SCOPE ENG. PANEL TRUCK
REVELL '39 CHEVY PANEL TRUCK
& AMT '55 CORVETTE KITBASH
BUILT BY IRA DAHM (10/01)
MORE COLOR PHOTOS BELOW!
Most of the parts for the SCOPE ENG. PANEL
TRUCK are from the Revell '39 Chevy Panel Truck. AMT/Ertl's '55 Corvette
supplied the front end, dashboard, steering wheel, velocity stacks, wheels,
tires, roof fins and bumpers. Revell's PT Cruiser supplied the bucket seats
and mirrors. The flame decals are from Slixx and the "SCOPE ENG"
decals are from the original AMT Opel GT kit. The exterior paint is Testors
Ruby Red and Sapphire Blue. Testors Flat White and the exterior colors were
used in the interior. Evergreen's "Metal Siding" Sheet Styrene
was used to fabricate interior "Tuck and Roll" door panels.
First, I progressively sectioned the Panel
Truck body, 1/16" in the rear all the way up to 5/16" in the front.
This gave the truck a more aggressive look. Then I removed the door handles,
hinges, and trim from the body. Next I cut the front end off the Corvette
and the front grill area from the truck body. Then I attached the Corvette
front to the front of the truck. Next, I cut the rear fins from the Corvette
and shaped them to fit the roof of the truck, then they were glued in place.
The front one inch of the hood was then cut off and reattached on a downward
angle to follow the contours of the Corvette front end. The visor was then
narrowed 1/8 inch for a better fit. Then I filled the openings in the truck
body for the rear bumpers, and then removed the supports from the frame.
Next, I cut two holes in the rear door to create a recessed area for the
tail lights, and I also cut out a rectangle for the recessed license plate.
Then, I backed the rear door with "metal siding" sheet styrene,
which formed a backing for the tail lights and license plate, and at the
same time doubled for a "tuck and roll" rear interior door panel.
Next, I assembled the chassis and painted
it Sapphire Blue and Aluminum. The wheels were modified to fit the truck.
Aluminum tubing was used for the exhaust pipe extensions. The carburetors
and wheel centers were painted Testor"s Gold for contrast. Then I test
fit the body and cut out the hood to expose the dual carburetors. Next,
the body was puttied and primed. After I finished the body work, I painted
the top half of the body with Testors Ruby Red and the bottom half of the
body with Testors Sapphire Blue. The body parts were then dried in a dehydrator.
The Corvette dashboard was then narrowed to fit the truck body, and door
panels were made from "metal siding" sheet styrene. The interior
was finished in red, white and blue, and then the body parts were assembled.
Large red rhinestones were used for the tail lights. Holes were drilled
to mount the PT Cruiser side mirrors. Bumpers from the Corvette were used
on the front and were slightly modified to fit the truck's rear fenders.
