Tim “The Tool Man” Taylor, eat your heart out. Gary Kulchock’s 1/25 scale Peterbilt “Binford Tools” rat rod boasts a resin body, Chevy Blazer frame, and “tons” of aftermarket parts. Gary primed and painted with Tamiya spray paints and weathered with Rustall and pastel chalks.
Dave Huddle’s Revell 1/25 scale ’75 Chevy LUV pickup got the drag-truck treatment with a Bob Glidden Pro Stock chassis. He painted with automotive lacquers and clear coat and wired and plumbed the engine.
A Tamiya 1/24 scale Porsche 911 GT1 got a little extra attention from Gavin Foster. He cut open the door and detailed with photo-etched metal parts. Gavin sprayed Tamiya primer from the can and painted the body solid white before applying decals.
It’s been a busy day at John’s Dairy. Mark Davis pieced this 1/24 scale 1977 Chevy flatbed pickup together with parts from his spares box. He says he primed three times before applying three coats of enamel paint for the finished look.
Tim Melick came across photos of a 1950 Chevy pickup on Facebook called “Chevy Rose” and was inspired to build a replica. He began with a 1/25 scale AMT kit and went from there. The metallic red finish was built up over many layers of lacquer and enamel paints.
Tim Brown sliced up a Tamiya 1/35 scale Steyr and scratchbuilt the bed for a wrecker crane. He airbrushed the German camouflage in Tamiya paints and dirtied things up with Ammo by Mig Jimenez weathering pigments.
A service truck slammed to the blacktop with a Cummins motor up front? Steve Johnson proves it can be done with his Moebius Models 1/25 scale 1967 Ford F-100 pickup conversion. He painted with Rust-Oleum colors and used Vallejo acrylic products, white glue chipping, and dry-brushing to achieve a weathered look.
James Darby didn’t tell us much about how he built and finished his Moebius Models 1/25 scale 1964 Chevy Nova, but we liked the refreshing yellow and bright trim all the same.
It’s always a hoot to see a Revell 1/16 scale BMW Isetta at a scale model show. Marcus Jennings painted his entry Tamiya Italian Red and White. Classic!
Steve Courtney lowered the body on his Revell 1/25 scale ’66 El Camino. He concocted his own color with House of Kolor paints and airbrushed it on for a deep-flake finish. Steve 3D-printed the wheels and wired the engine.
A serious glow-up for a glue-bomb! Tom Jackson rescued a totaled AMT 1/25 scale 1962 Chevy C-10 model, restored the body, dropped it toward the pavement, and put Z-man wheels underneath. Instead of a go-kart in pack, the truck’s haulin’ a cozy coupe for a little tyke.
If you look hard enough, you can see the Revell 1/24 scale ’34 Ford cabriolet inside Marshall King’s redesign. Inspired by Chip Foose’s Shockwave, Marshall modified the cabriolet body to resemble the 1/1 scale car. He machined more than 150 parts, including wheels, engine, and front and rear suspension. He airbrushed the whole endeavor Smolder Frost, a Sally Hanson nail-polish color.
James Tester didn’t use any aftermarket parts on his 1/24 scale ’70 Plymouth Roadrunner. He says that while all of the parts were modified, they came out of the Revell box. James airbrushed everything, painted the body Splash Panther Pink and topped it with 2K clear. Two days of polishing later and this was his reward. Tasty!
Looking for a modern custom, Chris Frazee 3D-printed a wide body, boss wheels, and turbo flat-four engine for a Revell 1/24 scale V-dub Type 1 bus. Springing into action with an Avanti airbrush, he sprayed gray primer and followed with Createx Pearl Purple. After masking, then he completed the two-tone appearance with Createx Pearl Black.
Tom Kren returns with a ’63 Chevy Nova wagon built from the AMT 1/25 scale Craftsman series. He filled the curbside kit’s front end with an engine from a Trumpeter ’63 Nova, lowered the body, and upgraded with a quartet of Z-man wheels.
Paul Payne brush painted his Revell 1/25 scale 1937 Ford panel truck Testors Gunmetal enamel. He also beefed up the rear end with dual wheels and tires, gave more power under the hood with a ‘50s Ford truck engine, and weathered the transporter with pastels.
This AMT 1/25 scale 1959 Chrysler Imperial has been lowered and rolls on 22-inch wire wheels. Scott Hoover provided a lux paint job with six coats of Spaz Stix Candy Purple over primer and followed by six coats of clear. He detailed the roof with Bare-Metal Foil.
The chassis, drivetrain, and interior of Jeff Bloomhuff’s 1/25 scale 1972 Dodge Polara wagon were kitbashed from various AMT and Revell kits. The 3D-printed body and body came from Too Many Projects. All the glass was made from clear, styrene sheet, while the wheel covers were salvaged from an MPC Dodge pickup kit.
The Accurate Miniatures 1/25 scale ’63 Corvette Grandsport is a notoriously difficult kit, but that didn’t deter Rob Smorey. He painted the model with Spaz Stix Electric Blue Metallic, capped it with DuPont clear, and weathered with AK Interactive paints.
Sean Svendsden went deep into the stash for his JoHan 1/25 scale ’70 Oldsmobile Cutlass Rallye 350. He upgraded with a resin hood and wheels and decorated the exterior with Fred Cady decals.
More pro-touring scale replicas continue to appear on show tables, and Scott Burggraf showed off his skills with a 1/25 scale ’56 Chevy Bel Air. He added plug wires to the engine, tucked Pegasus custom wheels and brakes underneath, and painted a two-tone scheme with color-shifting black and red metallics. Scott picked out the trim with Bare-Metal Foil.
Bob Downie is no stranger to Contest Cars and appears this time with a Best Resin 1/25 scale Corvair Rampside. Depicting a Day Two with custom wheels, Bob modified the mirrors and went to the aftermarket for wheels. He airbrushed Tamiya lacquers for that perfect red finish and popped the panel lines with a thin wash.
Jennifer Lawson wanted to model a 1950s show-and-go gasser “driven by a girl,” and that’s exactly what she did. Starting with an AMT 1/25 scale Willys coupe gasser, she scratchbuilt the grille, added aftermarket wheels, wired the engine (pink!), and supplied custom pin-up graphics. She airbrushed MCW Candy Pink over Tamiya Pearl White and then topped it with MCW Iridescent Pearl over the pink.