The [1971] Scrap Box Challenge[r R/T]...Update #3...

[tim boyd]

Or....yet another project intended to be a stress-buster that didn't turn out that way.
 

It was a fully painted (MCW Mopar Hemi Orange Metallic. about 25 years ago), polished, and lightly cleared (around 2018 or 2019) resin rebop body that sat in my cabinet of partially finished projects. It kept starting at me every time I passed by. I always thought I could finish the model if I could find enough parts leftover from two other projects dating back over 50 years ago to finish the model.

It seemed like a great way to take a break from the major kitbash project that ended up on the cover of issue #222 of Model Cars Magazine. So?

Here's the beginning volley....thanks for checking it out...several updates to come later....TB 

I started with a relatively clean resin cast body (or so I thought) of the MPC 1971 Challenger R/T annual kit. I was preparing an article for one of the model mags back around 1999 or 2000 on the various Muscle Era Mopar paint "High-Impact" and midyear colors. I glued the hood shut (don't ask my why, I don't know) and proceeded to paint the car with MCW Automotive Paints airbrushed Hemi Orange Metallic. Nearly 20 years later, I finished the partially rubbed out and polished body and added a light coat or two of aerosol clear for another article in one of the model mags on techniques for getting super-smooth paint jobs....

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Last month, I decided to try and finish the model. As I began rumaging through all my parts boxes, I masked off and painted the front and rear ends of the body to match the blackout treatments of the 1/1 scale 1971 Challenger R/T.

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As resin bodies go, this one (not a Holthaus product) was fairly well done, at least on the surface. It turned out that some of the body was just a smidgen smaller (as in shrunk) from the original master kit. Later on, those clean headlamp surrounds were cracked when I inserted the grille/headlamp assembly from behind. (Yes, I saved it, but only after some lucky tweaking).

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All the rest of the parts to finish off the resin body and other parts for the project came from the leftovers of two prior model car projects that were started back in 1970. The first was this 1970 Challenger Gasser started that year, and then eventually finished around 1987 or so to the level seen here. I sourced the platform chassis and some other leftovers from the kit parts that went unused for this project. Finding them all some 54 years later...now that was the true challenge!

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This was the second project that donated leftover parts, a 1971 Challenger R/T Pro Stock based on MPC"s annual kit. This one was inspired by the Hank Borger "Angry Man" Maverick Pro Stock article in the February 1970 issue of Car Model magazine. (It was built before the Jo-Han Sox and Martin ''cuda kit became available.) The interior, engine compartment pieces, and taillamps left over from this one were sourced to complete the new Challenger R/T. (N.B.: I never finished this model - it has no engine - but would you believe that completion is underway now?).

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Next up...engine, interior, and chassis plate...coming soon....TB .

 

Or....yet another project intended to be a stress-buster that didn't turn out that way.

It was a fully painted (MCW Mopar Hemi Orange Metallic. about 25 years ago), polished, and lightly cleared (around 2018 or 2019) resin rebop body that sat in my cabinet of partially finished projects. It kept starting at me every time I passed by. I always thought I could finish the model if I could find enough parts leftover from two other projects dating back over 50 years ago to finish the model.

It seemed like a great way to take a break from the major kitbash project that ended up on the cover of issue #222 of Model Cars Magazine. So?

Not really, Not even close. But it's done now, and you get a chance to take a look. Check ot the photos and captions using the "Roll" feature tab below. Questions and comments welcome...andOr thanks for checking this one out. TIM

Edited February 29, 2024 by tim boyd

[tim boyd]

The MPC 1970/71 Challenger R/T kits contained a typical MPC 426 Hemi engine. But unlike the 1//1 which included the factory's dual inline intake manifold with dual carbs, these were the parts in the MPC kit - a single carb intake, a tiny carb, and a non-stock air cleaner that was more accurate for the Challenger's standard 318 two barrel V8 than the Hemi. Of further note, those exhaust manifolds were not factory correct, either.

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Since the resin body hood was already glued shut, I didn't attempt to fix the incorrect intake components, but I did endeavor to make sure to finish the underside to correct colors and textures.

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The interior pieces were leftover from one of those two drag racing projects. I used Testors Leather enamel to simulate the wood appliques on the Challenger's interior. Note that the driver's seat in these MPC kits washed out the pleating on the seat bottom....and the knockout pin mark is very visible on the passenger side footwell....two of the reasons I chose the all-black, rather than white with black, interior color option.  Since it was intended as a quick build shelf model, I also omitted the addition of flocking to simulate carpeting.   

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Applicable elements received some care from a Molotow Chrome Pen. The instrument Cluster in these MPC kits was the base layout, not the Rallye Cluster with the tach.
My recollection is that the Rallye Cluster was standard on the 1/1 scale '70/'71 Challenger R/T (I need to verify this in my reference library), marking another inaccuracy in the MPC 1970/71 Challenger R/T kits.  (Fortunately, that extraneous hair on the package shelf disappeared before final assembly!)  

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Underneath was a typical one-piece promo-style chassis plate. I painted it primer gray, added some Hemi Orange overspray, then blacked out the fenderwells. All this was done with aerosols rather than an airbrush, which produced a somewhat but not completely accurate representation of the underside.  The exhaust pipes, mufflers, driveshaft, gas tank, torsion bars, and K-Member were hand painted with Tamiya acrylics.

