70s Era Asphalt Modified

[Straightliner59]

Those iridescent numbers are SO '70s! Perfect! 

[Pierre Rivard]

I just caught up to your build. WOW!

I love the detailing, the finished, funky 70's colors and the way you have finished all the metalized parts.

Thanks for sharing, this is inspiring work.

[dwc43]

9 hours ago, CabDriver said:

 

 

Just so you know, for future builds, fuel lines and vents and roll over valves are mounted on top of the fuel cell. Some pickups have floaters which look like wings on the fuel pick up and it floats on the fuel to keep the pickup covered. Some cells have dams on the right side that holds fuel so it won't uncover the pickup and most pickups are in the RR of the cell too. On that pic I sent you, the left side has a washable steel screen filter in it on that leads to an electric fuel pump which is illegal on circle track cars. It won't shut off when the engine dies, so it can start a fire. On the right side you see a rollover valve with a vent hose. Most of those should go straight up and have an S or a line looped to prevent fuel and dirt from getting to each other. The filler is the red cap in the middle. Most of those can be changed out to allow for a filler tube, think nascar type cells. Hope that helps. Great build too. 

[OldNYJim]

20 hours ago, Straightliner59 said:

Those iridescent numbers are SO '70s! Perfect! 

Right?  I knew I wanted those right from the get-go!  Fun to use some materials I don’t always get to use on a build!

14 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said:

I just caught up to your build. WOW!

I love the detailing, the finished, funky 70's colors and the way you have finished all the metalized parts.

Thanks for sharing, this is inspiring work.

Thank you Pierre!

13 hours ago, dwc43 said:

Just so you know, for future builds, fuel lines and vents and roll over valves are mounted on top of the fuel cell. Some pickups have floaters which look like wings on the fuel pick up and it floats on the fuel to keep the pickup covered. Some cells have dams on the right side that holds fuel so it won't uncover the pickup and most pickups are in the RR of the cell too. On that pic I sent you, the left side has a washable steel screen filter in it on that leads to an electric fuel pump which is illegal on circle track cars. It won't shut off when the engine dies, so it can start a fire. On the right side you see a rollover valve with a vent hose. Most of those should go straight up and have an S or a line looped to prevent fuel and dirt from getting to each other. The filler is the red cap in the middle. Most of those can be changed out to allow for a filler tube, think nascar type cells. Hope that helps. Great build too. 

That’s super helpful - thank you!  Good reference pics for these older racecar a are hard to find, so info like that is GOLD!  I did find a reference pic where it looked like the fuel lines disappeared under the tank but it didn’t show the underside so I was kinda guessing…that’s some good info for the next one!  Thanks so much!

Tiny update, as I’m replying anyway - did a little work on the base this evening.  I wanted a compact little stand that JUST fit the car, I wasn’t looking to make a big diorama out of this…printed some concrete barriers somewhat reminiscent of one of the little tracks I remember as a kid, used some self-adhesive cork sheet for the asphalt and the base is just a cheapo wooden one:

As you can see, the car is pretty much as big as the base - I was kinda thinking of the kind of image where something looks like it’s bursting out of the frame:

And the two combined:

Once the paint is dry on all the parts I can assemble the base and then start the fun part - weathering it!

Thanks for looking - more soon, soon as I’ve done more!

[dwc43]

Looking good. Can't wait to see the finished product. And welcome on the info. I've been around race cars since I was a kid. I like to help out cause almost everyone want their creation to be as accurate and real looking as possible. I hate to offer sometimes because I don't want to make someone mad or make them think I hate it or something like that. And your right, it's hard to find good pics of certain subjects for reference. 

[Bainford]

Jim, that is really looking the business. Loving everything about it.

