restoman Posted May 15, 2020 Share Posted May 15, 2020 I first built this around 1995-ish. It looked ok in the cabinet, but there were a lot of things about it that bugged me, so... Done in Viper Red, if I recall. Single layer urethane. I think it's a little brighter than what is supposed to be on the LREs, but it worked at the time so I saw no reason to change it. The big block, four speed and floor shifter were something else. Little Reds came with the E58 360, four barrel engine and all were column shift automatics So away went the big block and in went a resin copy of the '71 Duster small block and a resin automatic. Added a column shift, and indicator, covering the floor with some red embossing powder. The proper pedals were added, too. Some underhood detail finishes it off to make things a little more believable. I lowered the truck to get a little more of street stance. The kit always sat so high... White letter tires give it a period look. Clear headlight and turn signal lenses in the grill, a shot of Dull coat for the anodized aluminum look, and some filler strips to set the grill out where it should be. The grill, front filler panel, and front bumper just never seem to fit right on these Dodges but short of surgery and repainting, it looks ok. I guess... Mirrors are in the works, just need to get some casting material whenever the world gets itself back together. A friend's Dad had one of these when we were in high school. I thought it was the coolest. Whenever Collin was lucky enough to borrow it, we had a blast! For a 6000lb truck, it was pretty quick and would light up the rear tires with little effort. No brake pressure was required to get a satisfactory pair of black marks. ) Comments always welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
restoman Posted May 15, 2020 Author Share Posted May 15, 2020 Oops... could a moderator move this to Under Glass? T'anks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espo Posted May 15, 2020 Share Posted May 15, 2020 Great looking redo on this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelson Posted May 15, 2020 Share Posted May 15, 2020 looks good!?,i'm waiting for Ray's kits to reopen so i can order the Midnite Express decals from him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave branson Posted May 15, 2020 Share Posted May 15, 2020 nice build Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PappyD340 Posted May 16, 2020 Share Posted May 16, 2020 Looks great, I know a couple of guys that had the 1:1 version of those trucks back in the day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charger74 Posted May 19, 2020 Share Posted May 19, 2020 Very nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted May 19, 2020 Share Posted May 19, 2020 Awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmericanMuscleFan Posted May 20, 2020 Share Posted May 20, 2020 Very bautiful "little" truck Mike! We don't see much on the road anymore and your final product fully respects the real vehicle! Well done sir!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
restoman Posted May 20, 2020 Author Share Posted May 20, 2020 (edited) Thanks for the comments folks. I'm happy with how this turned out, considering the only paint work done this time around was on the engine and transmission, and a few small parts. The grill/filler/ bumper fit frustrates me a bit, but short of modifying and painting, it's as good as it's going to get. It looks great in its' display cabinet! Edited May 20, 2020 by restoman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nazz Posted May 24, 2020 Share Posted May 24, 2020 I remember seeing these running around the streets when I was a kid. Yours looks great Mike, well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bucky Posted May 24, 2020 Share Posted May 24, 2020 Very sharp! The stance looks like what I remember on the real ones. The color doesn't look any different from the '78 that I owned. What a blast that truck was! Mine had the black bucket seat interior, and no A/C! Well done on this TOP SHELF build! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim B Posted May 24, 2020 Share Posted May 24, 2020 Very nice rebuild. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drodg Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 On 5/24/2020 at 2:11 AM, Bucky said: Very sharp! The stance looks like what I remember on the real ones. The color doesn't look any different from the '78 that I owned. What a blast that truck was! Mine had the black bucket seat interior, and no A/C! Well done on this TOP SHELF build! That 78 was what the quickest vehicle in America that year? Btw this is a great build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyjim Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Very well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatz4u Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 nice rebuild, well done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cardz Posted May 27, 2020 Share Posted May 27, 2020 Wow, very nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#1 model citizen Posted May 28, 2020 Share Posted May 28, 2020 Looks fantastic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeakDoc Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Great save! What an iconic piece of American automotive history that truck is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plowboy Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Nice looking little LRE Mike! Your changes made a big difference! I never was a fan of the stacks on these trucks. If I ever get around to building mine, those will be deleted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slusher Posted June 3, 2020 Share Posted June 3, 2020 Super sharp LRE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dominik Posted September 24, 2020 Share Posted September 24, 2020 very nice! very very nice truck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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