Trying to fix the '51 Fleetline...

[customline]

To all involved with offering solutions to this issue over in the Q&A thread I thank you all (you know who you are).  If you are not familiar with this kit, this won't be all that fascinating.  If you are, hang out for a while. You will know about the windshield and backlight inaccuracies. 

The thing is....once I started actually making changes to the windshield opening it took on a life of its own. I found that I couldn't make things work the way I thought they would. I came up with this instead. It ain't great but it addresses the two issues enough to my liking that it will serve for a solution for my stock build of this kit or the basis for further improvement by another more skilled than me (I?)

First I removed the windshield molding with my trusty single edge razor blade and followed up with sanding sticks. This simplified the picture and left me with the idea that I needed to open it up by removing material on the inside....so I did - with a very sharp #11 surgical blade around the inside of the A pillars and the roof's front edge and I followed up with an emery board. I flattened the roof edge parallel with the roof plane and the A pillars were sanded sorta parallel with the side glass. The effect is a thinning of the A pillars looking from the front.

After much trial and error with other ideas I arrived at what seemed to be somewhat workable, even for my hands (having a third would have been awesome).  I settled on .035 Evergreen rod which I found to be very pliable and I decided to attach it just to the inside of the opening using solvent, very carefully. It was easier to do this in two pieces. The bottom of the A pillar needed trimming away the radius so the rod could bottom out at the bottom molding. The radius will be restored later.

I noticed on the 1:1 front view that the radii of the roof "corners" sorta match the radii of the windshield top corners. I think I may have come fairly close.the gaps at the top corners were filled on the inside with some sheet scrap. The outside will be dealt with later.and it looks like the kit glass will be located in a slightly forward location since the work on the inside of the opening allows it, solving the problem of the glass looking unnaturally recessed. The center divider will be replaced with a piece of Plastruct .030 triangular rod or maybe half-round coated in Molotow.

It's not perfect, but it's better than what AMT gave us. Similar work will be done on the backlight to get that looking more the way it should. Till then, thanks for your attention! 

By the way....this is what AMT gave us....

Edited November 28, 2023 by customline

[NOBLNG]

Nice work Jim!? It looks a lot closer to the sleekness of the 1:1.?

[bobss396]

Very nice work and worth the effort. Glass-fit has always been an issue with me. So far I have massaged the glass to fit up better. I usually split the onesie into 2 parts, easier to tackle. You took it to the next level.

[Ace-Garageguy]

Huge improvement already. As you've said, some things you're better off living with, but this is such a jarring inaccuracy on these models, the correction is definitely worth the effort.  

[customline]

3 hours ago, NOBLNG said:

Nice work Jim!? It looks a lot closer to the sleekness of the 1:1.?

 

2 hours ago, bobss396 said:

Very nice work and worth the effort. Glass-fit has always been an issue with me. So far I have massaged the glass to fit up better. I usually split the onesie into 2 parts, easier to tackle. You took it to the next level.

 

2 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Huge improvement already. As you've said, some things you're better off living with, but this is such a jarring inaccuracy on these models, the correction is definitely worth the effort.  

Thank you gents, I got a bit flummoxed after the first attempt. Once the body was modified I had nowhere to go but forward. I keep a pretty good supply of Evergreen handy for just this reason ?.

I kept thinking I would need to provide a means of "capturing" a windshield made from acetate  and couldn't get anywhere with it. Steve Guthmiller got me going in that direction and it seemed like a good one but I couldn't make it work (I'm certain he could) and anxiety set in.  I had not considered using the kit glass and didn't realize it was possible until I tried it after adding the .035 rod. What a nice surprise. Two birds: one stone. Yay!  Now I need to make sure I don't have issues with dash/glass fit and such.

The key here is removing material from the inside of the A pillars and the bottom of the front edge of the roof.  This allows the kit glass to move forward and it re-curved the roof edge slightly as I was trying to shape it more like the 1:1.  I used one of the thin solvents to attach the rod I held in place against the opening.  Attaching the pre-bent rod is awkward but if I can do it, anybody can. This was a case of forcing my will upon inanimate objects with a fairly positive result. There is probably a better way but I'm happy with this. It's better than that awful ? that AMT/ ERTL came up with. Thanks for your support, guys, now it's on to the backlight......later.....?

[NOBLNG]

I made this scraper from a coat hanger for making a recess to mount rear and side glass on this ‘36 Ford. It might work for the Chevy?

[espo]

Thank you for taking on the issue and sharing your methods. The window opening issues have kept me from wanting to build one for a very long time.  Not to add to your misery, but have you noticed the rear edge of the hood and how it doesn't hide the firewall between the front fender and the A pillar?  

[customline]

2 hours ago, NOBLNG said:

I made this scraper from a coat hanger for making a recess to mount rear and side glass on this ‘36 Ford. It might work for the Chevy?

