Codi

Cool build Steve.

That's truly not cool Bill but the car is simply such an interesting build that I hope you see it through. For anyone that hasn't learned the valuable lesson you've shared, they should consider it before dunkin' a body into the "purple pond". That lesson being that the only way to go to SAVE all your hard earned body mods is to sand it off. I dunked my first car after a botched paint job when I returned to the hobby. Had lots of filler and changes to all 4 fenders. Ate all the bondo etc. away and had to do it all over again. Never did that again. Thanks for sharing your experiences and if even one builder avoids that mistake, you performed a valuable service. Look forward to your next post. Cheers, Tim

Great looking design Chris. You've got to start an all new thread for that one. cheers sir.

Great meeting with Dave today and the path I chose for the car should make it a really fun build. Dave's input and suggestions were most helpful as well. The car will be an early 70's altered. There were a lot of changes taking place at that time in the sport and most of the teams and drivers were moving rapidly to the funny car ranks altogether. The differences in the cars from the mid/late 60's to the early 70's was fairly significant. Chassis design was truly evolving. The influences of funny car chassis was starting to show itself in the class during the 70's. At least that's what my research has indicated. The car pic I'm posting today is of a modern altered, "The Tramp" but it runs a Donovan, has a great stance, bantam body and many other cues taken from the earlier era of cars. My chassis will NOT be as long as this as the cars of the period weren't so I'll stay truer to the era. Imagine it about 10" or so inches shorter than this. It will have the canard wings ahead of the slicks down low. I'll do the bullet tank from the Pure Hell 1 car. The radiator shell I'll fab of brass along with the entire chassis and suspension. It will have a dropped front axle with twin shocks but they'll be positioned in what I think is a pretty cool setup I stumbled upon during my research. Dave has offered up the use of shop & knowledge to teach me how to make wheels for this car. So even though I've pictured micro nitro wheels earlier for this build, I'll probably offer them up for sale at some point in the future. The fronts will be 12 spoke and the rears will be a cool design from that era that Dave shared from his extensive "library" of drag cars. I won't be putting the Cosmic Charger covers on as I won't want to cover up the custom 12 spokes, sorry Joe........Thanks everyone for following along and hopefully this change of horses mid-stream won't diminish your interest in the build. Lastly, I want to thank Dave for his confidence in me regarding my acquired skills and the encouragement he's given to tackle new pieces and techniques. Cheers, Tim

Mark, I sincerely appreciate your honesty and closing post. I'm sure you'll be happier with the direction you've outlined. I would never disparage the quality of what you can make or do. I'll shut up now and wish you the best in whatever you decide to do, for yourself OR others. tim

Wow to everyone that posted a car on this thread. I don't like picking favorites but among my top 5, the 2 builds cars that "Cruz" posted are amazing. Wish I could paint like that. cheers, tim

John, of all the fantastic skills you exhibit in your builds, I must admit my bias towards your painting skills. I always look forward to the end of your builds when you get to the paint. This one is no different. Love it man. cheers, tim

Way too cool what you're doing here Richard. The car is fantastic but to do the diorama is..............well, I have no more superlatives to add. cheers, tim

Didn't I just see this car on the Mecum auction on t.v.? Kidding of course, but I must say it's nicely done. Will be sure to follow along as well. cheers,tim

I like the fact you posted a pic of your inspiration next to the build Tyrone. Nice. cheers, tim

Brad, you're going to smile. Many thanks to you Art for the compliment. I'm trying. This one will be even better and FASTER in it's completion. Bob, you're going to frown. Clay, wow, nice to see one of my all time favorite builders visit the thread and post. Greatly appreciated sir. Hope you continue to follow along while I move forward. So, my friend and mentor, Dave and I have been talking about the build. A mentor is someone that suggests a course of action based upon their experience and observations. Dave correctly pointed out that an important part of the engine would be hidden in the chassis. He lobbied for the FED direction but I've decided to make this build a FUEL ALTERED once and for all. Fortunately there are things I'm not sure how to make and get to visit with Dave to discuss and learn more this Friday. Additionally (I'll post pics next week) Chris Sobak has provided me with samples of a manifold and blower that he drew up (with Dave's assistance) that were made by TDR. These parts are stunning. More on this later, but I wanted to mention the contribution by Chris (I never asked, the dude offered, what more can I say) Even if I decide to machine the manifold out of aluminum, I want to stress that it wouldn't be even possible without Dave and Chris' contribution. Many thanks. So, I posted a few pics of a modified Bantam Blast body. After more research, I purchased ANOTHER kit and chopped up that bottom. The changes to this one include a narrowing of the front of the body by 1/8". I added a 1/8" lip to the cowl and re-configured the rear fenders that just "flow" compared to my 1st attempt. Lastly, I glassed the inside of the cowl and front of the car for strength. There is a wee bit more body work that needs to be done to get it to the standard I have for this car but you'll get the idea I think. Cheers everyone and thanks for you patience while I go back and forth.

