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Polar Lights Charger chassis

 
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john843



Joined: 28 Jan 2018
Posts: 607
Location: S.C. Lowcountry

PostPosted: Sun May 13, 2018 7:40 am    Post subject: Polar Lights Charger chassis Reply with quote

After looking at BW's beautiful job on Pete's Superbird and finding out that the nose from the Monogram street 1/24th 'bird was an almost drop-in replacement for the Jo-Han incorrect one, I've decided to build my all-time favorite single car one more time! I've had the Monogram street (molded in blue) kit in my stash for over 10 yrs. along with several Jo-Han Petty 'birds and it never would have occurred to me to check for compatibility as I have always thought the Jo-Han was a decidedly small 1/25th, probably based on how the noticeably small wheels and tires look proportionate on the car.
Anyway, am wondering how much trouble/work the PL chassis is compared to other options I've got for a build that won't be as involved as some of the Wingcar Seminar things but more than a shelfer.
I have never done anything with the PL Charger other than look at the parts (including that body:() and would like to hear from anyone that has used them for a donor (or built one up in general) and could maybe give me a heads up on any glaring errors or problems to expect.

John
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BW



Joined: 01 Feb 2018
Posts: 218
Location: Lick Creek, Alabama

PostPosted: Sun May 13, 2018 10:11 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey John and thanks for the kind words. The PL Charger chassis really isn't all that bad. For use on a Mopar body it gives you a lot of nice, and correct, details. The only thing that bothers me about it is that it seems, to me, that the roll bars are a little thick. Really not that bad though and built up the thickness really isn't that noticeable. Having never tested, I do not know if the PL chassis would fit the JoHan Superbird body. Of course test fitting may prove that it fits nicely. I built Petty's '73 Charger using the PL kit right out of the box and the built model looks just fine with little or no problems with fit. I do recall a TON of injector pin marks I had to fill.

On the subject of using the Revell/Monogram Superbird nose on the JoHan body: The fit was ok. I did have to sand a bit on each side of the nose where it attached to the front fenders as the 1/24 scale nose was just a bit wider. One thing I did and I would recommend you do is to glue some thick Evergreen plastic on the inside of the nose where it will attach to the body at the front fenders. Building up this portion will avoid sanding through the sides of the R/M nose when filling the seam. I recall almost sanding through the sides of the nose when I was filling the seam where the nose attaches to the front fenders. Building up the insides of this area will give you some wiggle room and make it easier to putty in case you do sand through the side of the nose. After getting this seam completed, primed, and painted, I used black decal stripes to duplicate this seam on the real car. Using the R/M nose really gives you the correct looking beak of the Superbird. The JoHan body is just one beautiful model of the iconic race car. That JoHan kit has some very nice details and for a shelf model, you could really built it right out of the box and have a very nice replica.

Good luck and enjoy building yours!
Bobby
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john843



Joined: 28 Jan 2018
Posts: 607
Location: S.C. Lowcountry

PostPosted: Sun May 13, 2018 2:02 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the info Bobby. I agree 100% on the roll bar issue, in fact I noticed when I took the PL Charger out a couple of days ago that I had put a sprue containing the rollcage from a PL #98 Mercury kit in with it when I opened the Charger years ago.
Thanks again for the info on the grafting of the nose. All I've done so far with it is to get rid of the locating pins and temporarily spot glued it in place to get an idea of what's required ahead but I'll address the flash removal, trimming the wheel wells, and several other things before I start nose work.

John
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