55 Chevy Bel Air Hardtop: WIP (Photos Restored)

[David G.]

I got this as a birthday gift last month from my wife. I had some trouble deciding what color to paint it. I was tired of my typical chosen colors, blue, red, black, etc. Then I saw a can of pink that was left over from one of my wife's gag gift projects.

I thought, "Pink, this is perfect, I hate pink!" I decided to step out of my comfort zone and do something I wouldn't normally do. Build a pink model car.




I've spent the past week or two adjusting the suspension and ride height. I have to lift the rear of the body a bit to clear the racing slicks I want to put on the back. This is just a mock-up, nothing's been glued at this point. That's why it looks a bit wonky.




Another view of my home made lift shackles.





Thanks for looking. As always, comments, advise and suggestions are always welcome.

Thanks,

David G.

Edited September 23, 2021 by David G.
Restored Photos

[DRG]

You know a car has style and character when it looks good painted pink and white.

Looking good.

[David G.]

On my last build, I felt intimidated by the ammount of chrome trim, so I tried using paint instead of foil on the chrome trim.

It turned out alright, but I know it would've been better in foil.



Since the '55 Chevy has a fair amount of chrome trim, I decided to use it as my "foil trainer."

After making several attempts at each section, I finally got the foil work done to my satisfaction. I know it's not anywhere near perfect, but I've pushed my learning capacity to the limit for this round. The next one will be a little easier and a little better.

 

 

As always, thanks for taking the time to look and feel free to comment and/or offer any tips or suggestions.

Thanks,
David G.

Edited January 21, 2022 by David G.
Photos Restored

[mopar01lee]

HEY.. it takes a real man to paint a car pink....with that bein said

i have to cars painted watermelon pink...

57 vette for my 11yr old girl

99 eclips same color for my 5 yr old girl..lol

i like this 55 in pink momma weekend racer..

[Foxer]

I'm totally surprised I like th epink on this car..!! The '55 makes it look good.

Very nice job on the foil .. the edges are clean and smooth.

[Jim Gibbons]

That's looking really good, and using the foil is a great improvement. Not to hijack your thread, but here's one I built in the mid '70s that I unearthed this summer:

Pactra pink from the bottle, brush painted.

I have the '55 convertible which I'll be doing in coral/ grey like the box photo, so, nothing wrong with pink!

[David G.]

HEY.. it takes a real man to paint a car pink....with that bein said

i have to cars painted watermelon pink...

57 vette for my 11yr old girl

99 eclips same color for my 5 yr old girl..lol

i like this 55 in pink momma weekend racer..

Thanks for the comments.

If you have any pictures, feel free to post them. Maybe we could make this the "Pink Car Thread!"

Edited August 19, 2010 by David G.

[David G.]

That's looking really good, and using the foil is a great improvement. Not to hijack your thread, but here's one I built in the mid '70s that I unearthed this summer:

Pactra pink from the bottle, brush painted.

I have the '55 convertible which I'll be doing in coral/ grey like the box photo, so, nothing wrong with pink!

This one just cries out for a restoration. The paint looks pretty smooth for a brush job.

Thanks, I agree the foil is worth the effort.

[Jim Gibbons]

This one just cries out for a restoration. The paint looks pretty smooth for a brush job.

Thanks, I agree the foil is worth the effort.

I've pondered restoring it, but would want to keep it pretty much as is, only as a "historical" model of mine. If I could find a bottle of the Pactra pink, I'd touch it up, find another wheel/ tire (I have no bloody idea what model(s) I got them from,) and another set of the lake pipes that are missing. I got really good at brush paint jobs back then; Pactra paints seemed to flow very well without adding thinner. I'd have to add thinner to Testor's jar paints to make them flow as smoothly. One of my favorite colors from Pactra was their Sapphire Blue (you can see a trace on the front wheel backing plate); I painted a '60 Plymouth wagon in that color with a white roof and front fender coves. It came out very well, but Pactra paints seemed to dry semi-gloss. Those were the days before I discovered clear spray, and LONG before polishing kits! Again, sorry to hijack the thread, but here's a front shot of that Revell '57:

[Railfreak78]

Nooks really nice David. I like the paint and stance. I really like the shackels. Welcome to the world of BMF. My Ecto is only my 2nd car done with it and it does get easier. I guess we just pick out big cars that need a lot of it . I'm watching and it looks great!

