1/18 custom 3rd Generation Camaro Trans Am racer

[garydavis]

Man Jim...you're doing some GREAT fab work here(as always). I also am enjoying your backstories on your 1/1. Please...hit us with more stories along with this cool build...

[Oldtimer]

Oct 23, 2020 14:32:45 GMT -8 garydavis said:

Man Jim...you're doing some GREAT fab work here(as always). I also am enjoying your backstories on your 1/1. Please...hit us with more stories along with this cool build...

This one has hit a wall (no pun intended).

Will try to update this week.

Thanks!

[Oldtimer]

I have come to the realization that this isn't going to work.









The body sits on the tops of the tires, which keep it from dropping down into the proper posture.  Without a great deal of cutting and then rebuilding flares, I am going to call the initial project a failure.

However, I have a backup plan.

I have a spare GMP Trans Am Camaro chassis.

   


The new plan is to scavenge pieces off the GMP chassis, and use a combination of the GMP pieces and the floor pan from the SunStar Camaro to create a new combined chassis. I'm essentially planning on adding the front and rear clips from the GMP to the mid-pan of the SunStar. Here's a few "teaser" shots.







And you might ask yourself, why not just drop the SunStar body onto the GMP chassis?



How many of you knew, without looking it up, that the 3rd Gen Camaro's wheelbase was 7 inches shorter than the 1st Gen?

[Joel_W]

Jim,
To answer you question, I'm the last person that would have known that answer for sure.

The conversion of your conversion is way more advanced then something I would ever consider attempting. But I'm looking forward to following your new plan to its conclusion which I'm betting will be a success.

Joel

[Oldtimer]

So this is where we currently are.



And you may ask, what have I been doing for the past three weeks?  Body looks different, have you already painted it?

Well, this one went sideways early, and it has taken a lot of effort, soul-searching, and additional expense to get to where it sits right now.

One of the most complex builds I have undertaken, and lots of errors in judgement along the way.

I'll provide the highlights, and then add a link to the full album for "progress" shots.

I ditched the late model GMP Camaro chassis, that just wasn't going to work.

There was just no way I was going to get the body to sit down onto the chassis properly.



So, as I pointed out in my last post, I looked to a 1st Gen GMP Camaro chassis.

After a great deal of effort, I was able to shorten the 1st Gen wheelbase by 7 scale inches (about .3895 true inches), and reassemble it.





Used two 00-90 screws in the stock location to attach the two pieces back together.



Here's a comparison between two, more or less, identical chassis.



Here's what I cut out.



The good news is that the cage remains intact, only thing I have to cut is to shorten the bars that go forward to the front suspension mounting points by 7 scale inches.

Of course, I will also have to shorten the drive shaft (done that before on some of my other customs), as well as either shorten the exhaust dumps or build some new ones.

With the major chassis correction behind me, I then tried to mount the body onto the revised chassis, but found I had made another strategic error.

I had cut the first 3rd Gen body apart at the base of the A-pillars, to emulate how we actually built our real racer.


That proved to be a fatal flaw, as I needed the structural integrity of the entire body to allow me to mount the 3rd Gen body onto the 1st Gen chassis.



Hence, I had to source another entire model, in order to start over again with the modifications to the body.

Took delivery of the new model yesterday, and stripped it last night, and tested some fit.

You can see above that I think I nailed the wheelbase, but now I have to grind away, again, everything that conflicts to get the body to fit.

First target will be the bulkhead at the front of the engine compartment, which will then dictate as we go front to rear.



I apologize for the length of time between posts, but this one has taken on a personality of its own.

[arcticwolf]

Jim, I'm glad to see you back. I'm following this with interest because I have a planned project to build one or two 68 Cougars. There's no such model, just body shells, so I thought Mustangs should work. As with you above, who knew the Cougar was 3" longer than the Mustang? I do now, lol.

Besides, I like that Camaro body style, I almost bought a real '82 Z28 last week, but it was a bit too pricey for its condition.

