'57 Chevy Stock Car - circa 1968

[gasser59]

Here's a tribute to a car I built this spring that I used to watch race as a young teenager in Harlan, Iowa. Built from the Black Widow kit with Tamiya Mica Blue paint, Fred's Resin Workshop tires and solder headers. I also created the decals for it and had them printed by Bull Ring Graphix.

Hope you enjoy.

Here's the best picture of three I had of it.

Edited July 20, 2011 by gasser59

[LAone]

thats a really cool build. came out great.

[deathskull59]

nice race car chevy always made cars for racing.

[Bastardo]

A great looking build, mate!

[Brutalform]

Fantastic work on those fenders!! I really like the screen windshield work too. Very original.

BTW, what tires and wheels are those? I might be wrong, but the seem a bit larger than the Black Widow kit wheels.

[lillakev]

Awesome job! It looks just like the picture, except cleaner!

[ra7c7er]

Really cool. What did you use as the window screen and the bumper screen?

[gasser59]

Thanks for the comments gentlemen. The wheels are the Black Widow ones, just deepened a bit and the tires are from Fred's Resin Workshop part number 6064F. They're called 1960-1964 Firestone Style Stock Car tires. The screen material I found on a strainer at Walmart. Its metal so it holds it shape quite well and the mesh was the perfect size. Once cut to shape, I spray painted it flat black.

Thanks again guys.

Edited July 20, 2011 by gasser59

[Jim Gibbons]

Excellent vintage racer! It reminds me of the late Jerry Sims' (Luke'57) work. He would have enjoyed seeing this.

[Dr. Cranky]

Nice, well-done model!

[gasser59]

This actual car and the Swanson Automotive shop that built it has a bit of racing history as one of the original Black Widow cars gifted to them by the GM Racing Division. In his earlier years, Dale Swanson built cars for Tiny Lund and Johnny Beaucamp as all three of these fellas were from Harlan. For more info on this, check out the PDF under about us at www.swanson-automotive.com. Very interesting reading.

After reading this article and watching this car race in my younger years, I just had to build it to help tell the story. Thanks again for the comments.

Edited July 20, 2011 by gasser59

[TheCat]

That's a really cool looking race car. It came out looking like the real one. Excellent work!!!

[sjordan2]

When did you have Bullring do your decals? I thought they shut down a few years ago and their website says pretty much the same.

[gasser59]

The decals were sent to me mid January of this year. I'd been in contact with them for a month or so before that. I'm very pleased with the results although I wish the silver were a bit shinier like the original car.

[Danno]

Excellent work, as usual, Brad!!

[roadhawg]

Very, very nice looking model!

[funhouse1]

Very nicely done!

[oldscool]

Very well done and very faithful to the original car.

gus