MrObsessive

Beautiful job Bart! I built this one too back when this kit was new ('93?)...........I still have it but it's gotten kinda grungy over the years. Maybe like my Corvette I may redo this one, or clean it up and display it as is.

Well, I'm one of "those guys" that likes a detailed chassis, especially if I put a lot of detailed work into a WIP with working features, detailed engines, etc. I have a TON of Johan stuff that's yet to be built/restored, but I have to admit if I ever get to building one, I'd like to have a better chassis underneath it. I never cared for the molded in stuff and yes, I'm one of those that displays the underside of a model particularly at a show. I'll repeat what's already been said.........Johans are THE BEST (for the most part) when it comes to correct proportioned bodies and let's not forget we're talking stuff that was originally tooled from the '50's through the '70's. There were some gaffes that I could point out, but for scale fidelity and "that look" they couldn't be beat. That says a lot compared to today when they get so much wrong at times. Never mind the use of modern photography, CAD systems, etc. I'll keep saying if you come across those Johan kits/rebuilders for a decent price and you want it, BETTER GRAB IT! If it's on the 'Bay, guaranteed it won't last long and some can go for insane prices.........especially Mopars.

I'm typing this on a Windows 7 laptop.........one of three machines I have in my place. The other two are running Windows 10, each of them have their pros and cons. I can't complain about this one----my job was giving away laptops as they were upgrading so I won this one by the giveaway. I'll try to hang on to this OS as long as possible because I hate the hassles of the upgrades. When I switched the other two OS's, I had to upgrade to Windows 7 first as they were both running Windows Vista (remember THAT??). Well even though the upgrade to 7 was "free" I had to buy product keys because for whatever reason, Microsoft would not recognize the products keys from Vista. I spent something like 70 some odd dollars for the product keys, and then jumped from 7 to 10. In hindsight, I should have stayed with 7 on BOTH machines as I find it to be a bit more user friendly than Win10. Oh well............ain't 2019 technology grand??

Wow, that's too bad. Did that include the stock version too? Or just the Gasser?

I'll be following along! I've always wondered if the chassis out of the '66 would be a nice alternative and yours fits very well.

Thanks John! Yes, I was able to get the dash out with no damage to the A pillars. Everything's been disconnected now.....glass is out, original hinges cut away from the doors and body. I have some epoxy I'd like to get clean up from the doors and inside the body and tomorrow it'll get a Easy-Off Oven Cleaner soaking to get the old paint off. I have to be careful what I use since the fender skirts are actually resin ones I got from Modelhaus (I think) years ago. After the old paint is all cleaned off, I can go about doing some body tweaks that I want to do and then see about reconstructing the door jambs and hinges, among other things.

Thanks for all the very nice words fellas! Now I'm focused like a laser beam on this '55 Ford Fairlane and I'm glad I was able to save the 'Vette from being forever "lost" and covered in years of dust.

Oh OK..............I think they look better IMO as I'd like to build a '66 sometime with those wheels. Maybe consider it a "Day 2" car.

Rex, in that first picture of the wheel, would that be correct for '66 Shelbys? I always like that style wheel better than the '10 spokes' or the 5 spoke Magnum type.

That'll be a real stretch Snake, but we'll see as the days go by. Right now I'm REALLY struggling to get the dash out without wrecking the cowl. It's not so much that it's epoxied in tight, but it's resting on the clear stencil sheet windshield that I made and that's the real struggle getting it free as the A pillars want to come with it. I hate to ruin the dash as that did come out of a Franklin Mint junker with some mods, but it's a real hassle right now. I have to modify the windshield header somewhat (don't like the shape of it) so maybe it's just as well. Thanks Randy! I originally was going to do a '56 four door hardtop using that roof (would have saved me some side trim work), but decided to go for the '55. The '56 four door hardtop is a rather rare bird as that was essentially a one year deal with the '57 being a completely different car. Maybe way down the road if I get the ambition again, I'd like to build that one. I've not seen anyone else do that in scale.

I mentioned the other day when I posted my Corvette that I had another resto on my mind instead of jumping back into the Shelby......... just yet. This is a model I started way back in 2005, but got shelved due to bad paint. It's been sitting languishing all this time, and it's literally sitting on top of the cigar box where I'm keeping the Shelby for the time being. I took some quick pics on what the Ford looks like now. I hope to be able to find the rest of the bits and pieces I made before I shelved it, such as the grille, rear chrome piece for the trunk, wheels and tires and a couple other odd and ends. On to the pics! What's going to happen is I'm going to totally disassemble this and repaint it as there are some trouble spots. Thin out the door jambs and I may reconfigure certain contours on the body. This is a MAJOR trouble spot for me. I tried using Future as a barrier for some of the bodywork. I must not have used enough as the bodyword ended up showing up in the paint. So back on the shelf it went undone for literally YEARS. I have a new angle of attack to ward off the ghosting and hopefully no new snags will turn up so I can get 'er done. I'll be thinning the door jambs a bit as there is some interference with the seat. Also, I may add a bit more detail as the jambs are rather 'plain'. Definitely some engine bay detail needed here. Much too bare looking even for a '55 so along the way, I'll have to see what's needed. I'm going to try and make new taillight bezels as the ones that came off a diecast are a touch too big. I'll either get them chromed, or use the Molotow paint. I have the grille (somewhere) so there's not much needed here except some chrome around the headlight eyebrows. The chassis will need some tweaking to make it a bit more tidy. I might make new exhausts as the ones shown appear a bit thin. I'll have to see what's in my supply box. If you're interested, here is the original work done to the model years ago on Fotki. This will show how I did the roof and other mods. Well, it's bedtime for me (third shift) so thanks for looking! If there's any questions, I'll try to answer 'em before I go into work tonight.

