1931 Model A Pickup: Does a 1/25 Model Exist?

[Ken McGuire]

I came across photos of the Alexander Bros. shop/show truck called "The Grasshopper" and love it. It was a slightly modified 1931 Model A Pickup. I tried Googling for a 1/25 scale kit - even in stock form - but couldn't find one, so am wondering if it exists?

[george 53]

Aloooong time ago, R&D Unique used to do a 30/31 Ford pickup. They even has a complete chassis an suspension set up for it, in white metal. It was VERY well done, an it'll probably cost ya an arm anna leg IF you can find one!

[my80malibu]

Aloooong time ago, R&D Unique used to do a 30/31 Ford pickup. They even has a complete chassis an suspension set up for it, in white metal. It was VERY well done, an it'll probably cost ya an arm anna leg IF you can find one!

the last one of those that I saw was selling at 100.00 dollars

[Draggon]

Aint that one sweet.

[Ken McGuire]

I understand that The Grasshopper was a 1931 cab with '29 fenders and a '32 box. But I can't even find reference to a 1932 pickup box! I saw photos online of a fellow in Netherlands who converted a 1930 cope to a pickup cab by cutting off the rear, so that's a possibility, and I suppose 1929 fenders can be found but the box?

[Tom Geiger]

I understand that The Grasshopper was a 1931 cab with '29 fenders and a '32 box. But I can't even find reference to a 1932 pickup box!

I believe the '32 box was the same as the '34. That's in the old AMT then Lindberg kit!

[Ace-Garageguy]

Though the '32 and '34 boxes are not exactly the same, the '34 Tom mentioned is plenty close for a model. '28 and '29 fenders are the same and are available from both revell and AMT kits. Revell made '31 (same as '30) sedan and sedan-delivery bodies that will convert readily to pickup cabs. ALL the Revell model A kits, '28-'31, come with a dropped front axle to get that stance.

Google image search "'32 Ford pickup". Tons of images of the boxes.

Edited January 22, 2013 by Ace-Garageguy

[SoCalCarCulture]

Here's a few more pics of "The Grasshopper", this was at the Icons of Speed & Style auction in 2009...

092509 Icons of Speed & Style 114 by SoCalCarCulture, on Flickr

092509 Icons of Speed & Style 147 by SoCalCarCulture, on Flickr

092509 Icons of Speed & Style 088 by SoCalCarCulture, on Flickr

092509 Icons of Speed & Style 072 by SoCalCarCulture, on Flickr

[Ken McGuire]

I have the Speed & Style Icons catalogue from RM Auctions, which is where The Grasshopper first caught my eye. Thank you, guys, for the information on which parts/kits will work. I think I'll have to get busy collecting these as that truck is beautiful.

[Art Anderson]

I believe the '32 box was the same as the '34. That's in the old AMT then Lindberg box

There were length and wheelbase differences to be considered here: Yes, in length and width, a '34 Ford pickup box is the same dimensionally as the '32 Ford. However, the spacing of the rear wheels/fenders along the sides are markedly different between the model years: The '32 Ford Model B/Model 18 has a wheelbase of 106", where beginning in 1933, Ford went to a 112" wheelbase, which is why, if one ever gets to see a true '32 Ford pickup, the box has an exaggerated overhang at the rear. Now, Model A Fords had a 102" wheelbase, which makes for an even shorter length of bed between the rear fenders and cab, and the Model A pickup box was considerably shorter than the '32 and later units.

Winfield's "Grasshopper" is a mix of Ford sheetmetal, and does appear to have been built on a Model A frame. Also, the R&D Unique '30 Model A pickup resin/whitemetal aftermarket kit is done off the Monogram 1/24 scale 1930 Model A Coupe, with a new back panel for the cab having been scratchbuilt, the coupe body cut off at the rear edge of the doors--it's pretty close though. I suspect that the pickup box used in that resin kit is the bed from the Monogram Blue Beetle ('29 Model A roadster pickup) which could provide the fenders/running boards/splash aprons, the '30 Model A coupe giving the upper hood panel, and Revell's redone '30 Model A Woody the '32 Ford grille shell.

The problem will be the pickup box, Grasshopper appears to have either a late 1931 Model A pickup box (which predicted the longer, deeper box used 1932-about 1937) and that box doesn't exist in scale. The AMT '34 pickup box could be modified to fit, but here you'd run into the scale difference between 1/24 and 1/25.

Hope this helps at least a bit.

Art

[carrucha]

There is an excellent article by Tim Boyd in the April 1988 issue of Scale Auto Enthusiast where he built a 1931 Model A pickup streetrod using parts from the Revell 1931 Model A sedan and Revell's 1929 Model A pickup kit. He made the cab by cutting off the body a little bit past the door and scratch built the rear of the cab. This issue is still available from the Scale Auto website. Just go to the back issue section of the website.