[David G.]

Nooks really nice David. I like the paint and stance. I really like the shackels. Welcome to the world of BMF. My Ecto is only my 2nd car done with it and it does get easier. I guess we just pick out big cars that need a lot of it . I'm watching and it looks great!

Yeah, there's something to be said for the "tuners"... no chrome!

[dwc43]

Yeah, there's something to be said for the "tuners"... no chrome!

and no go either .... lol

[mikemodeler]

Not bad for a Pepto cruiser! I have one that I want to build but in pink/gray combo.

I used a '55 to learn how to refine my foiling techniques, figured it was the best one to try it on.

[David G.]

Not bad for a Pepto cruiser! I have one that I want to build but in pink/gray combo.

I used a '55 to learn how to refine my foiling techniques, figured it was the best one to try it on.

"Pepto-Cruiser" I like that!

[Jim Gibbons]

Pepto Cruiser is a good name; the color combo reminds me of "Good 'N Plenty" candy...that's my nomination for a title! If you do a charcoal or black interior, that'd be the candy guts!

Edited August 21, 2010 by Jim Gibbons

[David G.]

Pepto Cruiser is a good name; the color combo reminds me of "Good 'N Plenty" candy...that's my nomination for a title! If you do a charcoal or black interior, that'd be the candy guts!

You know, that might be a good idea for a sponsorship theme. Right now I'm doing the interior in white and coral, but that could change.

The Good-n-Plenty Racer, hmmmmm...

[David G.]

August 27 Update:

It's a modest update, but here it is.


Almost everybody else wants to lower them, not me!


With the rear lifted, the kit shocks were too short, so I kitbashed 'em! Given how they came out, I may start doing this as a matter of course.



This is just the test fit, everything will be straightened and tidied-up before final assembly.



As always, your comments, critiques and tips are welcome. (maybe I should put that in my sig...)

Thanks,

David G.

Edited June 13, 2021 by David G.
Photos Restored

[Sixties Sam]

Thanks for the comments.

If you have any pictures, feel free to post them. Maybe we could make this the "Pink Car Thread!"

OK, here's my 56 Crown Vic in "Pepto Bismol Pink"! My wife liked the color on a real one we saw at a car show.

[Danno]

Looking good, David!

[Brett Barrow]

August 26 Update:

Almost everybody else wants to lower them, not me!

I'd jack the front up too, gasser style!!!

I'd call it the Pink Nitemare - which is what The Old Man called Ralphie's bunny suit in A Christmas Story

[mopar01lee]

hey bro this is lookin good ....but you asked for it heres the 2 cars i painted watermelon pink for my 2 girls....

the first i said before was a 57 sry its a 60 vette...i jus did the body cuz

my 11 yr old girl is puttin the rest together no paint but shes doin all the work...

heres the eclipse im doin for my 5 yr old...not much detail paint cuz its prolly gonna get broke...lol

an there you go real men paint cars pink.....

thanks for lettin me share these with you bro

later days my friend

Davin.B

[David G.]

OK, here's my 56 Crown Vic in "Pepto Bismol Pink"! My wife liked the color on a real one we saw at a car show.

Wow, that's what I call hot pink. Nice build too!

[David G.]

I'd jack the front up too, gasser style!!!

I'd call it the Pink Nitemare - which is what The Old Man called Ralphie's bunny suit in A Christmas Story

I thought about building it as a gasser, but in my mind, a '55 Chevy gasser is almost cliche'. I decided to go more with a 70's style customized street dragster. A weekend warrior that you might see cruising the strip on Saturday night.

Maybe it's time for a poll. So far we've got: Pepto Cruiser, Good-n-Plenty Racer and Pink Nightmare.

[David G.]

Looking good, David!

Thanks!

[David G.]

hey bro this is lookin good ....but you asked for it heres the 2 cars i painted watermelon pink for my 2 girls....

the first i said before was a 57 sry its a 60 vette...i jus did the body cuz

my 11 yr old girl is puttin the rest together no paint but shes doin all the work...

heres the eclipse im doin for my 5 yr old...not much detail paint cuz its prolly gonna get broke...lol

an there you go real men paint cars pink.....

thanks for lettin me share these with you bro

later days my friend

Davin.B

Davin,

It's that you're awesome getting your daughters involved in the hobby. Especially the older one who wants to build!

Thanks for sharing the photos.

Regards,

David G.