A quick and dirty build....and a whole lotta modeling fun....(updated)

[tim boyd]

So....there's been this 1956 Dodge Royal Blue Metallic painted AMT '25 Tall T Coupe sitting in a display case in my work room where all (well, at least some) of my half-completed, stalled projects reside. It kept staring at me, month after month. Alongside was an old flame decal set from the 1980's. (That color, btw, is the exact same color that was used for Norm Grabowski's famous 1/1 scale T-Bucket, and the body was originally painted that color for a very work-intensive, but little known article that I did for Model Cars Magazine on historically correct paint colors for "Traditional Hot Rod" model car projects.)

And then there was this crazy blown early Hemi engine from the AMT Boss Nova kit, that actually traced itself back to a kit premium in the 1961 and 1962 AMT Buick Special wagon kits. It was originally assembled about 15 years ago or so for my "Hot Rod V-8s" article series in the other model car mag.  

And a set of paint-detailed wheels and tires from the Revell 1932 Roadster kit that replicated that rather unusual (I'm tempering my words here...ask me what I really think....no....maybe better that you don't) TV program tie-in promotion from a few years back. They were originally intended for a mag article on how to adapt different bodies to the Revell Model A Roadster/Coupe kit frames.

Finally, there was me, pretty much waxed out from several very intense and recently completed modeling projects. Time for a break....

Being build alongside two other more involved Model T hot rod projects now underway, just got this one finished today. The only change from the above was an updated, more realistic appearing set of flame decals from the most recent reissue of the Monogram "Little T" based T-bucket tool. A few minor clean-ups yet to come, and showing no added detail other than spark plug wiring, this is just a fun realization of what was once a "mind-model", and is now a "reality" model.

Thanks for looking!  And maybe consider digging back into one of your own stillborn modeling projects or two? TIM

 

Edited December 20, 2020 by tim boyd

[cobraman]

Very cool ! You really don't see that body style too often.

[Tom Geiger]

Thanks Tim! Cool model and history!  The past year or two I’ve been working on finishing up old projects that have sat forever myself.

[Flatout]

Nice Hot Rod Tim...the Rat Roaster wheels and tires look really good on there.

[PappyD340]

Very nice hot rod indeed, well done!

[espo]

Great looking Tall T. I also like the era flames. The engine is a display all by it's self. In the old 1:1 world you have to wonder if all that carburation wouldn't wash the oil off the cylinder walls when you opened all of those carburetors.  

[tim boyd]

22 minutes ago, espo said:

Great looking Tall T. I also like the era flames. The engine is a display all by it's self. In the old 1:1 world you have to wonder if all that carburation wouldn't wash the oil off the cylinder walls when you opened all of those carburetors.  

Completely agree about those carbs.....when you really research these old mega=carb engines, sometimes the owners would fess up that they ended up disconnecting most of them from the carb linkage and ran the car on just two of 'em. 

Of course, with drag cars like the original Garlits rail (before he added the blowers), he was rebuilding the engines all the time anyway.....but as we all know, if they did it on the drag strip, doing it on the street is mega cool (can you say "Pro Street") even if the actual usability was severely compromised.  Of course, us modelers don't have to worry about that!     TIM  

[tim boyd]

Here are a few comparo shots, using a model I built back in 1965 from the same basic AMT kit.   55 years, in some ways it seems like they've gone by in a flash!  Cheers....TIM 

[RAMBENNA]

fantastic, love it and love the color, really cool build.

 

[Spottedlaurel]

Looks excellent, a good reminder to us all just to crack on, get them built and enjoy the process.

Great that your original build has survived the years so well. Coming from a place where stock Ts aren't at all common and almost all those we see are rods it's really interesting to see the starting point.

[TooOld]

Beautifully done Tim !  I actually prefer building like this with minimal detailing other than some paint here and there ,  it's fun to do !

[James2]

I have always enjoyed your building style Tim, accurate, clean and uncluttered. This is another perfect example, thanks and Happy Holidays...

