Small World...

[Lovefordgalaxie]

Back in 1991 I was in my last year of regular school before entering high school, and had a pall that was also into cars as much as I was, and into the same kind of cars, the old Fords and Chevrolets up to the '70s. We were the freaks, the crazy lozers, as most guys our age were into VW Gol GTIs, or Miuras, Pumas, the Chevy Kadett GS, or Escorts XR-3, or the Fiat Uno 1.5R, the then current and "desirable" sports cars. Me and Robert? We were into Galaxies, Maverick GTs, Dodge Chargers, Model A Fords, '40 Fords, '48 Fords, old Impalas, anything big, full of chrome, whitewalls, and with a V8. Well, you got the picture.

One day he bought a AMT '37 Chevy convertible, and asked me to build it for him, as he had zero experience with models. Tried to convince him to give it a try, but he refused to "ruin" the kit (as if what I was doing was any better...)

Anyway, I built the '37 Chevy at the Same time I built a AMT '64 Impala. Those two kits were my first attempts at foil, and they resulted quite nice for the day.

Well, after school we lost contact, and I went to college.

A few days ago, I bought online a big box full of spare parts, something I'm always looking for. Among all of the chrome parts, and spare engines, and wheels and tires, there were the bagged remains of a '37 Chevy convertible. Yes it is the very same I built in 1991. 

The guy that sold me the parts have no idea of it's origin, as it was already in the box when he got it. 

Many parts are missing, the paint is badly stained with what looks to be pen ink, and the entire thing is a mess. 

I really don't know if a restoration could be done, or even a preservation, trying to put most parts together the best I can. It will still look like a mess, so i'm tempted to bin it. 

The Desoto engine on the pictures was in the same bag, even tough it was not used on the car. I used the stock Chevy six.

This is one of those cases I really don't know what to do, or I'm not sure of what to do. 

1937 Chevy by CCCP Digital Studio, on Flickr

1937 Chevy by CCCP Digital Studio, on Flickr

1937 Chevy by CCCP Digital Studio, on Flickr

1937 Chevy by CCCP Digital Studio, on Flickr

1937 Chevy by CCCP Digital Studio, on Flickr

 

 

[mr68gts]

In my opinion I would salvage it as best you can. I am sure much of the parts and paints would still be able to be located.

[TooOld]

Reassemble it repairing any broken parts and pieces but don't restore it , it's a survivor . And it's your survivor !

[Kit Basher]

Use it as an excuse to track down your old friend. Find him and tell him the story. Should make for an interesting conversation.

[espo]

Great story, I think you should try restoring it. You have the basic body that needs some repair work on the windshield frame and there are suspension parts that will need repair or replacement. I guess it's up to you as to how much attachment you feel for this model. I have no doubt you have the skills to return it to it's former glory. Find another Blue Flame Six and redo your old build.   

[iamsuperdan]

I think it's pretty amazing that your friend didn't just throw it out! I mena, most people don't really get this whole modelling thing, and would just look at a built kit as an old plastic toy. 

 

For it to have survived a couple of owners and make it's way back to you is pretty awesome!

[PARTSMARTY]

I'd restore it to beautiful Tulio original !!!

[W-409]

That first chapter sounds just like me! Most of my friends are into those new cars that have nothing cool in them, plus that they all look pretty much the same. Then there's me who  has zero interest in those, I rather stick with old US Iron...

Anyway, to me that Chevy looks like a great starting point for a restoration project! And with your buiding skills I'm sure you could do it.

[Bill Eh?]

Tulio, I would definitely consider this as a "once in a lifetime" event. As such, I would take pictues of the parts as they exist now. I would then suggest that you work your magic to restore the car to the condition that it was in when you gave it to your friend.

[Lovefordgalaxie]

Well gentlemen, I took careful examination on the model's parts, and it's more like a Titanic artifact than a model kit. The body is full of fissures. The rear end came apart just by carefully washing it. The plastic is quite brittle. I don't know what could have caused it, but most parts can't be worked on without cracking. The Impala I built at the same time is still fine, so I guess it was some sort of environmental factor, like high humidity, and or heat that did no good for the plastic.

