CONSTRUCTION  STORY  OF SCRATCHBUILT  STREET  ROD

Building Period: 30 March 1999 - 30 June 1999

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The story began with my selection of the model to build for the contest in C.A.R.S.  I had a '34 Ford 5-window coupe still in its box, so I decided to build one out of that. But then, it occured to me that it should have something distinct - the model would have a working suspension and  poseable steering. However, the plastic would never endure the forces generated with a working suspension system, so I decided that the chassis and suspension elements were to be scratchbuilt from  metals. Also, once my hand had touched the metal, I could go on building the bodywork from metal and my model would remain intact for original construction. The bodywork, I decided to make it a roadster for better vision of the inside.

An overview of the model :

General:

This '34 Ford Roadster is almost completely scratchbuilt. The main material used in construction is 0.2 mm brass sheet. All the suspension and steering mechanisms work. It was possible to make everything from scratch, but then I would miss the submission deadline. The car is made of 291 separate parts, of which only 33 are used from kits. That makes a ratio of 90% scratchbuilding by number of parts, but 99.999% by labor.

Non-Scratchbuilt items are:

- Engine and gearbox : from Accurate Min. Corvette Grand Sport
- Wheel hubs and wheels : from Tamiya VW New Beetle
- Gear shift lever, Steering wheel, Steering box, Rear lights, Battery, Mirrors, front signals : from my parts box

Specifications:

BODY: Fully scratchbuilt from 0.2 mm brass sheet. Body contours are customized for more racing looks. The hood and boot sections are redesigned, and deep headlamp buckets are installed for more masculine looks. The doors, hood and boot open. The boot has a working handle that holds or releases the lid. The hood is a one-piece unit with the front grille, that tilts towards the front. The hood is held in place by two side locks. The body is painted with 5 coats of clear amber glass paint, airbrushed over aluminium base. The body consists of 79 parts.

INTERIOR and ACCESSORIES: Scratchbuilt except for the steering wheel, shift lever and battery. The floor and the trunk are covered with black carpeting (self-sticking velvet sheet). Custom rosewood dashboard with computer-generated gauges and door trim panels with rosewood inserts. The interior and acc. have 44 parts.

CHASSIS and SUSPENSION: Fully scratchbuilt from 0.2 mm brass and 0.3 mm galvanized steel sheet. Only the wheels and hubs are from Tamiya New Beetle. Fully operating front coil and rear leaf spring suspension, with telescopic shock absorbers. Operating steering linkage after the steering box. Brake hoses from Detail Master wires are fitted at the front. Rear axle is from steel bar, with home resin-cast differential housing over it ('67 Mustang). The chassis and suspension have 115 parts.

POWERTRAIN: Engine and gearbox are from Accurate Min. Corvette GS. The engine is ignition-wired with Detail Master wires. Alternator repositioned upwards, with additional scratchbuilt tensioner, pulley and belts; due to protrution to the side of the hood. Exhaust pipes are made from solder wire, radiator from balsa+Detail Master screen, radiator hoses from insulated copper wire. The driveshaft is also scratchbuilt from ball-point pen plastic refill. The powertrain has 51 parts.

I wish every viewer  enjoys  what they see.