"Sour Apple" Squarebody Chevy [or maybe GMC? ]

[Oldriginal86]

Nice scratch building on the rack! Picked up a few tips looking at your build. Looking good.

[1930fordpickup]

Where did ypu source the front suspension? The same kit you grabbed the rear end from? 

[Can-Con]

18 minutes ago, 1930fordpickup said:

Where did ypu source the front suspension? The same kit you grabbed the rear end from? 

Yup, the AMT '34 Ford street rod kit.

[Steve H]

On 3/1/2025 at 5:18 PM, Can-Con said:

Chassis is ready to go except for the shocks.

I know it looks severely low with the bodywork on but rest assured the ride height and wheel travel would be more than adequate for a few quick laps around a track or a spirited drive on a winding road.

Here's a look at my scratch made rack and steering linkage.

I would say it looks perfectly low Steve! That is a perfect stance. Very nice work on the chassis.

[Can-Con]

Added the body side trim. Should look a lot better once cleaned up and some primer shot on it.

Also did a bit of work modifying the old grille.

[TheBEAUMONTGURU]

Oh wow,  this is a cool project.  i missed tuning in at the begining.   Just curious what kit this cab is from?  monogram 1/24th scale??  and is it the MPC deserter fleetside box 1/25th?  if so, the different scales seem to align fairly well?

[Can-Con]

4 hours ago, TheBEAUMONTGURU said:

Oh wow,  this is a cool project.  i missed tuning in at the begining.   Just curious what kit this cab is from?  monogram 1/24th scale??  and is it the MPC deserter fleetside box 1/25th?  if so, the different scales seem to align fairly well?

The box and most of the other plastic parts are indeed from one of the MPC/AMT '84 GMC 4X4 kits. 

The cab is from an old MPC '78/'79 4X4 annual kit an old friend gave me years ago. 

All the parts are 1/25.

[AmericanMuscleFan]

Great work Steve, sorry I just noticed your project.  I like that you went with the fleetside type box, I prefer this to the stepside version.  These square bodies are so popular today and your plan to lower the suspension will produce a great look, a sure hit!  I really like the moldings you added, they are very well done! 👍

[Can-Con]

Finished adding the side trim to the pickup and got it in primer. 

The wheel opening trim really should be doubled like the rest of the trim but I'm getting itchy to paint it. Still needs some more work before that happens though.
 

Also finished the assembly of the engine. Hard to find pics but I did figure out it's a supercharged LSA as used in a 2012 Cadillac CTS-V or Camaro ZL-1

After I found some pics and figured out exactly what it is, I took the intake off and but it back on the right way around. LOL

[catpack68]

Looks great Steve! The engine looks really good.What size styrene strips do you use for the side trim? Looking forward to seeing more progress on it.

Edited March 24 by catpack68

[Can-Con]

7 hours ago, catpack68 said:

Looks great Steve! The engine looks really good.What size styrene strips do you use for the side trim? Looking forward to seeing more progress on it.

Thanks, It's .015X'020. It's the smallest I could get.

[Can-Con]

Put some Tamiya "racing white" in the side coves and sprayed the underhood bits, inside of the fenders and bed floor on the custom mixed apple green pearl.

I plan to wait a couple days and spray the green on the rest of the bodywork.

[Can-Con]

OK, a few pics with the final color. I'll clear it tomorrow.

 , , and, as you can see, I'm going with a '73/'74 GMC grille.

[RW033]

Beautiful!

[slusher]

Looking really nice Steve!

[catpack68]

Looking good Steve! Love the colors and the GMC grille.

Edited April 21 by catpack68

[Steve H]

Looks fantastic Steve, beautiful paint. I can say with confidence that I would completely lose my mind trying to do that side trim. Very nicely done, I like everything about this build. 

[Can-Con]

15 hours ago, Steve H said:

Looks fantastic Steve, beautiful paint. I can say with confidence that I would completely lose my mind trying to do that side trim. Very nicely done, I like everything about this build. 

Thanks Steve,

I'm sure you wouldn't have any trouble doing that trim, I've seen your work.

[SpikeSchumacher]

That looks awesome Steve!

[Can-Con]

Yes, this is a zip-loc bag with the truck covered in Easy-Off.

[TopherMcGinnis]

What happened? 

[Can-Con]

On 4/29/2025 at 8:25 AM, TopherMcGinnis said:

What happened? 

I wet sanded the clear getting ready for a second coat. Was making a mold of the bumpers earlier so I could cast a few sets for myself and I must have contaminated my hands with mold release and didn't get it all of and transferred it to the sand paper. 

That's my best guess anyway, that's what it looked like when I sprayed the second coat of clear.

[NOBLNG]

Ouch, that hurts.😕 It was looking mighty nice too.

[Can-Con]

There were a few "issues" I noticed after I started painting but just ignored as I was done the bodywork and really wanted to see it in paint.

BUT, since I'm now repainting I'll be making some adjustments and additions before repainting. It will be better when I'm done then it was the first time around.

I got pretty lucky as most of the trim I added stayed put. I'll easily fix that and replace a couple sections that didn't come off but didn't turn out as well as the rest.

More on those later but for now here's a couple pics "in the nude", as it were. 😉

[Can-Con]

There's a couple things I want to improve on before I repaint the truck.

First is the box. The back wall wasn't exactly flat where it meets the bed. Note the "step" on the right and how it thickens out on the left.
So I filed it flat. This box is from another kit but it's identical to the first one.

The other issue is while this box, from one of the '84 GMCs mates up well to the newer cabs, it's a touch wide at the top and narrow at the bottom when up against the older '78 cab.
While I did file it a bit at the top edges before I painted it the first time, it's still off a bit.

So a quick cut down the inside corner on both sides will remedy that. I cut down about 1/2 way with a regular X-acto saw blade, pulled the top so the cuts closed and glued them with lacquer thinner.
 

This way it not only brought the top of the box in flush with cab but also spread the bottom slightly so it now also matches.

That was the first mod I wanted to make before the re-paint. There's another mod and a couple additions I want to do so me screwing up the first paintjob will have a silver lining.