1974 Duster 'Rescue & Rehabilitate' Project 14.02.2021

[1972coronet]

Work-In-(Slow)-Progress MPC 1974 Duster Annual .

Purchased from eBay late in 2020 ( $ 30 ) ; undergoing a S-L-O-W rebuild .

Honestly , if not for the ugly colours used on the engine and chassis ( gloss brown , gloss baby blue , gloss green , gloss red ! YIKES ! ) , I would've simply restored it as-is (as-was) . 

However , the combination of the grotesque colour schemes , and the "glue dents" on the roof (too much glue was used to install the 'glass' ) , I simply couldn't leave-it-be .

Thus far , I've stripped the gloss grey paint and the accompanying decals , and ;  had to wet sand some of the stubborn decal 'ghosting' and leftover white primer . 

Filled the dents in the roof ( Tamiya White Putty -- best stuff ever ! ) , then primed the body with scratch-fill red oxide primer . 

Massaged the body to "perfection" ( I had to sand-off the side markers and one of the 'Duster' emblems ) ; added C-pillar mouldings ( a first for me ) ; and scribed the missing separations from fenders-to-cowl , and fenders-to-rocker-panels ( ahead of the front doors ) . I also deepened the existing panel lines .

Bonnet came from a glue bomb junker , as the original was festooned with that hideous scoop and the accompanying hole . 

Paint is Testors Inca Gold ( most of the body ) , Tamiya Silver Leaf ( bonnet and left fender ) , and Tamiya Fine White Primer ( roof ) .

I want for it to look like a late 70's street hoodlum ; something one may encounter on The Connecting Highway or Woodward or I-696 , et alia . 

Engine will be the Revell 'generic' Chrysler B / Rb with Torqueflite . Chassis will be from the newer-release 1976 Dart Sport , but with the K-Member & suspension from a parts box Revell 1968-1969 Dart (not going crazy with the underside --- I just want to align the front wheelbase , as it's off on the MPC chassis ) .

As-purchased photos (grey) and W.I.P. ( aforementioned colours ) . 

CRITIQUES WELCOME & ENCOURAGED (other than jabs at my amateur photos) .

 

[1972coronet]

Photos To Follow Tomorrow...

I cut-off the misaligned K-member and "wheel nubs" from the 1976 Dart Sport chassis , and marqued mounting-points for the Revell 1968-1969 Dart K-Member / suspension . 

The K's mounts are just a hair-wider than the rails of the '76 Dart's , so I'm having to improvise : I sanded-smooth the (useless on any MoPar ) traction bars , and glued them to the forward-ends of the Dart Sport's frame rails ; that should provide the requisite additional room for the Revell K-member .

Changed my mind regarding the engine / trans combo -- I'll be using the Hemi from the '73 Duster Annual (including its underchassis headers) with the single-four barrel carb . A T-Flite from Harts Parts will be mated-to the kit engine .

Only 50 views as of 22:55 HRS. ???? I want honest opinions and critiques ; accolades or jeers --- c'mon , guys and gals !

[bisc63]

Good start so far; something satisfying about seeing a kit saved and brought up to higher standards. The pics make the rear wheel openings look small from some angles. Has anyone measured against a real car to verify?

[1972coronet]

3 hours ago, bisc63 said:

The pics make the rear wheel openings look small from some angles. Has anyone measured against a real car to verify?

I believe that it's the slicks which make it appear to have small(er) rear wheel openings .  I'm going to slightly-lengthen the rear wheel openings , as I'm going to keep (but detail) the kit's Spyders / slicks combo (maybe the DOT slicks from the Dart Sport... )

[Tom Geiger]

A question.. why are you piecing together chassis instead of using the later AMT 71 Duster chassis?  

[1972coronet]

3 hours ago, Tom Geiger said:

A question.. why are you piecing together chassis instead of using the later AMT 71 Duster chassis?  

Good question , Tom. I didn't want to get too involved in modifications with this particular 'rehab' . I'm also saving the AMT 1971 Duster kits I have for use with the mint 1973 and 1974 Duster Annuals I've recently scored . 

The Revell K-member was chosen because I had a standalone copy of it . The wheelbase id off side-to-side on the MPC chassis , and I couldn't let that go . 

[mrmike]

Years ago, I built the mismarked Plymouth Duster (actually a Dart Sport) and I wasn't sure how to build it.  I built mine as a sort of drag car with a Revell 440 6 pak engine, Polar Lights Cragar SS mags, Plymouth decals and a bunch of parts from my parts box.  It sits on the back of the shelf with my other models 

 

Edited February 16, 2021 by mrmike

[1972coronet]

4 minutes ago, mrmike said:

Years ago, I built the mismarked Plymouth Duster (actually a Dart Sport) and I wasn't sure how to build it.  I built mine as a sort of drag car with a Revell 440 6 pak engine, Polar Lights Cragar SS mags, Plymouth decals and a bunch of parts from my parts box.  It sits on the back of the shelf with my other models 

That's a beauty ! I especially like the Challenger T/A scoop , and the underchassis headers ; the entire exhaust is cool ! 

Thanks much for sharing those photos and for itemising your sources for the non-kit parts . I like how these MPC Dart Sport (and Duster) kits' engine compartment offers generous room for just about any engine .

Hopefully today I'll have more photos of my recent progress on the chassis / K-member .

[AMT68]

Out of curiosity do you enjoy rehabilitation builds more than building models brand new out of box? I often see a lot of rehab models on ebay and wonder if I'd be able to successfully pull everything apart and strip them down to bare plastic for repainting as you're doing here. 

[thomascoffey1959@gmail.com]

traction bars on a mopar prevent leaf spring warp ,or wrap,  that causes wheel hop/loss of traction when the spring recoils.  When I was a kid, the cops would close a section of east river rd in rochester so the guys and their musclecars  could race. One of the the cars was a red 67 gtx . the guy would nose his car up to the river wall and preload the springs,and adjust the stops on the "slapper"bars. the only car I Ever saw take that gtx was a 454 chevelle.

[1972coronet]

28 minutes ago, AMT68 said:

Out of curiosity do you enjoy rehabilitation builds more than building models brand new out of box? I often see a lot of rehab models on ebay and wonder if I'd be able to successfully pull everything apart and strip them down to bare plastic for repainting as you're doing here. 

I don't make it a 'habit' to purchase built-up models for the purpose of rehabilitating them ; this is an exception . I typically buy them for the sum of their good parts ( e.g. , maybe the interior is good , and I could use it , whereas the rest of the build is too far gone ) .

I'm making this one into an under-construction street-strip car from c.1977 . Once I stripped the paint from the body , I noticed that its side markers were missing along with the emblems on the tail lamp panel . That was the impetus : It'll never be perfect , so I'll make a 'street-walkin' cheetah' out of it ! 

One of the best guys around here for restoring and upgrading old annuals and kits is @StevenGuthmiller.