Moebius '61 Pontiac Ventura

[rightrudder]

Hi guys,

Just picked up this kit today at the local hobby emporium. I've never built a Moebius kit, and I have to say I'm impressed so far!

Sooo many things are cool about the Ventura. Wonderful wheels with those fluted "turbine" center sections, interesting shapes to the pillars of the bubble top, the way the tops of the twin front grilles curve inward, etc. It's kind of an odd duck from some angles, but I like its quirkiness.

Will go black for the exterior and try for as glossy a finish as possible. Stock interior color schemes are way too busy for my taste, so I'll do something similar to factory approach with colors that contrast a little less. And I can't stand the awful powder blue of the engine, so that'll change as well. Purists, avert your eyes!!

Parts are molded in a light tan color, and the parts count is higher than typical AMT...for instance, each wheel is comprised of five different parts, including chromed hubcaps and beauty rings. I like this as it's more conducive to adding detail. Frame and chassis tub are separate pieces, and everything locates very positively with slots, tabs and pins. Awesome set of proper wide whitewalls included too.

Instruction sheet is more like a folded up poster, printed on heavy stock. Lots of great paint color info on full-size car here, including the Ditzler code numbers.

Should be fun! Here's a bunch of stuff that comes in the kit:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rightrudder]

One more photo:

 

[rrb124@sbcglobal.net]

Cool as heck. I have had this kit for a long time and have not started it yet. Agree on the changes you plan to make. Making it your own!

[MrObsessive]

That is a neat kit from Moebius, and it's definitely on my to-do lists of WIP's. You might want to take a look at a thread I started years ago, where I zeroed in on a building issue I could see happening. It could save you some trouble when you get to these points in your build.

You can check out my thread below..........

 

[TransAmMike]

Great looking Pontiac.  Thats crazy how detailed the 8-lug wheels are, just like the real ones.  Good luck, I'll be watching.

[rightrudder]

Thanks for the encouragement, guys!

Bill, I will read every word in your thread with great interest...thank you for posting that. It's so helpful to see the problems others have encountered and potential solutions. 

[rightrudder]

Bill, I scanned through your thread and it is incredibly helpful. It really got contentious at the end! I like the challenge of trying to improve various pieces, and I don't hold it against the manufacturer if there are shortcomings here and there. Making this stuff right is fun and challenging!

I don't know if I have the skills to really correct the wheels like you did, but I have been wanting to get a small lathe or some such for a while, and the challenge of thinning down those flanges may be the impetus for the purchase. I will definitely take plenty of time to make the glass fit, as glass sticking out above the roofline is a flaw that I couldn't stomach in the finished model.

I really enjoy the process of gathering reference photos for a particular model, and a pic of a Pontiac 8-lug wheel will be front and center. ?

 

[Bronzekeg]

good luck with the build, a beautiful car and I will be following.

[slusher]

Looking forward to following your build! My dad bought a 68 Catalina new..

Edited February 26, 2022 by slusher

[ChrisBcritter]

3 hours ago, rightrudder said:

I really enjoy the process of gathering reference photos for a particular model, and a pic of a Pontiac 8-lug wheel will be front and center. 

Here you go:

[MrObsessive]

5 hours ago, rightrudder said:

Bill, I scanned through your thread and it is incredibly helpful. It really got contentious at the end! I like the challenge of trying to improve various pieces, and I don't hold it against the manufacturer if there are shortcomings here and there. Making this stuff right is fun and challenging!

I don't know if I have the skills to really correct the wheels like you did, but I have been wanting to get a small lathe or some such for a while, and the challenge of thinning down those flanges may be the impetus for the purchase. I will definitely take plenty of time to make the glass fit, as glass sticking out above the roofline is a flaw that I couldn't stomach in the finished model.

I really enjoy the process of gathering reference photos for a particular model, and a pic of a Pontiac 8-lug wheel will be front and center. ?

 

Yeah, there just had to be that killjoy that came in and left a turd in the pool for all to see. ?

I'm glad it was of help, and I have a bunch of '61 Pontiac pics including a lot of engine and chassis shots. I'm going to have another big project after I finish my Shelby Green Hornet, but after that one's done, I'd like to get the Pontiac going. I saw this kit in its original test shot form at a show, and was really excited to see it finally come out.

Now I hope to get mine actually built and done sometime.

[Zoom Zoom]

Bill's input helped a lot on my build of the first issue Ventura; though mine was painted before I saw Bill's excellent tips on how to correct the window and wheel fit; I had no idea about the glass fit before I painted it as I was trying to build it in a short timeframe. Oops! I didn't need a lathe at all to fix the wheels; just used a Dremel (and ended up with the best looking 8-lugs in scale I've ever seen), and I had to learn the hard way at the very end how to get the front bumper/grille/hood to all fit properly. Aside from glass, front bumper and fixing the 8-lugs the rest of the kit was a breeze and it looks amazing built. I have a Catalina in the stash that's already had the window installation fix long before painting, and Moebius tweaked the tooling a bit on the grille as time went on.

