The Box Stock/Mild Mod Deuce is Back on the Bench

[Deuces-wild]

That's the same problem I'm running into with boxing up the rails Jeff.. I'll keep an eye out for when you start posting those pics.. I just might learn something.. Thanks bud!

[Don Garrett]

Me too. I have my own way of dealing with this but I want to see your approach first...nanny, nanny, boo boo.

[hot ford coupe]

I should be able to get my working computer back next week. Then I'll be able to get decent pictures onto the site. I rely heavily on photoshop to get the right cropping, light balance and focal points.

At this point, the boxing is pretty much done. I'm changing the rear suspension from the transverse spring to parallel rear springs. I've made the springs already out of brass but I haven't secured them to the chassis yet. I learned something very interesting when making the springs. I originally tried to make them out of styrene since I didn't have the right size brass strips and I kept breaking saw blades trying to cut pieces off a sheet. They worked out pretty well until I had them painted and dried. They got very brittle and wouldn't take any flexing whatsoever. They actually broke under gentle pressure. The only solution to making them out of plastic is to make them non functional so they wouldn't flex at all. You can bolt the leaves together but you'll have to put a little glue in between each one so the unit stays solid. Instead of fiddling around, I decided to make the springs like Ken did in the T chassis build. I made brass leaves and bolted them together. Tonight I'll have them painted. All of this will be shown in the tutorial step by step when I finally get my 'puter out of bondage. Hey Don, after you see the boxing, let me know how you would do it.

[hot ford coupe]

Me too. I have my own way of dealing with this but I want to see your approach first...nanny, nanny, boo boo.

If I remember correctly, Don, you already did a tut on rail boxing. I took a look at it and I think we're just about the same.

I had a brainstorm this morning. It was either that or a brain fart, I'm not too sure but if no one minds, especially at TDR , I'd like to combine the Deuce tut with the building and superdetailing tut for the 426 Hemi. I'm going to try and stuff that thing in the deuce somehow. That way, I can get to the engine build a lot quicker and satisfy that commitment. Having the Hemi in the deuce will let me realize an idea I've had for a while. Because I'll be doing some electrifying on the model, i.e. lights, I'll need to have a wooden base where I can disguise the wires and battery case. I can fix that up to look like a small dio. The car's finish will be white on the top surfaces, hunter green on the sides and the fenders will be black. I know that color combination seems a bit strange but that was the color scheme for the NYPD cars before they changed to blue and white. The theme will be something like "you can try to out run me but all you'll do is waste your fuel".

[Don Garrett]

Jeff...when TDR sent you the prototype TDR 426, I said build it your way and give us a hands on (modelers point of view) evaluation. I also said TDR would not make any attempt to steer you into building something to suit TDR .

This allows us to refine our products and give you guys the best we are capable of.
In other words.... TDR has no problem with you putting it on a 1/8th skateboard if that's what suits ya.

So get your dang 'puter back and give us some pics......I'm standing at the head of the line to get that first peek.

[hot ford coupe]

Good news Gang. I got my puter tonight and will start using the photoshop on the new pics. They'll be up as soon as I can get them edited.

[hot ford coupe]

Hoooray!!! I got my computer working and my Photoshop restored. Over the next few weeks, I'll be adding to this tutorial and show the mods I'm doing. As I mentioned before, the modifications are relatively mild and will be done basically to give the kit a bit of sparkle and uniqueness while still retaining the character of the kit and the final product. The pictures below are sort of a teaser for what the final product will turn out like. I was going to keep it a surprise but I felt that a tutorial without a clear final objective leaves me kind of sour. Don't worry though, every modification I made will be explained in detail so anyone wanting to duplicate my work will have very little difficulty with the techniques. The theme for this deal is
"You can run from me, but you'll just waste a lot of fuel before I get you". Hope you like it.

I'd also like to thank our good friend xken for the great tutorial he did on making brass springs. Without that help, I wouldn't have been able to do half of what I did. Thanks Ken for sharing your knowledge.

[xken]

Great looking springs!!!!! Are those working shock absorbers I see? Keep up the great work you are doing!

Ken

[Old Busted Hotness]

Man there's a lot of brass around here lately.

Just remember, solder crayons are inedible!

[hot ford coupe]

Thanks Ken. I was only doing what you showed me. The shocks can be made to work by putting a spring in the larger part. The upper part is a tube while the lower part is a solid rod. At present, I kept the shocks very stiff until I can get the axle tied to the springs. That way I can keep the axle in the right position. After the axle is finally attached, stable and at the right level, I'm going to sand the rod portion of the shock so it slips in the tube really easily. Then the spring goes in and the whole suspension will work.

I'll tell you something about the brass, OBH. I was strictly a styrene guy until I actually tried to make some of these parts out of styrene . What a pain in the neck. I went and tried the brass and found it made life a lot easier. I made some styrene springs. They looked great when painted but the whole assembly was weak and cracked easily. The brass is harder to cut and shape but work and handle a lot easier. I guess I have to say I'm sold. I also hate the taste of solder crayons. They give me indigestion.

[Rick]

Did anybody notice that Jeff has C notched the rear rails to give the rear end some extra travel?

Nice work!!

[Don Garrett]

You're right O.B.
Brass is new to many, SMC has more talent and imagination than my old retired hunting hound has doggie miles. Plastic, clay, brass, aluminum, dumpster treasures and whatever else we can convert into a visual expression of the minds eye is what SMC is all about.
This is truly a modelers forum regardless of skill level.

[hot ford coupe]

I went and completed the rear suspension and now I'm going to work on the front axle. Once I have the 4 wheels on which should be in a few building sessions, I'll start doing the tutorial on how I did what I did and release the progress shots. In the meantime, take another look at Ken's Model T chassis tutorial where he builds up the springs. Also, take a look at the Volcano Deuce somewhere around the 7th or 8th page of the Big Deuce gallery that Steve Osbourne did and check out the chassis where he did the front axle. That's where I'm getting most of my inspiration. I'll show how I did each mod from start to finish. You won't be disappointed.