Lindberg Ford Roadster Pickup: Project Silk Purse

[Dave Darby]

You've all probably heard the adage "making a silk purse out of a sow's ear"... That is what I am going to do here. For those of you who have a copy of Model Cars number 217, there's a bit of a preview of this build in the Vintage Workbench column. The Lindberg Roadster Pickup is not most people's choice for a build, but not only is it a good source for restoration parts for older AMT kits, it also has a good bit of potential of its own.

Here is an initial mockup, with some different rolling stock, and a sidepipe from an AMT 57 Ford...

Not terribly bad. We'll trim those pipes a bit later...

As mentioned in the article, the 392 Hemi in the Lindberg kit is very close copy of the one in the the AMT 32 Roadster kit. Just for fun..

Those quads are just for giggles. One thing pretty apparent is how the radiator shell looks rather over inflated. We could swap for an AMT shell, but I have another idea.

With a little sanding around the edges, the custom grille from the AMT 34 Ford pickup fits pretty nicely.

The kit headlights sit pretty high on the fenders, so we'll fill those gaping holes with some plastic rod and drill some new ones.

Much better.

Here is another glaring issue with this kit. Those huge gaps between the top and the body.

I cut these sections out and borrowed some from an AMT 29 Model A Roadster.

A little sanding and... Much better. You can also see my first draft of a bed tarp, which I later replaced with a more refined, better fitting one.

Here I've narrowed the custom rear roll pan from an AMT 53 Ford Pickup. That tailgate area sure looks flat, doesn't it? We'll get to that. Note those trim lines on the back...

With the marked section cut out, the tailgate from the AMT 34 Ford Pickup is a perfect fit.

Probably about time to get some axles under this thing. I trimmed down a front axle from an AMT 32 Roadster, This may or may not be permanent.

I cut a notch in the crossmember to move the axle forward a bit. It was also necessary to clearance the bottom of the radiator shell a little bit to allow the axle to move forward.

More to come...

 

Edited July 30, 2023 by Dave Darby
Fix broken image links.

[Ace-Garageguy]

Always good to see somebody building something cool from an old and much maligned kit. She's looking great.   

[Can-Con]

This is definitely making me rethink this kit. 

The box art build really hides the potential of the kit

[Joe Nunes]

Will be watching and enjoying this build. You have a real nice start going here. ?

Joe

[Dave Van]

That is looking good......I like working with these old kits into something decent........my version of the same kit!

 

[bobthehobbyguy]

Nice start. Looking forward to seeing what other improvements you do.

[Dave Darby]

Moving around to the rear suspension, I'm utilizing an AMT 29 Model rear crossmember, and the rear suspension from the 25 T Rod version. The driveshaft is too short, so I cut it between the connection at the front of the quick-change housing and the front U-joint housing, and inserted the driveshaft from the Ala Kart rear suspension assembly. I drilled each joint with a #69 bit, and a small section of paper clip provides a nice interference fit, and a strong joint. The pin on the driveshaft locates into the hole I drilled in the center crossmember.

I'll be drilling a couple of holes at the front of the radius rods, and using the ends from a pair of 25 T windshield braces as pivots.  The rest of that old axle mount will be trimmed away.

Let's get back on top of things...

Those spotlight holes needed to go, so I used the same method as I used on the headlamp mounting holes.

Much better.

Here is an overall shot at this stage of progress.

Here we see scribed door lines (the originals are raised - but incredibly easy to scribe, using two layers of 3/4" masking tape as a guide). I cut off the curved out ends of the side pipes, drilled them out, than sanded a beveled "baloney cut" into them. The raw plastic was finished off with some Molotow. You can also see the new tonneau cover, which is longer, and wraps around the cab, giving it a more finished appearance.

In the current Vintage Workbench, I pointed out that the engine block, along with the intake/heads assembly in the Lindberg kit are straight from the AMT 32 Roadster kit. Great for restoration and cloning, but we can do better for a more up to date build. I drilled the Lindberg block to match up with the mounting pins for the newer post 1964 32 Roadster heads, with the intake from the Ala Kart Hemi, and rocker covers from the Monogram Predicta. (These are probably the best plated stock Chrysler Hemi rocker covers ever. This is before I trimmed the pins on the bottom and moved them higher on the heads.

After this, I made a new full length firewall from a piece of disposable aluminum baking pan, and polished it up. I whittled the kit headlight mounts down a bit, and switched the lights from side to side, mounting them in the new holes I drilled lower on the fenders. Reflectors are the custom Lucas Flamethrowers from the 55 Nomad kit. I'm hoping with the kit bezels and the lenses, the headlights will come together as planned. This is where we are at currently, although the axle housings and engine have been painted gold, awaiting the rain to quit so they can get a second coat of clear, Paint for this one will likely be a light lavender pearl, with a white corduroy interior. But I still have a couple more ideas to try before that happens. Stay tuned.

 

Edited August 31, 2023 by Dave Darby
Spelling error

[iBorg]

I had one of these and saw potential. I also saw to make it right would require a bunch of work. I appreciate your effrots.

[Dennis Lacy]

I have always turned my nose up at this kit, labeling it as total garbage. This project just goes to show that it does have serious potential in the right hands. This is awesome, Dave! 
 

