'57 Ford Racer - Backyard Build

[dwdirks]

I've been working on a 1957 Ford race car for some time now. I learned to drive in my Dad's 1957 Meteor Rideau 500 way back in 1957. The Meteor Rideau 500 was the Canadian equivalent of the Fairlane 500 in the US. Anyway, I had a 1/32 scale Revell '57 Ford model kit and a Scalextric Chevy Monte Carlo NASCAR White Kit and I decided to put the two together to create my own '57 Ford race car.


I used the body, interior tub, glass and bumpers from the Revell Kit. The chassis, motor, wheels, tires, driver, steering wheel, roll cage, fire extinguisher, front splitter and rear wing came from the Scalextric kit.





































Two tone paint is Krylon yellow and Nissan Metallic Blue sprayed straight from the can. I need to learn how to do better masking and painting!









































































I used the interior tub from the Revell kit and then installed the racing pieces from the Scalextric kit - driver, roll cage, dash, fire extinguisher, etc. Everything fit pretty well.





































The Scalextric NASCAR chassis fit as close to perfect as I could hope for. The wheelbase was right on for the '57 Ford. Lucky me.





































Now it's time to do some detailing on the body and get this race car ready for some test runs on the track. Next post will come soon, I hope.

[War Eagle River]

Nice mash up. Paint looks great!

[dge467]

Looking really great so far, can't wait to see it finished!

[Dundee Denny]

I am a BIG two-tone proponent and like your choice of colors!!

Look forward to watching you pull it all together into this build.

Dundee Denny

[Mitch58]

Love those '57 Fords

[Atitagain]

Very nice job.

[Barc 1]

Beautiful result. Finish on this car is amazing.

[TuscoTodd]

This is a slick idea for creating a '57 racer! Looking forward to more update pictures!

[Michael Squier]

Looking great. The interior looks good with the added racing parts.

[dwdirks]

Thanks for the upbeat comments. Love your '57s, Mitch58. I think I can get it done tonight and then post some more pics. But, March Madness is on, might slow down my slot car production.

[oldspark]

312?

[dwdirks]

Definitely! The car I learned to drive in had a 292 and I always wished it had a 312 like my uncle's 57 Tbird.

[dwdirks]

The '57 is done and on the track. I made some decals using an old Testors Decal Making kit and they turned out okay. The big number 69 on the roof and the Hub Motor Service decals on the hood and trunk are ones that I made. I also made some 69s for the doors but the decals weren't opaque enough to show up on the dark blue metallic paint. So, I just slapped on some stick on numbers, red 6 and orange 9. A bit mismatched but fits with the whole built in my backyard theme. I burnished Bare Metal Foil on the side trim but painted the window trim with chrome silver paint. The car actually runs pretty good, first test runs came in with a 7.4 second lap which is within a second of my fastest cars. So, a little tuning and practice should get the time down into the 7 second range. We'll see. Here's some pics:

First time trying foil on a car. I need a lot more practice!

The big wing on the back came from the Scalex NASCAR kit. Probably not the way a real race would be built, but you use whatever is laying around when you build it in your backyard.

The front spoiler is from the Scalex NASCAR kit too. Hub Motor Service is the sponsor (homemade decals on the hood and trunk) because that's where I worked while in High School and University. My uncle owned the service station and my dad was head mechanic, I was one of the flunkies.

The Scalex kit came with metal rear wheels and black plastic fronts, so I just left them that way. May paint the metal black later on so the wheels match. Tires are what came in the Scalex kit.

We're on track and ready to rumble.

The first pit stop, no problems so far, just need some gas. More practice needed to get the lap time down.

[4424ever]

That turned out great and I agree I’d blackout the rears to match

[Dundee Denny]

Second fastest car at your Speedway, plus the tie-in on your first car to drive, add-in the sponsorship memories plus the fun of the build and I say you checked all the boxes!!!!

Dundee Denny

[dwdirks]

Thanks for the comments. Now it's on to the next project, I need to build a companion for my Jag SS 100. And then I'll work on a competitor for the '57 Ford. Lots to keep me busy.