Gm B Body Chassis Substitution

[David G.]

Hi Everybody,

I just received a '71 Delta 88 resin kit from R&R Resin, and though the kit is very nice, I'd like to put it on a more complete frame. My question is should any B-Platform, a Buick Wildcat chassis for example, serve this purpose or are there differences major between the 1:1 production models despite the common platform. Once I get the kit, I could tell by looking at the chassis plate if it's close enough. I could even hold it up next my car and compare But it would be nice to know ahead of time if there are any big differences.

There are lots of 1970 Buick Wildcat kits, but no Impalas or Catalinas that I could find. If a Wildcat frame will work, that'd be great.

Thanks,

David G.

[Craig Irwin]

I guess it's all about how accurate or how much detail you want to have. The Wildcat chassis should drop right in, but is a simple piece with little detail. A revell 65 Impala would be more work but be much more detail.

[David G.]

Steve,

Wow, thanks. That answers a lot of questions for me. The chassis that came with my resin kit looks very similar to the Wildcat chassis in your picture. The '70 Impala is a lot closer to what I'm looking for.

If I can find a kit, the front bumper's yours man.

Thanks for the photos!

David G.

[MrObsessive]

If you want even more detail with an easier time of mods...........check out the AMT '67 Chevy Impala.

It has separate frame rails and would be very close to what you'd want. Some lengthening would be needed as the Olds was a bit longer than the Chevy. With the separate frame however, this should be pretty easy to accomplish.

[charlie8575]

For accuracy, the '67/'70 Chevy would be okay. The Model King 1970 Wildcat would be a little easier for you to work with, though, as it's closer in size to the Olds for length and wheelbase.

The Wildcat had a 123.2" wheelbase per the 1969 specs, which are identical to the 1970. The Olds has a 124" wheelbase, so that's very, very close. Chevies had a 119" wheelbase in 1970, 121" for 1971-76.

I'd suggest finding a Wildcat and using the chassis from that. The Wildcat in and of itself is a nice kit, You might also like to see about having the chassis plate cast by someone and use the casting, or give it a shot yourself.

All you'll need is some Olds Engine Blue for the molded-in oil pan.

Charlie Larkin

[David G.]

Wow! With all that, it might just be easier to modify the chassis plate that came with the kit. It looks fairly close to my 1:1 but the front and rear suspension and exhaust are molded on and somewhat different than what's on my battle barge.

Forgive me if I seem too picky, but I've been looking for a model of this car for more than ten years and now that I've found one, I want to do the best for it that I can.

This is also my first resin car kit, so if anybody has any of those "I wish I would have known that before I started!" moments they'd like to share, please feel free.

Thanks for the information, and your patience.

David G.

Edited January 10, 2010 by David G.

[charlie8575]

Do you have any pictures of the kit unbuilt? I'm curious to see what you get, as Steve didn't put any up on Resinrealm.

Charlie Larkin

[David G.]

Do you have any pictures of the kit unbuilt? I'm curious to see what you get, as Steve didn't put any up on Resinrealm.

Charlie Larkin

I had planned to take some today but I had to go out and buy a washing machine instead. I'll try to take some sometime over the next couple of days.

Edited January 11, 2010 by David G.