And, I don’t know if you’ve considered it but I think this would look killer painted white with the gold drivetrain, chrome and whitewalls. Just a thought…

[Dave Darby]

3 hours ago, Dennis Lacy said:

I have always turned my nose up at this kit, labeling it as total garbage. This project just goes to show that it does have serious potential in the right hands. This is awesome, Dave! 
 

And, I don’t know if you’ve considered it but I think this would look killer painted white with the gold drivetrain, chrome and whitewalls. Just a thought…

I like that idea, but my wife nixed it because... This...

[larman]

That's very Kool! Everything you have done works perfectly together!

[Spex84]

Wow! You're really shaving the ugly off this kit. Fantastic results!

It's "easy", really: just replace nearly everything! ??
Might I humbly suggest that the windshield frame be the next object of your attention? Specifically, the thickness, rough plating, and molded-in mirror?

 

[Mr. Metallic]

2 hours ago, Spex84 said:

Wow! You're really shaving the ugly off this kit. Fantastic results!

It's "easy", really: just replace nearly everything! ??
Might I humbly suggest that the windshield frame be the next object of your attention? Specifically, the thickness, rough plating, and molded-in mirror?

 

Alright Dave, I may have missed it, but what are you up to with the windshield. there's definitely two different ones floating around your bench

 

[Dave Darby]

2 hours ago, Mr. Metallic said:

Alright Dave, I may have missed it, but what are you up to with the windshield. there's definitely two different ones floating around your bench

 

Yep. I'm not a big fan of the kit windshield either, so I tried using the windshield from the Lindberg "32 Ford Hot Rod". Alas that didn't fit too well, and the cowl is too wide for an AMT windshield. So for now, it's the kit windshield. That is, however, very much subject to change. I may have to make a frame.

[Dennis Lacy]

3 hours ago, Dave Darby said:

Yep. I'm not a big fan of the kit windshield either, so I tried using the windshield from the Lindberg "32 Ford Hot Rod". Alas that didn't fit too well, and the cowl is too wide for an AMT windshield. So for now, it's the kit windshield. That is, however, very much subject to change. I may have to make a frame.

How about trying an AMT ‘36 Roadster windshield frame? 

[Dave Darby]

1 hour ago, Dennis Lacy said:

How about trying an AMT ‘36 Roadster windshield frame? 

That's a thought. Or the Monogram 32.

[OldNYJim]

Wow!  This is a GREAT start!  Looks amazing so far…like others have said, nice job on not-the-best kit!!

Makes me wanna build one just like it!!

[NOBLNG]

Nice work on the silk purse Dave! I was going to suggest that you could likely build a windshield frame, but I see you’ve already considered that possibility. Good luck with her.?

[Spex84]

On 1/18/2023 at 3:29 PM, Dave Darby said:

Yep. I'm not a big fan of the kit windshield either, so I tried using the windshield from the Lindberg "32 Ford Hot Rod". Alas that didn't fit too well, and the cowl is too wide for an AMT windshield. So for now, it's the kit windshield. That is, however, very much subject to change. I may have to make a frame.

Lol, I didn't even notice you'd tried an alternative!! I was too distracted by the other cool stuff. The original isn't terrible, it's just that I have one of these kits myself and the windshield frame has always bugged me, but I could never figure out exactly why.
Maybe you could shave down the sides and add new stanchions with a little improved detail, and a re-angled mirror!

[1930fordpickup]

This is looking better and better. 

As far as the windshield frame, the bottom is the biggest problem to my eye. The bottom contour just needs some of Dave's magic touch , and maybe some of thos paperclip pins for mounting 

[Dave Darby]

Not a lot to report here, but I did get some white corduroy (can you say "old school"?) for the interior and running boards. I test sprayed a spoon the other day with some cheap purple pearl acrylic. I think it was A. Too cold out, and B. A bit too thinned. I'll shoot a spoon again on a warmer day, and bury it in clear.  Also tried out some Tamiya transparent yellow on a center hub a la Ala Kart. I think I like it. Oh, and I got some gold on the engine. 

Edited January 27, 2023 by Dave Darby

[tim boyd]

Dave.....great and inspirational project so far.  And that lavender pearl flat out rocks in my view.  TIM 

[Dave Darby]

Thanks Tim! I'm hoping to eke out a little more time to work on this one soon. 

[OldNYJim]

On 1/26/2023 at 11:23 PM, Dave Darby said:

Not a lot to report here, but I did get some white corduroy (can you say "old school"?) for the interior and running boards. I test sprayed a spoon the other day with some cheap purple pearl acrylic. I think it was A. Too cold out, and B. A bit too thinned. I'll shoot a spoon again on a warmer day, and bury it in clear.  Also tried out some Tamiya transparent yellow on a center hub a la Ala Kart. I think I like it. Oh, and I got some gold on the engine. 

I LOVE that color Dave!  Do you recall who makes that acrylic?

[Dave Darby]

23 hours ago, CabDriver said:

I LOVE that color Dave!  Do you recall who makes that acrylic?

It's a cheap acrylic from Walmart.