Steve Geer Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 (edited) A teenager and his first car. The blurry Polaroid below, taken in 1968, shows me standing next to possibly the best $150.00 I ever spent — a decaying 1960 Corvair 500. I called it freedom on wheels . . . and life was grand! Fast forward 54 years . . . I got an urge to replicate it in miniature, so in February I bought the first of three (3) eBay glue-bombs/wrecks toward that end. It took two more original-build junkers to accumulate enough salvageable parts to make a complete model but I think the result came out decently. The model was a pretty straightforward (re)build, and once I had enough good components, recreating my Corvair in scale really wasn’t tough. The ancient SMP (AMT) ’60 Corvair kit is generally accurate and pretty well molded but it represents Chevrolet’s upscale model ‘700’ version . . . so some mods were needed to downgrade it to the base model I owned — most notably removing the belt-line trim molding and sanding down the seats and door panels to eliminate the engraving patterns of the dressed-up variant. Since all Corvairs of that era had a fold-down rear seat that made a flat cargo deck extending back to the engine compartment, I removed the model’s package tray and created a recessed parcel well under the rear window. I added a few visible amenities that I equipped my Corvair with over time. A second set of taillights (from a junkyard wreck) covered by some flat, clear red, plastic lenses I cast in a high-school arts class. All the Chevrolet & Corvair emblems were removed except the winged insignia between the headlights. The original Corvair’s interior was refreshed with a new set of seat covers in a faux-tweed vinyl which I duplicated with some homemade patterned decals. A couple styrene blocks represent the added-on arm-rests I also grabbed from the junkyard donor. And, finally (at the urging {insistence?} of my dad) the Corvair received a set of aftermarket seat belts which I duplicated on the model. The paint is Dupli-Color Universal Black over wet-sanded Tamiya gray primer with a light Novus polishing. Dashboard gauge & radio faces came from Best Model Car Parts. The best set of windows was buffed out and dipped in Future (or whatever you call that stuff now) and the whitewall tire stripes were created with a Gelly Roll paint pen. The bumpers were refurbished with BMF in places and the antenna was made from guitar string; the exhaust pipe from bent and flattened aluminum tubing and some undercarriage detail was picked out with paint pens and a bit of dry-brushing. Everything else is 60+ year old AMT kit parts. So, was my Corvair unsafe at any speed? Maybe; maybe not. All I remember is that the car and I both went a lot further in the late Sixties than anyone thought we should have. Thanks for looking! – Comments and questions welcome. Edited June 3, 2022 by Steve Geer duplicate picture removed 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 Very cool! I’m a sucker for personal history. It’s great to see your old car slowly appear on your work bench! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim B Posted June 3, 2022 Share Posted June 3, 2022 Great looking Corvair. Well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ea0863 Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 What a 3-way winning project! First, you enjoyed some wonderful nostalgia. Second, you saved an old model from the junk heap. And third, you built a beauty you can be proud of (I particularly liked the interior you did). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobraman Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Well done ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger U Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Very nice ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lobo2me Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Lots of memories and proud moments I'm sure. Well done, great looking model! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbowser Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 I love it! My first car was a '66 Monza, great little ride. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bondo bill Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 very kool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsummone Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Very nice ride. I am in the process of building my first cars and it’s been very rewarding. I wish I had pics of the 1:1s but I couldn’t afford a camera back then, barely had enough money for gas. Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charger74 Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Very well done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spottedlaurel Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Realy nicely done, and great to read your story behind the inspiration for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom99 Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Nice!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TNT Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Too cool. Great job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espo Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Beautiful looking paint on this and I enjoyed your background story. I have built a few models of previous cars and trucks I have had and always found it very enjoyable as well. Nice that you were able to find all the parts you needed for this build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ATHU Posted June 4, 2022 Share Posted June 4, 2022 Super nice build!