TooOld Posted December 27, 2022 Share Posted December 27, 2022 (edited) When I saw that Salvino's JR Models was tooling an all new body for this kit I immediately pre-ordered one ! My kit was delivered just before Thanksgiving and after spending the long weekend looking it over I had a game plan in mind . I haven't built a NASCAR kit since the early 70's when I built all of the MPC kits and I'm no expert so the plan is to build it out of the box , add some details where I can , and see what happens . I still have the MPC Petty Plymouth I built way back when and the similarities between the chassis' are obvious but it always looked good to me so I won't be making any changes . To start I assembled the roll cage and related parts using the chassis plate as a fixture . The rear suspension was also assembled so the alignment to the body wheel openings could be checked . My roll cage was "short-shot" on the front driver's side bar so some putty was used to make repairs . Nothing is glued to the chassis at this point , only test fitting everything . After the two piece chassis was glued per the instructions I filled the resulting gaps with plastic . I also added some extra details to the floorboard including an upright brace for the ignition boxes and seat mounting brackets . Here's another shot with the cage set in place . A brace was also added from the front crossbar to the tunnel and a mounting bracket behind the seat . I fabricated a new seat using .030" sheet using online photos as a guide . Next bottom and rear seat mounting brackets were added . Here's a couple shots with the seat in place . The rear mounting bracket wasn't added yet when I took these . The finished seat will consist of three pieces . . . the seat shell , an upholstered insert , and the seat cushion . The next task is the hood and trunk hinges . The hood hinge is fabricated from .020" brass rod and .062" brass tubing and glued to the underside of the firewall/dash . Once the glue dried I formed the rest of the hinge by hand . One thing I always do when making hinges is to pinch the length of brass tubing in the center , this puts pressure on the brass rod and will hold the hood open when the model is finished . Something to pay attention to is where the firewall meets the inner flanges of the front fenders . This must fit with no gaps for the wheels to line up properly in the body openings , if this fits every time you slip the chassis into the body everything will line up . While I was pre-fitting my chassis and roll cage it wouldn't go forward enough to fit flush because the roll cage was hitting the A-pillar on the driver's side . Turns out that "short-shot" I fixed earlier wasn't one at all , it was molded in to clear the A-pillar ! Lesson learned . To fix it I just moved the bar down slightly and it all cleared . Here's photos with the hood installed After cutting the trunk open and adding a flange I fabricated a trunk hinge and glued it to the inside of the body . At this point I decided to add some detail to the underside of the hood and trunk . The hood will eventually get some more thickness added along the sides and front . In this photo I've already drilled it for hood pins . Here's the finished trunk . Back to the chassis . . . I added a 1/8" strip to the rear edge to fill the gap between the chassis and the rear valence on the body . I also added a strip along the top of the rear bulkhead but of course it interferes with the trunk hinge so I removed the center section . Turns out this strip wasn't even necessary since the gap between the bulkhead and the body can't really be seen when everything is assembled . Another lesson learned . Here's a photo with the chassis installed in the body , everything fits nicely ! You can clearly see the strip I added to fill the gap at the rear of the chassis . And here's some photos showing the hood and trunk in the closed and opened positions . After four weeks that's where I'm at as of today , next I need to work on mounting the hood & trunk pins . Once that's figured out I can move on to the engine , suspension , and interior details . It will probably be next year before it's ready for some paint . I'm a slow builder so I'll add updates when I can . Thanks for looking , any comments and/or suggestions are welcome ! Edited December 27, 2022 by TooOld 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Buckaroo Posted December 27, 2022 Share Posted December 27, 2022 I also eagerly awaited this kit to arrive at the mailbox. You're off to a great start and the extra work is gonna make this a winner. Thank you for showing the details and I cant wait for the next update. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iBorg Posted December 27, 2022 Share Posted December 27, 2022 Looks like you're off to a great start. I love the seat. Great job on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 1, 2023 Author Share Posted January 1, 2023 On 12/27/2022 at 12:01 PM, Old Buckaroo said: I also eagerly awaited this kit to arrive at the mailbox. You're off to a great start and the extra work is gonna make this a winner. Thank you for showing the details and I cant wait for the next update. Thanks Sean ! It's been so long since I built anything like this I have to relearn everything . On 12/27/2022 at 3:54 PM, iBorg said: Looks like you're off to a great start. I love the seat. Great job on that. Thanks Mike ! The kit seat is one thing that really sticks out to me , it's just a square blob of plastic (just like the MPC seat) . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 1, 2023 Author Share Posted January 1, 2023 Like I said this will be a slow one but yesterday I managed a few hours to mess with the hood & trunk pins . After trying a few ideas I settled on a simple bar across the hood opening to mount the pins to . It's not accurate but I think it will be okay once the aluminum panels are installed . The panels in the kit are about a scale 1" thick so I'm going to make my own out of some plastic sheet , also added the small panel on the passenger side . I also had to improvise for the trunk pins . It looks like the ones on the real car were mounted to the flange but that's not possible here so I used some tubing to make the mounts . Not sure I like these so they may get changed to just a small bracket . All of the engine parts have been primed so next up will be paint and engine assembly . 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
250 Testa Rossa Posted January 3, 2023 Share Posted January 3, 2023 Can't wait to see this one finished! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre Rivard Posted January 3, 2023 Share Posted January 3, 2023 Not so much an OOB anymore is it? Your upgrades are very nice. Lots to learn by watching your work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 3, 2023 Author Share Posted January 3, 2023 3 hours ago, Pierre Rivard said: Not so much an OOB anymore is it? Your upgrades are very nice. Lots to learn by watching your work. I knew I wasn't buying any aftermarket goodies so I figured OOB , funny how plans change so quick ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bainford Posted January 4, 2023 Share Posted January 4, 2023 (edited) Coming along very nicely, Bob. I haven't picked up a Salvino's kit yet, but been thinking about getting one of these Petty Plymouths. Your build is adding some fuel to that flame. Edited January 4, 2023 by Bainford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 5, 2023 Author Share Posted January 5, 2023 20 hours ago, Bainford said: Coming along very nicely, Bob. I haven't picked up a Salvino's kit yet, but been thinking about getting one of these Petty Plymouths. Your build is adding some fuel to that flame. Thanks Trevor , it's a really nice kit ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 5, 2023 Author Share Posted January 5, 2023 Started on the engine earlier this week and have made some progress , mainly paint and then some assembly . I used a M.A.D. distributor which was a tight fit but looks okay , and I added the stock oil fill tube to the driver's side valve cover . Seems a bit redundant but all the photos of NASCAR Hemi's I've found show it being there . Another update soon , thanks for looking ! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horrorshow Posted January 5, 2023 Share Posted January 5, 2023 I really admire the way some guys here on the forum can add detail. True artists. I consider myself fortunate if I can get through a session without glueing my fingers together or loosing a part. Looking forward to the finished product, I have one on order from Mike’s Decals, he is selling them without decals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkJ Posted January 5, 2023 Share Posted January 5, 2023 This seems so much better than the old mpc kit from the seventy's. I've always liked this generation of Plymouth Belvederes. Might have to get one. Yours is looking mighty fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shark Posted January 7, 2023 Share Posted January 7, 2023 WOW ! I remember at least one of Petty's 71 Roadrunners having a black and white small checkered pattern fabric for the seat upholstery. Some deal he had with a textile manufacturer. That might be a neat detail to incorporate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 7, 2023 Author Share Posted January 7, 2023 (edited) 19 hours ago, Shark said: WOW ! I remember at least one of Petty's 71 Roadrunners having a black and white small checkered pattern fabric for the seat upholstery. Some deal he had with a textile manufacturer. That might be a neat detail to incorporate. It was a Houndstooth pattern . That's the reason I made a separate insert for the seat , so it could be replicated with a decal . Edited January 8, 2023 by TooOld Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shark Posted January 8, 2023 Share Posted January 8, 2023 I'm glad you have a picture, I'm sure there were a few who thought I was crazy when I mentioned that. Really looking forward to future installments on this post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James2 Posted January 8, 2023 Share Posted January 8, 2023 I like it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrenchr Posted January 8, 2023 Share Posted January 8, 2023 On 1/3/2023 at 7:53 AM, Pierre Rivard said: Not so much an OOB anymore is it? Your upgrades are very nice. Lots to learn by watching your work. I think he meant out of the park........................