A simple question for anyone that has followed this thread from the beginning.....including & in particular, Mark Johnson. Nobody has "trashed you" on this forum Mark. Reputations are earned, not subjectively assigned. My assessment is that someone pays for something upfront, they have a reasonable expectation of performance, product or service. Ask yourself Mark, if it was YOU that put YOUR money upfront would YOU be willing or tolerant of a company or person who performed / delivered in the manner which you did? Rhetorical, I'm certain the answer is NO. So instead of attacking the community that you profess to have "served" due to your good graces, which is the way you make it come off, maybe it would be best if you did just go off and do your own thing. I am certain other companies and individuals will come forward, such as TDR / Shapeways, and will somehow serve the hobby in a positive manner. Nature hates a vacum, so does the marketplace. Best not to aggravate others OR yourself right? It seems the biggest issue in the resin casting world is the difference of expectations between the buyer and the seller. There ARE good resin casters that deliver great products and more importantly, in a timely fashion. I've said before and will repeat myself, someone comes to me and sets my expectations, well I must be foolish but I expect them to deliver based upon their commitment. Chris' point about FOLLOW-UP is most important to any business. If you're going to miss a dead-line, be honest and up front with your customer and communicate any issues you might have meeting that commitment. That's how you garner respect. THEN deliver as promised. These are just common sense business practices IMHO. If you collect someones money for a product or service, you're in business. At least until others decide otherwise. Cheers

Hey Brad, sorry to disappoint you but after drawing up a chassis for the funny car, I'm going to pursue that direction. Have to draw and machine a few axle plates for the rear and I've been experimenting on how to solder the rails up in a better fashion. Got great results with the test and know what to do now. It'll be a week or so till I post some pics of what I'm been working on and the results. Hopefully it will go well. Thanks for asking though and for following along. cheers, tim

Thanks everyone. Joe, Chris and Bill, yeah the bracing was a real necessity. I've figured out where I can brace the body (2 spots) when I begin the chassis. I can't leave it completely devoid of braces or I'm afraid it will twist or warp on me somehow. Even though it is very thick and I won't thin it down too much until its time for paint. I must say that it REALLY opens up the interior to the car in a big way and was worth the effort. cheers

Jeff, I build far too slowly to consider making them all. That's why I'm taking my time before I start drawing up the chassis in the coming days so I can get started. Each car takes me more than 18 months to do.........yup, s-l-o-w! Plus I'm going to be doing a challenging build of the Falcon alongside this one so I'll be busy on them for quite some time. Bob, appreciate it, right now I'm between the funny and the altered. I'll share soon which it will be. Whatever it may be, the other one will be on the runway for some time down the road. Chris, thanks for weighing in too. You've been very helpful for sure. Dave, yeah, ya' know I seem to remember seeing that car.................turned out kinda cool too. Ray, yes, yes it is. Oh to only have to figure this one out right? Cheers everyone!

Always appreciate the comments. Now to really stir the pot......I spent the week cutting out the doors / trunk on the Falcon and a Bantam blast (AMT / MPC kit) showed up. I have 4 or 5 great books on drag racing and in particular on altereds. Who doesn't like an altered right? I came across a single photo of an altered from back in the day called the Blister that was campaigned by the Trillo Brothers. It's gorgeous. So I ordered the kit and to mimic that pic immediately hacked the fenders off. So a 2 second mock-up has left me really pondering what this car will be. It's a problem that I like. Rear engined mustang funny, FED dragster (which a fellow builder from this forum has provided me with FANTASTIC renderings/specs) or do a fuel altered. If the altered, it would have a RAT TRAP style independent front suspension, side canards, a wing and an aluminum bullet style fuel tank. Not sure if the front wheels will be the standard 12 spoke or bicycle wheels. I'd really like to do the wire wheels. So, here's a couple pics of what might be. cheers, tim

