Post by Bernard Kron on Jul 13, 2014 22:25:53 GMT -5
Ford ’27 T buckets are relatively rare in the scale model world. The main reason for this is because there are no kits and very few supporting parts for them. Virtually everything must be either kit –bashed or scratch built. This is ironic because resin re-pops of some mysterious and, as far as I’ve been able to find, undocumented donor model are commonly available from several different resin vendors. IMHO far and away the finest resin 27 T is made by Altered States Models: super crisp, styrene-like and with a very nice partial firewall detail. This is the basis for this project.
I’ve been wanting to build a ’27 T highboy for a long time. There are 3 influences that I’ll site, 2 I think are each exceptional in their own way, and one that is iconic and which I have never liked.
The icon is the George Barris Twister T, AMBR winner in 1962. For me this car is a bad dream with a sky high stance and countless details which crash into each other in a most unpleasant fashion. Unfortunately, like many bad dreams, this one remains firmly entrenched in my memory and has been since I have been a boy. Making a list of what needs to be corrected on this car will lead to a very nice 27 T highboy indeed.
The Barris Twister T:
Most closely related to the Twister T, indeed in many ways the Barris car “done right”, comes out of Roy Brizio’s shop in the early 90’s and featured in Volume 1, No. 1 of The Rodders Journal. Classic Brizio in every way, and an indicator of what was to be the “TRJ Look” in the years to come, it’s immaculate, period correct, and tasteful. Built for James Stroupe, pictures of it are virtually non-existent on the web, so these are scans from my copy of TRJ.
The Stroupe ’27 T Hiboy:
And finally, probably my favorite, the ex-Dennis Lacy car first made known to me by Dennis a few years back with a magical photo of the car at Big Bear. The polar opposite of the Stroupe car, but a deadly serious period hot rod and no aRt Rod in any way. Loaded with authentic pre-’48 parts and a full house flattie, what makes this car special to my eyes is the perfectly balanced stance, a true highboy in character, but graceful and sleek nonetheless. These are the only pictures I was able to find remaining on the net that show the car to advantage. The stance of this car is where I would like to go, but perhaps with a somewhat later period in finish and detail.
The Dennis Lacy ’27 T Highboy:
So now to the job at hand. I’m trying not to let this project get away from me, so I’ve decided to let it’s Revell Deuce roots show through somewhat. The frame is Revell Deuce, and quite likely much of the suspension will be, too. The most difficult thing about doing a resin 27 T is that no interiors exists for the car. So if you’re going for a proper tuck ‘n’ roll interior you have a challenge ahead of you. In my case I’ve found a way to adapt the Revell side panels and bench seat from the original Highboy ’32 Ford issue. The chassis is z’d at the rear in an attempt to achieve some of the balance of the Lacy car. So far I have no wheels/tires or suspension on the build so we’ll see how that goes. I’m planning on a Deuce grille shell so my car will be quite different. I’m shooting for some sort of period OHV V8, probably with a fair bit of chrome to pay to my recurring Twister T nightmare. I’ve done a ton of Caddy powered rods so it will quite likely have to be something else..
Below are the initial build pics.
Thanx for lookin’,
B.
I’ve been wanting to build a ’27 T highboy for a long time. There are 3 influences that I’ll site, 2 I think are each exceptional in their own way, and one that is iconic and which I have never liked.
The icon is the George Barris Twister T, AMBR winner in 1962. For me this car is a bad dream with a sky high stance and countless details which crash into each other in a most unpleasant fashion. Unfortunately, like many bad dreams, this one remains firmly entrenched in my memory and has been since I have been a boy. Making a list of what needs to be corrected on this car will lead to a very nice 27 T highboy indeed.
The Barris Twister T:
Most closely related to the Twister T, indeed in many ways the Barris car “done right”, comes out of Roy Brizio’s shop in the early 90’s and featured in Volume 1, No. 1 of The Rodders Journal. Classic Brizio in every way, and an indicator of what was to be the “TRJ Look” in the years to come, it’s immaculate, period correct, and tasteful. Built for James Stroupe, pictures of it are virtually non-existent on the web, so these are scans from my copy of TRJ.
The Stroupe ’27 T Hiboy:
And finally, probably my favorite, the ex-Dennis Lacy car first made known to me by Dennis a few years back with a magical photo of the car at Big Bear. The polar opposite of the Stroupe car, but a deadly serious period hot rod and no aRt Rod in any way. Loaded with authentic pre-’48 parts and a full house flattie, what makes this car special to my eyes is the perfectly balanced stance, a true highboy in character, but graceful and sleek nonetheless. These are the only pictures I was able to find remaining on the net that show the car to advantage. The stance of this car is where I would like to go, but perhaps with a somewhat later period in finish and detail.
The Dennis Lacy ’27 T Highboy:
So now to the job at hand. I’m trying not to let this project get away from me, so I’ve decided to let it’s Revell Deuce roots show through somewhat. The frame is Revell Deuce, and quite likely much of the suspension will be, too. The most difficult thing about doing a resin 27 T is that no interiors exists for the car. So if you’re going for a proper tuck ‘n’ roll interior you have a challenge ahead of you. In my case I’ve found a way to adapt the Revell side panels and bench seat from the original Highboy ’32 Ford issue. The chassis is z’d at the rear in an attempt to achieve some of the balance of the Lacy car. So far I have no wheels/tires or suspension on the build so we’ll see how that goes. I’m planning on a Deuce grille shell so my car will be quite different. I’m shooting for some sort of period OHV V8, probably with a fair bit of chrome to pay to my recurring Twister T nightmare. I’ve done a ton of Caddy powered rods so it will quite likely have to be something else..
Below are the initial build pics.
Thanx for lookin’,
B.