Dave Smolski
I was into models as a young teenager, and then got
distracted by things like real cars as I got older. So I gave away all of the
built models to a friend and thought I was done with the hobby. I mean, after
all, it’s kid’s stuff, right?
Fast forward to my mid-20s. I was getting into muscle cars, specifically Mopars, and bought my first piece of American Muscle- a ’68 Charger. It was nice to have the real thing in the garage and I found myself buying 1/18 and 1/64 diecast Mopars. Then it happened. I stepped back into modeling by scratch building an 1/18 scale garage with a ’68 Charger as the centerpiece. It was all over from there when I joined MassCar around 1999.
Fast forward to my mid-20s. I was getting into muscle cars, specifically Mopars, and bought my first piece of American Muscle- a ’68 Charger. It was nice to have the real thing in the garage and I found myself buying 1/18 and 1/64 diecast Mopars. Then it happened. I stepped back into modeling by scratch building an 1/18 scale garage with a ’68 Charger as the centerpiece. It was all over from there when I joined MassCar around 1999.
1/16 Scale "Snake in the Grass" Diorama- 2015
I originally picked up a 1/16 scale Cobra just to rob the tires for another project, but the car caught my attention and I decided to build it.
“Barn finds” really appeal to me, and I enjoy building weathered cars. So I decided that I wanted to do a “barn find” Cobra.
The car has lots of details-
Exterior- These cars had aluminum bodies so I decided to make the paint look worn and weathered, and to have some areas look like oxidized aluminum. Other details include flat tires, exhaust pipe hanging by a wire, scratch built roll bar, straight pins as snaps to attach the cockpit’s cover, weathering, mis-matched wheels and tires, scratch built racing windshield, and a “Not For Sale” sign.
Engine bay- A wired distributor (with some wires disconnected), throttle linkage, return spring, fuel line, brake lines, alternator wiring, tools, leaves, dirty shop rag, etc.
Cockpit- Carpet, engine bay parts littering the floor (battery, hoses, starter motor and wiring), tools, repair parts (like head gasket set), 5 point seat belts, seats weathered to look like the stuffing is showing through and held together with duct tape, missing gauge, opened glove box, and more.
Chassis- You can’t see tell, but the chassis is completely weathered. I also rusted the four wheel disc brakes, and added fuel and brake lines.
Trunk- Spare tire was added, battery cables, and I added more parts intended for the work in progress.
“Barn finds” really appeal to me, and I enjoy building weathered cars. So I decided that I wanted to do a “barn find” Cobra.
The car has lots of details-
Exterior- These cars had aluminum bodies so I decided to make the paint look worn and weathered, and to have some areas look like oxidized aluminum. Other details include flat tires, exhaust pipe hanging by a wire, scratch built roll bar, straight pins as snaps to attach the cockpit’s cover, weathering, mis-matched wheels and tires, scratch built racing windshield, and a “Not For Sale” sign.
Engine bay- A wired distributor (with some wires disconnected), throttle linkage, return spring, fuel line, brake lines, alternator wiring, tools, leaves, dirty shop rag, etc.
Cockpit- Carpet, engine bay parts littering the floor (battery, hoses, starter motor and wiring), tools, repair parts (like head gasket set), 5 point seat belts, seats weathered to look like the stuffing is showing through and held together with duct tape, missing gauge, opened glove box, and more.
Chassis- You can’t see tell, but the chassis is completely weathered. I also rusted the four wheel disc brakes, and added fuel and brake lines.
Trunk- Spare tire was added, battery cables, and I added more parts intended for the work in progress.
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I
decided that the car deserved to be sitting in a scene to tell the
vehicle’s story, and that an old barn was fitting.
The barn’s stone foundation was made of rocks from my backyard. The building was done by referencing scale blueprints from The Model Junkyard. The roof was done to look like weathered corrugated panels. I made them from the inner layer of a cardboard box. I used a various Woodland Scenic materials for the base- different shades of grass, static grass, different sizes of rocks and ballast, and more. I also added leaves to make it look like Fall, in New England. You might notice my redneck security system- a rusty chain through the body of the car, attaching the Cobra to barn's foundation. And if you look carefully, you might find a snake (other than the car) hiding in the grass. I used a snake from a 1980s Star Wars Yoda figure. |
'78 Big Red Express Truck- 2015
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I've had this build in the back of my head for a long time- to take a '78 'Lil Red Express Truck and make it into a monster truck called, "The Big Red Express."
I used a donor Dodge monster truck that I bought for parts for the differentials, axles, wheels, tires and leaf springs. The donor truck was missing some shocks, so I made my own out of two diameters of aluminum tubing, craft beads, and straight pins. My parts stash provided the Hemi and headers. The stacks are just for looks since this monster runs with open headers. I also added fuel and brake lines. A friend made custom "Big Red Express Truck" decals for the body and I decided to try Future for the clear coat for the first time. Hope you enjoy "Big Red!" |
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1/18 Scale Two Lane Blacktop Replica- 2012
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This is the replica of the Two Lane Blacktop '55 Chevy that I did.
It's limited production, 1/18 scale diecast that I bought at MassCar's 2013 show. The seller had made some modifications I didn't car for, so I disassembled it, did some re-engineering, and detailed it to replicate the movie car. I showed pictures of my built to the owner of the real movie car. He said that if he didn't know that some of the pictures were of a miniature car, he would have thought I had taken photos of the car he owns. I figure that's the best compliment I could ever get. This is also my first attempt at a landscape for a base. I wanted to do a rendition of a highway roadside where James Taylor and Dennis Wilson pull off to change the jets. Here's a link to to a larger photo album documenting the build. Here's a link to a video tour of the diorama. And here's a link to an article on my build on the On Screen Cars site. |
Ratty, Patriotic '70 Challenger- 2014
I saw a couple of pictures on the real car, a 73-74 Challenger on-line and thought it looked pretty cool. So I took a $5.00 glue bomb that I had bought at a MassCar meeting and turned it into my version, which is based on the real car. I wouldn't consider it to be a replica, since the model year is different. I also took some liberties while building to make it more my own.
My Mopars- 2006 through 2014
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These are replicas of the Mopars I've owned. I entered them in the Collections class at the 2013 MassCar show.
The red '68 Charger was a highly optioned 383 / auto that I owned for 10 years. The green, '69 Super Bee is a replica of the car I currently own. The black and white '72 Demon was a rough, but really fun car. And the green, '73 Challenger was another rough ride, and my daily driver for a few years. Lots of good memories of the American Muscle that I've owned over the years. |