Ace-Garageguy

Gee, just because I know my stuff and I'm not afraid to call an idiot an idiot in this over-pampered PC BS world? Nah, I'm okay. My mission in life just isn't to be inoffensive when dealing with rampant incompetence, which IS rampant, in EVERY industry, and I see it DAILY. I am sorry if anyone was offended by my word choice, but it's accurately descriptive of the behavior noted. At least someone intellectually challenged (happy now ? ) has an excuse for being incompetent in a technically demanding setting. Let me clarify. DIAGNOSING AN ENGINE MALFUNCTION AND RECOMMENDING A VALVE JOB, WITHOUT DOING A COMPRESSION TEST...IS INCOMPETENT...or just plain dishonest. Everything else that was done to the car was idiot monkey-motion as well. When Mike got it and went through the right procedure, surprise...he got the car to run right. Simply amazing what happens when you actually KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING.

The rather upright A-pillars and the amount of windshield wrap-around suggest to me the old Aurora Aston Martin kit (repopped by Monogram / Revell)...but... ...it's WAY too narrow (going by the rear shot of the 1:1) which would necessitate a section added (and a wider windshield, which would also be skill-taxing) and it's probably a bit too long...so you'd have to section it lengthwise. You'd also have to custom-build C-pillars.

Absolutely good stuff. I build the real cars, and agree with you 100%. Good link too, and excellent other advice you offer.

I'm always amazed that the 'tards will still diagnose a burned valve without even doing a compression test. Just goes to show how few folks REALLY know how an IC engine operates. I wonder what the shop's excuse would have been if the Mustang with the bad Pertronix unit had HAD the recommended valve job and had still run like dog exhaust. I'm also am frequently entertained by how many aftermarket parts are installed with total disregard for the instructions, and then the installer blames the unit. I guess reading the instructions (and understanding them) isn't deemed to be a necessity. My hat's off to Maindrian Pace (Mike). All the right moves, in the right order.

Correct. However, you do need to make sure all your accessories ( AC, PS pump, alternator) are located correctly for the specific application, and that you get the right air filter (unless you go aftermarket).

I once had a striped tomcat that looked a lot like Xerxes. My girlfriend had him fixed when I was out of town...the cat would never look me in the eye after that. Poor kitty. I always thought she REALLY wanted to do it to ME. Same girlfriend who sold my '58 Karmann Ghia and a BMW Isetta for scrap, again while I was away.

OMG !! OMG !!! Where did you see that potato chip??? I HAVE TO HAVE IT !!!!! OMG !!!!!!!!!

I just wish I'd been smart enough to hold on to some of the cars I turned for small profits over the years...Porsche 356s, including a Speedster and a Convertible D, a first-year 911, several E-types and Alfa Romeo convertibles, 2 Jensen Interceptors...the list is heartbreaking when I realize my present poverty could have easily been otherwise. Oh well. Maybe my 2-owner Geo Metro convertible will be a home-run someday, ya' think? It's already worth 10 times more than I paid for it.

Looks like great fun... :)

Just beautiful, everything about it. I especially envy your clean, wrinkle-free foil work.

.020" styrene sheet makes great tubs for drag car rear wheel wells, if that's what you mean. Cut a strip of the material that's wider than you want your tub to end up. Draw it over an edge of something...this will make it take a curl. With a compass, draw a circle on another piece of styrene, the diameter of the wheel tub you're going to want...make sure it's bigger than your slick by enough margin to allow for suspension movement. Cut out the styrene circle. Determine how tall your tub has to be, and cut your circle accordingly. With liquid cement, CAREFULLY glue the partial circle into the edge of the curled strip you made earlier. MAKE SURE IT'S SQUARE and LET IT DRY THOROUGHLY. Trim the ends when fully dry. Attach the entire assembly to your chassis (you will have measured everything and know where everything needs to go already). CAREFULLY file and fit the outside edges of your tubs to fit snugly inside the body shell. Voila...well fitting wheel tubs.

