On-Line How-To: Completing a 53-year modeling project: The 1st-version Prock&Howell Flip-Top '33 Willys Gasser

[tim boyd]

Building the Prock and Howell Gasser...OR...Could this the longest running model car project ever?

By Tim Boyd

You may have heard the story. The editorial staff of the pre-eminent model car publication in the late 1960’s, Car Model magazine, decides to send letters to the top winners in their recent Dodge/MPC/Car Model national funny car contest. Essentially the letter says “we’d like to you submit a how-to article for publication in our magazine”. This builder, having recently placed 4th nationwide in that same contest, was one of the letter recipients. My then-14-year-old self said “cool idea, I want to do that”.

Never mind that I had: ## no photography experience whatsoever ## none of the then expensive camera or lighting equipment ## nor even the slightest idea of how to go about assembling and submitting such an article. But over the next few months, I identified at least four different potential subjects for that article, all which entered the build process shortly thereafter. Two of those four projects were eventually completed (one in 1987, the other in 2011) and one of them was actually published, appearing in our host's Model Cars magazine (see issue #177, May/June, 2013).

A third topic, and probably the first of the four to have been identified as an article topic, was the original version of the Prock & Howell “F-Troop” 1933 Willys Flip-Top Gasser. It enjoyed an extensive feature in the December, 1968 issue of Car Craft magazine. Including a detailed cutaway drawing and extensive black and white and color photography, the article contained everything I thought I needed to complete a 1/25th scale replica and the resulting magazine article. With the 1933 Willys body from the just-then-introduced AMT “Ohio George” Gasser kit, and the short wheelbase Logghe tubular funny car chassis from the MPC “Ramchargers Dune Buggy” kit, I had everything I needed to produce a replica, or so I thought at the time.

Those of you who followed the model car magazines back then now know that this ambitious idea was not to be. The model article/project slowly progressed over the next five years and then stopped completely around 1974, never to have been seen until now. This article, then, becomes the five-decade plus culmination of what was then to be my first-ever article contribution to the model car magazine world. The twists and turns along the way, I suspect, will be very familiar with to you readers who also have pursued long-running model car projects (but hopefully in your case, not ones stretched over more than half a century!)  I will be posting updates here every few days until the completed project is shown in a couple of weeks

I hope you enjoy the story of how I completed my scale Prock & Howell Gasser model, and that it may inspire you to dig out one of your own long-delayed model projects and bring it to completion using the resources and techniques now available to us in the modern world of model car building.  Good Luck!

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1. This 1/25th scale replica of the first version of the famous funny-car style Prock & Howell Flip-Top Gasser took over five decades to bring to completion.

Here you can see an image of the first version Prock & Howell Gasser at this link (scroll down to the 4th picture there): https://www.macsmotorcitygarage.com/five-willys-gassers-that-left-their-mark-on-drag-racing/

During the first five years under construction, my planned replica of the original version of the 1/1 scale Prock and Howell Gasser reached this stage of completion. After concluding that I did not have the skill to replicate the real car’s appealing livery, I diverted into building a model inspired by a real car I saw at Michigan’s Milan Dragway – thus the early 1970’s Centerline wheels seen here.

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2. The tubular chassis was sourced from the MPC “Ramchargers“ Dune buggy kit. The wheelbase was slightly shortened, but the more involved process was narrowing the width of the assembly – not only the tubular frame but also all the associated suspension pieces. Glue joints were reinforced with cut-down straight pins for strength. In this comparison shot, you can see that the Logghe Chassis found in Round 2’s recent reissues of the Dyno Don and Eddie Schartmann 1968 Cougar kits (shown here on the jack stands) would be a great starting point for your replica.

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3. This close-up shot of the Round 2 Cougar kit (left) vs. our Prock & Howell replica shows how much the chassis and suspension parts need to be narrowed. The final width of our chassis was dictated by the width of the AMT Ohio George Willys body at its narrowest dimension – where the tilt front end meets the body cowl.

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4. Another source for the tubular Logghe chassis might be the Polar Lights funny car kit series, which included Dodge Charger, Ford Mustang, and Plymouth ‘cuda versions. The latter kit’s frame is shown here in red. It too would need to be shortened and narrowed to fit under the Willys body, as shown on our project frame at the right. (Round 2 is just reissuing the Gary Dyer Charger F/C kit as this article is being written.)

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5. The interior floor pan must also be narrowed to fit the modified frame. Here on the left was the in-process floor pan, originally sourced from MPC’s 1968 “Color Me Gone” Charger kit. For comparison, shown on the right is a not-modified floor pan from the Polar Lights funny car kits.

