Full Bellypan '32 Ford Dry Lakes Roadster

[Bernard Kron]

’32 Ford Roadster Dry Lakes Racer with Full Bellypan

I’ve always admired the sleek look of an open wheeled hot rod with a full bellypan. The sheet metal paneling just below the body line ties the whole car together and gives it a grace and purposefulness you can’t get any other way. Unfortunately there are very few kits that include a belly pan and, of course, they are customized for that individual car.

So, if you are going to build a bellypan hot rod you’ve pretty much got to scratch build it yourself. The only upside is that the bellypan hides all of the chassis detail except what might be visible under the hood or in the interior. So it’s kind of a “modified curbside” build. That’s the approach I took with this project.

This is my 4th full bellypan Deuce and I’ve developed a technique where I build up the sides of the bellypan using strips of straight and ¼ round styrene and construct what is effectively the chassis for the car. It’s almost as if it were a highboy.

I’d say that well over half of this model is scratch built and much of the rest is aftermarket or from the parts bin. The base kit I used is the old 1/25th scale Revell ’32 Ford Highboy (and later Good Guys) Roadster. It supplied the main body and much of the front suspension.

The overall look is inspired by the classic Kurtis 500 Indianapolis Roadster of the 1950’s. To “sell” that concept I used those fantastic resin 50’s Halibrand wheels and Firestone Indy tires courtesy of IndyCals. The 2-tone paint job and the bold number decals are also 50’s Indianapolis styling cues.

Here’s the breakdown with lots of pictures immediately below:

Thanx for lookin’,
B.

Bodywork: Scratch built full bellypan and rolled rear pan. Basic body and grill shell from Revell ’32 Ford Highboy kit. Blank grill and hood sides from Revel ’32 Ford 5-window Coupe kit. Scratch built tonneau cover. Roll bar scratch built from aluminum tubing. Homemade decals. Paint is Testors Daytona Yellow lacquer over Duplicolor Oxford White lacquer.
Motor & Drive Train: Revell Parts Pak Chevy 283 small block with GMC 471 blower and Hilborn 2-port injection from AMT Double Dragster kit adapted for top mount. Chain drive from AMT ‘39/’40 Ford Tudor kit. Tubular headers courtesy of VCG Resins, modified to clear hood sides. Front suspension and steering modified from Revell ’32 Ford Highboy kit.
Wheels and Tires: Vintage ‘50’s era Firestone Indy Tires and Halibrand Solid magnesium wheels courtesy of IndyCals (see http://www.indycals.net/parts/indyparts/55roadstertires.html ), reversed to show the inner ribs. Knockoff spinners from Revell ’32 Ford Highboy kit.
Interior: Scratch built aluminum panel style interior made from styrene sheet. Cut down aviation-style ’29 Ford steering wheel from my parts box. Drilled out aluminum bucket seat courtesy of Crazy Scale Auto Parts (see http://crazyscaleautoparts.cybrarygoddess.com/ )

[Richard Bartrop]

Outstanding work, as always!

[Flatout]

Nice work Bernard...another winner!

 

[afx]

I like the look.

[ChrisR]

Cool idea!

[David G.]

Beautiful work!

David G.

[TooOld]

Very very cool build Bernard , one of your best !  I enjoyed following the build too , I always learn a thing or two . 

[Phildaupho]

A very well thought out and executed model. It definitely looks the role of a Speedweek contender.

[Bernard Kron]

Thanks to you all. It's very much appreciated.

This turned out to be somewhat of a challenge. Despite lots of careful pre-fitting I landed up having to do several things twice-over and encountered some last minute fitment issues that required some behind the scenes surgery. But it landed up looking pretty much like I imagined it.

The inspiration cars, as I mentioned, were the Kurtis 500 Indianapolis cars. The color and white panel combination is classic Indianapolis in the 1950's. In particular, though, despite the fact that it was a single color it was the D-A Lubricant Specials of that era that really struck me. Hence the black and yellow theme. Patto's Place, the Aussie decal maker, actually offers a D-A Lubricant Special set and I was sorely temped to use them. But I felt better about doing my own thing, somehow. There never were D-A lakes cars...

[mod3l Lover]

    How cool!!

[XJ6]

Looks like the real deal, Nice......

[Ace-Garageguy]

Another outstanding "Bernard Kron Special" that perfectly captures the spirit and feel of a particular type of racing car. Great model.

[Bernard Kron]

Thanks once again for the exceedingly kind comments! I've said it before, but if bears repeating, it's especially gratifying when a model I build makes a connection with you all on the board. Getting "the look" right is what it's all about in my opinion, especially if, like me. you build within a style and don't do actual replicas.

[Helix]

Good job, like this one Bern'!