[Rocking Rodney Rat]

Sweet, ya can't have too much power in a 'T'!!!  That's a good use of the Rat Roaster wheels and tires... -RRR

Edited December 20, 2020 by Rocking Rodney Rat

[tim boyd]

On 12/20/2020 at 1:28 AM, Spottedlaurel said:

...a good reminder to us all just to crack on, get them built and enjoy the process.

 

Nigel....needless to say, I totally agree!   TIM 

[tim boyd]

On 12/20/2020 at 6:58 AM, TooOld said:

 I actually prefer building like this with minimal detailing other than some paint here and there ,  it's fun to do !

Bob....I too find this to be a more relaxing way to go, and it lets me create and finish more of my scale modeling ideas. 

That's not to say that I don't partake of more detailed projects (like the '74 Road Runner and super-low channeled '31 A Tudor projects I finished this summer) once in a while.  But to me, in most cases, a less detailed but finished model is in many cases a greater buzz personally than is a partially finished super detailed project that lies in a box for years at end. 

However, in all these years I have learned that everyone of us enjoys model building on different terms. for different reasons, and in different ways.  One of my longest running modeling buddies (45 years?) gets his greatest enjoyment from cutting up and mocking up bodies, and super detailing projects like F1 engines and transaxles.  I don't believe he's completed a model in many a year, but he enjoys his projects and shows unbelievable talent in what he does.   

So super-detail or minimal detailing with paint accents alone...I respect any one who does modeling on their own terms and gets enjoyment from it! 

Cheers....TIM 

 

[tim boyd]

On 12/20/2020 at 12:48 PM, Rocking Rodney Rat said:

That's a good use of the Rat Roaster wheels and tires... -RRR

Yeah Rodney...totally agree. While I think the Rat Roaster kit in totality was a huge miss (because of the 1/1 it replicates), it remains a bank vault of useful parts for kitbashing, and those wheels and tires are right at the top of my personal list therein....TIM  

[tim boyd]

On 12/20/2020 at 8:42 AM, James2 said:

I have always enjoyed your building style Tim, accurate, clean and uncluttered. 

Thanks James...that is a neat summary of what I tried to do here.  Cheers...>TIM 

[tim boyd]

To all who looked at this, and to all who commented, thanks for checking it out and thanks very much for the commentary. 

Happy Holidays to all...TIM 

[ChrisR]

Looks great!!

[Rocking Rodney Rat]

2 hours ago, tim boyd said:

Yeah Rodney...totally agree. While I think the Rat Roaster kit in totality was a huge miss (because of the 1/1 it replicates), it remains a bank vault of useful parts for kitbashing, and those wheels and tires are right at the top of my personal list therein....TIM  

Yes it is a great source of parts. They must have made a limited run of them as they are scarce. I was hoping (still) Revell would reissue the kit without the Stacy Whatisname and Whatever show it was tie-in...

-RRR

[tim boyd]

1 hour ago, Rocking Rodney Rat said:

Yes it is a great source of parts. They must have made a limited run of them as they are scarce. I was hoping (still) Revell would reissue the kit without the Stacy Whatisname and Whatever show it was tie-in...

-RRR

Revell has looked at reissuing the kit a couple of times , but they want to make changes that would clearly differentiate the new version from the Rat Roaster.   This was mostly before the Hobbico debacle from what I recall; don't know if it is a currently active investigation or not...TIM 

[slusher]

Cool hot rod Tim!

[doorsovdoon]

They look great side by side. Two of the same cars done very differently, I like it.

[alan barton]

Having the two side by side is magic - it really shows the whole before and after concept , dare I say, to a "T"?!?! 

As always, I love the hot rod the most.  The grey accents on the Halibrands really bring them to life.

There is a famous T coupe over here, about a 1915 if I remember correctly, with a twin blown 429 Shotgun up front.  Have collected all the parts ( apart from an Outhouse car brass T grille).  Your blue car, plus a New Year's resolution perhaps, could see it done!

Cheers

Alan

[unclescott58]

A lovely T. I did one similar a few years back, only using the stuff that came in the box, and painted flat black. A fun and classic old kit, that like yours, builds beautifully. Very nice Tim. 

Edited December 24, 2020 by unclescott58