1956 Desoto 2 Door Hardtop?

[mopargreg]

Hi guys, Im guessing there is nothing out there. But wondering if anyone has cast a 1956 Desoto 2 Door Hardtop? I know there is the Johan/Ex-el 56 Desoto 4 door & Star Models 55 Desoto 2 door Hardtops. No 56 Desoto 2 doors that I know of? Its a shame as looking at the Moebius 1956 Chrysler kit, it would be a perfect candidate for a resin trans kit for the Desoto. 

Im wanting to build a 1956 Desoto 2 door Hardtop. Ive got both the Johan 56 Desoto 4 door & Moebius 56 Chrysler kit. Ill need both to make the Desoto 2door. Either using the Johan Desoto body & grafting the roof of the Moebius on & changing the door markings to 2 doors. Or using the Moebius 56 Chrysler body, changing the side trim to Desoto & swapping the Johan bumpers & tail lights on.  Debating which way to go at this stage. A resin kit would be the easy way-out!  

 

 

Edited August 4, 2020 by mopargreg

[stitchdup]

I'm sure I've seen a trans kit for it but not sure who makes it. Maybe an ebay seach would find it?

[StevenGuthmiller]

I believe R&R Resins cast a '56 at some point, as well as Modelhaus?

In any event, good luck finding one!

 

I still can't believe that Moebius has not taken this obvious leap with their '55/'56 Chrysler 300 kits!

I would think it would be an obvious and fairly simple conversion requiring only a new body, chrome parts, and a few interior parts.

Chassis, engine, glass, etc, could remain unchanged.

A no-brainer if you ask me.

 

 

 

 

Steve

[sfhess]

A 55 DeSoto would be cool.

[mopargreg]

6 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

I believe R&R Resins cast a '56 at some point, as well as Modelhaus?

In any event, good luck finding one!

 

I still can't believe that Moebius has not taken this obvious leap with their '55/'56 Chrysler 300 kits!

I would think it would be an obvious and fairly simple conversion requiring only a new body, chrome parts, and a few interior parts.

Chassis, engine, glass, etc, could remain unchanged.

A no-brainer if you ask me.

 

 

 

 

Steve

Hi Steve, Yes I agree. It would have been an easy conversion for Moebius to release 55/56 Desoto in kit form. Definitely a missed opportunity. Surely they must have looked into it & decided it wasn't a viable option? Looking at the Johan 56 Desoto & Moebius 56 Chrysler it's amazing to see how close in all dimensions they are. I think Ive decided to do the conversion myself using the Moebius Chrysler body as a base & use Johan bumpers. Ive also got a Modelhaus 56 Desoto interior. The tail lights are molded on to the body on the Johan Desoto, so Im unsure what to do about those at this stage. Any ideas on the tail lights short of cutting them off the Johan? 

I don't believe Ive seen a R&R or Modelhaus 56 Desoto kit. It may be out there? I wouldn't pay the prices now anyway. 

Thanks for your help.

[mopargreg]

2 hours ago, sfhess said:

A 55 DeSoto would be cool.

Star Models sells a 1955 Desoto 2 door hardtop or convertible resin kit.  

[StevenGuthmiller]

8 hours ago, mopargreg said:

Hi Steve, Yes I agree. It would have been an easy conversion for Moebius to release 55/56 Desoto in kit form. Definitely a missed opportunity. Surely they must have looked into it & decided it wasn't a viable option? Looking at the Johan 56 Desoto & Moebius 56 Chrysler it's amazing to see how close in all dimensions they are. I think Ive decided to do the conversion myself using the Moebius Chrysler body as a base & use Johan bumpers. Ive also got a Modelhaus 56 Desoto interior. The tail lights are molded on to the body on the Johan Desoto, so Im unsure what to do about those at this stage. Any ideas on the tail lights short of cutting them off the Johan? 

I don't believe Ive seen a R&R or Modelhaus 56 Desoto kit. It may be out there? I wouldn't pay the prices now anyway. 

Thanks for your help.

Luckily, the '56 Desoto has a fairly simple tail light configuration.

If you're going to do the conversion, the tail lights should be relatively easy to replicate.