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6. Upon breaking the project out of its nearly 50-year slumber during the summer of 2021, one of the first steps was to convert the wheels and tires to the correct status. In one of those “you can’t make this stuff up” coincidences, I was able to gently rotate each glued-on assembly until they separated from the suspension members without damaging the wheel mounts. I took this as a good omen for the potential completion of the project to come.

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7. The correct wheels and tires came from the Monogram T-Rantula kit (rear) and Polar Lights funny car kits (front). I used a hand-brushed coating of AlClad II Candy Gold to replicate the anodized lime-gold appearance of the real car’s wheels.

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Check back in a few days for the next round of updates.  Will attempt to answer any questions you have....and thanks for checking this out.... TIM 

[Rocking Rodney Rat]

Good to see you back at this oldie but hopefully not moldy! Coincidently, I just dragged out a 20 year old stalled build and started messing around with it this week. I will post up soon....  -RRR 

[NOBLNG]

I’m following. I’m not really into race cars, but I do love scratch building and modifications…so this should be interesting! 

[Bullybeef]

Following with interest, this may give me some ideas for a refresh of this 33 that’s sitting in my “find an idea” bench

[alan barton]

I think my record is around 40 years for a UFO so 50 years is very impressive!  I like what I see here so far - that black primered roller at the top of your post would look thoroughly convincing in a raceshop diorama!

Cheers

Alan

Edited December 12, 2021 by alan barton

[Beamerman]

Great story...and a great model...please don´t let us wait another 50 years..:-)

[Zippi]

Looking good Tim.  Don't wait til I'm on the wrong side of the sod to get this one finished ☺

[R. Thorne]

Car Craft was my favorite magazine at that time and I remember seeing that cutaway of Prock & Howell (shoot, that issue is probably buried in the garage).  Did you have a big block chevy sourced for this build back then?  What type of trans?  The wheels look great.  Thanks for posting and good luck.

[tim boyd]

  On 12/14/2021 at 4:15 PM, R. Thorne said:

Car Craft was my favorite magazine at that time and I remember seeing that cutaway of Prock & Howell (shoot, that issue is probably buried in the garage).  Did you have a big block chevy sourced for this build back then?  What type of trans?  The wheels look great.  Thanks for posting and good luck.

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Hi Ron....yep....got a big block chevy and tranny sourced....more details coming soon.  Appreciate the comments!  TIM

[tim boyd]

First...thanks everyone for your thoughts.  In addition the messages above, I've also received several personal messages indicating that some of your own, really long term, partially completed projects are coming under your review for possible completion.   That's really, really cool!   

So OK, time for an update.  Just below,  I'll cover changes made to the interior floorpan and transmission, kitbashing the roll cage, prepping the body and relocating the front hood blower cutout, and the completion of the opening doors.

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The first version of the real car used a GM TurboHydramatic 400 automatic transmission (it later switched to a TorqueFlite with the BBC, and they kept the TorqueFlite when the enginewas switched to a Hemi).  Turns out that these Turbo 400 autos are somewhat difficult to locate in scale (most kit BBC's have manual 4-speed trannies) -  I sourced mine from the Round 2 reissue of the AMT-Ertl 1968 El Camino kit. Given the material thickness stack-up between 1/1 scale steel transmission tunnel and 1/25th scale styrene plastic, I had to slightly narrow the tranny to get it to tuck inside the underside of the transmission tunnel as shown here.

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The funny car roll cage came from the Round 2 Polar Lights funny car reissues. Not only did the front and rear sections need to be narrowed (shown here after the narrowing), but the rear section needed extensions applied to the lower legs to better fit the taller greenhouse area of the 1933 Willys body.

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During the original 1969-1974 construction period, I had glued the AMT kit’s flip front end to the body and I had cut open and hinged the doors on both sides. (Steve Perry advises that based on his research, only the passenger side door operates on the real car). Here I have begun to sand and assess the original bodywork from five decades ago – and it was in better condition than I had expected.  (A bit of foreshadowing  here - note that I mostly retained the existing Testors Flat Black primer - after all, it was about 50 years old and should have been rock hard by now....)

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A test fit of the roll cage to the modified interior floor pan confirmed that the modifications accomplished their goal. Here you can also see the engine mounting plate (.015” thick sheet styrene cut to fit) mounted to the frame just in front of the interior floor pan.

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The one update needed to the body was to enlarge the original AMT kit’s hood scoop opening to fit the larger blower top hat/scoop used in the Prock & Howell replica. Careful filing with straight edged and curved files achieved the required mods.

