Chopped ’40 Ford Standard Pro-Street Coupe

Chopped ’40 Ford Standard Coupe Pro-Street Rod
(More pictures below)

This will be a bit of an odd post since I didn’t build this model. But I’ve admired it for years and think it’s one of the nicest street rods I’ve ever seen built in scale. In fact I think it’s so nice that somebody should build it as a 1:1. It’s a very contemporary machine so it should be just the thing for you guys.

Completed in early 2010 by my good friend and modeling buddy Raul Perez from Tracy, California, it was one of the last models Raul finished before taking an extended break from car modeling. For the moment he’s busy building N-scale buildings for railroad layouts, which he sells on e-Bay. He has quite a following and it’s turning out to be a handy source of pocket money. The bummer is that the auto modeling has suffered in the interim. But Raul swears he’ll be back to cars soon enough. I can only hope so!

In the meantime, I’ve been going down to his place ever year to attend the NNL West. And each year I’ve told him I thought this was as nice a model as he’s ever built. And Raul is no slouch, believe me. Although no “trophy hound”, he’s won more than his share of model car contests over the years. His secret is a subtle blend of super-clean building, very high detail and a keen eye for line and form. This ’40 Ford coupe is proof of that!

Anyway, this year Raul amazed me by giving me his ’40 Ford pro-street rod as a gift. As a result I have been able to spend a good deal of time examining it and photographing it. The body is a highly modified Revell ’40 Ford Standard coupe while the chassis and motor are from a Revell ’41 Willys street rod. As the name on the license plate indicates, Raul tubbed the Ford to accept the giant meats from the Willys. He also lowered the front suspension to give the car a mean rake. The top has been chopped a nominal 2 ½ scale inches. I say nominal because it’s a wedge chop and closer to 3 inches at the A pillar. Combined with the slanted B-pillar it gives the car a forward motion to its lines. This is further enhanced by a pie-cut hood with the nose lowered about a scale inch from stock. The bodywork is fully nose, decked and shaved including the running boards which have been filled and smoothed. A custom exhaust system exits on the passenger side in front of the rear fender.

The paint and detail on the car are flawless. I’ve included an under hood shot to give you an idea of this. It has full electrical, brake and fuel lines and a finely detailed interior based on the Willys street rod seats and the ’40 Ford dash and side panels.

I hope you all enjoy it as much as I am having it on my shelf where it definitely has pride of place. It will serve as a template against which to measure my, thankfully, still-evolving building skills.

Thanx for lookin’,
B.








(photo courtesy Raul Perez)

(photo courtesy Raul Perez)

(photo courtesy Raul Perez)

COOL CUSTOM!! Nice amount of detail too.   

His work is outstanding, very cool build overall. I really like the detail and colour under the bonnet   

I like the fact he kept the Hemi in it.
Very nice.

That is very cool and well built.

That's one very cool coupe.

 Your friend dose some very nice work

Very nice build , lots of nice detail , interior very well done .

That's one well out of your normal comfort zone Bernard.

I love your traditional stuff but this proves you go both ways.

Congrat's on a good job very well done.    

Good job Bernard   

Amazing. The paint, interior and engine are all brilliant.
Great job.   

Thanks everyone. I'm glad you all appreciate it. But let me be very clear: I didn't build this model! To repeat what I wrote above, my very good friend Raul Perez  created it and gave it to me as a gift last month. He built it almost 4 years ago and I've always admired it. So, yes, it's way outside my comfort zone and unlike anything I'd do myself, at least for now. It will serve me as a technical reference to the plastic modeler's art. But don't think for a moment I'm being condescending when I say "technical". Right from the first time he showed it to me I have unreservedly liked this car - not just admired it techincally, but also admired how totally successfully he captured the "look and feel" and how he accomplished it with surprising subtlety and integration. It's just that it's so far away from anything I'm likely to build in terms of style; Pro-Street as Raul has modeled it is not how I see things. But I've noticed I have a tendency to admire things that lie far away from what I do - I sometimes think it's a "grass is greener..." deal... It will sit proudly on my shelf as a benchmark. As my skills (hopefully) continue to develop within my own personal style this virtuoso piece gives me something to strive for.