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Geer Posted June 5, 2022 Author Share Posted June 5, 2022 On 6/3/2022 at 7:18 PM, Tom Geiger said: Very cool! I’m a sucker for personal history. It’s great to see your old car slowly appear on your work bench! Thank you Tom - that's gratifying. Yeah, it was surprisingly enjoyable to see a little history come to life as I built it and I sort of took a page out of your book with the extra personal details to coincide with the build. On 6/3/2022 at 7:21 PM, Jim B said: Great looking Corvair. Well done. Thanks Jim. Appreciate it. 23 hours ago, ea0863 said: What a 3-way winning project! First, you enjoyed some wonderful nostalgia. Second, you saved an old model from the junk heap. And third, you built a beauty you can be proud of (I particularly liked the interior you did). Thank you Emre . . . there's a bit of nostalgia underlying everything I build but nothing quite so personal as this one. It did turn out pretty well and I appreciate the kind comments. 22 hours ago, cobraman said: Well done ! Thank you Ray. Lots I admire about your work and I appreciate you noticing mine. 22 hours ago, Roger U said: Very nice ! Thanks Roger 22 hours ago, Lobo2me said: Lots of memories and proud moments I'm sure. Well done, great looking model! Yeah, Steve . . . It was a fun voyage on the old S.S. Nostalgia for sure and thank you for the kind comments. 21 hours ago, bbowser said: I love it! My first car was a '66 Monza, great little ride. Thank you Bruce -- Glad you like it. That car wasn't much of a performer, but it gave me a lifelong appreciation for Corvairs and I still love the Gen 2 models like your '66. They were lots more potent. 20 hours ago, bondo bill said: very kool Thank you Bill - appreciate the thought. 20 hours ago, dsummone said: Very nice ride. I am in the process of building my first cars and it’s been very rewarding. I wish I had pics of the 1:1s but I couldn’t afford a camera back then, barely had enough money for gas. Dave. Thanks for the compliment Dave. I tore through a lot of cars over the years and, like you, almost no pictures to commemorate them . . . but even without visual evidence, those rides were still important. Keep on buildin' models of them old beasts, even if you're the only one who recognizes them. 20 hours ago, charger74 said: Very well done Thanks Eric! 18 hours ago, Spottedlaurel said: Realy nicely done, and great to read your story behind the inspiration for it. If it didn't have the personal history, it's doubtful I'd have ever built an old Corvair just for fun. Thank for the kind words Nigel. Glad you enjoyed the narrative. 7 hours ago, ChrisR said: Nice! 12 hours ago, Tom99 said: Nice!! 7 hours ago, TNT said: Too cool. Great job. Appreciate the kind words gentlemen. Thank you! 7 hours ago, espo said: Beautiful looking paint on this and I enjoyed your background story. I have built a few models of previous cars and trucks I have had and always found it very enjoyable as well. Nice that you were able to find all the parts you needed for this build. Thanks for the nice comments, David -- I appreciate it. As I said earlier on, the stories and history are about the only reason I'd model certain cars, especially ones that hard to find. eBay to the rescue, again (LOL). 4 hours ago, ATHU said: Super nice build!! Thank you Anders -- appreciate the kind thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grodudulle77 Posted June 5, 2022 Share Posted June 5, 2022 Nice build !! 👍😀 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PappyD340 Posted June 5, 2022 Share Posted June 5, 2022 Super nice replica! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carrucha Posted June 5, 2022 Share Posted June 5, 2022 Nice build. Cool that you are able to build a scale replica of your car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zippi Posted June 6, 2022 Share Posted June 6, 2022 Very nice build. My father in-law use to love the VW and the Corvair. Always plenty around. Nice job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drodg Posted June 7, 2022 Share Posted June 7, 2022 Fun. Great build Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Geer Posted June 7, 2022 Author Share Posted June 7, 2022 On 6/5/2022 at 12:49 AM, grodudulle77 said: Nice build !! 👍😀 On 6/5/2022 at 6:39 AM, PappyD340 said: Super nice replica! On 6/5/2022 at 3:37 PM, carrucha said: Nice build. Cool that you are able to build a scale replica of your car. 17 hours ago, Zippi said: Very nice build. My father in-law use to love the VW and the Corvair. Always plenty around. Nice job. 3 hours ago, drodg said: Fun. Great build Thank you for the kind compliments gentlemen . . . I appreciate the interest and responses. Haven't posted a lot of completions lately since many of my projects keep getting stalled but nostalgia sort of drove the Corvair to almost finish itself. Have 3 more cars from my past underway -- hope you'll also like the next ones also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragonhawk1066 Posted June 7, 2022 Share Posted June 7, 2022 Nice work, and a pretty cool story! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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