1965 Ford Galaxie Street Machine

[beeRS]

Thanks for the info about the convertible kit Si.

I am amazed that you remember that Small Talk project Si. I first saw the Small Talk section in Street Machine magazine around 1985 and that was what inspired me to build better models. Without Small Talk my model building would never really have taken off. That red Galaxie was built by Terry Ross - the editor of the Small Talk section. He went on to create Speed Freaks and you can see what he's up to now on his website www.speed-still.com/index.html - its really worth a look if you want to see how abstract automotive art can be!

[Custom Mike]

Sonny, the interior for this one is the same as the convertible, both started life as promos, so to save money AMT just tooled up the convertible interior for both. It's pretty common among the old AMT kits unfortunately...

[AUGIEDOGGIE]

nice cant wait to see more

[pandamonium2112]

I guess I'll chime in on the "Structural fender well" question. As a person who has worked on a lot of 1:1 cars, the inner fender well isn't structural as much as it is just supportive. The solid frame under the car can actually hold take the load of the car without the fender wells. The radiator cross brace or bonnet slam panel' which ever you prefer to call it, holds the structure and shape of the front end (fenders) by bolting them to it and the rear portion of the fender is bolted to the front bulk head or fire wall. The fender well is there mostly to strengthen the fender due to its length and to keep a fair share of road grime from getting in the engine compartment.

On a true race machine, they can be taken out in the process of loosing weight and it would allow more air flow to cool the engine although you loose aero dynamics (toss that up for debate) Adding a lite amount of bracing would be an alternative to the 100 plus pounds you get rid of by taking them out.

Long winded, but I hope this answers the question.. Good luck and great progress so far!

[modelguy45]

here you go

[beeRS]

_{Here's some more progress...}

Out of the kit there is a mis-match between the floor pan and underside of the interior floor. I'll try to fix this.

The two holes left from removing the mouled in exhaust silencers.

I have raised the boot floor slightly to accommodate the new exhaust system.

[Pat Minarick]

Great work !

[beeRS]

The first coat of grey primer on the floor reveals that it is still far from perfect, but its a start. I'll continue with this, but just for a change of scenery I have turned my attention to the body.

I will either have 'shaved' door handles or add them again after the body has been painted. So, for now I am removing them completely.

[beeRS]

For the smooth look I will be losing the Galaxie 500 script.

The trim on the rear quarter has caused me quite some concern...

Removing this trim was harder than I first thought . Keeping the body line straight was tricky.

I will be adding some photo etched wipers later; so - the moulded in wipers must go. This was another tricky job.

[Jantrix]

Really enjoying this excellent work.

[rigbuilder]

Lots of tricky work thus far but it all looks great. You do fine work. Keep it up.

[george 53]

You, sir, are a MONSTER! I LOVE this! Thank you for showing us how it's done! i had this kit as a NEW release, THAT'S how long it's been around! your doin it RIGHT bro, I'm just have a good time watching your progress! Thanks again!

[Lunajammer]

Whoa. Courageous.

[slusher]

Your doing some real nice work...

[Guest]

Wow!

[beeRS]

I have been looking closely at some reference pictures of the 1:1 Galaxie. The picture below shows that there is a body coloured panel in between the grill and the bumper...

(Interestingly - the picture above shows the Galaxie with a clear lens covering the entire vertical headlamp stack. This is the only time I have seen this on a 65 Galaxie. It is not present on any other reference pictures I've found on the net. Maybe this is a special model?

Below is the kit's front chrome with the grill and bumper moulded as one.

Very (I mean very) carefully I was able to cut the bumper off without scuffing the chrome. This took about a hundred passes with the No11 Xacto blade. The kit chrome is not perfect to begin with so I still may have to re-chrome these parts.

Below, you can see the new body panel made from flat sheet to fit in between the bumper and grill.

There is a similar body coloured panel on the rear bumper...

In the pic below you can see that I have added this panel. You can also see the body modifications made around the inner boot opening.

With the body nearing paint stage, I've turned my attention back to the motor. I really like the idea of one of these...

It's a Sonny's 727. With a name like mine - what would you expect! I believe its based on a Ford so it would be perfect.

The closest in1/25 scale I can see is a Ross Gibson 815, but I'm not sure if this would be a good starting point. I'm not afraid of scratch building a few bits, but I am at a bit of a loss about which Ross Gibson engine is which. The pic below shows Boss valve covers...

...and this pic shows what looks like Sonny's valve covers. I'd be grateful if anyone here knows what Ross Gibson engine part number I need. I don't want to order, wait 2 weeks (that's at least how long it'll take to deliver to the UK) and find I got the wrong one.

Edited August 28, 2013 by beeRS

[66belair]

Your work is amazing! I built this kit as a kid also,the Crusin USA version. The corrections you are making are unbelievable. I also owned a 1:1 in the same color as the one in the pic of the tailight. Keep up the awesome work,can't wait to see this one done.

[tooltas]

no the sonny are chevy base you mite need the rge312 that's a boss base big block ford 812 hemi ford

[Ford guy]

Sonny, the red Galaxie with the clear headlight covers is a special model. It's called the 7 Litre, because it has the 427 (7 liter) engine. It's the only model Ford to have these covers. Kind or a sports/luxury car. In '66 they used 428's. Check this out.......http://www.7litre.org/........to learn more.

Awesome build by the way! I love what you've done with the bumpers.

[beeRS]

Sonny, the red Galaxie with the clear headlight covers is a special model. It's called the 7 Litre, because it has the 427 (7 liter) engine. It's the only model Ford to have these covers. Kind or a sports/luxury car. In '66 they used 428's. Check this out.......http://www.7litre.org/........to learn more.

Awesome build by the way! I love what you've done with the bumpers.

Thanks Roy. That's really useful information and a really good website for info.

[Guest]

Sonny, why not just buy the recently reissued Revell '55 Jukebox Ford for your base engine? It has the same (maybe not exact. I can check my kit) valve covers as the real engine in your photo. The kit will be cheaper than a Gibson engine. Plus, you'll have a whole pro sportsman '55 Ford body and chassis left over. May be something to consider.

[bisc63]

Beautiful work. I love your attention to detail. Adding the filler panels between bumpers and body is an especially nice bit, and will go a long way towards giving your car that REAL look. More models, especially older kits, can benefit from that touch. Good job!!

[beeRS]

Sonny, why not just buy the recently reissued Revell '55 Jukebox Ford for your base engine? It has the same (maybe not exact. I can check my kit) valve covers as the real engine in your photo. The kit will be cheaper than a Gibson engine. Plus, you'll have a whole pro sportsman '55 Ford body and chassis left over. May be something to consider.

Thanks Roger, but I thought the entire underpinnings of the Revell 55 Ford Jukebox was the same as Revell's pro sportsman '57 Chevy. I have the 57 Chevy, but not 55 Ford. I would be grateful if you could check for me and if the engine is different It will certainly make a lot of sense.

[knarf]

Whoa. Courageous.

2nd that

[bisc63]

Any progress on this?!