JC, the ones I got to run are the Mustang and Camaro! I have the 'Cuda, but it's a reissue from back in the mid '00's from Target. That one still runs too-----I had some NICAD batteries that are still good and not leaking.

Anyone remember Sizzlers?? I just ran across some old ones recently that I had and I cleaned the motors and contacts up and got them to run! How 'bout that! Now to dig out the "Fat Track" on the third floor and race 'em! Suddenly it's 1970!

Your car memories are a lot like mine, cept a little later era (mid/late '60's). Across the street from our house a neighbor had a '55 Pontiac (Chieftan?) On the corner up from them they had a '58 Cadillac (Fleetwood 60 Special?) Next door to us the first neighbors had no car, but then they eventually got a new '69 Chevelle (I think a 396). Down the street a neighbor had a '59 Rambler and their next door neighbor at first had a '58 Chevy (Biscayne) and then later on had a '57 Olds. Two houses up from us they first had a '53(?) Buick and then traded that for a '61 Invicta. Their next door neighbor had a '59 Ford Fairlane two door. My Mom didn't learn to drive until '67, and her first car was a '61 Falcon two door wagon. That one lasted all of six months or so, and she got rid of that and bought the then brand new '68 AMC Javelin (six cylinder). On the corner was a race shop/garage (raced sprint cars at Williams Grove Speedway here in PA) and they had ALL KINDS of esoteric stuff you just don't see anymore. Fiat 600's, Renault Dauphines, a couple two seat T-Birds, I could go on! Funny I can remember the cars from my old neighborhood from over 50 years ago, but can't remember where I left my keys!

I especially like the 1968-70 "Spectraflame" versions. After that, they started coming out with weird and downright bizarre designs and I was at the point as a preteen that HW's were not interesting to me anymore. BUT.....in the pic below, my all time favorite has to be the Sand Crab. I even have a couple plastic kits of that Hot Wheel (Monogram) and I'd like to someday turn it into a 1/24 scale version of it. The Charger is now gone, much to my regret. I sold it a number of years ago and now I'd like another one. I have a bunch of others that are packed away..........mostly the 1968-70 ones.

I've seen them either way. I don't know if one style is representative of early cars or vice versa, so I left them chrome. In pics the lower chrome shows up better and not have the rockers "disappear".

Lookin' mighty nice from where I sit! Very neat work on the red stripe for the grille. NOT an easy thing to do!

Hey that looks GREAT!

Looks nice Michelle and yes, the original kit had hideaway headlights. I can kick myself now as I had this kit and foolishly let it go. Now they can get good money on eBay so hopefully Round 2 can see fit to bring this one back.

I have one of these sitting in my stash that's been languishing for about 15 years. A VERY clean rebuilder with only the top painted and UNBROKEN pillars. Seems as though that was a weak spot for those as the kit aged. A lot of times if I see these on the 'Bay built, the pillars are busted. Now when I'll get to building mine is anyone's guess...........

Wow! ANOTHER mid '60's Mopar on the board today! Beautiful outdoor shots Steve and it looks like you did something with the headlights. I can't find your original WIP thread, but the whole car looks TERRIFIC!

Lee you want to put it on after you primer. The fewer coats you have to put over the foil the better.

Lee, the carb came from Fireball Model works. Certainly makes the engine instead of the plastic blob in the kit! As far as the foil, before I put on the color coats, I put BMF on each of the letters on the body. I painted it and then when it came time to rub out the paint with the polishing cloths, the paint came off easily as paint doesn't stick to foil very well. You want to trim as close to your scripts as possible because depending on how much paint you put on, you don't want the edges of the BMF showing through. I did it this way as there were Corvette letters on the PE set, but since the lettering on the body has more depth, I thought it would look more realistic doing it this way. Hope this helps!

VERY nice and classy! Love that color!

Thanks for the nice words guys! I should include the link which is here, for those that hadn't seen what a mess this was before I started on it. I think I'm going to change out the license plate as I tried to keep some of the thickness by just cutting it off the sheet, but I don't like the ragged edges I see in looking at the pics. I have a number of those I can use, so it's just a matter of cutting out some .020 plastic sheet to size, painting it silver and then putting the decal on that.