1:1 56 Ford gasser

[Johnt671]

I must build one like this. Seen at a show. Has a 429 Merc motor.

[espo]

You have to post your build pictures on this. If you don't already know Plastrruct offers sheet plastic with the diamond pattern for the Firewall.  Interesting looking paint pattern  reminds me of the Black Widow paint pattern from Chevrolet for '57. 

[Johnt671]

22 hours ago, espo said:

You have to post your build pictures on this. If you don't already know Plastrruct offers sheet plastic with the diamond pattern for the Firewall.  Interesting looking paint pattern  reminds me of the Black Widow paint pattern from Chevrolet for '57. 

I will. I sorta started looking for a 56 kit. I saw a couple on e-bay that might have a lot of the parts I'd need, and if I remember right the air filter is a Buick unit that's made by a resin caster. Maybe I saw it in an R&M catalog.

[Casey]

1 hour ago, Johnt671 said:

if I remember right the air filter is a Buick unit

It's a Cadillac part, and I'm pretty sure there is one kit which includes that style of air cleaner.

 

Edited July 5, 2019 by Casey

[espo]

1 hour ago, Johnt671 said:

I will. I sorta started looking for a 56 kit. I saw a couple on e-bay that might have a lot of the parts I'd need, and if I remember right the air filter is a Buick unit that's made by a resin caster. Maybe I saw it in an R&M catalog.

The Air Cleaner might just be one of the easiest parts to find since several casters offer these. The body may be somewhat of a problem. AMT offered a '56 Ford Victoria that even included the Crown option. The problem is the shape of a hardtop roof is very different from a tudoor post roof. I'm sure some casters offer the '55 - '56 tudoor bodies. The Revell '57 Ford kits with the Gasser build option would make a perfect chassis donor. AMT has offered several nice big block Ford engines thru the years. While there are many more the ones that come to my mind would be the '60 Ford Starliner and the '65 Ford Galaxy with all of the NASCAR and Drag Racing engine options. The bucket seats almost look like a Mopar seat from the shape and pattern of the covering. The interior would just depend on if your going for an exact reproduction, which wouldn't be a bad idea, or just use this as an inspiration for your own ideas. Again I think there are many who would like to see this done, expect copy cats.      

[Johnt671]

Thanks for the tips guys. I think this will be a come as close as I can build, matching as much as I can to the real one. In a stroke of good luck I have the 65 Galaxy kit, and a couple of big Ford motors put aside. I have the 57 Ford kit with a lot of the gasser parts left over because I built th street rod version of the kit.

[Johnt671]

The kit I think think would be the best for gasser parts sure goes for big bucks on e-bay. One is 80 bucks, another is up for $49.95 plus shipping, but has a make an offer tag on it, I just bid on one that was $16.50 but was promptly out bid. That one isn't up until late July so I'll watch that one to see how it goes.

Edited July 6, 2019 by Johnt671

[espo]

3 hours ago, Johnt671 said:

The kit I think think would be the best for gasser parts sure goes for big bucks on e-bay. One is 80 bucks, another is up for $49.95 plus shipping, but has a make an offer tag on it, I just bid on one that was $16.50 but was promptly out bid. That one isn't up until late July so I'll watch that one to see how it goes.

What kit are you looking at ? That's a lot of money, at least in my mind. The only other kit that may be of help would be the AMT '56 Ford Crown Victoria and it has been reissued often enough that it shouldn't be any where near that price.  

[Snake45]

On 7/5/2019 at 10:36 AM, espo said:

The Revell '57 Ford kits with the Gasser build option would make a perfect chassis donor. 

I suggested this here once and got a lengthy lesson on how the two frames are COMPLETELY different and this would be quite IMPOSSIBLE in real life and so forth. 

Just sayin'....

[espo]

1 minute ago, Snake45 said:

I suggested this here once and got a lengthy lesson on how the two frames are COMPLETELY different and this would be quite IMPOSSIBLE in real life and so forth. 

Just sayin'....

You may be correct. Thanks for the heads up. I have owned a couple of 1:1 '57 Fords and some '51's but never tried to combine them in any way. I had mentioned the AMT '56 Ford kit as a possible donor and that may cover any frame issues, but I see know reason that the suspension parts couldn't be made to fit. 

[Snake45]

Well, I"m planning to build the AMT '56 Ford as a gasser myself, someday. 

