Stone, Woods & Cook Swindler II '41 Willys Gasser

[Phildaupho]

For my final completion of the year, I decided to build the Stone, Woods & Cook Willys Gasser. It was a favourite car of mine back in the day and a nice tie in with a couple of other of my 2021 models. Earlier in the year I built the Big John Mazmanian Willys Gasser using the newer Revell kit so I figured it would be interesting to compare that experience to the vintage tooling of the SWC kit. There are also a few connections to my recent completion the Beatnik Bandit both having blown Oldsmobile engines, both were upholstered by Eddie Martinez and the SWC Willys was lettered by Big Daddy Roth.

I used the latest re-issue of the kit which was molded in white styrene. The kit was originally mastered in 1963 and was one of the more detailed offerings from Revell with opening doors and trunk, posable steering and very detailed and realistic chassis and power-train. It even has chrome frames for the inside of the windshield and rear windows. Like many of the Revell kits of the day the parts can be fragile and fiddly. There was a fair amount of flash, seams and other evidence of the molding process so lots of preparation was required. I used the great article on the restored car in Rodder’s Journal #36 for reference.

 

I did make a few changes from a box stock build.

- Replaced the original kit headlights with chromed lenses to those from the newer kit with clear lenses

- Replaced taillights with ones from ’32 5W which look more like the Pontiac units on the real car

- Filled in the cowl hinge area and evened the trailing edge of the hood

- Dechromed the trim and attached it to the body before priming and painting as I did not think I could get it fixed in place without screwing up the paint job. Bare-Metal-Foil was applied after the paint. I noticed neither of the box art models on either the older or the newest releases had side trim.

- Added door jams and made the door handles functional to keep the doors closed

- Filled in the rather large open area in the floor by way of the shifter. The floor was flocked to simulate carpet.

- Added a tachometer to the dash

- Used pins in the steering system to make it fully functional

- Dechromed a number of engine components and used various paints to simulate how the real engine looked. Interesting the styrene under the chrome was dark grey

- Installed a couple of batteries in the trunk for better weight distribution

- Used Tamiya flat white acrylic for the white walls on the front tires

- PAINT – Tamiya TS-58 Pearl Light Blue

- DECALS – The latest re-issue came with a great set of decals including for the interior.  I also have a Fred Cady set which I did not use.

The Back Story – The real car still exists and has been restored except for the unique front end which some other guy owns and is unwilling to part with. The very first SWC Willys had a trailering accident after which the entire body was replaced and combined with all the parts from the first. A complete second Hemi powered car was built to be more competitive with the Mazmanian Willys. This car eventually got a Hemi and after its drag racing career it became a street rod for many years.

 

[Ace-Garageguy]

Nice job.

My favorite car and team from the golden age of gassers.

[cobraman]

Great looking replica.

[magicmustang]

Man, outstanding work.

I remember checking the mail every day in the summer of '63 waiting for my Revell SWC Willys kit from Auto World to arrive.

Any interior pics?

Edited December 15, 2021 by magicmustang

[alan barton]

Phil, your timing is fantastic!  Only last week I threw a coat of white primer on a pair of Drag City SWC bucket seats, in preparation for an "ultimate" build of the Stone Woods and Cook Willys.  So here you are with the fully detailed recipe on exactly how to do it!

I knew it could look this good.  The last time I built one I was in high school, and as I am about to retire in a week's time, that was obviously a long time ago!  The work you have done on this one is exquisite.  I especially like your idea of gluing on the chrome and foiling after - I had grave reservations about how I was going to successfully attach the kit trim to a painted body!  Nice tip on the headlights and tail lights too.  I had already filled the hood hinge but hadn't thought about the shifter hole - that is now on the list.

This is easily the best rendition of this iconic gasser that I have ever seen.  It does justice to a sixty year old tooling.  Thank you for sharing it with us - it is truly a pleasure to study!

Cheers

Alan

[Zippi]

Nice looking Gasser.  Great detail work.  I built the Revell Big John Mazmanian Gasser earlier this year.

[papajohn97]

Fabulous job Phil on transforming this spindly old kit into a masterpiece.  I have this car on my “to do” list and figured I’d use the newer Revell tooled kit but your build is making me re-think it. Thank you for taking the time to describe all the enhancements you did in such detail. Also, that Tamiya light blue Pearl looks like a perfect match for this early SWC willys.

I got to see the restored car at the Price/ Lions museum in Los Angeles last month, an excellent collection of classic drag cars. When I asked the docent what the owner paid for this car, he just shook his head and said “you don’t want to know….it was very very $$$!!!!).

 

[Phildaupho]

8 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Nice job.

My favorite car and team from the golden age of gassers.

Thanks Bill - Glad you like it

6 hours ago, cobraman said:

Great looking replica.

Thanks Ray

5 hours ago, magicmustang said:

Man, outstanding work.

I remember checking the mail every day in the summer of '63 waiting for my Revell SWC Willys kit from Auto World to arrive.

Any interior pics?

Thanks Gerald. My attempt at piping on the seats using a liquid pen looks acceptable to the naked eye but I may try to fix it up using thinly cut self adhesive vinyl.

5 hours ago, alan barton said:

Phil, your timing is fantastic!  Only last week I threw a coat of white primer on a pair of Drag City SWC bucket seats, in preparation for an "ultimate" build of the Stone Woods and Cook Willys.  So here you are with the fully detailed recipe on exactly how to do it!