That's a great idea, Greg. The re-shaping of the backlight opening has me using almost the same method as the windshield. I started by scraping off the molding around the opening. Next, I squared off the material to reduce the look of thickness. I adjusted the top of the opening to a shape more like what I see on the 1:1. Then I opened the rest of it up so I can add the .035 or .040 rod on the inside, all the way around. Hopefully,after some filling and sanding, this will look more like it should. Wish me luck ?.

[customline]

58 minutes ago, espo said:

Thank you for taking on the issue and sharing your methods. The window opening issues have kept me from wanting to build one for a very long time.  Not to add to your misery, but have you noticed the rear edge of the hood and how it doesn't hide the firewall between the front fender and the A pillar?  

? ummm......no......gotta look at that, Dave (as if this ? isn't bad enough)......ok .....you're welcome....just don't follow me too closely...I'm feeling my way in the darkness ?

Edit: hey Dave, I think I have the cure for the hood issue....see below ?

build it like this ?

Edited November 28, 2023 by customline

[customline]

 

I squared off the opening on the straight sections, leaving the radii for the Dremel.then I realized I needed to open it up to allow for the thickness of the .040 rod that will simulate the chrome trim molding and establish the new improved radii (radiusses ☺️). it still needs some tweeking but there's no way to get this right, as far as I'm concerned, other than by eyeball. If I can get it somewhere close, I'm good with it. Thanks for looking.

[Sledsel]

Nice job on the corrections. By looking at the pic posted of the 1:1 you could have thinned those A pillars even more. I may thin the ones on my build down now since you pointed it out.

On my '51 I took a different approach.... I sanded the inside of the roof with it off!

[customline]

1 hour ago, Sledsel said:

Nice job on the corrections. By looking at the pic posted of the 1:1 you could have thinned those A pillars even more. I may thin the ones on my build down now since you pointed it out.

On my '51 I took a different approach.... I sanded the inside of the roof with it off!

I agree the A pillars need to be thinner but I didn't want to create a problem for the chrome moldings that, on the 1:1, are very close together and, on the model, the pillars seem to be angled wrong maybe....I dunno.  I'm just trying to get things better, not perfect. 

[Sledsel]

12 minutes ago, customline said:

I agree the A pillars need to be thinner but I didn't want to create a problem for the chrome moldings that, on the 1:1, are very close together and, on the model, the pillars seem to be angled wrong maybe....I dunno.  I'm just trying to get things better, not perfect. 

Better is more than acceptable. Nothing is ever perfect.

[customline]

Not only do we have design deficiencies but manufacturing issues too (see circled areas - there's quite a step I've gotta fix ?.) 

I tweaked the backlight opening a bit more and wrapped the .040 rod around the inside in four pieces - the only way I could do this. I've tried to do this operation using one length of rod and it ends up as a waste of material as you can imagine.  This experiment may or may not work out well but I feel like I did what I could to get it more correct looking than if I had just did it OOB. (I think it should be "BUILT OUT OF the BOX or "BOOB")

 

[customline]

7 hours ago, Sledsel said:

Nice job on the corrections. By looking at the pic posted of the 1:1 you could have thinned those A pillars even more. I may thin the ones on my build down now since you pointed it out.

On my '51 I took a different approach.... I sanded the inside of the roof with it off!

OK, the A pillars were too wide and it needed adjustment. So I did. Thanks, Andy. I was chicken but I swallowed hard and picked up my knife and emery board and here it is. The kit glass is in there and if I want to settle for this it will fly....but I'm going to cut an acetate WS and see if I can get a much better look. I'm hopeful.

this should make most of us happier. I know I am ?

[Sledsel]

59 minutes ago, customline said:

OK, the A pillars were too wide and it needed adjustment. So I did. Thanks, Andy. I was chicken but I swallowed hard and picked up my knife and emery board and here it is. The kit glass is in there and if I want to settle for this it will fly....but I'm going to cut an acetate WS and see if I can get a much better look. I'm hopeful.

this should make most of us happier. I know I am ?

Looks really good. As long as your happy, we're just observers.

[bobss396]

The round stock approach seems to be the way to go. I have plenty of plastic stock, around 80 different shapes and sizes.

One car I did, I used clear acetate, .015" thick and made a "nest" so it dropped straight in. This was on side glass. Now glass is one if the 1st things I address during a build. Also wise as noted to do an interior/dash fit check along with the glass. I have seen too many guys get to final assembly, painted and foiled body... and the glass looks awful.

[customline]

1 hour ago, bobss396 said:

The round stock approach seems to be the way to go. I have plenty of plastic stock, around 80 different shapes and sizes.

One car I did, I used clear acetate, .015" thick and made a "nest" so it dropped straight in. This was on side glass. Now glass is one if the 1st things I address during a build. Also wise as noted to do an interior/dash fit check along with the glass. I have seen too many guys get to final assembly, painted and foiled body... and the glass looks awful.