[horsepower]

On 5/15/2023 at 5:58 AM, dwc43 said:

Just so you know, for future builds, fuel lines and vents and roll over valves are mounted on top of the fuel cell. Some pickups have floaters which look like wings on the fuel pick up and it floats on the fuel to keep the pickup covered. Some cells have dams on the right side that holds fuel so it won't uncover the pickup and most pickups are in the RR of the cell too. On that pic I sent you, the left side has a washable steel screen filter in it on that leads to an electric fuel pump which is illegal on circle track cars. It won't shut off when the engine dies, so it can start a fire. On the right side you see a rollover valve with a vent hose. Most of those should go straight up and have an S or a line looped to prevent fuel and dirt from getting to each other. The filler is the red cap in the middle. Most of those can be changed out to allow for a filler tube, think nascar type cells. Hope that helps. Great build too. 

 

Those little "wings" on the pick ups are actually pieces of plate that sit flat on the bottom of the fuel cell and the wings are shaped to perfectly fit in the corner of the cell and it spaces the pick up just off the bottom of the cell and right in (usually the right rear) corner of the cell and its weight along with the weight of the foam in the cell keeps it in the right position so it should be really hard to get it uncovered, plus some build a small can like shape with a trap door that will allow fuel to flow in but will close keeping it there for a little reserve.

[OldNYJim]

Thanks for the nice comments, and useful info fellas…noting a bunch of stuff into my brain for future builds - thank you!

 

We had guests in town for the last three weeks, so I had little sporadic 10-minute periods of time at the bench to get this thing wrapped up for the last few weeks.  Most of what had to be done was simple assembly, so I didn’t take a bunch of pics, besides some interior shots before I got the body glued in place:

And some weathering on the base to make it look a little less fancy and new looking:

And then it was just a case of finishing assembly and doing some light weathering to the finished build: 

And a shot of it with the last one of these I built…I always kinda feel like I should build a couple of each type of race car I build, so that they each have someone to race ??

 

Thanks for following along, and for all the helpful comments…I’ll definitely be building more of these so I appreciate all the pointers!

[Straightliner59]

Looks just like it ought to. Nice work, Jim!

[stinkybritches]

Spectacular work as usual, Jim.

[dwc43]

Great looking cars.

[Rattlecan Dan]

It's gorgeous in every aspect. Beautiful workmanship and attention to detail. Wrapped up in an incredible paint job. Would like to see one shot of it with the hood on. The two together is a great shot.

[Bainford]

That's just the bee's knees, Jim. Your efforts have paid off. This build evokes everything it should about period modifieds. I just love this build. 

[Rattlecan Dan]

Jim, in my humble opinion: It sure does belong in the Under Glass (finished) Nascar section of the Forum. Showroom material for sure!

[bytownshaker]

Looks fantastic !!!! love that era of modifies. 

[dust collectors]

On 4/1/2023 at 11:35 PM, CabDriver said:

A couple of years back I built the evergreen MPC Rat Trap Vega, then last year entered it in a local show and it won best oval car:

The prize was…another of the same kit ?

And the condition was, build it and bring it back next year and enter again.  Deal! I doubt I’ll get away with another box-stock build with some light detailing though, so for this year’s entry I decided to see how far I could detail up one of these fairly-simple kits and really bring it to life - kinda like those amazing full-detail NASCAR builds done by people I admire like Clay Kemp and the late Dave Thibodeau.

First step in the manual is tires (why do NASCAR guys often start with the tires?!) and I wanted to switch out the treaded kit ones for a set of slicks.  I COULD print some, but the aftermarket has plenty of options so I ordered a set that I suspect are designed specifically for this line of MPC kits.  They slide right on the wheels like a glove!

These are actually injection molded rather than resin, and they come with waterslide tire lettering which is a big bonus in adding some detail.  So, how much detail can we add to a tire,  whilst I pondered that, I spent an hour or so cleaning up the mold lines, rounding off the edges and sanding some flats on the bottom to make them appear as though some weight is squishing them a little.

Kit tire on the left, new replacement tire center, sanded and prepped tire right:

I then shot the tires with a coat of Createx base (which is a translucent clear, almost like a primer) that allows better paint adhesion to tough-to-paint surfaces and tomorrow I can hit them with some airbrushing to add some realism.

