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One of the draw backs to the Air Shocks was that if you put 30 + pounds of air in them the rear axel would lose all suspension travel and in a sense became the rear suspension would be like having the differential bolted to the frame. When I put the oversized wheels and tire on my then new '67 El Camino I modified a kit that was offered to raise coil spring cars. The kit had about a 4" pipe, for lack of a better description, that went on top of the rear axle at the spring mount. This had a mounting plate at the other end that the factory spring would rest on. You were expected to drill new mounting holes in the bracket for the shocks. This also put the rear coil springs in a bind as they were now bent over instead of being straight up and down as they should have been. This is where the Shade Tree Engineering came in. I took the 4" spacer and cut it at an angle which restored the coil springs to a more up and down position. I looked thru the catalog for the High Jacker Shocks and found that the full size Buick wagons had the same mounting hardware as the El Camino and were 2" longer. I also added traction bars to the upper control arms so that the rear end wouldn't "warp up" under hard starts. This was a 360 hp 396 cu in 4-speed truck, great fun. This netted me about 2 - 3" of lift with no suspension bind and a smooth ride. Cleared the 9" wide rearwheels with Polyglass 60 series tires fine.

Did anyone take any pictures to share ?

Did anyone get any pictures to share ? That used to be one of the high lights of this.

Another great looking Muscle Car.

Your wheel choice reminds me of the style of that era, Ansen Sprints with a machined surface. I like how you detailed the instruments. This work is usually lost on a hardtop but with a convertible you can really see it. Had a '69 Camaro hardtop for 18 years and still miss it. Very well built.

Interesting paint treatment. I like the added gauges in the dash. What was the source of the bucket seats ?

Very well done. The chassis is a tremendous improvement. The paint and interior look great.

Great looking rebuild. I like the color, I just bought a can and wondered what it would look like.

I have used a set of Pegasus wheels and tires on a custom. They offer a nice chrome wheel with a narrow white wall standard width tire. Might check that if you can't find anything in your stash.

Not that it really matters in regard to the original question, but the Del Rey was the name of an interior trim option that Chevrolet offered for their 210 series two door cars. The start date was late '53 and was seen mostly on the '54 thru '57 210 models. If you were to look for a '53-'54 Chevrolet with that interior option, it changed the look of the interior very much for the better. The Revell '56 Chevy 210 2door sedan has the Del Ray interior done just they way Chevrolet had it. The '58 Chevrolet Del Ray series was just above the Biscayne but the interior didn't look as nice as the interior option on previous year models.

I have tried several suggestions from friends to the north including Minnesota and even the Dakotas. Not tried the Koolaid since I have over 100 feet of lake front and that stuff may stain anyway. One year we set stakes at the waters edge and ran fishing line back and forth between the stakes. They learned very quickly how to fly over that, but the first few times were very entertaining to watch. I even considered Rat Poison at one time, but there was to much risk of collateral damage to other species and there often is a neighbors stray dog. I have made a "rocket launcher" out of PVC pipe and shoot Bottle Rockets at them. So far this has proven to be the most effective. Again I'm just trying to keep them out of the yard. To help understand just how serious this problem with these birds is, a few years ago a nearby larger lake with a beach for homeowners to use had to be shut down by the health department. The Geese feces floating in the water was so dense and the bacteria level was unsafe to even be around. But you must remember this is an endangered species and are protected and cannot be harmed punishable by law. BLAH_BLAH_BLAH_BLAH bird has more rights than I do.

The first 90 days of ownership you're still on the "honeymoon" so to speak. They car still smells new, your friends and neighbors are still gushing over your new purchase. Hopefully the kids haven't spilled to much in the car and the dog hasn't gotten sick in it yet. About the time the first oil change rolls around, you are going to do that aren't you ?, that is when you find a nut or bolt or screw rolling around on the floor, you have noticed the two or three different color shades of color on the dash and door panels. You're still struggling to operate the TV screen in the middle of your dash board. Countless people in the parking lots have bounced their door off of yours and the sides are starting to look like the car has the "Alpha Beta Rash". Alpha Beta was a Southern California based food store. Pretty soon its just another car with 60 to 72 friendly payments to look forward to. Maybe you got 0%apr. Doesn't matter the new old bus is depreciating faster than you can pay it off. Aren't new cars grand ?

