8 replies to this topic

[Champion 507]

Here is a build I completed a couple of years ago but spent about 20 years (procrastination time included ) acquiring parts.

I had obtained a tarnished and slightly altered (but very usable) Monogram brass frame from a friend back in the 1980s. Then I got the correct motor in an eBay lot five plus years ago. The mint NOS decals came from another friend. The brass body mounting screws and inserts came from cox-124 on eBay. The Monogram body was a 2002 kit issue, but the gates where the body posts and locating lugs for the front chassis mount were all visible on the underneath side of the body, so it was easy to recreate what Monogram did to manufacture the car in 1964.

Professor Motor sells the repro front chassis mount for this car but they had been out of them for over six months before I started work on this, so using their picture I made one myself. After the front mount was done, I made two rear chassis mounts from 1/4" diameter Plastruct tubing and epoxied them to the under side of the deck lid. Then I added the three brass screw inserts to all mounts. I masked off the inserts and gave the bird a couple nice shiny coats of gloss white spray paint from a Tamiya rattle can. They make some nice paint!

The motor came in an eBay lot of two to three pounds of 36D motor parts. Not a single motor was complete, but if I looked long enough, I found all the correct parts. As a matter of fact, I have built over twelve period-correct motors out of this lot and still have more to finish. Some of the arms were cooked, so I have rewound them with 110 turns of #31, which is what Mabuchi put on most of them. The paint on many of the cans was only dirty, so about one to two minutes of cleanup with some Novus model car polish made them look like new.

I didn't quite have all the original parts for the car, so I got as close as I could. The rear tires/wheels are Monogram but the fronts I think are Revell. At least all four tires say Goodyear. I didn't have a Monogram guide; the closest I had on hand was a Ranalli. I didn't have a correct crown gear, so the closest I could come up with at the time was a Dynamic.

I had made a copy of the box art from an eBay auction five plus years ago so I could properly locate the decals. The decals went on like a dream. You would have thought they were new, not 40 plus years old, as they were very flexible and never cracked or split.

The guy who owns this car now bought a NOS Monogram driver for it after he got it from me.

The original Monogram T-Bird was molded in white plastic and so is this 2002 re-pop... to me, I thought it was a plus.

[havlicek]

Boy, that's a splendid looking build, Doug... and congrats on winding the motor to boot! I even like the fact that you left the chassis dull as it adds to the whole "vintage vibe".

The motor came in an eBay lot of two to three pounds of 36D motor parts.

... Hmmm, let me see. Two-three lbs of 36D motor parts means about 1-1/2 motors.

Great work!

[Champion 507]

John,

Thanks for the compliment!

Where do you think the phrase "ton of fun" comes from? Somebody was building three 36D motors!

Now you know where my slogan "prompt service, no matter how long it takes" comes from... 20 years to build one car???

[Bill from NH]

Doug,

Wait and see how long it takes you when you start to slow down! But your vintage parts will be worth more when you get done.

[Lone Wolf]

That's a beauty! I love Monogram hardbody recreations.

Next time, instead of going through all that trouble, just pick one up on eBay like this: 290328361033. Still very cheap with only five days to go

[macwest]

If anybody else wants to make them, I remake the front mounts. I also make them for a number of the other Monogram kits.

You can order them through Electric Dreams or me. I use to sell them wholesale to Professor Motor. The only issue on the T-Bird is the rear mount but I found the plastic tubing at the local hobby shop works well.

[Pablo]

Sweet. Rewinders RULE

[Vay Jonynas]

Champion:



Nice looking car!



But tell us how it runs.

[Champion 507]

Hi Foxhound:

The motor runs fine. I didn't run it on a track...too risky to damage or scratch the body just in case the car de-slotted.

As PdL pointed out in another thread recently, these cars, typically, had light chassis and top heavy bodies and would not have been very competitive. Although the one you just bought and this one would benefit slightly over the earlier versions of these cars with the smaller Tiger X-100 motor. I think the larger, heavier Tiger X-200 motor might lower the center of gravity a bit and the motor would probably have more torque. The advantage, still would be minimal.

What these cars have going for them is pure looks. Personally I have always thought the 1958 - 1960 "square birds" were beautiful cars in the real world. I was able to get one of the Monogram '58 T-bird model car kits when they were first released around 1963. The original kits even had tinted windows which, then as now, I thought was cool. Monogram has re-issued this kit a number of times over the years. I have several shelf model versions to build, still in kit form. I never owned the slot car version until I put this one together 2 years ago. Never had the kit like yours.

Thanks for your question.