Keep posting please, I need the inspiration!

cheers   Paul

[Joel_W]

Jim,
Glad that you're back at the bench with a new plan of Attack. So far it looks good from my modeling point of view. Looking forward to your next update, and keep your real racing world stories coming as well.

Joel

[Oldtimer]

So, here's where we are as a starting point.



Having defined which chassis I am using helps me visualize where the conflicts are, and a potential cure (which usually means breaking out a Dremel).

Here's what I have removed as of now.



The two little round threaded pieces are attaching points for the SunStar body the SunStar chassis, and interfere with the rocker panel of the GMP chassis.



The other pieces are from the front of the engine compartment, which interfere with the radiator mounting frame of the GMP chassis.



That work allows the body to drop down onto the chassis.  Still not perfect, but closer than I have been at any other time of this build.



Now I can reassemble the cage, and give some support to the bodywork.

[Oldtimer]

Quick update.  Been piddling and dabbling, still trying to wrap my head around where to take this build (plus, it's been cold here, and my garage/workshop is unheated).

I have come to the conclusion that I won't be able to duplicate my racer, so going to take this and go a slightly different direction.

Looking at hoods now.

Here is the stock one.

r

Looking at two alternatives.  Will be using the same technique I used to create this hood for a fantasy Mustang.



What I did for the Mustang was laid the hood from a GMP '69 Z28 over the Mustang hood, taped them securely together, and used a Dremel cutter to slice through both of them, and then used JB Weld to blend the scoop into the hood.

For the Camaro, I have the choice of two different hood scoops.  First is the classic '69 Z28 scoop; and next is the 2nd Gen Baldwin Corvette L88-based scoop.

Here are some side-by-side comparisons.







Each one has its own character.

Any preferences?

[Joel_W]

Jim,
As usual I'm amazed at your ability to work with metal just like it was injected plastic. Sorry that you had to give up the "my car build" and go with this semi fictional version.

As for the hood scoop, I vote for the none painted one on the left because it just blends so much nicer into the base hood. Just my preference as either one would look good.

Joel

[Oldtimer]

Dec 12, 2020 9:59:12 GMT -8 Joel_W said:

Jim,
As usual I'm amazed at your ability to work with metal just like it was injected plastic. Sorry that you had to give up the "my car build" and go with this semi fictional version.

As for the hood scoop, I vote for the none painted one on the left because it just blends so much nicer into the base hood. Just my preference as either one would look good.

Joel

Thanks for the comment and compliment!

Since I have two donor stock hoods, and won't be attaching the hood with hinges, might actually do two.

Stay Tuned!

[mustang1989]

Mister....someone needs to give you the friggin' "Red badge of Courage" for sticking with this build. I like everything you are doing and understand completely the hang ups that can be encountered when heavily modifying stuff like this. You sir.....are the frickin' MAN!!!

[Oldtimer]

Dec 13, 2020 5:10:46 GMT -8 mustang1989 said:

Mister....someone needs to give you the friggin' "Red badge of Courage" for sticking with this build. I like everything you are doing and understand completely the hang ups that can be encountered when heavily modifying stuff like this. You sir.....are the frickin' MAN!!!

Thanks!

Sometimes I feel like Robinson Crusoe, alone out here on this island, but it helps to get a message in a bottle every now and then.

[garydavis]

Dec 13, 2020 5:10:46 GMT -8 mustang1989 said:

Mister....someone needs to give you the friggin' "Red badge of Courage" for sticking with this build. I like everything you are doing and understand completely the hang ups that can be encountered when heavily modifying stuff like this. You sir.....are the frickin' MAN!!!

I agree whole heartedly.... It's going to look even better when you get it done Jim...

[tiptoe]

This is an amazing looking build!  

I love those 3rd Gen Camaro Trans Am racers, I grew up watching them.  I also spent a lot of time rooting for them because:

1.  They look awesome!!

2.  They were usually the underdogs, raced by local and privateer teams against the factory Merkur, Audi, and Beretta teams.


Keep it up!