Need bumper attachment for '57 Ford Fairlane 500

[Bill Anderson]

Hi !

I'm building a 1/25 scale replica of the car I had in the mid '60s.   It was a beautiful black '57 Ford Fairlane 500 convertible with a white top and red interior.   What made it "special" was the 312 cu in "T-Bird" motor, which was identified on the vehicle by a chrome attachment to the front bumper.

The attachment hooked to the top of the two vertical bumper guards, went straight across and then formed a "V" in the center.  

I'm using a couple of AMT kits to build the car, but of course none have this added bumper feature.  I've researched via Google and Ebay but can't find anything out there.  So assuming that is true (is it???), I will need to build my own from sprues or model piping.

Has anyone dealt with this before, or have an insight as to what would work?

Thank you,

Bill Anderson

Spring, Texas

 

 

[NOBLNG]

I don’t know if any kits came with that, .but it would be easy to fab?

[espo]

The Bumper cross piece was a dealer trim option and there were several different styles offered. The trim had nothing to do with the engine in the vehicle. The part could be made up of a few short scraps or preformed parts as NOBLNG pointed out. I had two different '57 Fords myself a Convertible in the early sixties and a Mainline Tudoor in the mid sixties. They were both 312's with the Convertible being an automatic and the Mainliner was a 3 speed with O/D. Both were great cars. The AMT kit will give you the best starting point to build a replica of your Hardtop. You might consider using the Grill and some other small parts and the engine from a Revell kit since they are better done than the AMT kit. Please post pictures of your build, I would enjoy seeing it come together. 

[Plowboy]

Would it be possible to cut the V from the optional Meteor grille and cut it into sections to make it?

[Bill Anderson]

I'm surprised to hear that this "V" grille part was NOT necessarily indicative of the 312 T-Bird option.   I've been under the impression since 1963 that it was.  Perhaps I was told that by the seller........

Yes, I'll be grafting this out piece out of some left over parts, but I sure was hoping there was one commercially produced out there.

My car was a ragtop, and of course the kits are all hardtops.  I'm not sure what I'll do about that - either cut off the top and add a tonneau cover or paint the top white and fill in the window section to match the ragtop, or just paint the top white and leave it be.   

Thanks for the info and advice, it is appreciated!

[espo]

3 hours ago, Bill Anderson said:

I'm surprised to hear that this "V" grille part was NOT necessarily indicative of the 312 T-Bird option.   I've been under the impression since 1963 that it was.  Perhaps I was told that by the seller........

Yes, I'll be grafting this out piece out of some left over parts, but I sure was hoping there was one commercially produced out there.

My car was a ragtop, and of course the kits are all hardtops.  I'm not sure what I'll do about that - either cut off the top and add a tonneau cover or paint the top white and fill in the window section to match the ragtop, or just paint the top white and leave it be.   

Thanks for the info and advice, it is appreciated!

I used the AMT kit to make a model of my convertible many years ago. The hardest part removing the roof for me was supporting the windshield frame while cutting. I folded a piece of light weight card board to support the frame. The C pillar is just a straight forward cut with know issues. I would suggest leaving that for the last cut as it will add a little support to keep the roof section from moving around so much when you are cutting the front portion of the roof away from the windshield frame. The rear seat already has the filler on the sides for where the folding top arms would go. I had an old cover from I think the '65 AMT GTO that I made work for the folded top. As an aside I saved the top that I removed, and over twenty years later made a Mainliner Hardtop out of the Revell tudoor kit. That's another story for another time. I hope this information can be of some help with your build.  

[Plowboy]

For your convertible top, you could use the top from a Revell '55 Chevy and modify it. They look pretty similar on the full scale versions. 

[Bill Anderson]

I would love to get ahold of a convertible top or tonneau cover that would not be difficult to use on this kit.  That would make my day!

[hack-n-whack]

Bill, just a suggestion here. Instead of cutting the top off where the windshield frame locates to the hardtop, cut straight across the top even with the vent windows. Then you can whittle sunvisors into the remaining top portion. If you are using an up-top, you will have to thin the visors so the top will fit. Lots of work, but worth the effort. That's how I did mine.

[Bill Anderson]

Hack n whack,

Believe it or not, I thought of the same thing.   That said, I would prefer a full convertible top or a cover for the downed top.  I call that a tonneau, but that may not be correct.

I'm going to start a separate thread on this, assuming its allowed.

[modelercarl]

I bought a 1957 Fairlane 500 convertible in '58 when I was 17.  White with a black top, 312 engine with 3 speed shift on the column.  Made some money with it drag racing from the traffic lights around the Detroit suburbs.  Always been my favorite vehicle out of the many I have owned.  I altered the AMT kit by cutting the top off and I found a boot for the down top look at Modelhaus, see attached pics.  As you can see it was sold as a boot for the '57 Mercury.  I have had another build in process for a while now because I was never satisfied with the first build, it was done years ago when my skills were not that good.

As Modelhaus is no longer in business your only chance for finding one of these boots is probably Ebay or a specific post here on this board or on the "other" model board.  Good luck.

[Bill Anderson]

NICE !!!!   I will see if Ebay has one of those covers!

Thank you!

[Bill Anderson]

After some hits and misses, I did manage to put together an acceptable bumper piece that works.  I used three sprue pieces, and spent more time than I care to admit getting it to look right.

I can't publish a pic as of yet (still working out the bugs on W10 and new PC) but expect to have that resolved in the near future. 

[Olderisbetter]

Bill, Modelhause used to make ab uptop and also a boot for a 1958 Ford. I used their uptop when building my '57. Also was modeled after my real one that I owned in 1965, black w/white top, red interior, 312 T-Bird engine . I have a boot from Modelhause that I'll send to you if you want it.  Send me a private message.