Plain yellow isn’t a very good T-Bird colour to me so I went with something a bit more suited for a custom boulevard cruiser. I call it “deep fiery tangerine dream”. Tamiya calls it “metallic orange”. To each his own. :yahoo:

Good to hear from you JohnnySlots. Please post a pic of your Thunderbird when you can?

Very cool that your dad produced a movie! The T-Bird in the movie was a 1964 or 65?

This is my second attempt at clear-coat. I don’t care who’s brand of metallic paint you use. They often have very little shine on their own as if designed to require clear-coat no matter how well the base paint is applied. Why fight gravity? I was not happy with the base coat shine, so I grabbed the can of clear. The difference is night and day. The first pic below is the same view as the last pic on the previous post above. I may not be as good as other builders. But this one paint application came out better than everything I’ve done before it. I’m sure glad this car/class isn’t getting a single decal. Let it sparkle!!! B-)

Now that I’ve had my five minutes of boasting about a personal best. It’s time to give credit where it’s due. I simply got lucky. It happens to us all.

Ken

Looks great JohnnySlots! Always interesting to see how other people convert static kits into slot cars. Please show us the car after paint?

FYI about DL pics. Just above the area for posting text are several tiles to choose from that look like… B, I, ” abc, indentation bullets… then the last tile on the right looks like 2-small hills with a small sun. Press/use that last tile to download pics instead of the “Attachments – Choose File” area. It allows everyone to see your pics without having to log on.

The chassis. $2 worth of aluminum square tubing from Home Depot.

Boulevard Cruisers are supposed to be low riders. Mission accomplished.

Thank you very kindly for re-posting the pics. That colour is insane! Almost robin’s egg blue.

Is that a BWNC1 motor? What gear ratio are you using please?

I hope you are happy with it when it’s finished.

My T-Bird is being built for a new class called “Boulevard Cruisers”. It was never meant for the Sportscar class.

“Boulevard Cruisers” is an open class with a slow motor (BWA). Full size cars. Not specifically race cars. Station wagons welcome. Any configuration. Your car would fit right in even with a sidewinder.

This is the first car I’ve built with a full interior including a floor, inner door panels, gas, and brake pedals.

I still need to install the guide, braids, and wire up the motor. Inline drive didn’t fit with a full interior. Sidewinder didn’t have the right gears. I never made a scratch anglewinder before. There’s always a first time for everything.

Motor is wired in and the car is ready to run. It needs a driver. It weighs 81-grams.

Besides a driver, it still needs a bit of chrome detailing. Let’s go cruisin’!!! :yahoo:

I should mention that this has been my favorite build to date. I just started this kit on Sunday, and could not wait to see it completed. It’s not my favorite car by any means. But everything just fell into place. It inspires me to build.

Thank you for your kind words John.

This class is specifically for low riders. I’ve been to California and seen these types of cars. My T-Bird is conservative as far as low-riders go, and by far not the lowest car in S32. Please enjoy the following examples of real low riders.

The car should be lower to be realistic but rules say the body isn’t allowed to touch the track. Plus I didn’t have enough room to install a “lift kit” to adjust the height while driving. :unsure:

There’s a workshop on making these chassis yourself at home with simple tools. Here’s the link.

Monday, October 29, 2018 (7:00-9:30pm) Basic Aluminum Chassis Design/Build

The following link to a Rover BRM build also expands a bit on aluminum chassis.

1964 Rover BRM

The “scratch built” section of the Forums has many of my previous builds. Please let me know if you have more questions? I openly share everything.

Speaking of being too low. Funny memory from the 80’s. I remember being in Ft Lauderdale on the beach strip watching teenagers go by with Olds Cutlass Supremes with the coil springs totally removed. These cars drove on the rubber suspension limiters. But the cars only drove around the block. Again, and again, and again… The frames were almost scraping the ground. You could see the kid’s teeth chattering while they drove. Nuts! :wacko:

Here’s the plans for the build. Sorry for the bad hand writing. I didn’t expect to post this.

It looks far more difficult than it really is. I’ve built 8-cars for other people. A few months ago, Jim M came over to my shop and watched me build 2-chassis for him. He recently bought the same tooling as me, and is on his way to making his own now. No one was born with these skills. We teach each other out of friendship.

It’s been less than 2-years since my first scratch built slot car. Last month was the 2nd year anniversary of my first club race ever. I am still a newbie of sorts. It’s never too late to start.

I have come to the conclusion that I like building cars as much as racing them. Maybe even more.

Ken

Elvis Presley picking up his new T-bird.