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Back when I first opened these doors around 1969 or 1970, details like inner door frames and sills were generally not seen in model cars. Thus, the now-added internal door shut flanges you see here, fabricated from strips of .015” sheet styrene.

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Check back soon for Chapter 3, where I will show the steps to finish the chassis.  And thanks for your continued interest....TIM 

Edited December 15, 2021 by tim boyd

[tim boyd]

PS - thanks to the Forum Moderators for relocating my original post to here where it belongs!   TB

[chris chabre]

I was gonna try holding out until you had all of the series posted..but I cant wait. THIS IS AWESOME!

[OldNYJim]

Really enjoying this so far!  Can’t wait to see more!

[R. Thorne]

Gotta love accurate replicas of old gassers.  Don’t get discouraged like I did on my A/SR 1932 Ford.

[tim boyd]

  On 12/15/2021 at 5:51 AM, R. Thorne said:

gotta love accurate replicas of old gassers.  Don’t get discouraged like I did on my A/SR 1932 Ford.

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Ron...I happen to be a real fan of A/SR drag racing models....did you post any images of your project, and if so, can you post or email me a link?  Would love to see how you approached it how far you got.... TIM 

[R. Thorne]

Tried to send a message and pics, but it said Tim Boyd cannot receive messages.

[tim boyd]

Ron...didn't realize it was a replica of a 1/1....sure would be a good topic for a scale A/SR.  Best of luck if you are able to make progress on this idea....TIM 

PS - not sure why the PM feature didn't work....TB 

[tim boyd]

This update is brief but covers a good deal of progress, with the completion of the chassis/engine/interior portion of the project at hand. (I'll more than makeup with any brevity here when we get into Chapter Four, which covers the replication of the three-color body paint scheme and associated livery.)  Thanks for checking out the progress.....TIM 

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In answer to Ron Thorne's question posted above, the blown Chevy Rat Motor was based on the basic engine components included in AMT’s various early 1970’s Chevy funny car kits, including the Camaro “Funny Hugger II” and the various Vega Van kits such as Round 2’s most recent 1976 Vega F/C kit (#AMT1156/12). Beyond the usual paint detailing, I also added spark plug wires and basic fuel pump plumbing.  

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The real car’s gas/water tank was uniquely shaped, complete with visible weld seams and raised beading along the edges. I built a rough facsimile from .120” thick sheet styrene for the main tank, with strips of .015” sheet styrene for the end panels. The tank was later finish painted and mounted atop the front frame crossmember, and the fuel feed and return lines were finished with Detail Master fittings.  (Note - Steve Perry at Calnaga Castings offers a replica of the second generation Prock and Howell Gasser tank in his resin parts line.  Like the real cars were, it is shaped somewhat differently - not as tall and thicker in depth that the first P&H version shown here.) 

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With the final addition of kit-based exhaust headers (the real car's headers ran outside the frame rails rather than the routing shown here, but I was unable to come up with an accurate kit-based header set to replicate that design), a driveshaft fabricated from styrene tubing and the universal joints from the Polar Lights funny car kits, plus a set of late 1960’s style wheelie bars, I then called the chassis “completed”.

Admittedly this looks largely like a run of the mill box stock first generation Logghe funny car chassis.  However, the the narrowing of the chassis and suspension assemblies, different engine positioning, interior and roll cage changes, and the unique fuel tank made for a more involved kitbashing exercise.  

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[R. Thorne]

You definitely have been working.  Looks good.  Can’t help it, my curiousity is never ending.  Wouldn’t the blower idler pulley (the part that rubs against the belt) be aluminum or shiny?  It appears as if you have painted it black.  

  

[tim boyd]

  On 12/18/2021 at 3:19 AM, R. Thorne said:

You definitely have been working.  Looks good.  Can’t help it, my curiousity is never ending.  Wouldn’t the blower idler pulley (the part that rubs against the belt) be aluminum or shiny?  It appears as if you have painted it black.  

  

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Yes, it definitely should be shiny.  And I know that very well.   Don't know why it appears black.  I have to drag the model out of the case and add some front hubs (thanks David Dale for that reminder); I'll check the idler pulley then and let you know.   Thanks for the comment!   TIM     

[R. Thorne]

Thanks for reply.  Just trying to help.  Some other people can’t take comments or critiques without offense.  By the way, YOU got me started again on my project.  I am posting progress reports on another forum (that has the owner’s son as a member and he is helping me with additional information on the car).  I will post the build on this site soon.  Thank you.

