Rambler Rebel Cross Country '59

[Sportabout]

My near next project is Rebel Wagon V8. I have for years planned to start this. The kit is Jo-Han Rambler curbside Cross Country '59. I have not seen full detail builds of this model but only some curbsides.

 

The original chassis is quite simple promo style and donor kit will be Moebius Comet Cyclone '65 with modifications. AMT Chevy '57 gives fuel tank.

 

 

The engine will be AMC 327 V8 from Jo-Han Marlin and I have one in my parts box.

 

Color will be AMC Carmel Copper and the interior will be some kind of custom version and benches comes from AMT Edsel Pacer.

The hood has been sawn off. I have never seen such a thick hood, but sawing was successful with a PE blade and old engine paint has removed.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 25, 2020 by Sportabout

[Scott8950]

I'm tuned in... I've been wanting one of these for a gasser build.

[espo]

Great to see one of these getting a lot more detail. 

[MrObsessive]

I'm definitely watching! This car (the sedan) is another one of those "etched" in my childhood memory as we had a close family friend that had one. Actually, I believe hers was a hardtop as I can remember all the windows down and not seeing that center pillar.

One detail that I want to mention and it's totally up to you to attempt this.......the wheelbase in the kit is actually for an Ambassador (longer) as there was more real estate between the leading edge of the doors and the trailing edge of the wheel wells.

They give you parts for an Ambassador as far as the grille, but the side trim on those is different. Weird as I don't know why Johan went this route (possible reissue losses), but shortening the front fenders and hood is not for everyone.............I'd thought I'd give you a heads up.

Edited July 25, 2020 by MrObsessive

[Tom Geiger]

1 hour ago, MrObsessive said:

One detail that I want to mention and it's totally up to you to attempt this.......the wheelbase in the kit is actually for an Ambassador (longer) as there was more real estate between the leading edge of the doors and the trailing edge of the wheel wells.

They give you parts for an Ambassador as far as the grille, but the side trim on those is different. Weird as I don't know why Johan went this route (possible reissue losses), but shortening the front fenders and hood is not for everyone.............I'd thought I'd give you a heads up.

Lack of resources. This was never a Johan kit, just a promo. This was the Okey era kit, which had the interior from a later model, like a lot of Johan / Exel later versions.

Okey did the best he could. No doubt the most extensive decals sheets ever in a kit to fix a lot of the shortcomings since he didn’t have the ability to modify the molds.
 

 

[slusher]

Definitely want to watch. Your build.  

[Sportabout]

13 hours ago, MrObsessive said:

I'm definitely watching! This car (the sedan) is another one of those "etched" in my childhood memory as we had a close family friend that had one. Actually, I believe hers was a hardtop as I can remember all the windows down and not seeing that center pillar.

One detail that I want to mention and it's totally up to you to attempt this.......the wheelbase in the kit is actually for an Ambassador (longer) as there was more real estate between the leading edge of the doors and the trailing edge of the wheel wells.

They give you parts for an Ambassador as far as the grille, but the side trim on those is different. Weird as I don't know why Johan went this route (possible reissue losses), but shortening the front fenders and hood is not for everyone.............I'd thought I'd give you a heads up.

You're right, Bill, the wheelbase of Ambassador is longer than Rebel as we can see from the pictures. Below is the kit, Ambassador and Rebel pictures. The kit has parts for Rebel and Ambassador version needs new side trims, modified grille and tailgate. The wheelbase of the Comet chassis is too short for Ambassador too. I think it is easier to shorten front fenders and chassis than build accurate side trims.

 

 

Edited July 26, 2020 by Sportabout

[Sportabout]

This is what I'm going to do. The front fenders will be shortened by 6 mm in front of the front doors and the chassis by the same amount from the middle.

 

Edited July 27, 2020 by Sportabout

[Tom Geiger]

Very interesting! I understand different wheelbases when the extra space gives more rear seat or interior room. But what is gained by increasing the engine bay? And having two different noses and associated parts to stock and assemble  ?

Edited July 27, 2020 by Tom Geiger

[alan barton]

I wonder if anyone has ever thought about fixing the broken roof on that wagon?  If someone like Foose or Trepanier got hold of it, I bet they would swoop the roof all the way to the rear pillar, kinda like a 50's version of a Magnum wagon.  When AMC  "stuck" the wagon extension onto the back of the sedan, they really didn't make any effort to hide their handiwork?

Cheers

Alan

[Spottedlaurel]

Looks like an interesting and thorough project, good luck with it!

7 hours ago, Tom Geiger said:

Very interesting! I understand different wheelbases when the extra space gives more rear seat or interior room. But what is gained by increasing the engine bay? And having two different noses and associated parts to stock and assemble  ?

Some Japanese makers did this when alternative versions of the car were fitted with straight-four or six-cyl engines. Was that the case here?

7 hours ago, alan barton said:

I wonder if anyone has ever thought about fixing the broken roof on that wagon?  If someone like Foose or Trepanier got hold of it, I bet they would swoop the roof all the way to the rear pillar, kinda like a 50's version of a Magnum wagon.  When AMC  "stuck" the wagon extension onto the back of the sedan, they really didn't make any effort to hide their handiwork?

