CorvairJim

Heck, I'm not even into rat rods and I like this beast! The MotoMeter is the perfect finishing touch. (So when are you going to start posting some of your creations on Motortopia??? )

Bonjour, Jean-Jacques, I've been a station wagon fn for most of my life, and I have several conversions in the works at the moment. Your fine model gives me something to shoot for. You do great work!

How about 54 of 56 for a score of 96% for the GM quiz? I got the '61 and '62 Tempests backwards! 95% for the "Non GM" quiz (46 of 48 - I got two years of Chrysler 300 reversed) And the "Automotive History" quiz? 17 out of 17 for 100% Easy stuff, although I had to think for a second about the Mustang "California Special" question. I'm not into Fords...

Looking at your model reminds me that I have to get back to work on the '64 Biscayne 4-door sedan I'm trying to fake together from the AMT Impala. It's been tough sledding so far, but I'm too broke to go the transkit route, even in the off chance someone made something as obscure as a '64 base-model 4-door, unless they had a Police car or taxi in mind. Like yours, it's meant as a gift - it'll be a replica of my wife's first car.

Count me in, Charlie! Mine will be a Corvair, of course, but I don't know which year yet. I have "Glue Bomb" examples of every year from 1960-64, so I'll pick one of those. At the moment, I'm thinking a replica of a 1:1 Ermine White over Tasco Turquoise 1960 700 Series 4-door sedan that I used to own.

I have two that I already built! Too bad I can't use them, because nobody has mentioned either one of them yet: The Harold & Maude '59 Cadillac Hearse (although I put Cragar S/S mag wheels on that one.) and Jim Rockford's '77 Firebird Esprit. I might consider doing the Caddy again, since my brother has been bugging me to give him the one I already built for about 5 years now!

As a die-hard Corvair guy, I know what's right and what's wrong with Corvairs. You just about nailed this baby, Jon! "VAIRY realistic"! The only trouble I noticed is that the PA license plate isn't a number that would have been issued in the regular run. They only had one letter, not two. (I live in PA and collect license plates!)

Definitely European, definitely expensive! Best guess: Hispano-Suiza from about 1934. One thing I know for certain is that the Eagle's head radiator mascot as a Lalique!

I've never "Signed my work", but I have used a Sharpie to identify parts like interior tubs or chassis plates unique to a specific year of a built-up I've dismantled for restoration.(I do a bunch of Corvair model restorations and generally strip the models into their component parts and 'file' them by part, not which model they came from.) I'll write what year and model the part is for on the underside of the interior bucket or on top of the chassis plate along with when I stripped down the model, and even just the year on the bottom of the seats, so that if I decide to paint them ahead of time, the marking will still be legible. As far as license plates go, I've found a vendor on eBay who makes terrific, computer-generated plates in scale. He has pre-made generic sets for 5-year spans from many states and will make plates to order as well. I bought several of the generic sets and ordered 5 sets of Vanity plates and a couple of specialized PA plates too - the black D.A.R.E. plates and the beautiful Pennsylvania Zoos plate featuring a tiger on a forest green background. You can contact Michael at bdhanson@socal.rr.com. Tell him Corvair Jim sent you!

After looking at this abomination, I'm all "Tuckered out"!

What are the wheels from? I could use a few stes of those!

One word: SWEET!

I liked the original "Alternomad", but I saw a few things I would have done differently. I didn't think it needed to be such a blatant take-off of a '57, andf I prefer the '56 myself anyhow. So I toned it down a bit, converted the trim to mimic the '56 model, deleted the "Gunsights" from the hood, added the Nomad's distinctive chrome strips on the tailgate along with a 50's style Chevrolet crest and "V" trim, and I also added the original Nomad's trademark transverse roof creases. I didn't like how the B-Pillars leaned sharply forward, so I removed them and swapped them side-to-side. They now lean back at the right angle for them to flow into the '56-style side trim. The original car came from the chrome-heavy 1950's, so I foiled a lot of the trim that was blacked out or body color on the prototype Alternomad. I even left the Impala SS grille shell chromed. The 4th photo shows the model next to the box art of the kit as it came.

Talk about a wolf in sheep's clothing - WOW!

A great model from the concept all the way through. I have one of these somewhere among the boxes of models I built as a kid, and I might just try to resurrect it now. Thanks for the inspiration.

Here's my AMT 1970 Annual that I got several years ago in a package deal from a guy who was leaving the hobby. The model had been started - badly! It had been painted orange with a brush and had a red interior and vinyl top... I stripped the paint, cleaned up some stray glue blobs and started over. I can't afford to buy rare old models in mint condition, so I've really gotten into "Glue Bomb" restorations.

What? You didn't count "American Pie" with the bathroom songs?

