jlucky

Nice one! I love the subject matter. It's a really unique build of a car that you don't see very often. When Funny Cars looked like real cars. I also love the fact that you plundered so many kits to bring it all together. When do we get to see a group shot of your whole collection?

As always thanks guys...more to come.

This fueler was called one of the “top 10 nicest dragsters ever built” when it hit the scene in 1964. It is commonly referred to as “The Red Stamp Car” because of the painted detail on the cowl. I wasn’t actually planning on completing this build, but one thing led to another, and I found myself working it to completion. This model is my take on that iconic car, and it involved no end of problem solving. I purchased the resin cast body and decals from Fremont Racing Specialties, a fine supplier of unique and obscure drag racing models parts. The body is a close approximation to the original 130” wheelbase original but the cowl needed significant reshaping work. In trying to reshape the cowl, I was never able to get it to fit to my satisfaction, so I reshaped a totally new one out of aluminum sheet. Additionally, the axle mounting points had to be played with to get the car’s look in keeping with the low stance of the original. The 392 Chrysler came from an old Garlits’ Wynns Jammer kit and the Hilborn scoop from Competition Resins. Throw in a few other parts, pieces, wheels and tires from the spare parts box and we’re set. Headers posed a bit of a challenge, so I reworked some older funny car pipes to make a close approximation. I used a combination of paint and the Fremont decals to get the look I wanted. Extra details include fuel lines and ignition wiring along with throttle cable. FYI, this car along with a few others are featured prominently in the ‘60’s era film Bikini Beach. Well worth a watch just to see it in action. This build is dragster #11 of 42 cars in the ever-expanding dragster collection. That top row is getting pretty crowded!

Hey thanks for the great info guys. I guess my first mistake was using hand-soap rather than dish detergent...even though I washed it thoroughly...it still clearly left some contaminant there. Here's the BIG follow-up question...Can I fix this with spot paint...or will I have to strip all the paint off and start again?

Greetings, Looking for any advice or suggestions regarding the paint issues on this build. I've never experienced this before. The body is a resin cast from Competition Resins and I've worked with much of their product in the past with great results. I washed the body with soap, let dry over 48 hours. Then put two coats of Tamiya primer...let sit overnight and then applied 2 coats of Tamiya White...let sit overnight...then today applied 2 coats of Tamiya Mica Blue and it produced this result! In addition in a couple spots when I slowly removed the Tamiya masking tape, some of the white lifted off! Again, that's never happened before. What did I do wrong? The room was cool...was it too cool? Did not do a good job washing? Any help would be appreciated. Jerry

Here is dragster #19 of 41 in my History of Dragsters Collection. Back in 1963 one of the hottest dragster teams running out of California was known as The Frantic Four. The team consisted of Norm Weekly, Jim Fox, Ron Rivero and Dennis Holding. They successfully tore up the drag strip for a lengthy period. In 1966 the team split up with Rivero and Fox continuing to race a dragster with K & G Speed Associates sponsorship. This formation continued until 1970 when they retired from racing. This model represents the AA/FDragster they raced from 1969. The 187” wheelbase chassis and body come from the Tommy Ivo kit, while the M&H Racemaster tires come from the AMT parts pack. The 392 Resin valve covers are from Competition Resins and the blower scoop is home-made along with a few other smaller items like the front wing I scavenged from the parts box. Decals of course are from Slixx and included a set for the similarly coloured funny car they ran at the same time (which I also built for funny car history collection). Wiring and plumbing all from Detail Master parts and pieces. A welcome addition to my dragster history.

As always thanks guys for your kind and generous observations. It's one of the things that inspires me to continue building.

I’ve always had a soft spot for the AA/Fuel Altered class. It’s hard to think of something more exciting than a short wheelbase race car screaming down the quarter mile hopped up on nitromethane. One of the iconic figures in the class was Wild Willy Borsch and his Winged Express 23T Altered. Word is he suffered from narcolepsy and would sometimes be found fast asleep in the staging lanes before a run! Makes you wonder about being the racer in the other lane. I built this kit from the AMT Buyer’s Choice reissue and added all the usual ignition wiring, fuel lines, and parachute lines. The Goodyear imprint on the rear slicks came from Shabo rub-on letters sheet. All said and done, the kit is well engineered and goes together very nicely. It is a welcome addition to a growing collection of those wild fuel altereds.

As for the tire issue...this kit was from the Revell HOT ROD series in 1989. Not sure if that answers your question...but there you go. I wonder if we'll ever see that kind of series ever happen again? By the way...I love your Wilson quote in the signature.

Here is dragster #2 of 41 in my ever-growing History of Dragsters Collection. Mickey Thompson, well known in the automotive world spent many years racing on the drag strip and on the salt flats. He was also instrumental in building the famed Lions Drag Strip and was the strip manager for a number of years. This Revell issued Attempt 1 dragster actually was built to run on both surfaces. I built it without the streamlined body to be able to see the inner workings of the car as it looked when it hit the dragstrip in 1961. The 96” wheelbase Dragmaster chassis featured a 120 Cubic Inch Pontiac boasting a whopping 420 HP! My build features ignition wiring and fuel lines plus a few other lines here-and-there based on a myriad of Hot Rod Magazine photos from back in the day. Yet another addition to my dragster history. It can be spotted second from the left on the top row.

