1988 Chevrolet Monster Truck

[Chuck Most]

It hit me as I was working on this that, despite 30+ years of building models, I had never tackled a monster truck. Originally I bought the Coke-branded reissue of the USA 1 as a parts donor, and for the decal sheet (which includes some new badge decals as well as two sets of gauge faces) with the mind to cut down the suspension and build it as a mud truck. The first thing I did was test out the Testors Root Beer/Pure Gold combo and the Ray's Kits Decals (2500, Silverado emblems, 4x4 markings and tailgate banner). I figured worst case I would have a painted body to use on a stock '88-90 annual. Yes, the 4x4 markings are oversized. Neal at Ray's knows about this and is working on addressing that problem. I used them anyway because in this case I thought they went well with the oversized tires.

Despite my original intentions I kept an awful lot of the box-stock parts. The exceptions to that are... '88/89 grille, stock hood, bed rails and roll bar from an '88-90 annual kit. The monster truck kit has a roll bar but I liked the one in the 2wd kits better, so I went ahead and used it. The lights themselves are the same in both kits. I used a 454SS interior tub because it has no hole for the shifter and omits the molded clutch pedal. Each differential has a parts box rotor/caliper casting. And finally the engine, which is an old Ross Gibson "Alley Rat" 502 backed up by a 350 transmission robbed from a Lindberg street rod. The USA 1 plates came from a '57 Chevy Sportside decal sheet, as a nod to the monster truck kit's origin. 

It may eventually get some door graphics, and maybe I'll hang a hook off the winch fairlead,  but otherwise it's done for now.

 

[PappyD340]

Awesome!!

[Street Rod]

Looks good! Can’t beat a monster truck!

[cheyenne93]

Not a huge fan of monster trucks, but I gotta say OUTSTANDING!! ???

[Vintage AMT]

Very well done, I remember way back in the 80's putting just about any kind of body on a Big Foot chassis, we had some crazy stuff!!

[ChrisR]

Looks great!

[TooOld]

Don't know much about Monster Trucks but this looks excellent !  Love the colors and subtle detailing on the engine compartment .

[Mattilacken]

Sweet!

[slusher]

Looks fantastic Chuck!

[crowe-t]

Excellent job on this!  I like the color combination.

Edited February 1, 2023 by crowe-t