the hood scoop and I have sanded the scoop twice already and still can't get the paint to lay down properly. I am going to sand the scoop and hood again, clean it really well, and repaint it again for the third time. Somebody wish me luck! More to come...

For the interior, I'd with black with orange seat panels. I've seen a '71 GTX at the local cruise night like that...orange with a black/orange interior.

Oh, you kids! So quick to assume without reading the whole story! Or title!

Motor and chassis assembly is underway. The wheels and tires are done. More to come.....

This sounds like a great project! I'm watching!

You're right, Erik! My color choice was a quick decision and my first instinct for the interior color was black. Quick and easy...RIGHT!!!!!! A conversation with my good friend Fury3 made me realize that as nice as the black interior would look, red would make this one stand out...BIG TIME!!!!! I needed a color change since I've used blue and red quite a bit lately and I was in need of a change. For me, a color change could also include a change in subject matter as some colors look better on some cars than others. Having finished my '67 Impala SS, and getting more into the Dodge 330, I am also thinking about my next build. Right now I am thinking about an AMT '68 Hemi Road Runner coupe in blue (of course) and correcting the mis-shaped rear fender openings. I've had the paint for over a year and the kit has been calling me from the stash. We shall see...

Thank you Mike, Mike, and Brandon! I guess I did do a good job for a Chevy! :D

The body has been painted along with the chassis. Other body parts are painted as well! The engine wearing a coat of Mopar Street Hemi Orange enamel. More to come.....

Yes, that is a Charger steering wheel. I needed a stock looking steering wheel and this is the closest thing I had to a Chevy wheel that I had in my parts box. I wanted to cut down the horn hub, but I feared I would end up destroying the wheel itself so I left it as is. And, she is done! I have finished my '67 Impala SS 427 and it is posted in Under Glass. I would like to thank all those who took the time to view and to comment on my WIP.

This is my '67 Impala SS 427 painted with Model Master Nassau Blue Metallic with a matcing interior.

Thanks Walt and Charlie! I put a couple disc of thin styrene under the rear springs and raised the rear of the Chevy to where I wanted it. It does have a slight rake now which appeals to me. A couple more things to do and it'll be done.

I'd rather have one of these!

I use 100% pure Purple Power! It does not harm the styrene plastic at all. If it could eat it's way through styrene, it would eat it's way out of the plastic jug it came in! I've been using PP for years to strip paint and chrome without any problems what-so-ever.

I used Tamiya TS-13 Gloss Clear Coat straight from the can. The engine is finished and installed into the chassis. The chassis has been installed into the body. A mockup of the suspension with the wheels and tires shows the ride height could use a little tweak in the rear. I don't have any longer rear springs so I'll make a couple of spacers for the spring holes in the frame. More to come.....

Thanks Gerald! The mod to the exhaust manifold is not 100% accurate, but does allow the part to fit the block better. The 1:1 exhaust manifolds have have the center two runners parallel to each other and the kit part has equal spacing on each port.

Thanks Mike and Mike! I must admit that the foiling did come out quite well on this Chevy. So far, this has been a different type of challenge for me by building an Impala. I haven't built a Chevy in at least two decades and then I was just building out of the box with no regard as to accuracy or quality. Back then, I would pop one out in a weekend! Lately, I do one in a couple of weeks!

I found out that my purple pond was old and in need of rejuvenation. I poured the old stuff out and replaced it with new Purple Power. I had done a little bit of sanding on the scoop and loosened up some of the paint. I threw the scoop back into the pond and more paint came off. A final sanding and the scoop is ready for primer. To me, the exhaust manifolds on the 426 Max Wedge stand out on this engine with their upswept design. I got these from my Polar Lights '65 Coronet Convertible kit, but the spacing between the ports were all equal. The center two exhaust port runners are side-by-side, so I removed the webbing and heated one runner and moved the port closer to the center. Now they match the port spacing on the engine block. More to come.....

This SS 427 wouldn't look right unless it had a set of redline tires. I have no Chevy air cleaners on hand, but I do have this Mopar air cleaner that I have started modifying. I just need to add a couple of snorkles and it's done. I had to remove the heads from the block since I mounted them too far apart for the intake manifold. Fortunately, I didn't use too much glue and they just popped right off. The distributor has been drilled out for plugs wires. The carb and the valve covers are in the purple pond. More to come.....

Thank you guys! Nick, the body will be Tamiya Silver Leaf with a red, not black, interior as I posted before. Bruno, thank you for the offer of the windshield, but I do have the acetate and am perfectly happy with making a windshield with that. Since the hood scoop is pre-painted, I threw it into the purple pond with the hope of trying to remove the red paint that is on it. So far after 36 hours, nothing. Gotta be lacquer paint! I may go old school style and sand it, primer it, and glue the scoop to the hood and then paint it. The engine has been partially assembled. This intake manifold is from the Polar Lights '65 Coronet kit. A little trimming and the intake fits rather well! More to come.....

I have finished foiling. The wheels and intake manifold that CustomMike graciously sent me for this build. Thanks Mike! More to come.....

Gerald, I do not have the Color Me Gone kit to steal parts from. But, I do have the intake manifold, air cleaners and carbs for a Max Wedge engine from my parts box. And, as I said in my first posting, I have the Polar Lights '65 Dodge Coronet kit to steal a Max Wedge engine from if I need to. Thanks for the suggestion though!

Back to a Mopar! I had this Lindberg kit for a while and decided to open it up and build it. My goal is to convert the 383 into a 426 Max Wedge engine. I've been told that the 383 and the 426 were similar in physical size so in scale it wouldn't be noticeable. If I can't convert the 383 to my liking, I'll use the 426 Max Wedge from the Polar Lights '65 Dodge Coronet convertible that I have in my stash. My paint will be Tamiya TS-30 Silver Leaf with a black interior. The hood scoop came from the Polar Lights '65 Dodge Coronet 500 kit. Unfortunately, the windshield is broken in half and is unuseable due to the way it was packaged. I'll cut off the sun visors and the vent windows and replace the windshield with a piece of clear acetate. More to come.....

Thanks guys! Niko, the grille got a really good coating of The Detailer Black Wash. No photoetch here.

My thoughts on doing a street rod? I do have the '32 5-window coupe in my stash, so I will be doing that one at some point. For some reason, this one did not turn out as well as I had hoped for. I had a couple of issues with the Testors One Coat paint. It wasn't glossy enough for my liking and it took longer to dry than I am use to for lacquer paint. I found the front suspension to be a bit fiddily and some suspension componants had no real attachment points. I do like street rods or hot rods as I prefer to call them. I am more of a fan of 60's and early '70's muscle cars though. I built this street rod as a change of pace build...just something different to build.

My '32 Ford Sedan Street Rod is complete and posted in Under Glass. I would like to thank all those who took the time to look at and to comment on this build.