Union - IMC - Testors 1948 Ford Convertibles

[Joker]

Working on a couple of '48 Ford Convertibles for an online contest.

The first one is a 5 dollar gluebomb IMC and the second one is a Testors flatbox.

The Testors is a little further along than the IMC/Union Ford.

Did a little modification (snicker..hee hee) on the IMC/Union

by adding a Revell '48 Caddy grill..grill surround is homemade

also added the side trim because the original came with chrome

tape trim.Cut out the original rear axle and added a modern pumkin

rear end..motor is a 427 Ford. Molding on the fenders was done

with half round facing the body to make the transition easier.

Tail lights were removed ...bumper guard lites are in the works.

yada yada yada....

narrowed rear spring and "new" pumpkin rear

windshield glass removal....hahahaha

this styrene is so fraaagiiiiLeee..

broke it in three pieces ...

one piece again..

peek at Revell '48 Caddy grill and custom grill surround.

Styrene added to the front cowl , fender joints and door openings.

sanded down the glued upper grill and started the grill surround

progress...

buckets were glued in with a small space , left between the body and the rings,

to create a kind of extended frenched in look. this shot includes the added half round

side trim sanded down to flatten it a bit. also shows the chopped convertible top.

James aka JoKer

[kennb]

looking good

[Joker]

Rear end shot shows rounded trunk lines ..half round styrene on rear fender

removed tail light housing and chopped top

tattle tail primer work...hahaahaha you know it's true

fix on boot cover..

Early Corvette wheel covers with a little wash and some painted www's

chromies and www

James aka JoKer

[Joker]

These are some WIP pixs of the Testors Ford.

Full fade aways are from the Revell '48 Ford

(Great kit BTW)

Glue is applied to the doors only and clamped on

with high tech hardware.

door gap fixed ....front fender reveal extended to center of door.

half round used to mold in fenders

sill plate work

trunk floor raised for chassis clearance...more on that later..

lid popped and sunken plate holder installed

stepped chassis in rear..glued and pinned for strength

James aka JoKer

Edited August 30, 2013 by Joker

[Joker]

Front axle dropped and pinned

one more crappy pix

raised floor work..mechanical pencil drive shaft tunnel

new home for stepped chassis

James aka JoKer

[Joker]

Original issue 1936 Ford full wheel covers (Thanks Bill/ACE)

trunk show cans from Fujimi kit ...handles added

paint...Dupli-Color burgundy maroon....ol' school

rail road rub on letters

James aka JoKer

[Joker]

Two coats of paint and some color sanding

James aka JoKer

[Ace-Garageguy]

Great looking work. The lines on the fade-away fender car are really sweet.

[Joker]

Thanks Bill...I had to eliminate/terminate the transition "hump".

Big THANKS for the Full Wheel Covers too.

[kennb]

the Testors 48 looks very nice,,,,,,Barrish

[o-man]

I'm not in to this era car, but those both are HOT!

[Foxer]

Both are looking good ... and I love your "plastic lead" bodywork!

[Ramfins59]

James, those are some ambitious and very cool projects you've got going. I haven't seen anyone working on one of those Testors multi-piece kits in a very long time. You're doing a great job.

[Joker]

Thanks y'all...

here's a link to the IMC Ford Convertible instruction page

from Drastic Plastic Fotki site(thanks Bob B.)...http://public.fotki.com/drasticplasticsmcc/mkiba-build-under-c/imc/imc-48-ford-convertible/

Edited August 31, 2013 by Joker

[doggie427]

Brillant vision and outstanding bodywork James !!

Great stuff.

[Eshaver]

James, I best see dese in Norfolk now ! Really nice stuff too.

[PappyD340]

Very NICE work James!!

[Mike Kucaba]

Very nice !! I got a bunch of them and think they are very worthwhile kits to build. IMHO Revell should have produced a stock height stock body coupe.

[Customman]

There's nothing like Old School Customs. Very nice work.

[DumpyDan]

Congrats, that is some ambitious projects. I have started one of these mmmmm maybe 20 years ago.......still not done. Great job great photo's.

[1930fordpickup]

This is some very nice work.

I have not cared for the fade away fenders when done on the coupe , but they are killer on this build. The whole vibe is great with both cars.

[cobraman]

Fantastic work !

[Bill Edman]

nice

[Joker]

Thanks Y'all...

Here's a pix of the Union / IMC after a shot of primer.

The white primer on the top showed me some flaws

and it got attacked with sandpaper and water.

Weatherman is calling for some PM showers

here in the Ol' Dominion so I'll shoot some more primer

in a bit. The Model Masters Citrus Yellow Metallic is going

to have to wait..

Thanks Andre/Scalper for the paint info.

The styrene is fragile on this ol kit...developed stress cracks on the trunk lid while sanding down

the primer. The front bumper valance and the rear valance got stress cracks too..

Just how old is this Ol' Dog ? Anyhoo...added new styrene under the bumper valances for strength .

Made new hinges for the doors (gluebomb) to make them operational. And the seams were checked

for paint clearance.

yada yada yada

Edited September 1, 2013 by Joker

[gman]

The styrene is fragile on this ol kit...developed stress cracks on the trunk lid while sanding down

the primer. The front bumper valance and the rear valance got stress cracks too..

Just how old is this Ol' Dog ? Anyhoo...added new styrene under the bumper valances for strength .

If it makes you feel any better, I bought the Testors version of both the '48 convertible and hardtop when they were new in the mid or early 80's as current releases. The plastic was brittle then- had many parts crack or snap during handling. You've got yours to a much more finished stage than I ever did because of that issue with the type of plastic used.

Edited September 1, 2013 by gman