Next step: the wheels - what can we do to THOSE to add some detail and realism?  Well, first thing that struck me was the lugnut detail is kinda soft and uninspiring, so I drilled them out…

…and 3D printed a whole bunch of replacements…

…and now I have separate pieces that I can paint more easily and that look a little better I think:

Tomorrow’s job on the wheels will be making some balancing weights and valve stems and playing with those tires some more.

This is gonna be a fairly deep dive into a bunch of probably boring little details (like sanding tires and making lugnuts) so if you’re not into that - apologies for being boring ?. 

More soon, soon as I’ve done more!

These little details make a world of difference!

[bobss396]

Very nice build. I finished one early this year, got way too carried away. I have to post some pictures of it.

I relocated the engine back, cut out the X cross member and moved that too. I ditched the coil overs and made my own, again, way out of hand. I didn't like how the body sides curled at the bottom, made taking the body off and on a chore. I cut the sides at the door handle level, grafted on straighter-sides from a Craftsman truck kit.

[COPO]

Just finished this. Came out ok it is a original MPC kit. Decals were no good due to age so I got new ones. 

[bobss396]

On 2/11/2024 at 5:18 PM, COPO said:

Just finished this. Came out ok it is a original MPC kit. Decals were no good due to age so I got new ones. 

That came out great. I have a love-hate relationship with these kits and cannot let well-enough alone. Worst aspects of the kit are the roll cage, the headers and their relation to the side cars. The coilovers are rudimentary as well. I made up a roll cage plate, so I can scratch build one without much pain. On the Vega and Pinto, I add a little to the header tubes so they clear the body better. I make my own coilover shocks. The latest Pinto I have going I added disc brakes to it.

[horsepower]

On 4/4/2023 at 8:19 PM, CabDriver said:

Happy Tuesday y’all!  A little more progress…and if it seems like I’m kinda skipping all over the place, it’s because I kinda am - but it makes sense in my head.  

3d printed the brake drums this evening - had to modify the file I was using to accommodate the square mounting pegs on the kit axle, but no biggie - and they fit like a glove.  A slightly loose glove, but that’ll change once there’s a few layers of paint and primer on there…

I’ll detail these parts up some more, but I’ve got a good solid starting point now…

Whilst I was printing some stuff I tried my track rod ends again and tried a new trick…by mounting them on pins for the curing I can make sure the holes are nice and clean and opened up fully whilst the resin is still a little pliable and sticky, and then when they’re cured the holes don’t shrink down to being unusable.  Seems to have worked great, and I’m pleased I’ll be able to use some of these on the build to add a little detail:

Not that you can see them in that clear resin very well, but they should look good with some paint anyway ?

Whilst the printer was running I dug through my stash for a better engine to use than the MPC big block in the kit.  It’s not TERRIBLE…but this Revell version is nicer.  Kit part at the back, Revell at the front:

I’ll be using the MPC intake manifold and valve covers, plus a couple of upgrade parts like these machined pulleys, a better carb and one of my printed distributors.  Check out the detail on that carb ?

Next couple of jobs will be finishing up the wheels (which I why was focusing on getting the brakes done so I could test-fit everything) and then I can start mocking up the engine properly and figuring out the suspension so that I can THEN work on the frame.  See, told you it makes sense to me ?

More soon, soon as I’ve done more!

