1963 Corvette split window

[Rich Chernosky]

Dug this one from deep out of the stash.  the body had been painted with nail polish in 2018.  It was a custom mix of colors I had and was clear coated with Tamiya smoke then clear.  Kit is mostly stock except for poseable front wheels and I changed out the molded in seats for something better. This kit was originally produced around 1964-65. So it is a very early AMT kit. I t has be re-issued many times but I am pretty sure the molds have never been updated. So it was like going back in time and building something from the 60's. It had the usual fit and clean-up issues from kits of this era. More comments below the pictures. Thanks for looking and comments welcome.

Interior will be hard to see so I took this picture. Dash had some nice engraving but it was dated and was going to be hard to paint. So decals out of the stash were needed. Color is Tamiya LS 73 Khaki. Carving out the original horrible molded in seats was fun I replaced them with buckets from a Mustang kit. Aaahh..much better. 

Got some nice sun to photograph. Making the wheels poseable was fun but had its problems. All the emblems were bare metal foiled before painting then the paint rubbed off before clear. They were still real sharp and came out nice and clear. 

Rear veiw. Forgot to add a licence plate. No biggie...got plenty of em.  Some nice detail back here. Kit had lots of options but I opted for mostly stock except for the fuel injected engine (not shown)

The 63 Vette was a landmark car that almost didn't see production. It was totally new design and a huge departure from previous models. Independent suspension, lots of engine options and a totally new body. This was the year GM banned racing but that didn't stop Zora Duntov.  The were a great many hidden options that were only available to select dealers and racers. This was a turning point in Corvette production. This was now a viable and true American sports car.

An interesting addition to this kit was the 1/64 scale box cutout. It is posed here with a Racing Champions diecast.

I have to set goals for myself otherwise I would never get anything done. This model is the first of 13 that I will be doing over the next few weeks. All of these have had the bodies sprayed  at some point in time. Just finish the chassis, interiors, engines and detail the bodies. Some will be slammers others will be modified but all of them will finally be finished. Only two problems,  which one do I do next and where am I going to put them when finished?.  Corvette shelf is currently filled. 

[ChrisR]

Nice.

[Jim B]

Beautiful Corvette.  Very well done.  Since it's an AMT kit, I'm sure it wasn't easy.

[Rich Chernosky]

4 hours ago, ChrisR said:

Nice.

Thanks

 

2 hours ago, Jim B said:

Beautiful Corvette.  Very well done.  Since it's an AMT kit, I'm sure it wasn't easy.

You are not kidding Jim.  I had forgotten how rude and crude these kits were. 

 

[charger74]

Looks really good 

[Mike 1017]

Very Very Nice Start with the 53 and work your way up year by year. End with the 2005 C6

[Bainford]

Nice Vette, Rick. Looks like you are going to be busy for the next while.

[espo]

Beautiful paint and interior combination. Like the chrome body trim. 

[Kenmojr]

I have two of these AMT 63 Vettes to build. If I were you (and I am not LOL), I would build the 57 or 67 convertible next...

[NOBLNG]

She looks real nice Rich!😎 These are really basic kits with a few minor issues, but they do build up into nice looking models. I built one relatively stock one and my next one has some slight modifications.😬

[Rich Chernosky]

On 9/3/2025 at 10:27 PM, charger74 said:

Looks really good 

Thanks Eric

 

On 9/4/2025 at 9:50 AM, Mike 1017 said:

Very Very Nice Start with the 53 and work your way up year by year. End with the 2005 C6

Thanks Mike...but I already got my eye on another

 

22 hours ago, Bainford said:

Nice Vette, Rick. Looks like you are going to be busy for the next while.

Gotta set goals Trevor.  Looks like I can get one done every 3-4 days. It will keep me out of trouble for awhile.

 

19 hours ago, espo said:

Beautiful paint and interior combination. Like the chrome body trim. 

Thanks David. that emblem trick is a favorite of mine. When you have really good engraving it comes up nice. 

 

10 hours ago, Kenmojr said:

I have two of these AMT 63 Vettes to build. If I were you (and I am not LOL), I would build the 57 or 67 convertible next...

Hey Ken...the 67 convertible is already on the bench. 

 

27 minutes ago, NOBLNG said:

She looks real nice Rich!😎 These are really basic kits with a few minor issues, but they do build up into nice looking models. I built one relatively stock one and my next one has some slight modifications.😬

Thanks for the comment and pictures Gregg.  Luv the color on the 63. Got one painted similar to that somewhere in that pile.  Looks like you have no fear when it comes to carving up plastic.  Where is that one headed?