Yeah, Bob, the kit glass was not planned to be used from the start but, when I tried it earlier, it didn't look too bad. After narrowing the A posts further, it's passable but not looking great.  I'll need to put in some strips on the inside of the posts to "trap" an acetate replacement. I've used the "trap" method on some other projects and it will probably work here.

[customline]

Got a bit more done today.  I added some short pieces of rod to the inside of the A posts to "catch" the thin acetate that I cut from Wifey's card-making supplies or stamping nonsense  or scrapbooking junk( ? )packaging (well, she is good about saving the stuff for me. I have much more than I will ever use).

Did the same for the backlight. This gets the "glass" in a more natural location as seen from the outside. Once satisfied with all this, I finished up by replacing the windshield center divider with .040 square strip  and added some little pieces of .030 sheet to the bottom corners of the new windshield molding to be formed into the corner radii with the help of a little filler and some  sanding. That's it for now. Gotta try to finish up some other stuff and then I'll get on with this one next year ?.

 

[bobss396]

On all of my glass, I separate the back and front pieces. Then I make up "stop" blocks to nest both pieces and side pieces as applicable. This keeps it from skating around especially when doing the final install with whatever I use to hold it in place.

[customline]

7 hours ago, bobss396 said:

On all of my glass, I separate the back and front pieces. Then I make up "stop" blocks to nest both pieces and side pieces as applicable. This keeps it from skating around especially when doing the final install with whatever I use to hold it in place.

Bob, if you are referencing the ķit glass, this kit came with the front and back separate. I am not using the kit glass now. I had to go with acetate.

[customline]

Lets be clear.....I didn't want to do this. It was just to fix the issues and then put it back in the box, put the T-Birds together, get some paint on the other four and oh...the Boss 302....and only then bring the Fleetline back to the table. The best laid plans of mice and men....I got primer on it yesterday so I could put some Mr. Surfacer on the other minor issues. The original plan was to build a stock, shiny example of this iconic Chevy but then I started thinking about doing a patina job on it and....well... as you can guess, once that thought landed in my head, everything else got pushed out and.....well....here we go ?. 

 

this is the rear bumper that was in the box. It appeared to have been removed from some other build so I scraped off the glue and stripped the chrome. I added a piece of .010 to the back side to facilitate filling the chunks missing on the top edge. If I go the patina route I will, no doubt, want a little rust on this along with well-worn chrome. (Anyone out there use that Revell chrome stuff? Fill me in please ?) Thanks for looking!

[Butter 1]

Nice work on the glass. Thanks for the "tutorial"

[customline]

5 hours ago, Butter 1 said:

Nice work on the glass. Thanks for the "tutorial"

Thanks, Ron. 

Got started on the stovebolt today. Found a few tiny issues that are easily fixed. If you build it "custom" the following won't be a problem but I'm going stock so I found the exhaust manifold does not cover the two inside "ports". The custom headers should fill all the holes but I had to plug them. Why they don't line up with the stock manifold is a mystery...also, there is no provision to align the intake on the exhaust manifold. You are shown, I guess, to just glue it on there according to the illustration. That's fine but I pinned them together and added the carb as an assembly which I will paint by hand. There is no oil filter provided so I will need to make one if I want one (was it an option? See bottom photo ?)

I am happy the oil pan is a separate part; I think we all consider that a big plus but you only get a portion of the crankshaft pulley. I'm sure there's a good reason for that ?. The distributor is a two piece affair with a cap big enough to drill all seven holes. This will allow me to wire correctly according to the firing order (which I wont.) I drilled holes for fuel lines and ignition wires and for pinning various attachments. This is ? boring.....Anyway, this is what it looks like before I paint everything. Notice the instructions call for the exhaust and intake manifolds to be painted aluminum.....aluminum? I dunno ?.

 

 

[customline]

7 hours ago, Butter 1 said:

Nice work on the glass. Thanks for the "tutorial"

Thanks, Ron. 

Got started on the stovebolt today. Found a few tiny issues that are easily fixed. If you build it "custom" the following won't be a problem but I'm going stock so I found the exhaust manifold does not cover the two inside "ports". The custom headers should fill all the holes but I had to plug them. Why they don't line up with the stock manifold is a mystery...also, there is no provision to align the intake on the exhaust manifold. You are shown, I guess, to just glue it on there according to the illustration. That's fine but I pinned them together and added the carb as an assembly which I will paint by hand. There is no oil filter provided so I will need to make one if I want one (was it an option? See bottom photo ?)

I am happy the oil pan is a separate part; I think we all consider that a big plus but you only get a portion of the crankshaft pulley. I'm sure there's a good reason for that ?. The distributor is a two piece affair with a cap big enough to drill all seven holes. This will allow me to wire correctly according to the firing order (which I wont.) I drilled holes for fuel lines and ignition wires and for pinning various attachments. This is ? boring.....Anyway, this is what it looks like before I paint everything. Notice the instructions call for the exhaust and intake manifolds to be painted aluminum.....aluminum? I dunno ?.