How It All Got Started.

[LUKE'57]

How it all got started.

Back when I was building forty to a hundred dirt models a year, a friend brought me an AMT '63 Mercury and a '63 Galaxie buildup. Now back then the Ford was as hard to find as the Mercury so it took me a while to decide to do anything with them. But after one trip too many to the Joe Weatherly Museum I couldn't resist the pull of that Marauder any longer.

I really liked the different look of the full bodies on the Grand National cars without the fenders being cut out and without those big truck hubs they used on the dirt cars. While I had built a few of the older cars like the Coke Monte Carlo and the MPC stockers they just didn't "grab" me like that old Merc did. It predated the decals for the older cars and was handlettered just like the dirt models I learned on.

I lost all the dirt cars in the auction but managed to hold onto the Mercury somehow and it became the seed that became the collection I have now. It will always have a special place in my collection because it was my personal "First of the Many" that redirected my modeling to the "Darkside".

I had no inkling of the future when I built this that these cars would be so popular and that so many decals and parts would be availible for them. It was a long time coming but I'm glad the early racers haven't been forgotten.

[James W]

Nice story and a really nice build. I too love the look of these the last of the stock stock cars. Never again were NASCAR stockers built on factory cars from the frame up.

Man that is just a good looking car!!!

[LUKE'57]

Thanks James, I really appreciate the comments and glad you like it.

[camaroman]

I wish we would go back to "body in white" racing. That was True stock car racing.

[James Flowers]

Thats when NASCAR was the best. Great looking build. How about some more pictures. I think they could do it today and still keep all the new safety stuff of today.

[LUKE'57]

Thats when NASCAR was the best. Great looking build. How about some more pictures. I think they could do it today and still keep all the new safety stuff of today.

Thanks for all the nice comments. How about a view that not many got in '63 as Joe raced to his second consecutive championship? This is what the front end looked like. LOL

[Billy Kingsley]

No matter how many builds I've seen of yours Jerry, you always have more I've never seen before, like this one!

I got a resin 63 at Toledo last year, and I'm having quite a conundrum-leave it stock, or go NASCAR with it? HMMM! (I did get the bumpers plated by Chrome Tech USA....)

[Slim Louis]

One of my favorites. I have one decent 63 Marauder I founf at the bay, need to get a front bumper/grill from Modelhaus.

[Harry P.]

I agree, back when "stock car racing" actually involved stock cars (well, slightly modified stock cars), that was way cool. It was great to see real Fords, Chevies, Dodges, etc. go head to head. Now that was real racing, because the cars were different, and winning the race actually meant something to the winning make/model and their manufacturer as far as reputation and bragging rights.

Now all we can say is "driver so-and-so won"... the car is irrelevant, because they're all the same!!!

NASCAR sure ain't was it used to be. Too bad...

[ricky12]

I ALWAYS LOVE TO SEE YOUR WORK .IT ALL GREAT WORK .