34 Ford Pickup Lo-Boy Hot Rod - Completed 11-01

[Bernard Kron]

This project is inspired by a CPB on the TRaK board (Traditional Rods & Kustoms in Scale - trakinscale.proboards.com/ ) centered around the AMT/Lindberg '34 Ford Pickup. But this project has zero genuine parts from that venerable kit, so we'll see if it's accepted. If it's not I will totally understand!

The basic body is one of Ed Fluck's super-fine resin chopped AMT '34 Pickups, saving me beaucoup work and yielding a better result that I'd probably come up with. The pickup bed is from the Revell '29 Ford RPU kit, massively shortened. The chassis is a severely modified Monogram '37 Ford pickup frame which is sort of naturally z'd. It has been shortened, narrowed and the front crossmember replaced. The motor will be a Nailhead. I was considering using the one from the new Revell A-Roadster, but it comes with a massive modern automatic tranny which would require serious work to convert to a more compact manual like a LaSalle, so I'll probably build one up from some Tommy Ivo or Tony Nancy short blocks and maybe just use the new Revell 6-carb manifold and lakes-style headers.

The most ambitious thing will be attempting the style of front suspension where the spring is behind the radiator but the beam axle sits in front of it, like on the Jimmy Shine pickup. I have no idea if I can pull it off. I have a couple of options, including possibly doing 1/4 elliptic springs.

Here's where I'm at so far.

Thanx for lookin',
B.

[harron68]

So much work! The Lindberg '34 P.U. never looked good to me. The '34 Coupe was graceful, but the boxiness of the pick-up always put me off. I wish u well with this one. I left the T.R.a.K. site over their "finicky" judgments and unhappiness with a sight-impaired member typing in CAPS. I miss the site but won't go back there. Thanx for sharing your excellent work here. The nailhead is a beautiful custom engine!

[fordrodnkustom]

Looks like another cool project B! Looking forward to see how you engineer the suicide front spring. Thanks for posting.

Seems like there will be no problem with you joining the TRaK CBP with it either!

[Bernard Kron]

I made a good deal of progress in what is as pure a parts bin project as I’ve ever done. There will be virtually no trace of a basic kit in this build when it’s completed.

For starters I decided that the pickup bed sat too high in relation to the rear tires and needed to be channeled lower over the frame. To do this I cut out the floor, glued some styrene angle strip in place higher up into the bed sides, and then fashioned a new floor from diamond plate styrene sheet stock, which I finished in Testors Metalizer Aluminum Plate.



The wheels are wide-5’s from an AMT ’36 Ford Coupe kit, finished in Duplicolor Dark Toreador Red. The front tires are AMT Firestones and the rears are 8” dirk trackers courtesy of Replicas & Miniatures Co. of Maryland



The chassis is finished in gloss black. Both the front and rear suspensions have been fabricated and the rear suspension installed. The front suspension is still in pieces and I’ll show it in my next update once I’m sure everything works. The rear suspension is adapted from a Revell ’32 Ford kit, with the various parts trimmed and relocated to fit the modified Monogram ’37 Ford truck frame.



The interior will be largely scratch built. The upholstered door panels and rear of the cab are made from styrene corrugated sheet to simulate tuck and roll and finished in Duplicolor Dark Toreador Red. The dashboard, seats and steering wheel are yet to be determined.



The motor is a Buick Nailhead cobbled together from various sources. The block and heads are from a Revell Tommy Ivo showboat kit. The stock style valve covers are from a Revell Tony Nancy Double Dragster kit. The transmission, oil pan and accessory drive are repops of the parts from the now very rare Revell Parts Pak Nailhead. They are available as a kit from Replicas & Miniatures Co. of Maryland but they aren’t listed in the catalog – you have to ask for them. The generator, pulleys and fan belt, as well as the carbur6etors, air cleaners and intake manifold are from the AMT ‘39/’40 Ford Fordor kit.



So you see, this really is a parts bin special. Besides finishing up the interior, I still need to get the front suspension sorted out, the bodywork painted (probably in some shade of silver), the by-now-standard-procedure-for-me custom decals designed and made, and final assembly. All this fabrication work is throwing up its challenges but things are coming together surprisingly quickly. Fingers crossed that this project continues to flow smoothly…

Thanx for lookin’,
B.