Then I'll just take the chicken thank you. I know my previous remarks regarding the Geese issue sound like I'm laying in wait to shot any and all of them and that really isn't the case. I and about 50 others have their properties backing to a 46 acre lake. Because of the size of the body of water and the lush lawns surrounding the lake the Geese are naturally attracted to the area. When they come and go they usually have flights of up to 100 or more. There are times, especially at sunset when they return from the surrounding farmer's fields, it looks like something out of Wild Kingdom. As long as they stay on the water and off the grass they get a pass. When they start coming on shore to vandalize the yard and sidewalks I get my shorts in a bunch and react accordingly. My wife and I enjoy sitting on our deck at sunset enjoying a glass of wine and talking and listen to the birds. The geese on the other hand are like small barking dogs that can even keep you up all night.

I enjoy watching BJ and Mecum both. While I have always leaned toward Mecum and have even sold a truck thru them here in KC I was amazed at some of the good prices in the early days of the auction at BJ . There were many cars out of most peoples reach, but they had any more that seemed better priced then what I have seen at Mecum. Always interesting to watch all of the great cars.

Well the Doves are of the Turtle Dove species, sort of a gray brown color and that may have something to do with their behavior. I have to be careful in punishing the Geese and the %&*%$ squirrel since the neighbors have young impressionable children and they abhor any violence toward the wild life. The other problem is that the great state of Kansas considers the Canadian Geese an endangered species and they take a dim view of anyone trying to harm the foul fowl. They cause an extreme deposit of nitrogen on the frozen lake and the open water that in the summer months we have to spend hundreds of dollars to treat the lake from the resulting the Algae during the warm months.

Like you I also feed the birds on a regular bases. The Doves in my neighborhood seem to get along with everyone. The only trouble makers I seem to notice are the Black Birds and the Crows that pass thru the area at times. Even the Blue Jays are playing nice this winter. My biggest problem is the lazy Squirrels that jump on the feeders instead of looking for the nuts they have been burying all last fall. I have a tree that provides so many acorns that it is hard to walk under and this @&%$# rodent is climbing the feeder. It seems as though no amount of BB strikes seem to deter them. The biggest menace seems to be the infestation of Canadian Geese that camp out all winter. They defile the sidewalk by our pond and if allowed onto the lawn they eat the grass to the bare ground.

He didn't get the answer correctly and I think they still gave him a trophy so he could feel good about himself.

Thank you, this information is what I needed, I'll be getting the GTO also.

The Farm Tractor seems interesting for some reason. I might try something different with that. Does anyone remember if there was a bucket seat issue with the GTO ? Don't want to start anything, just remember one of the GTO kits had nonmatching seats or something. I like the Impala SS also.

That is truly a work of art. The finishes and color selection looks perfect and the Chassis and Drive Train looks real. You seem to be able to accomplish in metal what many strive to do in plastic.

Very nice looking kit. I remember when Revell first offered these 1/32nd scale kits. I built the '56 Ford convertible and the '56 Ford F-100. Like this Mercury they were very much ahead of the time. That scale is much harder to work with than the 1/24th and 1/25th scale kits that followed. Your redo looks great and I like the windows, almost as if they are tinted. The color combination and moldings really shows well.

Very real looking weathering.

Great looking build, especially the Decals. That had to be a real job getting them to look this good.

These were great 1:1 cars and this model is a good example to build. I look forward to what all you have in mind for your build.

I had not noticed the body side moldings before, I like the look. Are going to stay with the Wide Whites or go with maybe a narrow White Wall tire?