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RAW GOLD: a '68 TBird Pro-Touring with a '71 roof transplant in satin gold, inspired by Steve Stanford


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Posted

Stunning! Beautiful concept brought into 3D with great results. The *bottom* of this is cleaner than the tops of some of mine! ?

Posted
On 4/18/2023 at 8:48 PM, happy grumpy said:

Another flawless build Claude . You have a knack for this kind of build. Great paint finish too.

Salut Mario! 

Thank you. Hope to see you at the Trois-Rivières model show next sunday. 

CT

Posted
On 4/18/2023 at 9:43 PM, NOBLNG said:

Beautiful and super clean build Claude!? I like those hood hinges. I think I’ve seen them on some of your other works. Do you have a patent on them??

Hi Greg! Thank you for the comments. I'd like to have a patent on those, but alas, I thing they are too "generic" to merit one. However, they allow for the engine compartment to be seen without having the view blocked by the hood. 

CT

Posted
On 4/19/2023 at 12:09 PM, Koellefornia Kid said:

Awesome, Claude! I remember Steve Stanford's original sketch and the "Thunderstruck", that was built from it. Always wanted to build scale replica but I could never get a vintage '68 T-Bird kit (very hard to get here Europe). Though the original rendering and the 1:1 car were more traditional kustom designs I really like the pro-touring take on it you are sharing with us here. Great build, nice paint and some really cool modifications! ?

Thank you Oliver!

To your point: the 68/69 Tbird is very rare indeed. Almost impossible to find as an annual kit. However, this very body came from the Allison engined funny-car that Model King (AMT) reissued a few years ago. I was fortunate to find one at 30$! So.... swap the roof from the 71 Bird of paradise recently issued kit, and voilà!

CT

Posted
On 4/19/2023 at 12:12 PM, AmericanMuscleFan said:

Very beautiful Thunderbird, we can't argue that the new headdress you grafted on it suits it perfectly!  I love the color and I know (from seeing all of your models) that this shade is one of your favorites, It's a classy color like the builder who presents it to us!

I just noticed that you used a Dana differential, it's not a reproach but we know how famous Ford is for its 9 inch which are a reference in the field. There's no harm in interchanging the parts, anyway they can't be found these days and I could tell you about it... ?

Hi Francis!

Thank you.

If there's one person who I tought might notice that... It's YOU! The unit is out of a 68 Charger kit, and was just the right width. Of course, a 9" Ford would have been more "politically correct", but as you know, I like to scramble eggs once in a while! LOL. 

CT

Posted
On 4/17/2023 at 8:28 PM, Claude Thibodeau said:

The great Steve Stanford posited that a 68 Tbird with a much lower 71 roof transplant would be a better looking 'Bird: he was right!

So: mash-up AMT's 68 body with the 71 roof, and add a scratchbuilt floor pan, front and rear pro-touring frame sections, a modular Cobra engine with custom injection, and a mostly scratchbuilt interior, save for the dash, and throw on a satin pearlescent gold finish, and voilà...  Thanks for the inspiration, Mister Stanford!

CT

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Claude....great concept and execution.  I've been watching for a '67 T-Bird kit myself as I wanted to do a pro-touring execution.  Yours goes way beyond my idea, however.  Particularly impressed with the IRS and the engine.  Lovin' it!   Cheers....TIM

 

 

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