I know I got on this ride a little after it was goin'  but thought I would give a little knowledge about the '70s backyard race cars, we ran drums at both ends of the car and we used Pontiac drums on the rear right out of the '55 the housing came from and they're pretty close to the drums you have here, on the front we used '68 Lincoln Continental spindles and the front brakes were three inches wide on the braking surface but had a very pronounced group of cast in cooling fins and the part we were a little up in the air over is they were completely cast iron drums but they looked a lot like the Buick drums in quite a few different available kits from the Round2 Buick ones to the ones I think that I will use and they are the ones that Revell stuck in the Model A Coupe and Roadster kits. Your looking good on your way to get it ready for the first race but knowing how racers are you will no doubt realize that the good things that are said about a full nights sleep are way over rated. We didn't go to dual master cylinders or even a dual stage master cylinder until the last dirt car we built. Most of the rides we stuck together used the "Ol' Reliable" fruit jar topped Mustang master cylinders. We did try a bright idea where we decided that if it was good enough for General Motors why wouldn't it work in our race car and for a race or two we tried using the dual master cylinder from the early '60s GM trucks and went to a hydraulic clutch set up, but for some reason we kept having clutch failure to release problems. I'm not sure but I felt for some reason that we had them switched and were just not getting the volume we needed but the driver (and owner) voted us down and we went back to the manual release set up from our ancient history and it never gave us a problem until we poked a hole in the release fork with the pushrod from the bell crank that was fixed by just welding an end for another release fork to the end of a complete one to make a double thickness part that was still in the bell housing when we sold the car. 

[OldNYJim]

On 5/24/2024 at 3:00 PM, horsepower said:

I know I got on this ride a little after it was goin'  but thought I would give a little knowledge about the '70s backyard race cars, we ran drums at both ends of the car and we used Pontiac drums on the rear right out of the '55 the housing came from and they're pretty close to the drums you have here, on the front we used '68 Lincoln Continental spindles and the front brakes were three inches wide on the braking surface but had a very pronounced group of cast in cooling fins and the part we were a little up in the air over is they were completely cast iron drums but they looked a lot like the Buick drums in quite a few different available kits from the Round2 Buick ones to the ones I think that I will use and they are the ones that Revell stuck in the Model A Coupe and Roadster kits. Your looking good on your way to get it ready for the first race but knowing how racers are you will no doubt realize that the good things that are said about a full nights sleep are way over rated. We didn't go to dual master cylinders or even a dual stage master cylinder until the last dirt car we built. Most of the rides we stuck together used the "Ol' Reliable" fruit jar topped Mustang master cylinders. We did try a bright idea where we decided that if it was good enough for General Motors why wouldn't it work in our race car and for a race or two we tried using the dual master cylinder from the early '60s GM trucks and went to a hydraulic clutch set up, but for some reason we kept having clutch failure to release problems. I'm not sure but I felt for some reason that we had them switched and were just not getting the volume we needed but the driver (and owner) voted us down and we went back to the manual release set up from our ancient history and it never gave us a problem until we poked a hole in the release fork with the pushrod from the bell crank that was fixed by just welding an end for another release fork to the end of a complete one to make a double thickness part that was still in the bell housing when we sold the car. 

I love first-hand information like this…I store it all away for the next one.  THANK YOU!! ? 

[bobss396]

7 hours ago, CabDriver said:

I love first-hand information like this…I store it all away for the next one.  THANK YOU!! ? 

Hydraulic clutches eliminated a z-bar that could pop out of position, if you have ever seen guys circling the track during yellow flags, this is why. They had to leave it in gear. A good shot to the side of the car could loosen one. Most used the slotted tab on the frame rail, ours was a solid welded washer so it had nowhere to go.

[James2]

Very nice detailing here, well done.

 

[dwc43]

2 hours ago, bobss396 said:

Hydraulic clutches eliminated a z-bar that could pop out of position, if you have ever seen guys circling the track during yellow flags, this is why. They had to leave it in gear. A good shot to the side of the car could loosen one. Most used the slotted tab on the frame rail, ours was a solid welded washer so it had nowhere to go.

That's a fact. I got hit in the left front in the middle of 1 and 2 at Winchester speedway one night by a camaro. It dislodged the z bar mount that bolts to the bellhousing. Lucky, I did not lose the everything. It stayed on the car, but it had no clutch. 

[dwc43]

2 hours ago, bobss396 said:

Not sure why it did a double post and it wont let me delete it.

Edited May 28, 2024 by dwc43