Danno Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 (edited) I've often been accused of not building enough. Or, at least, not finishing enough. In fact, I've even resorted to calling myself 'The Unfinished ModelKing,' just to deflect and deflate some of the painful truth. My new year's resolution is to turn that train around. [i won't tell you what year I made that resolution, but I am determined to achieve it this year.] Viewing all the great builds on this board made me think to myself, 'Self, I need a jump start!' So I've decided to post some of what I have built, in order to maybe get the juices flowing again. Having said that, here's my kick-off. (Yes, I have the Super Bowl on my mind. Go Broncos!) The Revell 1931 Ford Model A Woody, kit# 85-7637. This kit has to be about the best representation of the factory stock Model A ever done in 1/24-1/25 scale. Built to represent a staff car for a period fire department. Sheet metal body parts were painted Krylon Banner Red and Basic Black. The wood components were first painted with Sun Yellow spray, then hand brushed with tan and wood, and coated with clear amber. All the rivets, carriage bolt heads, and hardware were picked out with black paint on a toothpick tip. Chassis was Krylon Satin Black. The engine was painted with American Accents Satin Hunter Green and completely wired and plumbed, with my 1:1 as a guide. Mechanical brake levers, cranks, and actuator rods were scratched and everything was finished to match Model A Ford Club of American judging standards specifications. By the way, the American Accents spray bomb came from the nearby WhaleMart, and when compared to my 1:1, it matches perfectly. So much for buying big buck authentic original Model A paint! A clear turn signal lens from the '55 Cameo kit became the fuel filter bowl (with a little shaping and some clear amber coloring to represent gasoline on board) and the fuel line was routed to the downdraft carb. Throttle, spark advance, and mixture rods were fabricated. Flattened copper wire strands connect the distributor terminals to the spark plugs. A coiled guitar string was painted black and routed from the distributor to the firewall, representing the armored ignition cable. Some small gauge braided steel cable (think tiny picture hanging wire) was used to represent the armored headlamp cables. I learned a disappointing lesson after the fact: the cable looked perfect, but was just unwilling to take the bend gracefully. After a couple of days, its self-straightening torque forced the headlamps forward, causing the downward tilt seen in this view. Future Model A builds will use a different material. Some micro-sized (but expensive) brass piano hinge was sourced from England, and it was perfect for hinging the butterfly hood. It took the fire engine red paint well, and has suffered many manipulations of the hood without failing. Great stuff. Of course, I can't find it any more. The hood mimics the operation of the 1:1 Ford's engine cover perfectly. Either side can be opened to display the engine detailing. Model railroad decal letters were cut out and placed individually to spell the city's name. The cowl lamps were filled with clear red tinted epoxy. Tires were sanded just enough to look the part. Their treads and interior sidewalls were dull-coated while the exterior sidewalls were gloss coated ~ just as any proud firefighter would keep them sparkling with armor-all type polish. A computer-generated custom license plate was attached (and wired) at the rear, bringing us to the end of this fun project. She's one of my favorites. Thanks for checking her out. (PS: Another of my resolutions is underway. A spring-cleaning of the model room, reorganization of displays and displayed models, and fresh new photography with my new and much better camera. In the meantime, thanks for bearing with these pix.) Edited January 30, 2014 by Danno
charlie8575 Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 Dan, that's gorgeous. Great tip on the paint, too. I have a few As to build, along with a couple of Model Bs, and it'll be nice to have the something that's so close to the average right engine color (Ford, from what I understand, tended to batch its odd-lot leftover paints and the green would vary a little) instead of winging it. Charlie Larkin
slusher Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 Very impressive build Danno, awesome detail..
Danno Posted January 30, 2014 Author Posted January 30, 2014 Charlie, Johnny, Larry, Ray, Carl, Rob, Thank you, gentlemen. Your comments are very much appreciated. Joe, yours, too, but I just had to add a note for you. You have no idea how ironic your 'no need to hurry' observation is! When this build was finally nearly done, it was the eleventh hour before a contest I had wanted to enter. I worked on the model all night in the hotel room (final assembly) and finished it only 15 minutes before close of registration! I don't - and won't - cut things that close any more.
mrknowetall Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 Nice build! Did you happen to buy the piano hinge from the source shown in the accompanying link? http://www.phoenixmodeldevelopments.com/acatalog/The_Phoenix_Miniature_Hinge_Range.html
Pete L. Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 Danno, Great job...very inspirational to say the least !!!
GeeBee Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 Superb build, love the bonnet hinges, I'll have to see if I can find them over here .....
Danno Posted January 30, 2014 Author Posted January 30, 2014 Thanks, Ira! Means a lot. Don, thank you. And that could very well be the original source! I obtained the hinge from an online hobby dealer in New England, but when I went back for more, they were "no longer available." I've lost the packaging, but as I recall, it was repackaged but was measured in mm rather than inches. In fact, the product Phoenix Model Developments lists as Miniature piano hinge 4.5mm open x 152mm (6") long (Ref: H060N) seems to match the measurements. Could well be the same product! Thanks for the link. I have some fire apparatus equipment compartments that could use these! Pete, Bruce, Glad you like it. I appreciate your comments. Geoff - See the link above, courtesy Don Banes. He really does know et all!
Sixties Sam Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 Great build! The red really stands out, and the wood looks real! Nice work! Sam
Danno Posted January 30, 2014 Author Posted January 30, 2014 Mark, John, Dave, Sam, Thanks so much for your compliments! I'm very glad you like it.
Lovefordgalaxie Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 WOW!!! It's a masterpiece for sure!! And it's refreshing to a see a proper Model A Ford and not a butchered thing with only the body to tell it's origins.
Tom Geiger Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 I worked on the model all night in the hotel room (final assembly) and finished it only 15 minutes before close of registration! Who are you, Gas Monkey Garage?? That's a really nice build Dan! I'd love to have it on my shelf. Mine's coming out a little different. I think I lost the instruction sheet!
Danno Posted January 30, 2014 Author Posted January 30, 2014 Tulio, Your remarks are truly appreciated. I'm a big fan of your exquisite work. Tom, Thanks my friend! And, yes, yours is coming out ... a ... little ... differently! But I can dig that, too!
bbowser Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 WOW!!! It's a masterpiece for sure!! And it's refreshing to a see a proper Model A Ford and not a butchered thing with only the body to tell it's origins. X2. I'm really getting into the '20s-30s iron lately and yours is an inspiration. Great work.
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now