Each year, our club gets together with another club from Eugene, Oregon, meeting roughly halfway in Salem. The event always includes themed builds, along with a display of completed models and works in progress. One of this year’s themes was MOPARs.
MOPARs and Fords are not usually my main areas of interest, and I have very few of them in the stash—especially MOPARs. Still, I decided to build something for the theme and picked up the Moebius ’56 Chrysler 300B kit.
I knew from the start that I did not want to build it stock. I drew inspiration from a Troy Trepanier custom build that featured a modern Hellcat engine. That level of conversion was more than I wanted to take on, so I chose to build a street machine version instead.
The kit offers solid detail overall, though it does have a few quirks. For example, it does not include side-view mirrors, but it does provide a separate, well-detailed frame and suspension.
To give the build a street machine character, I added a modern 392 Hemi from Texas 3D Customs. Installing the assembled engine required only minor work: a small adjustment to the transmission bracket and an elongated driveshaft.
I also searched through my parts boxes and found a wheel and tire set from the Revell California Wheels ’67 Chevelle. The set adapted easily, with no need for tubbing or other fit modifications.
Here are the build details:
• Engine/chassis/Drivetrain:
Added Texas 3D Customs modern 392 hemi engine
Elongated driveshaft for new engine
Transmission bracket adapted for modern automatic
Added Electric cooling fan and A/C heat exchanger to radiator assembly
Added modern brake booster
Added wheel/tire and disc brakes from Revell California Wheels 67 Chevelle
• Interior:
Separated the front upper seat halves to better reflect folding
Removed the manual window cranks and added Photo etch power window switches
Added detail to door cards and dash
• Body:
Shaved off trim pieces for sleekening
Added side view mirrors from parts stash
Applied Tamiya Light Gray Primer
Applied Tamiya Gold Lacquer to entire body
Masked off and Applied Tamiya Pearl Light Red to the lower body
Masked off and applied Tamiya Pearl Clear to the Gold roof area
Applied Tamiya TS-13 Gloss Clear to the entire body and polished out
Bare Metal foiled the trim.