[misterNNL]

Looks like the world is watching my friend. I know I'm tuned in. Somewhere tucked in a box I have a '32 Ford BB truck flat bed truck with a mobile Richardson's root beer stand on it's back that I started when I was 17 and you know how long ago that was(62 years). The truck was a regular feature at our local county fair for decades where I photographed and measured it in the 1950's.

[tim boyd]

  On 12/18/2021 at 6:52 PM, misterNNL said:

Looks like the world is watching my friend. I know I'm tuned in. Somewhere tucked in a box I have a '32 Ford BB truck flat bed truck with a mobile Richardson's root beer stand on it's back that I started when I was 17 and you know how long ago that was(62 years). The truck was a regular feature at our local county fair for decades where I photographed and measured it in the 1950's.

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Tom....and you know what that means, right?  Gonna have to dig that one out and finish it, then display it alongside your Model A stake bed hot rod truck!    Cheers....TIM 

[misterNNL]

  On 12/19/2021 at 2:08 AM, tim boyd said:

Tom....and you know what that means, right?  Gonna have to dig that one out and finish it, then display it alongside your Model A stake bed hot rod truck!    Cheers....TIM 

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To be honest I had forgotten about that project until you posted your long stalled build.

[tim boyd]

Overall, painting the model became the biggest challenge. The Candy Yellow/Candy Green/Black paint layout was daunting by itself, and because getting a consistent depth of candy color on a body with as many tucked in areas as this one (e.g., between the front fender and vertical hood sides) requires special procedures when done in 1/25th scale. In the efforts to do so, the color came out considerably darker than the 1/1 scale car I was replicating.

The process was further complicated, it turned out, by applying modern era paint products (AlClad II airbrush lacquers) over enamel primer first applied over 50 years ago. I thought the enamel would have hardened enough after that time to support new coats of lacquer, but that apparently was the case. Further, the AlClad Candy and Clearcoats have still not fully hardened 2 and ½ weeks after completion. I’m not all that happy with the resulting paint job, but I eventually decided to go with it to get the model finished, rather than strip the paint and start over.

You can read and see all the details below.   Check back in a few days and I will show the completed model and provide some final thoughts.  Thanks for your continued interest in this build thread.   TIM

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The last major challenge was to replicate the real car’s first version paint scheme. After a base coat of AlClad II Gloss Black was sprayed over the 50+ year old primer, I masked off the black center stripe that runs across the hood/roof/trunk, then airbrushed a basecoat of AlClad II Pale Gold Metallic, achieving the appearance seen here.

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After then adding several airbrushed coats of AlClad Candy Yellow, I taped what was to become the broader center hood/roof/trunk stripe, and then applied BareMetal Foil, trimmed to shape, to mask the side hood/door/rear fender stripes along with the grille area and spare tire recesses.

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The AlClad II Candy Green went on much darker than I had planned (and too dark to fully replicate the real car), but the finish quality looked good. After partially removing all the masked areas, the initial result looked good as seen here. (Note that the masking for the side stripes, and a portion of the grille area, had no yet been removed when this image was photographed).

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Shown here in a mockup of the final appearance, several coats of AlClad II Gloss Clear completed the paint work. But unfortunately, over the next several weeks, either the five-decade old black enamel primer wicked into the new paints, or the Gloss Clear ate into the underlying coats of paint; in either case the result was a somewhat mottled look. This is especially visible in the grille area of this mocked up test assembly. This wicking process may also have caused the top coats to improperly harden. I decided to live with these flaws, and complete the model without redoing the paint.

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A key visual feature of the real car was the funny car style “flip top” body feature. To quickly replicate this in scale, I cut the body to frame pivot hinges from the interior rear bulkhead pieces found in all of the Polar Lights funny car kits. These hinges were mocked up and then glued to the rear body as seen at the end of the toothpicks in this image of the hinges prior to being painted.  

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Tinted windows (especially the windshield) were verboten in NHRA Gasser classes in the late 1960’s, but since the “F-Troop” gasser was primarily intended for match racing, they added yellow-tinted windows throughout the body. Accordingly, I used a sheet of .005” clear acetate from the R/C Model Airplane section of a local hobby store, cut fit each window opening, and glued in place with Testors Clear Model Cement.

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The final steps in finishing this 50+ year project involved applying decals from the Slixx second-version Prock and Howell sheet, along with parts box “LSC/Logghe Stamping Company” and “B&M” logos to match the original car. Several gentle polishing applications (since the paint was still not fully hardened), and the model was almost done!  Check back in a few days and I'll be showing the completed model and providing a bit of background on why I went ahead and completed the model now, 53 years to the very month of the time that I started it....