Chassis Upgrade for AMT ‘66 Ford Falcon

[ToyLvr]

Fellow plastic fans -

I finally acquired a decent AMT ‘66 Ford Falcon kit. I plan to build it stock as a replica of my Dad’s car back when I was a kid. Been looking forward to this project for a long time!

Now that I finally have the kit, I see that it’s got the old style “promo” chassis with all sorts of advertising stuff molded into it. I can live with the lack of detail, but I can’t stand this other stuff all over the chassis, and it would be a nightmare to remove.

I’m looking for suggestions for a “clean”, more detailed chassis that I can substitute for the old original. BTW, Dad’s car was a plain-Jane powered by the straight 6 (I’ve already found a resin engine).

Thanks, in advance, for your help!

[ChrisBcritter]

Current issue AMT '66 Fairlane chassis should fill the bill, once you shorten the wheelbase a scale five inches from 116" to 111", and shorten the rear to fit (I can get to that measurement later unless someone beats me to it).

[afx]

I'm using the Revellogram '66 Mustang chassis under my project.  Not 100% accurate but a nice upgrade.

[randyc]

AMT 67 mustang?  I used it under my 66 Mustang and it worked.  This photo is in the 66 Mustang thread in the car review section.

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[TarheelRick]

Since the early Mustangs were built on the Falcon chassis pan, I would think the recent release of the '66 Mustang coupe should fit.  But then AMT is not really known for scale accuracy, especially on the earlier kits, however that should be a good starting point.

[Plowboy]

7 minutes ago, TarheelRick said:

Since the early Mustangs were built on the Falcon chassis pan, I would think the recent release of the '66 Mustang coupe should fit.  But then AMT is not really known for scale accuracy, especially on the earlier kits, however that should be a good starting point.

The '66 hardtop has the molded in chassis. I used a Monogram chassis under a '61 Falcon.

[Tom Geiger]

I just checked...

The Falcon stocker, and the stock car it came from are a bit larger than 1/25 to my eye.  

The AMT '67 Mustang chassis is way too small for the Falcon kit.  It just sinks into the hole under the Falcon stocker body!

The Monogram '66 chassis will need to be trimmed on either side, but looks good under the Falcon. The tail end will need a little length too.

Note- I do have the AMT '67 Mustang chassis under an older AMT '66 Mustang. It fits wonderfully and is a great upgrade.

 

Edited October 8, 2019 by Tom Geiger

[ChrisBcritter]

OK, I dug out a '66 Fairlane chassis and a '69 Falcon Modified Stocker body and chassis for comparison:

Width is close - Fairlane is 1/32" wider in the middle but narrower by about 3/16" in the trunk. Wheelbase needs to be shortened 5 mm at the first red line, and a similar amount at the second, jogging the cut through the flat part of the gas tank and keeping the spring mount spacing the same.

Fairlane chassis vs. Modified Stocker, front wheels aligned. Note how the Fairlane rises higher in the front:

You'll have to cut about 1/8" from the bottom of the engine compartment all the way around. You may need to remove the front part of the transmission tunnel so the interior fits.

All in all it'll take a fair amount of cutting, but it's doable. The Falcon and Fairlane were very similar underneath in 1966.

Edited October 8, 2019 by ChrisBcritter

[ToyLvr]

Thanks for all of the suggestions!