Per Dave's request: 1927 Ford "Owl T" Pickup

[tim boyd]

Per Dave Darby's request in another thread in the "Under Glass" Forum, here is a portfolio of pictures of my loose replica of the "Owl T" as featured in a 1970's issue of Rod Action magazine.   This project was a "how to" feature in my Modelers Corner column in Street Rodder sometime in the late 1980's if I am remembering correctly.  

The cab was a combo of the Revell 1929 A Closed Cab pickup with the cowl section/fenders/grill of the Revell John Buttera 1926 T Tudor.  The pickup bed was from the AMT 1925 T Double Kit  The fenders and bed were modified to add "tubs" to frame the Pro-Street style rear tires  The engine was a small block Ford with a Hilborn-style injection system finished with simulated Blue Anodizing (Testors Candy Blue with a DullCote overspray).  The wheels were from an MPC funny car kit (probably the 1970 Mercury Cyclone "Cyclops" kit).  The frame included a scratchbuilt rear clip with a rear suspension lifted, I recall, from the AMT 1975 Nova Pro Stock kit.  

Paint was the old 1960's Testors Ed Roth "Orbitron" Ice Blue pearl color over silver, while the fenders wore Testors Candy Blue over a dark blue base.  

This was a model I had wanted to build for a long time, and I was very happy with the result.  It was not an exact duplicate of the "Owl T" (for instance, I didn't replicate the original's Blue Velour interior) but the inspiration for the model is very clear if you look at the 1/1 original. 

Thanks for looking....TIM 

 

 

Edited November 5, 2018 by tim boyd

[tim boyd]

A few more pictures...…

Thanks for looking....TIM 

[Dave Darby]

Love it! Do you recall what you used for the front axle? I'm a pushover for a dropped early Ford beam axle. Looks like the one from the Monogram ZZ Top 33 Ford kit.

[ewetwo]

Nice.

[Snake45]

That is just way cool! I've been wanting to build something similar for some time now. 

[cdgamble]

Excellent job

[Classicgas]

Very sharp tim but one thing just screams at me, spark plug wires would not rise like that. Gravity alone would cause more droop than that. Other than that I love it. Great colors.

[tim boyd]

3 hours ago, Classicgas said:

Very sharp tim but one thing just screams at me, spark plug wires would not rise like that. Gravity alone would cause more droop than that. Other than that I love it. Great colors.

Lee....I disagree, but I appreciate your critique nonetheless.....TIM 

[Spex84]

Beautiful!  This truck has a certain flair that seems contemporary despite the pro-street stylings. I enjoy how the narrow "T" bed and tall '29 cab could potentially look ill-proportioned, but the fat tires and full fenders add visual mass and bring everything together again.  I dig those single-rib Radir wheels too. Thanks for sharing these pics!

[Phildaupho]

I like your model very much. Have always been attracted to these early Model A cab pickups. Saw a real one for sale at a car show and the owner to his credit said I would never be comfortable in the small cab but that is not going me keep from building a model of one sometime in the future.

[Classicgas]

Tim, perhaps "droop" wasn't the best choice of wording. I'm thinking more tucked in along the sides of the distributor. Nonetheless it is a beautiful model.

[tim boyd]

2 hours ago, Classicgas said:

Tim, perhaps "droop" wasn't the best choice of wording. I'm thinking more tucked in along the sides of the distributor. Nonetheless it is a beautiful model.

Got it, Chris.   Good suggestion for all of us to keep in mind as we add ignition wiring to our models....thanks....TIM   

[espo]

That has to be one of the best looking A Bones ever. 

[mike 51]

1 hour ago, espo said:

That has to be one of the best looking A Bones ever. 

Except that it's not....

it is  a MODEL T

[stavanzer]

Tim,

Where is the break between the A Cab, and the Buttera Cowl? I have both of these kits, and want to build a copy like yours.

What Frame would you suggest I start with?

Thanks, Alan

[tim boyd]

3 hours ago, alexis said:

Tim,

Where is the break between the A Cab, and the Buttera Cowl? I have both of these kits, and want to build a copy like yours.

What Frame would you suggest I start with?

Thanks, Alan

Hi Alexis.....as I recall my break point was between the cowl and the front door.  Alan Barton (IIRC) of Australia did his behind the front door of the Tudor kit if I am remembering correctly.  I used a Model A frame, with a scratchbuilt (from Evergreen square stock) rear clip.  Hope that helps.....TIM 

 

[tim boyd]

On ‎11‎/‎5‎/‎2018 at 10:17 AM, Dave Darby said:

Love it! Do you recall what you used for the front axle? I'm a pushover for a dropped early Ford beam axle. Looks like the one from the Monogram ZZ Top 33 Ford kit.

Dave.....looking at that front axle....I am stumped.  Guess I need to find the Modeler's Corner where I did the build and find the answer there.  

I thought I finished this model around 1988 or so, but then I recalled that I lost the tailgate when I moved to Atlanta in 1987 and did not find it until December, 1988 when I did my last walk through of the house after the moving van left, on the way back to the Detroit suburbs.  There was the tailgate, at the bottom of the floor and wall at the back of my (now disassembled) model room.  Whew!  With the tailgate back in hand, I finished the model around 1989 or 1990 before I was moved again by my employer.   So it must have been in the magazine sometime in late 1989-1990.....TIM 

[bobthehobbyguy]

Tim it was a two part article --July and August 1989. Front axle was from Monogram 1937 Ford.

[carrucha]

As usual, cool hot rod build.

Edited November 7, 2018 by carrucha

[Hoffman]

Tim, I remember this Model A/T combo. On my list to build a version of it. Super cool!  By the way, what ever happened to the awesome orange and brown '31 A pickup that you built from a Revell tudor sedan? That one made quite a lasting impression. Do you have any pictures of that one that you could post?

[ChrisR]

Awesome!

[stavanzer]

Thanks. Tim.

[tim boyd]

10 hours ago, bobthehobbyguy said:

Tim it was a two part article --July and August 1989. Front axle was from Monogram 1937 Ford.

Thank you Bob!   That's the answer we were looking for.   TIM

[tim boyd]

8 hours ago, Hoffman said:

Tim, I remember this Model A/T combo. On my list to build a version of it. Super cool!  By the way, what ever happened to the awesome orange and brown '31 A pickup that you built from a Revell tudor sedan? That one made quite a lasting impression. Do you have any pictures of that one that you could post?

Tim.....I've had several requests the last few days on another Forum to photograph that '30 Closed Cab pickup; adding yours to the list suggests I better get busy doing just that.  When done, I will post the pictures here.   Best Regards.....the other TIM ! 

Edited November 7, 2018 by tim boyd

[espo]

20 hours ago, mike 51 said:

Except that it's not....

it is  a MODEL T

The Cab is from a model A and that is what I based my opinion on. I agree there is probably as much model T as there is model A so I should have called at an "AT".