I knew it could look this good.  The last time I built one I was in high school, and as I am about to retire in a week's time, that was obviously a long time ago!  The work you have done on this one is exquisite.  I especially like your idea of gluing on the chrome and foiling after - I had grave reservations about how I was going to successfully attach the kit trim to a painted body!  Nice tip on the headlights and tail lights too.  I had already filled the hood hinge but hadn't thought about the shifter hole - that is now on the list.

This is easily the best rendition of this iconic gasser that I have ever seen.  It does justice to a sixty year old tooling.  Thank you for sharing it with us - it is truly a pleasure to study!

Cheers

Alan

Thanks Alan - Look forward to seeing your's

5 hours ago, Zippi said:

Nice looking Gasser.  Great detail work.  I built the Revell Big John Mazmanian Gasser earlier this year.

So did I

2 hours ago, papajohn97 said:

Fabulous job Phil on transforming this spindly old kit into a masterpiece.  I have this car on my “to do” list and figured I’d use the newer Revell tooled kit but your build is making me re-think it. Thank you for taking the time to describe all the enhancements you did in such detail. Also, that Tamiya light blue Pearl looks like a perfect match for this early SWC willys.

I got to see the restored car at the Price/ Lions museum in Los Angeles last month, an excellent collection of classic drag cars. When I asked the docent what the owner paid for this car, he just shook his head and said “you don’t want to know….it was very very $$$!!!!).

 

Thanks John for posting the photo of the restored car. 

Ironically the spindly suspension parts in these old Revell kits are some cases truer to scale than similar parts in newer kits.

Edited December 16, 2021 by Phildaupho

[250 Testa Rossa]

I have this kit and plan to kitbash it with the SWC rebox of the Mazmanian Willys. 

[R. Thorne]

Outstanding job and excellent pictures.

[Phildaupho]

12 hours ago, 250 Testa Rossa said:

I have this kit and plan to kitbash it with the SWC rebox of the Mazmanian Willys. 

 

4 hours ago, R. Thorne said:

Outstanding job and excellent pictures.

Thanks Maxx and Ron - Here is one more photo. Great chassis and engine. The frame was a little bent which causes some problems before and after assembly. I did build up the chassis, suspension and steering completely before painting. I think it would be even more difficult to have done it after paint.

[Hmann68]

Very well done! I remember pulling my hair out in frustration as a kid, trying to get this one together halfway decently. Yours looks great 👍 

[Phildaupho]

On 12/16/2021 at 7:33 PM, Hmann68 said:

Very well done! I remember pulling my hair out in frustration as a kid, trying to get this one together halfway decently. Yours looks great 👍 

Thanks Christopher - I can only remember trying one Revell kit as a kid in the 1960's when they were first released. I was used to metal axles and screw on one piece chassis. I never completed the '56 Ford pickup which looked so promising when I opened the box.

Edited December 18, 2021 by Phildaupho

[bogger44]

That is just beautiful, probably the best build of this kit I've seen.  That's an impressive list of changes/add-ons you did, definitely makes it a standout.  Well done!

[PappyD340]

Nice Willys!

[Olskoolrodder]

Really beautiful build, nicely done

[ChrisR]

Look great!

[Phildaupho]

18 hours ago, bogger44 said:

That is just beautiful, probably the best build of this kit I've seen.  That's an impressive list of changes/add-ons you did, definitely makes it a standout.  Well done!

 

17 hours ago, PappyD340 said:

Nice Willys!

 

11 hours ago, Olskoolrodder said:

Really beautiful build, nicely done

 

7 hours ago, ChrisR said:

Look great!

Thanks guys - Yesterday I took the model to show a friend who may not be with us much longer. Back in the sixties he had a 34 Ford Coupe with an Oldsmobile engine which I had previously built a replica model for him. He loved seeing the blown and Olds and it was fun being about to open up the doors and trunk for him to have a better look inside.

[carrucha]

Nice job replicating an iconic drag car.

[chris chabre]

looks great!

[Phildaupho]

On 12/18/2021 at 3:52 PM, carrucha said:

Nice job replicating an iconic drag car.

 

On 12/18/2021 at 4:00 PM, chris chabre said:

looks great!

Thanks guys. I was very surprised when my wife bought a figurine at the thrift store to add to her fairy door display and it included a 41 Willy !!

[Dave Armstrong]

I love Willys, and this is fine looking work!

[Phildaupho]

11 hours ago, Dave Armstrong said:

I love Willys, and this is fine looking work!

Thanks Dave - Something I did not pick up on until I posed the SWC with my Mazmanian Willys is that the engine sat low in the Mazmanian Willys so the scoop did not protrude enough through the hood opening. I have noticed this on other builds of the more recent kit. Once noticed I had to install spacers between the injectors and scoop. I think the comparison looks a lot better now, although the windshield area on the SWC now looks too small but I am not going to fix that !!

[TransAmMike]

Beautiful Phil, the pic of the 2 famous gassers is fantastic!!!   You get 2 thumbs up for this one😃  👍👍

[5500]

One of the nicest builds of this kit ever!  Enjoyed reading your commentary about the original kit.  I remember when this kit was released and was blown away by the level of detail.  Unfortunately, my childhood skills were not enough to ever build one without major calamities.  Everything about your build presses the right buttons... especially like the color.  Very nice!