Model A roadster pickup WIP

The front tires are from the kit while rear are an old set of drag slicks hogged out to accept the whitewall inserts.

The front suspension was reworked to move the steering arms while a new spring was built for the rear.

The bed was shortened for proportions and a wood insert fitted in place of the kit's bed floor which will include new "rub strips". after the bed boards are cut out of this sheet.

Brass channel was used but the channel was widened between the webbing to decrease the amount that would stand proud above the planks. It was then notched to fit slightly over the end of bid sill.

Each plank was further "channeled" by shaving the stain and clearcoat to again fit a lil closer to the new rails and then put in place-




A bit more final trimming/fitting and it should work.

The Revell/Monogram 48 Ford Woody wagon has a nice flat head V-8 that would look cool and give you the retro look you want.

 I shared that thought and even have an Ardun head version at the ready but I think I'll be going for something a lil different. The hopped up 4cyl that the kit offers.

Nice build in progress-looking forward to seeing more progress pics.

^^^

Thanks Bob, appreciate it and here's some more-

We'll add a Tuck-n-Roll interior which is 'period' and matches the optional kit seats.



EDIT to add progress:

And the theme is carried to the side and kick panels-

Looking good. I love tuck-n-roll. Keep the pics coming.

Jim

^^^

Thank you Jim. Some more was added above.

Each pic gets better. Keep up the good work.

Jim

^^^ Thanks Jim.

It's been bugging me that I started with a Rat Rod for which a hopped up 4-banger could be cool but now that the project is swinging into Hot Rod territory a V8 really would be better. But my firewall, tranny tunnel and floor boards were all fitted around the 4-banger?

So I got off the fence and hacked up alot of what I had done so far? Those Razor Saws are truly wonderful and allowed careful cuts around the various components which had all been made into one piece. You can see another stock firewall and even a floorboard in the upper right of the shot. I'll go back and fit things for the larger V8 now.

I broke out the home hobbyist casting kit (Alumilite) and whipped up the parts needed for either a 'traditional' flathead V8 with performance goodies or the Ardun OHV head conversion. These are straight out of the molds mostly- before cleanup of the casting 'flash'.

Looks like this is going to be very cool.

^^^

Thank you "Mr. Nut".

 Here's an Ardun version of cast pieces going together with the parts copied from the Revell '50 Ford F-1 model kit. It's a 'good' representation by Revell because the front mount distributor (drive showing) is there as well as the way the intake is 'captured' underneath the valve covers like a real Ardun. This could help the 'cool factor'.

Indeed!

Shaping up to be a excellent build Mr. Squid.

Casting parts in resin is a technique I have yet to try, one day I am sure it will be another weapon in my quiver of modeling Kung-Fu.

^^^

Casting can be fun to learn and it's certainly useful foir what it's intended- making copies which comes in real handy for modelers. This way I've still got another Ardun for a different project- or, a traditional flathead.

The Ardun was an overhead valve conversion which negated the factory exhausts in the engine block. Here I've scraped the kit molded on representations off and replaced them with styrene shapes and  styrene rod to look like the 'bolts'.

 I had another firewall in the parts box so I set about rebuilding things to fit the flathead.

Looking at the dashboard I wanted to retain the basic lines while adding "better gauges in a Hot Rod vein".

Here's the stock dash without the original Model A instrument cluster in the center.

I then made a space for a pair of side by side gauges that would allow a 'relief' around the pair.

Thinned some aluminum tubing down to a narrower wall and then Siamese them together.

And that's about what I was shooting for.

Later after painting gauge "faces" will be attached from behind and "lens-faces" added.

Mr. Squid-you're setting the bar very high on this one.  I'm looking forward to more progress pics-there's a Rat Rod in my future.....someday.

On that note, do you know if the engine in the Revell '32 Five Window kit is a modern hemi or a flat head with an OHV conversion.  My money is on hemi, but I've been wrong before.

bobbaily

Mr. Squid-you're setting the bar very high on this one.  I'm looking forward to more progress pics-there's a Rat Rod in my future.....someday.

On that note, do you know if the engine in the Revell '32 Five Window kit is a modern hemi or a flat head with an OHV conversion.  My money is on hemi, but I've been wrong before.

Oooh? I don't have a 32 5W in the stash right now but IIRC from the store shelves it is an early Chrysler Hemi??? I was quite partial to a Revell kit/s made much later of the three-window, roadster and even Dan Fink's Woodie Wagon. They seemed to share the basic chassis and components which were very nicely rendered and equipped with a late nineties style small block Ford. Now that I think harder that 3W kit IS a Hemi and I say that because I just went shopping for another FlatHead last week or so and that kit didn't have one! So IMHO, you are correct.

And thank you for the kind words.

The air cleaners are very prominent on the engine and my casting combined with the kit's original piece resulted in parts that aren't really concentric and "nice" so I set about to replace them. Some aluminum tubing as the basic shape with styrene for a top and that lil 'lip' on the bottom is headed in the right direction, I think.

Love the way the rod is coming along. Used to have a '60 Chevy with the 348/ 3-2 bbls combination. Sounded great with just the screens on the carbs as they kicked in. Also helped to remove the mufflers and just have 2 Caddy resonators instead. When I left for work in the morning, everybody in the neighborhood was awake. LOL.

Keep up the great work.

Jim

LOL- gotta agree, that sound of unrestricted air being gulped down always sounds great! But unrestricted exhaust makes for a rancorous alarm clock? Not that I didn't do that too?

Thinking that a proper shift knob would be needed-

Some more primer and sanding will help but it's a start.

Started making holes in things for future plumbing and wiring.

Looking cool Mr. Squid!

Really like the gauge faces out of aluminum. Keep up the excellent work!

Thanks "SF", appreciate you following along.

Here's a lil progress with color.

Continuing with the wire and plumbing prep I sourced a distributor to put atop the 'shaft' coming off the front cover and drilled it to receive wire tubing and wires and then fashioned a coil from aluminum tubing and styrene rod within it, tapered up top to receive one end of the 'coil wire'. I also ran 'hoses' (wire insulation) as fuel lines from the fuel rail to the carbs. I thought I liked the 'coil' with it's little raised lips at either end until I dug into my memory further and recalled that the bottom end generally didn't have a lip? That's what happens when you stopped restoring cars about seven years ago at retirement? I can still remove that though.

I have space constraints that didn't allow the bulky generator atop the manifold. An alternator was sourced but that would elminate the kit part mounting bracket for the generator which also had the idler pulley which drives the fan, So a new bracket was made that mounts to where the generator would have, below the alternator.