Estates (wagons!) trouble me whenever the maker uses the saloon (sedan!) rear doors.

[Tom Geiger]

15 hours ago, Tom Geiger said:

Very interesting! I understand different wheelbases when the extra space gives more rear seat or interior room. But what is gained by increasing the engine bay? And having two different noses and associated parts to stock and assemble  ?

7 hours ago, Spottedlaurel said:

Some Japanese makers did this when alternative versions of the car were fitted with straight-four or six-cyl engines. Was that the case here?

I don’t believe this was the case. The lower end model with the shorter hood had a straight six as the base engine, with the option of a V8.  So both engines were available with shorter nose 

[Sam I Am]

16 hours ago, Tom Geiger said:

Very interesting! I understand different wheelbases when the extra space gives more rear seat or interior room. But what is gained by increasing the engine bay? And having two different noses and associated parts to stock and assemble  ?

Maybe this was the cheapest way for the manufacturer to offer a longer wheelbase.  Longer wheelbase equals smoother ride.

[Brian Austin]

The extra wheelbase was just to visually differentiate the Ambassador from the other models.

 

Visually, these Ambassadors were nothing like their Nash forebears and everything like regular '58 Ramblers. The only differences, other than the added length, were nameplates, a fine-checked grille, broad swathes of anodized aluminum on Customs, plusher interiors, and arguably better proportions. This is what the '58 Nash and Hudson would have been had those brands not been dropped at the last minute. In fact, the Vee'd front bumper guard of the '58 Ambassador was taken directly from the stillborn Hudson, which had been all but locked up by late 1956 along with a more nearly identical Nash.

 

https://auto.howstuffworks.com/rambler-cars.htm#pt0

[Brian Austin]

Oh, and if anybody wants to do a '56 Rambler wagon, S.C. Miller did offer a resin kit.

Note that SC Miller kits have a reputation for being rather challenging to build well.

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/sc-miller-1980s-slush-cast-resin-1956-1840222974

 

[Sportabout]

I have never seen Miller wagon for sale. Juha Airio wrote about it in a six-page article on how he built his fantastic Rambler Rebel sedan ’56. It’s been an inspiration when I started building my Rebel. His Rebel is also based on the X-El '59 wagon promo.

 

Edited July 30, 2020 by Sportabout

[bisc63]

13 hours ago, Sportabout said:

Juha Airio wrote about it in a six-page article on how he built his fantastic Rambler Rebel sedan ’56.

OP: Love the work you're doing here, also have one in my stash and as of yet undecided on a style for it. Perhaps I'll find inspiration here!

Karl, what is the source of that article? Any chance of getting a scan of it? Juha's work and descriptive writing were very inspirational toward my return to the hobby! If all his articles were collected into a book, it would be a bible for any serious model car builder.

[Ulf]

On 7/31/2020 at 12:38 AM, bisc63 said:

OP: Love the work you're doing here, also have one in my stash and as of yet undecided on a style for it. Perhaps I'll find inspiration here!

Karl, what is the source of that article? Any chance of getting a scan of it? Juha's work and descriptive writing were very inspirational toward my return to the hobby! If all his articles were collected into a book, it would be a bible for any serious model car builder.

I’ve written to Juha to encourage him to write a book but his answer was no.

Maybe it helps if more people writes, maybe it’s not only Santa Clause who lives in Finland.

[bisc63]

23 hours ago, Ulf said:

I’ve written to Juha to encourage him to write a book but his answer was no.

Maybe it helps if more people writes, maybe it’s not only Santa Clause who lives in Finland.

He doesnt' have to write anything new! Just collecting all his previous articles into a volume would be fantastic!

[Ulf]

20 hours ago, bisc63 said:

He doesnt' have to write anything new! Just collecting all his previous articles into a volume would be fantastic!

Yes 

He has written a lot of werry nice articles in Finish magazines some tventy five years ago, even today those would be state of art.

[Sportabout]

It is still possible to collect all Juha's articles from the magazines but gathering them would take a lot of time and money. Copyright would also be an issue.

Ok, back to Rambler. There are a few detailed pictures of the car so I bought the Rebel technical service manual CDs if that would help.

Rebel should have a 3-speed manual B&W T-85 and a Dana / Spicer 53 rear end. If anyone knows where to find one then I would be grateful for the information. It has also been used in 56-57 Mercury and Lincoln.

 

 

 

 

[Sportabout]

This is again on the workbench.

The fenders are sawn off and one is trimmed with the shortened hood. Second is waiting its turn.

 

The gluing of the fenders with the help of tape and clamps.

 

The glue has dried and the tapes have been removed. This needs some putty and sanding but parts fit together pretty well.

 

[espo]

Your body work looks good. 

[dino246gt]

Wow, love what you've done already, cant' wait to see more!

 

[Sportabout]

The chassis was shortened by 6 mm too.

I removed the wrong type of fuel tank before gluing the chassis. There must be a jig in this job, but it does not guarantee a good result though.

The glue joint did not become very straight, but the chassis is straight and flat. Styrene flour and glue are applied in the gap of the seam to make it strong enough. Putty is applied last.