Trumpeter 1960 Pontiac Bonneville

[ewetwo]

Well I have both kits and now I know they are way way above my building skills. Unless I build them curb side. 

[khier]

On 4/7/2023 at 11:40 PM, peteski said:

  I don't remember the specifics.

Look at the roof.

[StevenGuthmiller]

4 hours ago, khier said:

Look at the roof.

Yeah, they botched the roof pretty good.......among other things.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Sidney Schwartz]

Roof is not exact, but looks OK to me. What am I missing?

[Sidney Schwartz]

14 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

That weird wheel/tire configuration is the coolest part of the whole kit!! ?

 

At least it works. ?

[1972coronet]

1 hour ago, Sidney Schwartz said:

Roof is not exact, but looks OK to me. What am I missing?

Roof appears to be ostensibly too short to me -- B-pillars-back.

[Sidney Schwartz]

Perhaps. That sort of thing doesn't  bother me. I enjoy the process. ?

[StevenGuthmiller]

The roof is considerably too short, and as a consequence, the tulip panel between the rear glass and the trunk lid is way too long.

Another glaring body mistake in my eye is the hood molding.

Far too wide, short and stubby.

 

 

 

Steve

[peteski]

Thanks for the comparison photos.  Yes, that is a dramatic difference in roof length (which messes up other proportions).  But it obviously doesn't bother some modelers.   It's all good.

[Ace-Garageguy]

This is all fascinating to me, as one of the reasons I bought the Trumpeter version was that, on seeing a custom one built here on the forum, I really liked the almost "business coupe" look of it, and decided to go for a phantom build along those lines.  

[espo]

Might want to Google "1960 Pontiac Pictures". This should give you images of real 1:1 Pontiacs to look at and compare to your kits body. Your eye will tell you what may or may not be wrong with the proportions of the roof on this kit. 

[StevenGuthmiller]

3 hours ago, espo said:

Might want to Google "1960 Pontiac Pictures". This should give you images of real 1:1 Pontiacs to look at and compare to your kits body. Your eye will tell you what may or may not be wrong with the proportions of the roof on this kit. 

Sidney’s comparison photos above are a comparison between the kit and the 1:1.

But where the obvious discrepancies come in is when you view them from the top.

The top on the Trumpeter kit is more than “a little” short.

Haven’t done any measurements, but if I had to guess, I would say at least a good 3 or 4 scale inches short.

Not a pittance by any stretch of the imagination.

But with all of this said, I would never suggest that someone shouldn’t build the kit if they desire.

Just one of those situations where I feel that people might want to be aware of the situation.

I generally don’t let small discrepancies bother me a whole lot, but in some circumstances, they will bother me enough where I have difficulty getting beyond them.

For instance, the shape of the side trim on the AMT 1958 Plymouth never really bugged me, but I’ll never be able to get past the shape of the rear quarter panels on the AMT ‘68/‘69 Roadrunner/GTX kits.

Just my personal issue I suppose, as apparently AMT sold a boatload of those kits.

 

 

 

Steve

 

Edited April 11, 2023 by StevenGuthmiller

[Chuckyg1]

On 4/7/2023 at 3:04 PM, RichCostello said:

I've got the convertible version of this kit, and it has two complete sets of chrome parts, one in bright chrome, and the other with kind of a satin finish.

I picked up the hard top kit when they were 1st released. Two complaints at the time were the difficulty assembling the hood hinges, and the satin finish on the chrome. If I remember, you could request replace the chrome. I'm thinking the bright chrome tree was added after the issue was discovered. I haven't built mine either.

[Sidney Schwartz]

16 hours ago, Chuckyg1 said:

I picked up the hard top kit when they were 1st released. Two complaints at the time were the difficulty assembling the hood hinges, and the satin finish on the chrome. If I remember, you could request replace the chrome. I'm thinking the bright chrome tree was added after the issue was discovered. I haven't built mine either.

I gave up on the hood hinges. Way too difficult and complicated, and also unnecessary. 

[Sidney Schwartz]

Took a much needed Trumpeter break and am back to it. Body sprayed but not yet polished. Wicked Colors metallic burnt orange under clear lacquer.

I'm happy with how the flocking came out. Looking good so far.

Dash and side panels assembled and ready to install. I had some bmf aluminum left over from another model and will be using it on this one, hopefully a better match for the "dull" chrome that came with the kit.

 

Edited April 16, 2023 by Sidney Schwartz

[Ace-Garageguy]

Looking good. 

I wouldn't a thunk I'd like that color combination, but it's really attractive.

Very nice, sir.  

[Bainford]

Looking good, Sidney. Nice tidy work. 

Edited April 16, 2023 by Bainford

[OldNYJim]

Im a fan of Createx and Wicked Colors paints, and I haven’t tried that one…and now I want to!  

Looks great!  And the interior colors you picked work great with it too!

Edited April 16, 2023 by CabDriver

[Sidney Schwartz]

It's nice to get some positive comments on the colors...they're not quite what I had in mind when I started, but that seems to often be how things turn out. The metallic orange was tricky to spray, which seems typical of metallics and pearls. Sure looks nice, though. Tomorrow will be polishing day. ?

[SfanGoch]

Great looking build, Sidney. The colors definitely work, sort of like leather upholstery. It's a really nice kit when one puts a little effort into it.

 

Quote

 

The top on the Trumpeter kit is more than “a little” short.

Haven’t done any measurements, but if I had to guess, I would say at least a good 3 or 4 scale inches short.

 

Steve, using either the SMP/AMT '60 Bonneville or the Revellogram '59/'60 Impala roofs as benchmarks, from front edge of the windshield frame to the edge of the rear window trim, the roofs of all three measure 51mm. The Trumpeter Bonneville roof is 49mm. To correct this, a few cuts need to be made on the Bonneville roof and tulip panel.

