Chopped 53 Ford Hardtop(UPDATE!)

[Ferbz]

I hope I'm ok posting these pics here even though it looks finished, this car still needs a couple more details to be considered done(license plate, spotlights, exhaust tips).

I ended up going with white pearl figuring it would hide a some of the problems I anticipated having after stripping/re-prepping my initial paintjob which got botched up(see my previous post with in-progress shots). In fact, I went in a totally different direction with the entire paint scheme(including interior)I had originally planned and I'm happy where it ended up.

Body mods include: top chop, rounded hood corners, hood peak, frenched headlights in extended front fenders, molded grill opening, widened AMT Merc custom grill bar, lowered front gravel pan, narrowed Revell Merc bumpers, scratchbuilt rear gravel pan for continental kit, rear fender bulges extended forward and scooped, molded in stock skirts. One sneaky mod: the top surface of the trunk including the lower lip of the rear window was slid forward a bit to keep the flow of the rear window/top. This was also done to lean the rear vertical surface of the trunk forward so that the continental kit mounts leaning forward. Lastly, with the addition the vertical peaks below the tail lights, this modification also makes the rear fenders appear extended.

I found a pic of a car club plaque online that said: KUSTOMS Honolulu and printed out a scaled down pic of it(anybody know if it was really used back in the day?) I then glued it to a thin piece of styrene, painted it aluminum and added a light coat of matte clear. You can see it in the rear window mounted on the package tray using wire. I'll post final pics in 'Under Glass' once I add the reminder of the details.

Thanks again to everyone for the words of encouragement on this one!        

[James2]

Looks really good, nice body mods.

[Bernard Kron]

Gorgeously tasteful and yet aggressive - what fine kustomizing is all about. Can't wait for the Under Glas!

The pearl reads very well in the photographs. I know it's outdoor sunlight and I wonder how it looks in artificial light. The reason I bring it up is because I have had trouble finding a pearlescent in rattle cans that gives me the result I want. It's usually not iridescent enough and I photograph my finished models indoors. What paint is this?

[Ferbz]

Gorgeously tasteful and yet aggressive - what fine kustomizing is all about. Can't wait for the Under Glas!

The pearl reads very well in the photographs. I know it's outdoor sunlight and I wonder how it looks in artificial light. The reason I bring it up is because I have had trouble finding a pearlescent in rattle cans that gives me the result I want. It's usually not iridescent enough and I photograph my finished models indoors. What paint is this?

Thanks Bernard! Paint certainly looks different due to lighting/environment. I'm not a real photographer so my pics are usually shot outside in natural sunlight. I've been wanting to experiment with lighting indoors where I can control lighting better. I'll try some indoors shots at some point with this car and see what happens. This is the first project where I've used White Pearl as a paintjob and  it looks fine, but I don't really like the way it photographs. To answer your question, it's Duplicolor automotive spray can lacquer with same brand clearcoat. I've seen some really iridescent white pearls in nail polish. Certainly not as convenient as spray cans, but it may be what you'll have to jump to in order to get the results you want. I like spray cans and use them whenever I can, but I've resorted to airbrushing nail polish when I couldn't find what I needed in cans. I contemplated airbrushing over the white pearl some clear with gold pearl powder mixed in to give it some gold shimmer, but decided against it not wanting to take any more chances with the paint. 

Keep up the search and do let me know if you find something that works. I'll post some indoor pics of this car soon!  

[cobraman]

Very sharp !

[Ramfins59]

Ferby, this car looks really great.  Your custom mods are well thought out and look perfect, giving the car a good flow front to rear.

[DumpyDan]

So so sweet, cool and low

[Bernard Kron]

...it's Duplicolor automotive spray can lacquer with same brand clearcoat. ...

Thanks! I tend to use Duplicolor paints a lot. I don't think of them in terms of pearls. Since they're generally touch-up paints it must be a relatively contemporary automotive pearl white, like one of the Japanese cars (Toyota, Lexus, Nissan, etc.) ,which tend to offer a earl white in their line. Do you have the name and/or number? I think I'd like to try some, perhaps over silver or gold to enhance the depth - Duplicolor color top coats tend to be somewhat transparent which can be used to tweak them sometimes.

Edited January 13, 2016 by Bernard Kron

[wayne swayze]

Very cool custom !  Nice work !

[misterNNL]

Period perfect custom with just the right touches!

[CometMan]

Nice work! Very cool.

[Ferbz]

Thanks! I tend to use Duplicolor paints a lot. I don't think of them in terms of pearls. Since they're generally touch-up paints it must be a relatively contemporary automotive pearl white, like one of the Japanese cars (Toyota, Lexus, Nissan, etc.) ,which tend to offer a earl white in their line. Do you have the name and/or number? I think I'd like to try some, perhaps over silver or gold to enhance the depth - Duplicolor color top coats tend to be somewhat transparent which can be used to tweak them sometimes.

It's a Toyota color: White Pearl BTY1626 (070) I bought it at O'Reilly's.

[silo1483]

love the piant choice, the green roof goes so well with the pearl white, great job

[Dogfish_7]

Very nice work Ferby!