1983 Dodge D150 Long Bed

[71_Sears]

It's my first time posting a build on here.  Late February of 2016 I bought my first vehicle ( yes I'm 17 ) which is a 1983 Dodge D150 "Custom" package with slant 6 and A727 3 speed automatic trans.  I love that truck so much.. When I saw the Revell '80 Ramcharger was being reissued I knew I had to take 2 of them slam them together and create the first 1/24 scale 1983 Dodge D150 long bed pickup.  Started this project today.  With that being said, here is the build so far.  Starting off with a picture of the real truck which is the only one I had on hand.  The kits I used to start this build as of now are the Lindberg '64 Dodge 330 for the slant 6 engine, and 2 '80 Ramcharger kits one to make the cab, the other one the bed.

[71_Sears]

First off, I  broke out the hack saw and chopped the back of the Ramcharger body off, but not to be discarded. Most will be used except for the removable top (on the real truck). That will not be needed.  The back window from the cap was put in the back of the cab for the back window.  I'm having technology issues this evening, I will post pictures of the build tomorrow.  

[71_Sears]

I got some more stuff done tonight including front and rear suspension, bench seat and removing the upper and lower trim from the cab.  Let the pics speak for themselves. Comments and constructive criticism is always welcome!  Took a side shot of the real truck today as well as chassis pictures for suspension reference.The frame was cut in two and lengthened about an inch or so to get the proper 131" wheel base.  Then the leaf spring mounts were cut and the leaf springs glued to the side of the frame.Next came the task of scratch building proper 2 wheel drive front suspension.

[71_Sears]

I let the front suspension tack up before I put the tires on to make sure it sat good on a flat surface.  The cab pictured has the trim removed. All the pictures I had when I started the build yesterday were no good thus I don't have any cutting the body up, but I do have a second one to chop up still that I will take pictures of the procedure.The 1/25 scale slant 6 is a bit small in this truck, but isn't a 225 slant 6 small to begin with?!  I will make motor mounts and a higher trans mount to raise the engine up as much as I can to make the engine not seem so small unless someone knows of a 1/24 scale slant 6..  Rims will be from Fireball Modelworks since they have the closest 1/24 Mopar steelies and dog dishes to my truck.

[espo]

You're off to a great start. There is something very rewarding to building a model of your personal ride, especially if it's your first car. You also can go out in the driveway to verify any detail you need to. Your trucks body looks like it's in pretty good shape for a truck in your part of the Rust Belt.  

[71_Sears]

You're off to a great start. There is something very rewarding to building a model of your personal ride, especially if it's your first car. You also can go out in the driveway to verify any detail you need to. Your trucks body looks like it's in pretty good shape for a truck in your part of the Rust Belt.  

Yes, it is by far the nicest one I've seen also considering it was an Illinois DOT truck since 1992 at least.  Only 85k on the odometer, I definitely plan to keep it going till it does and then some!  I'm contemplating trying to replicate the dented fender and the rust spot on the bed side.. 

[426-Hemi]

I'll be watchin' too! I'm interested in where your gonna get that grille and all to fit a 1/25th scale pick-up! -Especially a Dodge! The Ramcharger grille is more of a '79 then an '80 as Revell states it to be!

[gatorincebu]

 

  That is a nice pick up truck you have ! Looks to me like you have a handle on what you need to do.And how to do it.

  Looks good from here.

 

 

 

   Be Well

    Gator

[71_Sears]

I'll be watchin' too! I'm interested in where your gonna get that grille and all to fit a 1/25th scale pick-up! -Especially a Dodge! The Ramcharger grille is more of a '79 then an '80 as Revell states it to be!

I've got some ideas up my sleeves to scratch build one, I have done an 87 grille for one of my Ramchargers before and it wasn't so bad. This will be a little more involved! 

[71_Sears]

 

  That is a nice pick up truck you have ! Looks to me like you have a handle on what you need to do.And how to do it.

  Looks good from here.

 

 

 

   Be Well

    Gator

Thanks for the interest!  It's nice knowing I have access to as many pictures as I need since its sitting in the driveway!

[gray07]

please if u get it finished cast it in resin, been wanting this body style dodge

[426-Hemi]

I'm with Gray. a good grille for a kit thats not made of a Dodge truck is BADLY needed in this hobby as there currently isn't anything. If good and looks good, I'd offer to mold it!

