Foose FD-100 Pickup

[Art Laski]

On June 15th and 16th, we promoted the LA Roadster Show model car event inside the LA Roadster Show and Swap. As part of the show, we had a Foose sanctioned class, where the builds are all based on a Revell Foose kit.

Not being sure what kind of turnout we would have, I thought I would build up a Foose FD-100 to add to the table, even though I was ineligible for prizes. Since this kit is still getting a lot of good reviews, I am happy to give this one a try. I didn't get it done in time, but I did get it close enough to set out for display. Chip got to see it, and actually told me it would have been his pick, had it been eligible, so that was nice to hear, anyway.

I stayed mostly stock with it, in the essence of time, but as I got started, there were some things I couldn't resist changing.

I went with a Black Cherry HOK paint, and I found some 3d printed "Foose" Shelby-styled wheels on Shapeways from Ron Olsen. He does some fantastic work, and has some great designs out on Shapeways.

Here's the kit you all know.




One of the first things I thought to do was go for putting some real wood strips on the bed. So I had to extricate the styrene, and reinforce the bottom. I at first thought I would use some Starbucks stir sticks for the wood, but I opted to get a piece of bass wood from Hobby Lobby. It was smoother to start with, and all I had to do was cut it into strips.

[Art Laski]

I decided to get rid of the metal axles, especially the front one that goes through the oil pan. I also removed the rear axle locater that are on the frame. I might regret that later!

I filled in these cutouts, but forgot to take pictures of that.

[Art Laski]

I got these superb wheels from Ron Olsen's Shapeways site. He does some great work. These wheels. I found out later, were designed for the 1/12 scale Foose Camaro, and Ron just scaled them down to 1/25, but they were not fitted to any particular tire. So they ended up being a little too small in front, and fit strangely in the rear. You could pop them on the wheel, but the the tire would fit in side the rim and then crown the tire. So I altered them to make them the same dimensions as the kit wheels, with the same type of retention, where the wheels fit over the rim and has some ribs to keep it in place.

I added styrene to the middle of the rim on the front, then added the ribs. On the Rear, I filled in the rim with styrene, then turned down the entire diameter on the lathe, then added the ribs. They now fit exactly like the kit wheels.

This is the kit wheel on the left, the original 3D wheel on the right, and the altered wheel in the middle.


Here you can see the fit of the modified wheel on the left, and what it looked like trying to fit the rear kit tire on the unmodified wheel on the right.


Front and rear, corrected.

[Art Laski]

I made some filler caps for the valve covers, which mimics some of the reference photos of the original truck. The breather is a Pro Tech piece, which I carry on my website.



I got the body painted, and I'm very pleased with the color. It's a Dark/Black Cherry metallic over a black base, so in low light, it looks gloss black, but when light hits it, you see the red metallic.





Here's with the flash, where you can see the metallic pop through.

[Art Laski]

Also finished up the bed.










A couple of more shots of the engine with the decals on.

[Art Laski]

Wheels painted and the chassis mostly put together, including some modifications to the rear shocks, adding some real springs.

[clm1545]

Awesome work there, Art.

[indy]

Beautiful work, Art. Chip was right - this one is extra special!

Jordan

[Michael Chriss]

Fantastic Art!

[Gary Davis]

This sure looks good Art.

[racerbrown]

WOW!
looking forward to seeing this baby finished!
duane

[jj66]

Incredible Art!

[robh]

Art,

Very nice work. The paint is excellent!

[harveythedog2]

Art, Super Sweet! Love FOOSE cars and you are rock'n this.

[Joel]

Art,
Impressive for sure. The bed came out spectacular, as did the engine, and just a superb paint job. Looking forward to seeing your Ford Foose pickup completed, as it will be a winner for sure.

Joel

[Gary Davis]

I saw this truck at the Phoenix Nationals and these pics are good but...in person...it's so much better...this build is a Beauty. Art's work is top notch and he sets the bar with his work. GREAT job my friend...

[Art Laski]

So, it turns out I had a severe twist in the chassis that kept it on only three wheels that I couldn't get out for anything, so I had to obtain another kit and replace it. Here's how it finished up.

Thanks for looking!

[Art Laski]

[Art Laski]

[Gary Davis]

That really looks GOOD Art! Nice clean workmanship. That Body Paint is Killer. What wire did you use for the rear coil overs? It sure looks real my friend. GREAT job...

[indy]

Awesome, Art! Looks like it just rolled out of Foose's shop. Great job on the body paint but the whole thing looks near perfect in the pictures.

Jordan

[racerbrown]

another big winner from the laski shop!
i love how the wood floor shows through the bottom of the chassis.
duane

[Michael Chriss]

Really fantastic Art!

[Deleted]

Great work Art!

[Joel]

Art,
Just an outstanding build. Everywhere I looked, it just perfect. But the pictures in natural sunlight, just makes the paint POP to a perfect 10 out of 10 !!

Joel

[clm1545]

Damn, you are good!

[jj66]

WOW Art! Excellence is the word for this build

[Art Laski]

Oct 19, 2018 15:08:22 GMT -5 Gary Davis said:

That really looks GOOD Art! Nice clean workmanship. That Body Paint is Killer. What wire did you use for the rear coil overs? It sure looks real my friend. GREAT job...

Thanks, Gary. The springs came from a box of miscellaneous springs I got from Home Depot years ago. I've about used up all the useful ones for modeling, so I guess it's time to go get another one!

Thanks for all the comments! Very much appreciated. Now it's time to build an open wheeler!