One of my favourite Ebay searches is for model car junkyards. Try it - it works best on the US version of Ebay rather than the UK version, but even in the UK this stuff'll pop up now and then. Made up of old discarded parts (or even whole discarded projects) parts lots are a great way to fill up your spares box. For me, the joy is in picking through them, checking out all the cool parts that I've never seen before - and may never be able to find again unless I can work out where they're from.
I got a HUGE parts lot yesterday that I'd won on the 'Bay just before Christmas. The listing didn't give justice to just how much stuff the seller was going to send me - including a whole just-reissued unstarted kit! As mentioned in yesterday's blog, I spent much of last night going through all the parts and checking them out. In there was the dragster you see above, which is the subject of tonight's blog.
As is often the way with these parts-lot finds, I have no idea which kit this frame was from, when it was issued, and whether it's rare or not. Frankly, I don't care - it's cool as hell! Assembled, it would probably be about 210 scale inches in wheelbase, rear engined and maybe late sixties, early seventies in design? No mounts for a rear wing, the pretty simple chassis, and the style of the seat and steering wheel kinda make it FEEL that way to be - but I'd love to find out for sure what it actually is and when it's meant to be from.
Before I go posting images all over the model car forums of the net however, I was doing a virtual build in my head tonight. She'll need an engine, but the rear axle is there, and the drivetrain is gonna be pretty simple. Maybe a Hemi of some sort? Then, gotta order some rear wheels and tyres for this thing. Pegasus makes some that are suitable for modern dragsters and funny cars, but I wanna get something period correct too, whichever period it works out that this thing is from.
The 'interior' (in the loosest sense of the term) is all there - seat, 6 gauge dash and chromed steering wheel so that'll be a breeze, and I'd like to make a couple of side-saddle gas tanks to sit beside the driver. Not for any particular reason, I just saw them on a car and they looked cool! On the plus side, they'd also leave me with a little less bodywork to construct, with panels needing to be fabricated from the dash forwards. I like my racers looking all mechanical and mean rather than TOO streamlined and tidy.
Front end is missing, and will need fabricating, along with hunting down some wheels. Shouldn't be hard though, I think there might even be some in this parts lot I've got here. From there, just gotta work out a colour scheme, which is always the tricky bit for me. I'll work it out though, and it'll be period correct whatever it is.
See how much fun I've had this evening just looking at an old discarded half-model? Poorly painted and incomplete, it still got my juices flowing and my modelling mind working - which is exactly what this hobby should do. And regularly does, as you'll see as I start posting more of these 'junkyard jewels' here on the blog.
'Til then, check out a few more pics of tonight's modelling muse:
JB
I got a HUGE parts lot yesterday that I'd won on the 'Bay just before Christmas. The listing didn't give justice to just how much stuff the seller was going to send me - including a whole just-reissued unstarted kit! As mentioned in yesterday's blog, I spent much of last night going through all the parts and checking them out. In there was the dragster you see above, which is the subject of tonight's blog.
As is often the way with these parts-lot finds, I have no idea which kit this frame was from, when it was issued, and whether it's rare or not. Frankly, I don't care - it's cool as hell! Assembled, it would probably be about 210 scale inches in wheelbase, rear engined and maybe late sixties, early seventies in design? No mounts for a rear wing, the pretty simple chassis, and the style of the seat and steering wheel kinda make it FEEL that way to be - but I'd love to find out for sure what it actually is and when it's meant to be from.
Before I go posting images all over the model car forums of the net however, I was doing a virtual build in my head tonight. She'll need an engine, but the rear axle is there, and the drivetrain is gonna be pretty simple. Maybe a Hemi of some sort? Then, gotta order some rear wheels and tyres for this thing. Pegasus makes some that are suitable for modern dragsters and funny cars, but I wanna get something period correct too, whichever period it works out that this thing is from.
The 'interior' (in the loosest sense of the term) is all there - seat, 6 gauge dash and chromed steering wheel so that'll be a breeze, and I'd like to make a couple of side-saddle gas tanks to sit beside the driver. Not for any particular reason, I just saw them on a car and they looked cool! On the plus side, they'd also leave me with a little less bodywork to construct, with panels needing to be fabricated from the dash forwards. I like my racers looking all mechanical and mean rather than TOO streamlined and tidy.
Front end is missing, and will need fabricating, along with hunting down some wheels. Shouldn't be hard though, I think there might even be some in this parts lot I've got here. From there, just gotta work out a colour scheme, which is always the tricky bit for me. I'll work it out though, and it'll be period correct whatever it is.
See how much fun I've had this evening just looking at an old discarded half-model? Poorly painted and incomplete, it still got my juices flowing and my modelling mind working - which is exactly what this hobby should do. And regularly does, as you'll see as I start posting more of these 'junkyard jewels' here on the blog.
'Til then, check out a few more pics of tonight's modelling muse:
JB
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