Hey guys...thanks for the comments. I too saw this car in competition at Seattle's NHRA race. It brings back a lot of memories for me too. As for a series ...I am planning to post more of the dragsters from my collection on a regular basis...so yes you will be seeing more regular posts from me. Not sure why I didn't do it sooner. Although not every one of them has this level of detail. All the best!

Thought I’d show this build from a few years back. It’s part of my history of dragster and features Gary Ormsby’s Championship winning Top Fuel dragster. This car is #38 of 41 built dragsters. Revell did a really good job replicating the cars and all I had to do was add some details which include: fuel lines, mag wiring, computer lines, blower-restraint belts and a bunch of photo-etch parts for linkages and starter holder. Any and all feedback is always appreciated. Cheers

Well...after taking a bit of time off...(does anyone do that?)...I found something that I had the passion to build. I have always had a soft spot for the outrageous drag racing machines known as the AA Fuel Altered class. While at a recent swap meet, I picked up a couple bags of parts and pieces which included a Fiat body and the beginnings of a frame. Knowing I could find all the other parts needed for this build I acquired the Mondello decal set from Fremont Racing Specialties. The body needed the grill-front clip replaced with the smooth surface front-clip and then it was a matter of putting the thing together so that everything sat in the right place and at the right angle. Tires are soft M&H slicks from AMT parts packs, wheels are from the parts box, front wheels are Competition Resins12-spokes, engine is a 427 Chevy from the AMT Corvette kit, 3-D printed Hilborn injectors and scoop with Pro-Tech fuel line, dropped front axle from Tony Nancy dragster kit and steering linkage, headers, seat and other miscellaneous parts are from the spare parts box. Tamiya purple made a nice base for the Fremont decals, which went on super smooth setting nicely with just a hint of Micro Set. White stripes were made white paint pens. All in all the build is far from a 100% accurate it’s more of a close approximation of the real car that “sort-a looks right.” It’s a welcome addition to the Fuel Altered Stable.

Thanks guys...appreciate the leads!

Greetings all knowing ones! I'm looking to build the purple Modello Fiat altered and have everything except the engine. It needs a supercharged 427 Chevy. Preferably one that already has the transmission removed for racing. What's the best kit to pilfer this from? Any help would be appreciated.

Hey Billy, I'm afraid that wasn't me back then. Not sure who it was. My time behind the mic was from about 2012 to 2023. Thanks so much for the build compliment. Cheers...Jerry

Actually no...if I remember correctly...it seemed to set down in the right spot. I've always been pretty happy with how the body settles onto the chassis in these Revell NHRA kits. The polar Lights kits seem quite good as well. The only thing I did notice with the kit is that when you try to get the proper 90 degree setting for the headers....they are really low to the ground...perhaps a little too low. But you only notice that when you look at it eye-level.

This is one of my FAVORITE funny cars! Sorry you struggled with the build...but it turned out great.

Nice work! I used to have this kit, but always felt it was just a bit too unusual for me. Your build looks very cool and pretty accurate color-wise. Always nice to see these kits built, rather than just sitting in a box on the shelf. Good on you for going out on a limb.

Nice job on the Butch Leal car! It's a classic. I had the opportunity to chat with Butch at last year's Nitro Revival at Irwindale and he would not let me leave! He had so many stories to tell about all his cars. This ones a classic. Great work!

Great job...that really takes me back! I really love that period of drag racing before all the hi-tech engineering started making everything look that same.

Nice Work! I really enjoy this series of builds.

Having completed a Space 1999 Hawk spaceship, it was time to build another drag car, and with the recent passing of owner Roland Leong it seemed appropriate to build up Leong’s 1969 Hawaiian Mini-Charger. Leong, a Hawaiian native had a long string of drag cars that carried the Hawaiian name. This was the second Charger he introduced in 1969 after the original took off at the top end of the Pomona quarter mile and crashed into a be-gillion pieces. This new car was built eight-inches narrower in an attempt to be more aerodynamically sound and it did find its way into the winner’s circle a few times. The kit was released by Revell in 2010 as part of their NHRA Motor Sports Series that included four different funny cars. This series had completely new tools for the kits and they were absolutely spectacular in detail. This build, like almost all my funny cars is box-stock with my focus being more on getting the paint and the large decals right. The only changes I made to the kit include re-shaping the rear wheel wells to match the real car and the tightening up the rear slicks to have them sit properly inside the body.

Hi guys, One of the reasons I got on this kick...partially because I want to be somewhat legit when it comes to the parts...but primarily because in Tom Boyd's book Collecting Drag Racing Model Kits, he points out that the Monogram (Revell?) kits had a 6-71 blower that was too small. The AMT kit's 6-71 was a more accurate size. So that just got me wondering.

Please excuse the poor grammar...I should have reread the post before sending! Sheesh!