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On the other side of this piece, the engine compartment and firewall were sprayed Hemi Orange (I used Mopar Hemi Orange engine paint rather than the factory correct Hemi Orange Metallic body paint, since the hood was already glued shut)

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The engine is now installed. I had to go hunting for the MPC kit's rear axle/diff/leaf springs. I found them in a partially disassembled 1969 Javelin Street Machine project, which I also hope to restore some day.

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That's it for today's update.  Next up is detailing the wheels and tires, and adding the 1971 R/T graphics....thanks for looking...TIM 

 

Edited February 28, 2024 by tim boyd

[slusher]

Looking really nice, sir!

[Scott Eriksen]

Looking good!! .............AMT's Roadrunner horn wiper motor would make a better looking carb though ?

[Bainford]

Looking good, Tim. It's good to get some of those lingering projects taken care of. It helps to quiet the little voices in the head. The ones that needle you every time you walk past that cabinet of uncompleted projects. A little housekeeping of the soul by way of the model bench. Niiice

Sounds like you have a lot of interesting old stuff in that cabinet. Looking forward to see some more of them.

[R. Thorne]

2 hours ago, Scott Eriksen said:

Looking good!! .............AMT's Roadrunner horn wiper motor would make a better looking carb though ?

Just happen to have one of those, Scott.  No chance of “debonding” the hood, I guess, Tim?  Always a shame to hide a hemi.

[tim boyd]

9 hours ago, Scott Eriksen said:

Looking good!! .............AMT's Roadrunner horn wiper motor would make a better looking carb though ?

Hah!....Great one, Scott!   Best...TB 

[FoMoCo66]

Cool this is a project I will be following for sure. Like it a lot.

[dwc43]

11 hours ago, Scott Eriksen said:

Looking good!! .............AMT's Roadrunner horn wiper motor would make a better looking carb though ?

Waiting for that 8 3/4 to explode behind that Hemi too. lol 

[drodg]

Following this also,  you actually never see a build on a 1971 Challenger.  For obvious reasons.  

[tim boyd]

Time to tackle the wheels, and what about those '71 only R/T side stripes? 

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These are the MPC 1970/71 Challenger R/T wheels. They are a surprisingly accurate representation of the factory 15"x7" Rallye Wheels. I began by painting the wheels' recessed "openings' Tamiya flat black, then followed with Tamiya Silver on the wheel's exposed wheel surfaces that surround the openings. I finished with Tamiya Metallic Gray on the center hubs (note that the Mopar 1971 Rallye wheels used a darker finish on these hubs than did the 1970 Rallye wheels).

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Here's a closer look at the finished wheels. The outer rims are left in the kit's factory plating.  (The 1/1 trim rings wore a brushed reflective finish; I have not found a way to convincingly do this in 1/25th and thus I leave them plated as it is close to the factory appearance when viewed in scale...).  

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I seem to have exhausted my supply of Round 2 Goodyear Polyglas GT pad-printed tires, and sadly - due to licensing issues, I am told - we are unlikely to see any more of these parts packs produced any time soon.  So I I found these old MPC Polyglas GT tires and dry-brush painted the white lettering with Tamiya Flat White. Not bad....

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In a sneak peek ahead, here's how the wheels and tires look on the almost completed model. My own view is these two parts go a long way to contributing a factory-correct look to the completed model.  (N>B> It constantly amazes me how model detailing that looks good to the naked eye, looks less good when viewed in blown up/magnified digital imaging...e.g. the white letters in this photo....) 

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There are several choices for 1971 Challenger R/T factory side stripes, although the two sheets at the top are no longer produced to my understanding. However, all of them appear to be sized to fit the 1/24th scale Monogram Challenger body. The decal on the lower right, from the c. 2005 "Plum Crazy" Model King reissue of the old MPC Challenger funny car kit, is closer to correct but still a little too long. The only fully correct choice was at the lower left. This was cut from the sheet of decals that came with MPC's 1971 Challenger and Charger promotional models, as the MPC assembly kit omitted any factory graphics. But the key question was, would a decal sheet produced 54 years ago still work?

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Before trying to apply the decals, I arranged some reference photography to make sure the positioning would be correct.

Old school decals required soaking for 30-45 seconds in warm-hot tap water, and with that approach, the decals released and applied beautifully. That was the one part of this project that went completely correct! Note that prior to decals I had applied most of the BareMetal foil; I then used a brand new and handheld X-Acto blade to cut away the stripes over the door handles while the decals were still wet. Worked perfectly!

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This closeup of the passenger side decal shows where the rear portion has a white underlayment what was not exactly registered with the black portion. There's not much you can do to fix this, but fortunately, it was only present on this part of the passenger side decal.

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Just about finished with this one...hope to post the finished model photos in the "Under Glass" section of the forum tomorrow....thanks for following along and thanks for your comments, too....TIM 

Edited February 29, 2024 by tim boyd

[drodg]

Well how great does this look.  I really enjoy your builds and your ideas on correctness.   Love seeing a finished 71 Challenger R/T kit.     

[tim boyd]

The completed project is now posted here in the Under Glass section of the MCM Forum.  Thanks for following along!  Cheers...TB