Claude Thibodeau Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Hi! I never ever dared to buit a "rat rod"... but I finally gave it a try. Used a pile of mis-matched parts from the junk bins at the last 2 shows I attended... It is what appears to be a Revell 32 sedan body, with a junked 32 Ford frame of unknown origin, plus L8 engine, tranny & luggage rack from 32 Chrysler imperial (AMT), and wire wheels & IRS from a 39 Mercedes found in the same junk bin. Rear floor pan, dash, seats, windshield, radius rods, sun visor (made from the rear spoiler of a Revell '71 GTX !). steering linkage, column, door panels, pedals, chain & padlock "seat belts" were scratchbuilt. Fully wired & hosed. The roof is a laminate of styrene sheets, opened, with wooden effect & chicken coop fencing for good measure. Paint is Tamya's acrylic with the hair spray technique. The licence plate is litterally suspended with wires... Hours of fun with styrene! CT
89AKurt Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 I've looked through parts boxes, and give up. That's just like the real thing, fake it until you make it! You did a great job engineering that, other than the exhaust tip under the big hole in the floor. ? Love the result on the patina. The Lil'John's came from the Model T kit, which I did last century.
Phildaupho Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Great lookin and well done. Don't know if I would want to own or drive the real thing but this one very cool and well executed model car.
Plowboy Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Just how a rat rod should be built! Like you (until now), I've never built a serious rat rod. The main thing that's kept me from it is I'm not good at weathering. Still, I want to give it a shot sometime. Nice work on yours!
Bucket T Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Looks good in my book. Great for your first try.
MeatMan Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Well done build. I like the little accessories, and the body weathering looks appropriate.
Claude Thibodeau Posted September 10, 2019 Author Posted September 10, 2019 Hi! Thanks for the comments. It is true that the exhaust fumes could swirl back into the cabin. However, the hole you refer to is in fact in the stepped-up "floor" that fills the rear of the cabin. And just for good measure, I dispensed with all windows, except the opening windshield... Safety first! (just kidding!) This could be an issue only at stoplights, I suppose. Alas, I did not test the car in a wind tunnel to see the buffeting effect regarding exhaust fumes. I told you: building rat rod is hard... A few years ago, at the North-East NSRA nat in Burlington Vt, a young army recruit at my hotel was hosing his rat rod with water at 6:00 am... to adjust the "patina", he admitted... He had no floor at all, barring a unique 2X2 xmember that supported the seats and belts. The "floor" was made of wire fencing, just like the one used in the roof of my model. Said he got a lot of slack from Patrolmen about it... but they ultimately always let him go with a "thanks for your service" comment. Exhaust fumes was the least of his worries, I guess... CT
Rocking Rodney Rat Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Nice work, that's an old AMT sedan body.... -RRR
bobthehobbyguy Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Nicely done. Great job of selecting parts. The weathering is perfect.
Claude Thibodeau Posted September 10, 2019 Author Posted September 10, 2019 2 hours ago, Rocking Rodney Rat said: Nice work, that's an old AMT sedan body.... -RRR Hi! Thanks for the info. Your expertise is much more acute than mine. I will correct my descriptive form for the next show, in october. I would like to attend Classic Plastic in Lowell october 6. Schedule permitting... Otherwise, the Quebec City model show will be its first outing. CT
1930fordpickup Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 I like this. Nice creative thinking throughout this model.
ToyLvr Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Nice, er, ugly! I like it! When I built a rat rod for the first time a few years ago, I was surprised to find that it took me a lot more hours to make it look “ratty” than what I usually spend building a “pretty” car. So, I appreciate the amount of work that you put into this one.
Koellefornia Kid Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Very nice combination of parts and great detail work! Like it!
Ace-Garageguy Posted September 10, 2019 Posted September 10, 2019 Yes, good looking collection of stuff. Looks like it's better engineered than a lot of real rats.
Claude Thibodeau Posted September 10, 2019 Author Posted September 10, 2019 Hi! Thanks for the comments. I have a friend who has a real Rat Rod... Everybody is blown by the look of it... bu HE is terrified to drive it. It is therefore a "trailer queen". Go figure. At least, my rat has front disc brakes, and very strong "seat belts"... CT
alan barton Posted September 12, 2019 Posted September 12, 2019 (edited) I joined a hot rod club when I was twelve and was brought up to believe that you made every part as smooth and shiny as you could. For that reason I struggle with many rat rods - why would you want to make your car look like a piece of junk? But what I see here is a weathered hot rod that could possibly be driveable, at more than walking pace around a fairgrounds. Yeah, I would feel more comfortable with the exhaust out the back or the side but this thing has believable suspension, proper brakes, reasonable ground clearance and a pretty cool engine. It's working for me! And I especially like that you used an AMT Tudor - you just don't see those built often enough! Cheers Alan Edited September 12, 2019 by alan barton
Claude Thibodeau Posted September 12, 2019 Author Posted September 12, 2019 7 hours ago, alan barton said: I joined a hot rod club when I was twelve and was brought up to believe that you made every parts as smooth and shiny as you could. For that reason I struggle with many rat rods - why would you want to make your car look like a piece of junk? But what I see here is a weathered hot rod that could possibly be driveable, at more than walking pace around a fairgrounds. Yeah, I would feel more comfortable with the exhaust out the back or the side but this thing has believable suspension, proper brakes, reasonable ground clearance and a pretty cool engine. It's working for me! And I especially like that you used an AMT Tudor - you just don't see those built often enough! Cheers Alan Hi Sir! Thanks for the comments. I build real 1/1 street rods for a living... therefore, I may have more sensibilities as to what might work or not in real life... But I admit some of my builts are a stretch (!), That's the fun of modeling: less boundaries, eh? I see you live in Perth. Funny... a few years ago I sold a custom Engine cover to a rodder from Perth. The shipping cost more than the part... but he wanted it badly, so... I can't remember his name, alas. Getting older by the day... CT
ewetwo Posted September 18, 2019 Posted September 18, 2019 It looks great. You sure you never built one before?
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