[Dodge Driver]

Following along, as I had an '85 D150 long bed with a 318 4spd.

[71_Sears]

please if u get it finished cast it in resin, been wanting this body style dodge

I will have to consider that. I haven't done any resin casting myself, but I'm sure with some practice with smaller parts I could either create something or have someone else cast it as a last resort. Thanks for then interest! More progress this weekend if I have time since finals for school are next week for me.

[71_Sears]

I'm with Gray. a good grille for a kit thats not made of a Dodge truck is BADLY needed in this hobby as there currently isn't anything. If good and looks good, I'd offer to mold it!

Thank you for the offer!  Looks like I will be spending much more time on getting the suspension and other parts more accurate.

[71_Sears]

Following along, as I had an '85 D150 long bed with a 318 4spd.

Nice! I wish I had a stick in my truck but I couldn't complain because of the price and condition of my truck.

[Dodge Driver]

Nice! I wish I had a stick in my truck but I couldn't complain because of the price and condition of my truck.

Your truck is a great platform to modify as you drive it. A 360,727,9 1/4 swap would be all nuts and bolts

[426-Hemi]

Thank you for the offer!  Looks like I will be spending much more time on getting the suspension and other parts more accurate.

Dan,

Only the grille! I can't mold bodies and such, but engines and transmissions as well as grilles I can. So you do a good job on that grille, I'd be willing to mold it! -Need any Mopar engines and or parts, PM me I have a TON of that stuff already molded up ready for trading purposes!!!

[71_Sears]

Your truck is a great platform to modify as you drive it. A 360,727,9 1/4 swap would be all nuts and bolts

that it would be, but I'm forever a slant 6 guy. The only thing I would change is the 727 trans for a stick.

[71_Sears]

Dan,

Only the grille! I can't mold bodies and such, but engines and transmissions as well as grilles I can. So you do a good job on that grille, I'd be willing to mold it! -Need any Mopar engines and or parts, PM me I have a TON of that stuff already molded up ready for trading purposes!!!

Ok, sounds good. Do you know of anyone that does a 1/24 scale slant 6 by chance?

[426-Hemi]

Let me know!!!! As for the Slant 6, nope the last I knew a Slant 6 made in 1/24th scale was by Ross Gibson.... I can get close, with one of them I have, but its not exactly 1/24th or 1/25th..... PM me on it tho....

[71_Sears]

Let me know!!!! As for the Slant 6, nope the last I knew a Slant 6 made in 1/24th scale was by Ross Gibson.... I can get close, with one of them I have, but its not exactly 1/24th or 1/25th..... PM me on it tho....

Will do! I'm contemplating pulling my engine apart and adding some styrene in all the joints where the parts comes together to make it a bit bigger. I will see tonight when I get some bench time!

[71_Sears]

Got some more work done yesterday with very limited time so I didn't get a chance to get pictures, but I modified the engine to make it more or less 1/24 scale, started working on the dash, bed floor, and the bed sides.  Sounds like a lot in an hour, but just little things.  I just had to paint the engine again, and then started tooling around with the dash which proved to be a bigger project than 2 hours worth of time. So I moved on to the bed floor and I finished that up minus filler and sanding it down and the strips that run the length of the bed floor.  I will have to make a hobby shop run for strip styrene to tackle that and the front grille. The bed sides got the trim removed and the front portion of the passenger bed side added on. That's where I ended last night.  I hope to post more pictures soon.

[71_Sears]

Well, I've been lacking to do an update for several months now.  Before I put the truck back in the box for a while I finished making the bed and bed sides and started on the dashboard.  I primed the whole truck and the primer cracked all over the place so it went into the box.  Just this past Friday I pulled it back out with new interest in fixing the cracked primer and other parts I wasn't satisfied with.  I redid the dashboard once again and filled in more holes and pits.  Here's where I am right now and hope to get primer on the body in the near future as I continue to make progress.

[leafsprings]

NIce build, it does get frustrating at times when you discover many versions of pickups were simply not done, you literally have to create them on your own from the few similar kits that were offered. I like the subject, a base model without all the fancy trim, moldings and custom wheels.