Cleaned up the roof where it was re-chopped and got the door & trunk out. This body is so thick that I'm going to have a lot of sanding / thinning out of the body and panels as I go along. Had to add a lot of bracing to cut everything out which I'll remove when I get to fabricating the chassis. In the second pic you'll see the mini saws I used by Crazy modeler which worked great and the new Tamiya masking tape they came out with 6 months ago for masking paint jobs. I used it in a couple of areas and I have to say this stuff is just fantastic. If you've not used it yet, I can't recommend it enough. Comes in 2, 3 and 5mm widths. It just flows around curves. And sticks too! cheers, tim

Haven't posted here in a little while but man o' man, that's shaping up beautifully John. LIke the way you did the trim and the detailing of the engine. Oh, and the hinges on the door.....and and and....cheers, tim

Oh so close Chris, oh so close. Looks fantastic, what's the next step? cheers, tim

Tyler, you have a real eye for capturing "reality". Love the pics at night with the lighting and the guy welding is such a cool touch. Impressive for sure. cheers, tim

Thank you Thomas and John. I'm considering pulling this one out this coming week and prepping it for final paint. It has been too humid to paint right now but I can get it ready at least for when we get a break for a couple days. cheers, tim

You're steaming right through it John. I'd still be drawing sketches or something. Amazing. btw, how do you do your lettering on your tires. Anything unusual? Cheers, tim

Brad, thanks once more, this build has been a real challenge but treat as it progresses. Joe, "erector set bulldozer"...I laughed out loud since my 7 yr. old daughter and I just did an erector set pick-up truck together. kinda scary actually. Chris, even though I got them both done today, I'll plate them when I have several more pieces ready and do them at the same time. I'll try the caswell chrome on these. Dave, glad you're liking it. Davewilly, thanks to you too! Randy, I must agree, as I love to see what you're striving for with the pics you show in advance on your GT40......which btw, you're WAY past do for an update my friend. Thanks Mike....in all honesty, once you make one, it's not as daunting so long as the machine is still dialed in properly and you don't forget the numbers that got you there. I write EVERYTHING down as I go along and have learned never to throw my notes out until the item in hand is completed. So, here's a couple of pics of them both on the engine. The caps were machined of nickel/brass and as I noted for Chris, I'll chrome them during my next plating session. The flanges are not on the backs of the necks in these pics. I'll probably double them up for appearances sake during final assembly. cheers, tim In this pic you can also see the oil fill cap that I made for the lifter valley cover.

I was going to try to address each of you individually, but I'll try to cover all the bases regarding your questions and comments. I'm going to polish the valve covers using some simple but VERY effective steps that Dave shared with me. After seeing his dragster wheels in person, I'm convinced that it's worth trying. You can see yourself in them. FED v, Mustang Funny. I'm leaning FED now. I'm doing a bunch of research as I said before and there are some new things I want to learn to do that the dragster would give me the opportunity to attempt and apply. Last but not least, I want to thank everyone again. Your comments are encouragement to keep this going. I think its progressed to the point that I can bounce happily between this build and the Falcon. Based upon my rate of accomplishment I suspect they'll both be done sometime 2018. Key operative word in that sentence, "both". My last update I mentioned that the water necks were "convoluted' in their design. At least in trying to figure out how to replicate them to a reasonable facsimile. Here's a pic of the one I liked. This pic shows the first one I got made next to the other before shaping it. There are 4 parts to make one not counting the PE flange or bolts. The cap is .5mm too wide and I'm going to make new ones. Overall dimensions are 3,0mm long x 3.0ww tall (without the cap) x 2.2mm wide. On the engine. I'll copper and then chrome plate them. When machining the new caps, I'm going to try nickel/brass to see how it contrasts. The metal has a very warm finish to it and a hue all its own. Doesn't solder worth a darn but it won't matter. As you can in this pic, the various pieces were soldered together. Once chromed, I'll use a brass nut for the end of the neck to mimic the real one along with two bolts to secure the flange directly to each head. Way too much information. sorry

Scott, shove that other stuff aside and keep this one going. The changes you're making do make a difference. Cheers, tim