Hot diggity !! Cool build, great work, love the suspension and tightening up on the panel fit. This is gonna be sweet.

Blunc is on the right track. 25 and 26 appear to be coolant lines running from the heads to the block. Though this particular engine has a different prop drive, those two parts you're needing referenced are clearly visible. Part 27 appears o be a crankcase breather or oil filter of some sort. This engine has a prop drive similar to the AMT kit version, but no such breather or filter is obvious. It's possible that AMT took their measurements from an offshore boat or pulling rig installation, in which case some plumbing MAY not be correct for any other application.

I always appreciate thoughtful suggestions, but I think the majority of the "droopy" look is coming from the angle the car is viewed from in that photo. The lower rear surface of the early body is actually LOWER than the later bodywork, closer to the ground, and more squared off. Compare the latest photos to the reference profile and you'll see that the tail on my model is STILL too high. As for interfering with the frame, the bondo is getting mighty thick and heavy in some areas, but that's okay, as this body is only being used to display once, and then it will be the plug for a set of molds to make a complete set of skins in .020" thick fiberglass. I'm sure some of you guys have seen he almost-scale-thickness parts I've done for other builds, and these skins will utilize the same techniques.

More from the real world... http://www.deskeng.com/articles/aabmmk.htm

And I hear you too. I specialize in mostly pre-emmission vehicles myself, and a lot of my preference for "smelly old cars" has to do with wanting to avoid the frustration I run into keeping my other computers running happily...where there can be hidden glitches within glitches within glitches. The great majority of the car-buying public view cars as disposable transportation appliances, and that's what most of them in fact are. At the same time, I have to really admire what computer aided design and engineering have done for combustion-chamber design, cam profiles and engine management in general. And I agree that NEW cars are usually virtually perfectly reliable and clean running. It's just when they get older that they become serious problems to maintain, and it's a very serious shortcoming.

Nice project, and welcome back. The '55-'57 fords are some of the best looking old American irons going, to my eyes, and the convertibles are real traffic stoppers...especially two-toned. According the the wire-gauge tables, 18 gauge is .0403" in diameter. This equals right at 1 inch in 1/25 scale, which is just about perfect for a sway bar.

Love it love it love it. You just never see these, and the car has really great, understated lines. I tracked down (in Texas) the 1:1 '63 Dynamic 88 convert I drove in high school, and it's on my 'keepers' list, to start rebuilding maybe this year. Your spin on this hardtop has me fired up again. Nice work.

Oh man, this is nice.

The world really needs more teachers like you...quick.

Not yet. The next big move is to chop the top, and I haven't decided if I want to finish the chassis mods and glue it to the body shell as a fixture (so I don't lose the nice tight door-opening lines), or to use some other method to keep everything aligned.

Thanks. And I would like to show both versions of the car together, to better illustrate the differences. I don't know if I'll have the patience to build another one though...just doing one side and putting it on a turntable could be my lazy-way-out.

Testors makes a 'brass' color in their Buffing Metalizer line that might get you kinda close (but no cigar), and there's also a wax-and-powdered-metal product called Rub-n-Buff (craft stores) that comes in several gold tints. (Gold Leaf, Grecian Gold, Antique Gold). It could possibly work for you to repair areas where you've removed flash, if you haven't stripped the entire plated part (and create the illusion of good plating). The Rub-n-Buff gives a 'sheen' rather than a plated 'shine'...this photo is indicative of what to expect...plated above, Rub-n-Buff below...

Looks great to me, especially considering the small scale and the manufacturer. Very attractive colors too, just right for the body style.

The short answer is yes, it should work fine if there's enough paint on the model. Like you say, go slow, and be very careful on edges and high spots. The rest of the answer is that all kinds of problems can crop up, like paint deciding to flake off, or rings showing up as you sand through successive layers of paint. The only way to know for sure if it will work is to try it.