In this care I decided I will try to carefully preserve what's left, and put it together the best I can. 

Also have the idea of building a replica of the original build with a new kit. 

Will post some pictures of the parts back together as soon as I finish. 

Started looking for a '37 Chevy kit locally. 

[Mercuryman54]

Tulio, that sounds like a good plan to me!!! Have fun and do your magic!!

Dennis

[Renegade]

It came back to you for a reason. It wants to be rebuilt by you to the best of your ability.

[Lovefordgalaxie]

Yes guys, I wanted to restore it, strip the old paint, and the whole shebang, but the plastic is literally falling apart. 

I never saw anything like that before on a model kit. Just by holding the body to glue the windshield frame, I cracked it where there was no crack before (at least not that I could see) and for one glued piece, two more broke. It took me one hour to glue the windshield frame back in place, and I had to use superglue, and the glass itself to support the rest of the parts in place.  

One thing I know, it's not the paint I used back in the '90s, as I used it on many cars and they are not fragile like this one. 

[randyc]

Cool story.  Hope to see it (re) completed.  

[Lunajammer]

Fun story. But that really looks rough. I don't know how much sentimental value it has to you, but yes, pretty rough.

[Lovefordgalaxie]

Well, after a LOT of trouble I was able to glue the parts I have back together. Preserved them one by one, first by washing them, then brushing them all with a solution of acrylic "artists" sealer varnish and glass cleaner. It gave some of the gloss back, and got into the cracks, and fissures, and the thing feels a little more solid now. As a note, the chrome plated parts are completely fine, pliable, and strong, like if new. 

The biggest part missing is the top boot. When I get a new '37 Chevy kit, i'll make molds of the missing pieces, and resin cast the, so I can complete this one. 

[Bill Eh?]

Well done Tulio! It looks great. I hope you have a proud sense of accomplishmnt in the restoration of this model. Do you think you might find another one to do a sibling build up?

[Leonidas]

That's too cool!

[Lovefordgalaxie]

1 hour ago, Bill Eh? said:

Well done Tulio! It looks great. I hope you have a proud sense of accomplishmnt in the restoration of this model. Do you think you might find another one to do a sibling build up?

I had zero luck finding a AMT '37 Chevy kit. 

Found a few on e-Bay, but the import tax is too high now. 

[Bill Eh?]

2 minutes ago, Lovefordgalaxie said:

I had zero luck finding a AMT '37 Chevy kit. 

Found a few on e-Bay, but the import tax is too high now. 

The original is the best one any way!

[Lovefordgalaxie]

Here are the two Chevrolet cars I built at the same time in 1991.

The Impala was built for myself. Other than a fall during my move here that cracked the top of the windshield, the Impala survived quite well. It was never on a display case, always on a shelf on my room. 

The impala saw a couple of wheel changes over the years, but it has now the same set I originally built it with. 

Both the Impala and the '37 were painted with the very same rattle can primer, and the same brand of rattle can paint (Colorgin). 

The Impala could use a little cleanup, and maybe some wax. Not bad for a 26 year old model car!!

Yeah, I was into decaling the glass back then. 

[Mercuryman54]

Tulio, looks great for what you had to start with and how fragile it was!! Maybe in it's history it sat in a window shelf or where it got a lot of sun and made the plastic brittle.

Dennis

[Lovefordgalaxie]

7 hours ago, Mercuryman54 said:

Tulio, looks great for what you had to start with and how fragile it was!! Maybe in it's history it sat in a window shelf or where it got a lot of sun and made the plastic brittle.

Dennis

Thanks!! Yes, I think it's possible. The chrome is not affected as it would rather reflect the UV light other than absorb it like the painted parts. 

[DumpyDan]

Great story Túlio, so glad you restored it and kept the memories every time you look at it ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Nice work