[harron68]

Looking okay so far! I like the vertical nature of the engine. Valve covers, drivebelt, etc add to a unique look found in the old early to mid '60s magazines featuring Buick mills. Dunno if the silver manifold adds or subtracts from noticing the valve covers. Fotos can be deceiving. Frame and suspension pretty nicely adapted. Scratchbuilding an interior to fit the body is more than I'd take on in my building days! Best to you!

[dogfish7]

Said it before and I'll say it again ............ I like your Style B!

[fordrodnkustom]

Looking good B, I like the wide fives.

[Bernard Kron]

Thanks everyone!

I took a break from chassis and mechanical work and started on the paint and graphics. I wanted to do a door logo featuring a classic hot rod. Nothing is more classic than the Bob McGee Deuce roadster. I found a nice shot on the web. and then processed it, first to b&w, then to a line drawing and finally with a black fill-in. All this in Photoshop. Here's the step-by-step.



Then I designed a simple but strong logo that would show up well in scale. I came up with two variations. I haven't decided which combo to use, the simple solid red or the "ball, and whether to go with "Hot Rods" or "Rod Shop". I'll probably print test decals to see what works best. Here's a photo mockup of each "applied" in Photoshop to the painted body shell. Paint is Duplicolor Silver with a Duplicolor Dark Toreador Red Metallic band.



Thanx for lookin',
B.

[fordrodnkustom]

Nice art work there B, Looks good on the doors of your truck.

[rustybill1960]

Hey Bernard
Great little build you got going on
Like the graphics,What program are You using to do your graphics?
I am trying to figure out what/how to do my own.
Is the cab something You had or is Ed still casting?
I really like what Your doing with this build.
Thank You for sharing
Later
Russ

[Bernard Kron]

Oct 19, 2016 10:29:34 GMT -5 rustybill1960 said:

...What program are You using to do your graphics?...Is the cab something You had or is Ed still casting?...

Thanks to you both. Russ, I'm using Photoshop. I'm a long-time user so I've been able to update over the years relatively cheaply. It's great programming but Adobe now offers it only as a monthly subscription for $20.00/month. The last version you could purchase outright was CS6, which is what I use. CS5 is just as good IMHO. Unfortunately clean, legitimate licensed copies of even CS5 will still set you back around $300.00.

There is a freeware program called GIMP which has an excellent reputation. I've never tried it, although I really should since this question comes up often enough. In any case it is reputed to have virtually all the capabilities of Photoshop and is used by many professionals. Here's a link: GIMP Home Page

Be warned, however. These programs require some time and dedication to use to make some of the graphic tricks that are included in this logo (for example getting the text to hug around the circle, or converting the photo of the McGee roadster to a line drawing). But it's great fun if you are so inclined and the results can be very satisfying.

And yes, Ed is still casting. He no longer has his web site up, but you can reach him via e-mail here: [e-mail]. The DPMCC web pages have a section with some of his more recent offerings: DPMCC Drag City Castings Pages

[rustybill1960]

Thanks Bernard for the info, I will check it out

[Bernard Kron]

Oct 19, 2016 10:50:50 GMT -5 rustybill1960 said:

Thanks Bernard for the info, I will check it out

While you were answering I was editing, LOL. I added Ed's contact info and DPMCC web pages.

[fordrodnkustom]

Thanks for that link and recommendation B. I think I'll check that out too.

[Bernard Kron]

I got quite a good deal done, the most important thing being constructing the front suspension and getting the stance dialed in. The front axle and radius rod are from a Revellogram ’37 Ford Pickup/Delivery Van, the same kits which provided the chassis. The split radius rod were shortened and drilled aft of where they hook over the front axle so they could be pinned to the ends of the front spring which was attached to the flattened front crossmember. The front spring itself is from a Revell ’29 Ford RPU kit. The decals were finalized and printed, then installed and the bodywork clear coated. The motor has been installed in the chassis and a driveshaft from a Revell ’32 Ford kit cut and installed. With suspension completed and the motor installed it was possible to mock up the car on its wheels with the body in its final position to check the stance. Surprisingly everything lined up as I’d hoped it would.

Next up is chopping the stock grill before painting and installing it, finishing the interior, including building some seats, perhaps making a fuel tank to go in the pickup bed, and then lights, glass and all the little details that go into final assembly.

Thanx for lookin’,
B.