After just briefly scanning the replies above, I have to agree with most of them! For me, the Corvair trucks stand out (Of course!) but I'd add the cars too. AMT's old '69 Monza coupe is nice enough, but I'd like to build a Sport Sedan without having to do all the work that goes into the conversion - I'm lazy that way! The "Early Models" - the 1960-64's - were only ever available as annuals, and were fairly simple curbsides, so I'd like to see full-detail versions of those in every bodystyle, please. The big Chevys all sound great too (the '59 wagon and '68-69 and '71-75 Impalas - for me, especially the '69). The Tucker 48 is high on my list. The "Boattail" Riviera would be great, and how about a '66 Toronado while we're talking about big coupes? I'd like to see a '49 Cadillac Sedanet. Here's one that I don't recall seeing on the list: a Chevelle Laguna from the mid-70's! (Oh, was I supposed to keep it to just ONE???)

Nice job! I finally got round to starting to build a replica of my first Corvair - also a '65 Monza, although mine was a coupe - about a month ago, when I bought a "Glue Bomb" '65 Corvair Corsa coupe annual on eBay for cheap. I had to shave the Corsa badges and add Monza badges, and modify the 140 h.p., 4-carb engine from a 2000's reissue of the '69 Monza kit to the 2-carb, 110 h.p. configuration of my car, and I subbed in the dashboard from the new kit as well to replace the 6-gauge panel from the Corsa. It will have the correct front trim and 1965 license plates only available on the 1965 annual kit. It's good to see that there are other Corvair fans on this website. Thanks for sharing this fine model. Jim

I only just saw this phenominal model for the first time this evening, and I'm speechless. I thought I did a good job for a scond attempt on the '66 Corvair (shown) that I posted in the "Under Glass" section the other night, but your fine work puts my little guy to shame! Compared to your Impala, my car looks showroom fresh. I definitely need to look at your other builds before I try another terminally weathered model.

What a great look! Using the stock Coronet roof makes for a full-on custom look while preserving the Dodge look at the same time, sort of like a factory show car. I have a Corvair 2-door wagon in the works at the moment, using a scratchbuilt roof patterned after the 1964-67 Chevelle wagon roofline. I'm giving it Corvair convertible quarter windows behind the door glass to improve it's proportions. I'll see if I can shoot a few pictures and post them on here sometime soon. What do you have in mind for the back glass? I'll be using a frameless top hinged window as a hatch, in the style of a Volvo P1800ES

I like models that are "Different", and this beauty sure is. Fine work!

I like to restore "Glue Bombs". That's the only way I can afford to have some old annual models that I've built myself in my collection. I found this one on eBay a few years ago, and did it ever look rough in the auction! I got it dirt cheap, and it's a good thing I did, because the pictures on eBay weren't lying - the thing was a mess! It was nearly all there, but the paint was awful and there were plenty of gobs of glue all over the thing. The glass was entirely wasted. Good thing I have plenty of the 1969 Corvair reissue from about 5 years ago to raid for parts! Anyhow, the first thought to go through my mind when I opened the box was that it looked like the scale model equivalent to that old rust heap that you see for sale on someone's front lawn every so often. LIGHT BULB MOMENT! I decided right away that's what this model would become, but I'd do it right. Among the details I've added or changed: The original Turbo engine is now a base 2-carb motor. The engine's air cleaner setup is in the car's back seat (sharing space with the rear air exhaust grille), and it's left-hand carburetor is sitting loose on it's mounting studs. The battery is long gone, but the battery tray probably couldn't hold one anyway because of the extensive rust-out. There's rust damage everywhere, some of which is patched bu pieces of aluminum riveted in place. One side of the front floor was repaired correctly by a past owner, but the guy who owns it now just laid a sheet of metal over the rusted-out floor on the other side and in the trunk. A headlight is busted out, and it's wires dangle from the empty bucket. All four taillight lenses have disappeared. The radio antenna broke off some time in the past, but apparently the rare factory optional AM/FM radio still works because there's a bent wire coat hanger taking it's place! The right side door and front trunk lid were replaced at one time with used parts. The wheels and tires are mis-matched front and rear, but all four original wheel covers are present and accounted for in the front passenger foot well. Look closely and you'll see that the driver's side back window has fallen off it's track and part way into the body. The driver's seat and the top of the back seat have both been patched with duct tape. [

This model started life as an AMT 1967 Corvair Monza coupe annual kit. I bought it on eBay several years ago in typical "Glue Bomb" condition. It had a chunk missing from the body beneath the rear window, and with the air inlet grille detail so close to the damaged area, it would have been nearly impossible to repair. However, the top boot from the reissued 1969 Monza kit from about 5 years ago would cover it up nicely. (The last photo clearly shows the missing chunk of plastic) Off with it's roof! As a bit of background, Don Yenko didn't produce any Stinger convertibles in '67, but that didn't stop me from building my own Phantom as a "What If".