[Mark]

The '57 parts can of course be made to fit, they just likely won't drop into place.  Depending on how much work you want to make for yourself, one option would be to cut the frame rails at the firewall and replace the forward section with scale rectangular "tubing".  2" x 4" would be about right.  1:1 cars would use tubing, you'd use solid rod.  Replacing the forward section saves weight, gets rid of the spring pockets and suspension arm attachments.  Not everyone did it that way (one well-known car in my area had a straight axle but kept the full stock frame) but it is an option even for a "street freak gasser" like the one pictured.

One thing with the '56 kit chassis: plan ahead if you want to get rid of the molded in exhaust detail.  Trimming away the pipes will open a lot of holes in the floorpan.  I did one by first filling the pipe areas with epoxy putty on the TOP side of the chassis before shaving away the pipe detail.  The muffler areas are hollow and will need to be filled with sheet plastic, but that's the case with every chassis with molded-in exhaust that I have ever seen.  The Lindberg '53 Ford chassis might be another option, as it has separate exhaust system parts.

[Johnt671]

20 hours ago, espo said:

What kit are you looking at ? That's a lot of money, at least in my mind. The only other kit that may be of help would be the AMT '56 Ford Crown Victoria and it has been reissued often enough that it shouldn't be any where near that price.  

This one.

[Mark]

39 minutes ago, Johnt671 said:

This one.

ALL AMT '56 Ford kits (since 1965 it has been issued in many different boxes) are exactly the same, save for tires, wheels, decals, and plastic color.  Even the Strip Fowl box art shown was issued twice.  Get the newest kit you can find.  In some Seventies and Eighties production kits, the body could be damaged after having been pulled out of the tool too quickly after being molded.  Recent issues have a little cardboard insert stuck into the body to keep the roof straight.  The Round 2 (most recent) issue will have pad-printed tires, better decals, and be molded in white.  Spending more won't get you more when it comes to this particular kit.

[espo]

I agree with Mark, this is the kit I would start with since it has the general shape with the roof being the exception. You might post your need on the forum in the section set aside for just that reason. You might be able to trade something you already have for this kit. While this is a great kit in it's own right it has been reissued over and over and can be found at a reasonable price. The pillared two door sedan roof would be your only challenge and you may even build it as a hardtop.  

[espo]

Another thought on the body. Star models offers a pretty good looking '56 Ford sedan body as does Hendrix casting. Check under After market/ Resin section on the forum. On the first page there is a Directory section that will take you to many casters sites and you can even view their castings there. 

[Johnt671]

I got the donor kit I wanted on e-bay for just a couple of bucks more than I wanted to pay, so that's not bad.I have a bunch of spare gasser parts put away so I'll start going through them to see what might work on this car. It's still a few weeks out since I started another build. When I start on it I'll post in this thread for those who might want to check it out.

[Johnt671]

The kit got here yesterday, and the body looks looks good. I saw a few pieces of somewhat flat sprue that I may be able to fab thr roof post from. The biggest worry I have is cut off finger tips to scribe the door openings. Plus I don't have the right tool, and can't draw a line with a ruler.

[stavanzer]

That Caddy Air Cleaner is in the Revell Boyd's Eldorod that is on the shelf at Hobby Lobby right now. Should be an easy find. But that is $20.00 for just the one part. Resin might be cheaper.

[High octane]

On 7/5/2019 at 5:16 PM, Johnt671 said:

Thanks for the tips guys. I think this will be a come as close as I can build, matching as much as I can to the real one. In a stroke of good luck I have the 65 Galaxy kit, and a couple of big Ford motors put aside. I have the 57 Ford kit with a lot of the gasser parts left over because I built th street rod version of the kit.

Go for it as I"m a big gasser fan and that would make a great model. The Revell Foose Cadillac has that "batwing" air cleaner and Modelhaus used to offer it as well.

[Johnt671]

alexis and High octane, thanks for the  leads. If I were to go the kit route I'd still build the Caddy so it wouldn't be a big loss. I haven't started looking for it in resin yet because this ones a little bit down the road.

[Johnt671]

I've started this one. I decided to go with a strip version of this car with a blown motor using this one a guidance, rather than than a close copy of this car. Once I started on it my creativity took charge of the build. I'l start a thread under the drag car section with build pictures, but here's a couple of teaser pics.