 

I would use sheet and strip styrene to replicate the bezel, (the textured back ground might be difficult, so I would just leave that alone)

The lenses themselves are simple cylinders, so parts box custom tail lights, or making them yourself from clear or clear red sprue shouldn't be terribly difficult.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

[StevenGuthmiller]

By the way, it appears that "F&F Resin" was the caster of the '56 Desoto, but it was a convertible.

I can't say anything about the quality of these kits, as I have never even seen one in person, but just from this photo alone, I can tell that there is at least one issue.

It's evident that there is no body "hooded" portion above the tail light assembly as there should be.

It's just flat all of the way up.

 

I also have no indication of whether this entity remains in business, or how difficult this model would be to find.

 

 

If Moebius were to be so kind as to consider a '56 Desoto, they could maximize the potential for profit by giving us a '56 FireFlite hardtop, and then follow it up with a FireFlite convertible pace car edition.

 

 

They could do something similar with the '55.

 

Come on Moebius, we're waiting!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Rob Hall]

Probably too obscure for Moebius.  Danbury Mint did some nice 1/24th diecast ones 15-20 years ago.

[Claes Ericsson]

2 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

 

I also have no indication of whether this entity remains in business, or how difficult this model would be to find.

F&F was Ed Fluck Sr and I think he passed 15 or more years ago. His son Ed Fluck Jr does absolutely beautiful castings under the name Drag City Casting. Different subject matters, though.

Edited August 5, 2020 by Claes Ericsson

[StevenGuthmiller]

1 hour ago, Rob Hall said:

Probably too obscure for Moebius.

Possibly, but I can't imagine anything more obscure than a '53 Hudson, and they rode that pony 'till the very end.

 

My thought is that being as the 300 kits already exist, it would be a fairly short leap to the Desoto.

New body, front and rear chrome, dash, seats and door panels and you're done.

The Desoto would use all of the existing chassis and engine parts, as well as glass, wheels and tires, interior floor pan, firewall, etc.

 

They went from the '52/'53 Hudsons on to the '54, and I can't imagine anything more obscure than a '54 Hudson.

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Rob Hall]

16 minutes ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

Possibly, but I can't imagine anything more obscure than a '53 Hudson, and they rode that pony 'till the very end. 

Yeah, I've read they only did that because the Moebius founder was a big fan of Hudson...had a very specific personal interest.  And the Hudson did have racing history, so multiple versions could be done.

Edited August 5, 2020 by Rob Hall

[stitchdup]

3 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

Luckily, the '56 Desoto has a fairly simple tail light configuration.

If you're going to do the conversion, the tail lights should be relatively easy to replicate.

 

I would use sheet and strip styrene to replicate the bezel, (the textured back ground might be difficult, so I would just leave that alone)

The lenses themselves are simple cylinders, so parts box custom tail lights, or making them yourself from clear or clear red sprue shouldn't be terribly difficult.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

foil from a cigarette pack might work for the textured section

[ChrisBcritter]

On 8/5/2020 at 2:15 PM, stitchdup said:

foil from a cigarette pack might work for the textured section

And if you don't smoke, look at the foil seal on a container of Philadelphia Cream Cheese. It's a bit heavier than cigarette foil. Plus the cream cheese tastes better on a cracker than a cigarette does. 

[Tom Geiger]

On 8/5/2020 at 2:59 PM, Rob Hall said:

Yeah, I've read they only did that because the Moebius founder was a big fan of Hudson...had a very specific personal interest.  And the Hudson did have racing history, so multiple versions could be done.

Yes! Frank is a Hudson guy! And it’s good to be king!

As far as the Chrysler to Desoto progression, there’s no telling what Moebius intended to do. Note that the company was sold to Pegasus, and that acquisition was a huge purchase for a small company, so they may not have funding to move ahead with a bunch of new projects.

[SfanGoch]

So, explain why a small company with limited financial resources buys something which it can't really support in terms of future developments. This essentially kills Moebius.

Edited August 10, 2020 by SfanGoch

[SfanGoch]

Howaboutdat?!? All these industry insiders around here who are plugged-in, in the know,  savvy, have their fingers on the pulse and in the loop and nobody can provide a logical and rational answer? 

[Rob Hall]

Reality is complex.