[espo]

The Moebius kits are well worth the premium price. I also took advantage of the information that Bill was so kind to post on his build. The suggestions went a long way to help overcome the issues with this kit. The only suggestion I might offer is to check your clearances between the back side of the grill and the radiator core support.  I have this and the Catalina kit waiting for my attention. Look forward to following your build here. 

[rightrudder]

Wonderful comments, guys. It's threads like these that really add to the fun of the build, and all your tips will go a long way toward lowering the frustration level.

Bill, you're so right. That guy was the proverbial skunk at the garden party. There's one on every forum! I will definitely check out your Green Hornet today.

Christopher, you nailed it...thanks for the pic!

I went with "Gumby Green" (Tamiya Park Green) for the engine...I had juuuust enough left in the can from the Impala build. I figure the Chieftains used green paint here, so not completely out of the Pontiac universe. Got the holes drilled for the plug wires.

Also fiddling with interior paint colors. Leaning toward the "Black & Tan" look. Here's some test splotches, photo doesn't really do it justice. The colors are straight up Tamiya Flat Earth acrylic, and a 50:50 mix of Flat Earth and Titan Gold. Have to give props to JollySipper for inspiration, when I saw how cool his T-Bird turned out with gold and brown hues. This interior really calls out for a little metallic sparkle, but I'll mute it with some matte clear. Topmost center pleat on seatbacks might be flat silver, but I haven't quite decided.

One thing that bugs me on the steering wheel is the too-pronounced difference in rim thickness from the clear to painted sections, so I'll sand that down so it doesn't look so chunky.

 

 

 

[rightrudder]

It's the little things...

Really crisply molded manifolds. And look how they attach to the sprue, so you're not carving/sanding off the excess in a place where it shows, and it minimizes paint retouching. Also, I like the attachments for the chrome valve covers, at top and bottom. When you look at an engine sitting in the compartment, the forward ends are really prominent, and when you have to touch up here it's far more noticeable.

 

[rightrudder]

Still have to paint the gearbox (aka the "handle" ?) but the engine's done. I weathered the exhaust a little and put some panel line wash on the intake manifolds and heads. It's not indicated in the instructions, but the three little air cleaners are included for the carbs, although everywhere else it shows the big round air cleaner.

The great thing about close-up photos is that I always find areas that I missed or need touching up, like the inside of the fan belt!

 

 

[rightrudder]

 

The unused (for me) front bench makes a nice testbed for colors. I did a quickie brush paint to see how it looks. I think the outboard bolsters need to go a shade darker, and I'm not sold on the silver at top, so experimentation continues. Maybe black to match exterior, with gold emblem?

 

 

Edited February 28, 2022 by rightrudder

[slusher]

I like the interior colors..

[rightrudder]

Thank you, Carl. The more I look at it, the more I like these colors. The flat aluminum will look a lot better when it's evenly airbrushed on, and just a slightly darker brown for the outboard sections will give the contrast I'm looking for. Later today, I think I'll do the other side in final form, with the matte clear, just to get a real sense of it.

My dad's '59 Ford Galaxie Skyliner had brown Naugahyde seats, and this makes me think of him.

 

[espo]

You're moving right along on this build. I also like the slight color contrast on your seat colors. A thought on the silver portion. A couple of colors to consider are Tamiya X-32 Titanium Silver and the darker XF-56 Metallic Grey. These are both brush bottles but can be also bought as a spray can. They also work well on engine and chassis detailing. Have you decided on a body color yet? 

[rightrudder]

Thanks, David. Yes, I have both those Tamiya colors in bottles and use them a lot. I tried out the top inner pleat in black and didn't like the effect, so the Titanium Silver is certainly in the running...good suggestion!

Should have my second crack at the "test seat" done soon.

Exterior color is black. I've never done this on a model, but with recent practice on other kits I feel I can get it shiny enough to do the Ventura justice.

[rightrudder]

I love that these acrylics dry so fast...you can mask things up quickly!

Here's the result of the new test; I really like it! Top pleat is straight Titan Gold; lower center section is 50:50 Titan Gold/Flat Earth; and darker brown is Flat Earth with a little bit of Brown mixed in (maybe 10:1 ratio). To my eye it all has enough contrast, and the gold goes great with the black exterior. I don't think it needs any matte clear, as the gold is not obnoxious.

 

[rightrudder]

Disregard earlier post about shaving those interior floor ribs to mount the front buckets....they're OK as is. I wish the seats would locate more positively, but after fiddling with them, they do sit level. I edited earlier post to remove the error.

[espo]

The seats color and finish look great. 

[rightrudder]

2 hours ago, espo said:

The seats color and finish look great. 

Thanks! Chassis is underway for a change of pace.