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 11, 2023 Author Share Posted January 11, 2023 On 1/8/2023 at 4:33 PM, Shark said: I'm glad you have a picture, I'm sure there were a few who thought I was crazy when I mentioned that. Really looking forward to future installments on this post. Don't know about that , these guys know a lot more than I do about vintage race cars . On 1/8/2023 at 5:39 PM, James2 said: I like it... Thanks James ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 11, 2023 Author Share Posted January 11, 2023 The engine is about finished for now . I modified the kit carburetor and added linkage/springs and a throttle cable , added an alternator from my parts box (replacing the blob of plastic that's in the kit) and made some brackets for it , and finally I made a fuel pump and added the fuel lines . Before continuing I need to check the ride height and make any necessary changes so I temporarily installed the front & rear suspension/wheels & tires . Salvinos includes a half dozen lowering blocks for the rear axle and the instructions say to add one block to each leaf spring so that's where I started . This photo shows the front assembled OOB and the rear with one lowering block . It looks pretty good but I may lower the rear a little bit more , what do you guys think ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwc43 Posted January 11, 2023 Share Posted January 11, 2023 2 minutes ago, TooOld said: The engine is about finished for now . I modified the kit carburetor and added linkage/springs and a throttle cable , added an alternator from my parts box (replacing the blob of plastic that's in the kit) and made some brackets for it , and finally I made a fuel pump and added the fuel lines . Before continuing I need to check the ride height and make any necessary changes so I temporarily installed the front & rear suspension/wheels & tires . Salvinos includes a half dozen lowering blocks for the rear axle and the instructions say to add one block to each leaf spring so that's where I started . This photo shows the front assembled OOB and the rear with one lowering block . It looks pretty good but I may lower the rear a little bit more , what do you guys think ? Think the ride height is about perfect. They sit high in the rear at rest, and they drop down closer to level as downforce compresses the rear springs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 11, 2023 Author Share Posted January 11, 2023 1 hour ago, dwc43 said: Think the ride height is about perfect. They sit high in the rear at rest, and they drop down closer to level as downforce compresses the rear springs. Thanks for the info DW ! After looking at some photos I suspected it was pretty close so I'm going to leave it as is . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwc43 Posted January 11, 2023 Share Posted January 11, 2023 4 minutes ago, TooOld said: Thanks for the info DW ! After looking at some photos I suspected it was pretty close so I'm going to leave it as is . More than welcome. Love these cars. I need to pick up some for my collection. I love the Charger the most. That Petty Blue and STP red really go together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merkur XR4Ti Posted January 11, 2023 Share Posted January 11, 2023 I just finished this kit, so one tip: you may have to remove the two oil caps on the connector on the front of the engine to make room for the hood to sit all the way down. Mine interfered. I took them off and painted the nubs glass black, and that worked well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooOld Posted January 12, 2023 Author Share Posted January 12, 2023 21 hours ago, Merkur XR4Ti said: I just finished this kit, so one tip: you may have to remove the two oil caps on the connector on the front of the engine to make room for the hood to sit all the way down. Mine interfered. I took them off and painted the nubs glass black, and that worked well. I noticed that when I fit the engine into the chassis , looks like Salvino's may have missed this . I've looked at a couple of finished models on line and they both have the tube/caps modified to sit much lower . Haven't decided yet how to handle this . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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