1. Remove the posts and the 1mm lip along the top of the window openings (bottom edge of roof) from the vent window all the way to the base of the C pillar. Next, cut across the roof to where the posts were located.

2. Measure and mark a parallel line 13mm from the outer lip of the trunk.

3. Measure and mark a parallel line 11mm from the outer lip of the trunk.

4. Measure and mark a perpendicular line (15mm long) from the front edge of the C pillar to line indicated in Step 3.

Using a PE saw, cut along lines 3 & 4 to remove the roof section. Once it is removed, saw off along the line drawn in Step 2. This section is 2mm wide, the exact discrepancy between the incorrect Bonneville roof and that of the Revellogram Impalas and AMT/SMP Bonneville. When the Trumpeter roof section is attached to the tulip panel, there will be a corresponding 2mm gap at the top of the roof between the cut sections. Using Evergreen 344 (1.0 x 2.0mm) strip, or 2mm sheet to fill the gap, grind and sand to match the roof contour. If you prefer, you can mix fiberglass resin and microballoons instead. Just place a piece of tape on the top and fill in with the resin from underneath. Sand and adjust as with the styrene strip.

Edited April 16, 2023 by SfanGoch

[StevenGuthmiller]

10 hours ago, SfanGoch said:

Great looking build, Sidney. The colors definitely work, sort of like leather upholstery. It's a really nice kit when one puts a little effort into it.

 

Steve, using either the SMP/AMT '60 Bonneville or the Revellogram '59/'60 Impala roofs as benchmarks, from front edge of the windshield frame to the edge of the rear window trim, the roofs of all three measure 51mm. The Trumpeter Bonneville roof is 49mm. To correct this, a few cuts need to be made on the Bonneville roof and tulip panel.

1. Remove the posts and the 1mm lip along the top of the window openings (bottom edge of roof) from the vent window all the way to the base of the C pillar. Next, cut across the roof to where the posts were located.

2. Measure and mark a parallel line 13mm from the outer lip of the trunk.

3. Measure and mark a parallel line 11mm from the outer lip of the trunk.

4. Measure and mark a perpendicular line (15mm long) from the front edge of the C pillar to line indicated in Step 3.

Using a PE saw, cut along lines 3 & 4 to remove the roof section. Once it is removed, saw off along the line drawn in Step 2. This section is 2mm wide, the exact discrepancy between the incorrect Bonneville roof and that of the Revellogram Impalas and AMT/SMP Bonneville. When the Trumpeter roof section is attached to the tulip panel, there will be a corresponding 2mm gap at the top of the roof between the cut sections. Using Evergreen 344 (1.0 x 2.0mm) strip, or 2mm sheet to fill the gap, grind and sand to match the roof contour. If you prefer, you can mix fiberglass resin and microballoons instead. Just place a piece of tape on the top and fill in with the resin from underneath. Sand and adjust as with the styrene strip.

Looks considerably better Joe!

Now we just need someone to address that dumpy hood molding, and we would have a much better starting point.

 

 

 

 

Steve

 

Edited April 16, 2023 by StevenGuthmiller

[Sidney Schwartz]

We're in the home stretch. Interior, engine and chassis finished an assembled. All that's left is body detailing and final assembly Still plenty of  opportunities to mess something up. ?

Polishing has begun. 

 

[espo]

Great looking paint finish and color. 

[SfanGoch]

Fixing the lame hood moulding is fairly easy. Steve sent me a picture of his SMP '60 Bonneville hood a few years back because I wanted to correct it. I dug up the correction pic and annotated it with the steps.

Using the SMP hood as a benchmark, the SMP moulding is 51 mm long. Trumpeter's is 45 mm, a difference of 6mm.

1. Carefully remove the spear. It's wrong in every way and it's simpler to make a new one from styrene strip or .016" aluminum sheet (to get that authentic metal look ?).

2. Measure and mark a line 4 mm from the rear tip of the moulding.

3. Measure and mark a line 2 mm from the front tip of the moulding.

4. From the 4 mm line, measure and mark a distance of 25 mm on the moulding. Draw parallel lines on both outer edges of the moulding and cut that entire section out. Once that is completed, cut off the 4 mm segment indicated in Step 2. Slide the section to abut the rear of the cut in the hood and cement in place.

5. Measure and mark a line 2 mm back from the front tip of the moulding. Draw parallel lines along the outer edges of the moulding from this line indicated in Step 3. Cut and remove this entire section. Cut off the 2 mm area from the front of this section, insert and cement the moulding tip to abut the cut. The two gaps increase the length of the moulding by a combined 6 mm, making the moulding 51 mm long, matching the length on the SMP Bonneville hood.

6. The last step is to fill in the gaps. I prefer to use Magic-Sculpt two-part epoxy because it has a smoother consistency and is easier to work with than Milliput and is better than attempting to jam pieces of styrene then trying to carve them into shape. It cures rock-hard and can be easily sanded or carved. Mix a small amount of Magic-Sculpt and insert it into the gaps. It's easy to manipulate while setting. You can use drill bits, burrs, micro-chisels or homemade tools to sculpt and adjust to match the shape/contours. When the Magic-Sculpt has cured, you can use, if you have them, 400 grit burrs, or 499 grit wet/dry sandpaper to make final adjustments to the shape. Fabricate a new spear and you're finished.

It's not perfect; but, it sure looks a hell of a lot better than what it was originally.

 

Edited April 17, 2023 by SfanGoch

[Sidney Schwartz]

BMF finished. This is the aluminum stuff. I don't much care for it...it's difficult to work with. I ended up using foil adhesive because the foil wasn't sticking very well. I've gotten much better at applying foil, but it still looks too lumpy to me. I may actually finish this today.