Revell 1955 Lincoln Futura by Popeye the Sailor

[popeye the sailor]

I saw this model while I was building the Adam West Batmobile........thought it would be cool to have it next to the concept car that kicked it off.   korny to most now,  it wasn't to young lads who tuned in back in the mid 60's.  the one I saw was likely the first production of the model........sadly I was slow in pull'in the trigger and soon it was gone.   it would be a while before I'd see another one.   this one is a reissue of the original Revell kit back in 1956.   Revell reissued a slew of old kits in the mid 90's...this series was one of them.   not wanting to see it slip through my fingers again,  I bought it.  for a guy that looks for the nostalgia in things........I think I got it in spades  

 

as a concept car,  it was a hit in the car show circuits.......from 1955 on to around 1963,  fins were 'in'.  Cadillac adopted them with their Fleetwood line,  Chevy adopted them in their Impala line, as well a Lincoln's own cars,  the Premiere and Capri.  other aspects were also later seen molded in ford cars.  only one proto type was built.........built in Turin Italy at a cost of $250,000.   the car sat around after that,  seen in two movies......"it started with a kiss",  and "The secret door" which was a Ford promo film.  since the car wasn't titled,  it couldn't be registered or insured.........a quarter of a Million dollars....just wasting away.  it was later sold to George Barris for $1.00 {and other valuable considerations},  and it sat behind his shop for a few more years.  in 1966,  he was approached and asked to build the theme car for the Batman TV series.  another fellow,  Dean Jefferies was given the task,  but could not deliver in time.  the Futura was modified using some of Dean's concept plans,  and the Adam West Batmobile was born.  George also built two other cars with fiberglass bodies to help fill in the filming gaps and appeared in a few shows featuring the caped crusader.  DC comics followed the TV antics,  but readers weren't impressed with the show,  but managed to hold on to the ardent followers.  by the show's end in 1968,  DC had lost quite a few followers.......Batgirl,  the cheekiness was killing the character!  Batman almost died,  but was revived in 1969,  and regained popularity in 1970.  as for the car.........Barris housed it in a couple of car museums until it was sold to Rick Champlain in 2013 for $4.62 million dollars!

 

in 1990,  a fellow named Bob Butts created a copy of the Lincoln Futura,  later to be seen in the NBC TV series " Viper",  in the episode 'wheels of fire'.   here is the car in 2009.......

on the outside of the box,  it was dated 1995......it was still plastic sealed.  it had shrunk to the point where it was beginning to wrinkle one end of the box.  now,  a lot of folks quest for the more updated kits.......the improvements in detail and molding.  I,  on the other hand,  like to look back on the roots of the model kit...how they looked back then.  back to the days of the simplistic kit.......the age of kit and instruction.  well,  I really got my wish on this one 

the first thing I saw,  in opening the box,  was the plastic tires.  I believe rubber tires.......or something close to it,  was featured in kits by the mid 60's.  I recall my older brother having HP Hood milk delivery truck....and it too had the plastic tires.   spreading the parts out,  one can see how simple the kit is......depending how one looks at it.   there was no engine..........and the body was in multiple parts.

the top section sectioned off in four pieces,  to be built on the lower section,  that resembles what can be described as a 'pan'.  the clear parts only consists of the bubbled canopy

there's not a lot of chrome.......and two metal axles fill out the drivetrain {at least it will roll}.   the instructions filled out the rest of my wishes,  dated in 1956,  the year I was born  

 

this kit does include figures....not sure if I will used them.  I should have shown you the lower portion of the first page........it has some zany ways to display the model once it is finished.  are you ready to see the assembly sequence?  OK..........I want you to cup your hands like a pair of binoculars and hold them up to your eyes...........'cuz here they are!

primitive or what?!?!?!?!?!    this might be a nightmare to paint.........   I do believe I've hit the mother lode in the nostalgia dept!  where in the heck did I put that stone axe?  with the description the instructions give,  I would love to see this model redesigned in todays expectations.  Metric wasn't even used back then,  everything is in inches,  in the description.   there is going to be some body work that needs to get done........the top section needs to be assembled and joints will definitely need putty.    there is some degree of flash and deformity.......getting it right will be interesting  

 

[Old Collingwood]

This wil be so cool Denis  - still an amazing looking car  - a true one off  - I have my seat at the ready.

 

OC.

[popeye the sailor]

thanks OC.........as well as all looking in.   I figured I'd do some tinkering to see what I'm up against.   as seen here,  most model kits of this time period,  didn't even have engines.......basically,  the bottom chassis was just a cover pan.  they engineered holes for the metal shafts to go through,  and that was pretty much it for suspension.  some kits went a bit further and had hollow differentials for the rear axle shafts to go through,  which could be considered an early attempt to add detail to the model.  it would be some time before all model kits supplied engine detail.  as this detail emerged,  problems were encountered and solved,  by running the metal shaft through the engine block,  or in front or behind the sump bump.  later model introduced the spindle and A frame suspension parts and negated the use of the metal axle.  but.......this was later in their evolution. 

   the bottom pan was stamped on both sides with the production date.

the axle shafts will snap into place via the two slots......the date stamp can be seen running down where the drive shaft should be.

the three parts that make up the rear section of the top half of the body were assembled

oh........here is a glimpse of the lower part of the first page..........suggestions for how to display the model.  the suggestion covered up with the body,  has it perched on the edge of a ash tray {for those who were thinking of something for dad on Father's day).   check out the TV........if that ain't a black n white TV....I'll eat my shirt!    my aunt had one like that.....her cat would always lay on top.  if you tried to change the channel,  it would take a swipe at you {did it to me once..........only once  }.  the curved surface at the tips are the door front edges....there are some nuances with the plastic thickness.

     I did some trimming here.......sanding down the door edge to be flatter,  so the door gap would be there.  it needs to be there.  the tail light lenses are chrome.......I should remove the chrome,  but I think I will just paint them once fitted in place.

flash is all around........trimming is surely going to result in gaps.   the front part of the upper body was taped to the bottom pan.  the rear section was cemented to the front section and also taped into place.   to help align the upper doors to the body {cemented to those two tabs},  clothes pins were used.  to think.........I might have used them as a kid  

it can be seen where the rear bumper will be,  that some work will need to be done to clean up the body contour back there.  I bought a tube of white body filler to do it......brand:  Mr. Hobby.

 

[popeye the sailor]

the body dried overnight........removed from the bottom and more sanding and trimming.   the headlights are based the same as the tail lights.....they are sunken in......a hooded cavity.   I tried to fit them while the body was still taped together,  but that was futile.   I tried again later with better success and saw how they were to align with the hood front edges and the side body corners.   the headlight panels are chrome as well......I will likely paint them too.

 

there the first initial splash of paint.......

then dry fit to see to check for the front bumper alignment.

I tried to do a little sanding,  but it needs more time to dry.  

[popeye the sailor]

I'm still working on this one..........the word primitive is a subtle description.   it definitely shows how model kit have evolved through the years    the fit isn't that great,  and I've had to do quite a bit of trimming and sanding.  so much in fact,  that there are some gaps that need to be filled in.  since I started with the tires,  I did a bit more to them to start off this update.  I gave them a red center....I may try to paint the lettering on the tires.

I also decide to paint the center part of the canopy........it gives away the car color.

I also painted the inside surface the same as the interior.......I went with a tan color

once this is dry,  I will do the framework.  I was going to try and cut the side portions of the canopy out......but I chickened out 🐓  the interior is supposed to be cemented on pins on the bottom pan,  but given the fit,  I decided to cement it in the upper part,  so I can use filler around the perimeter and try to make it look better.

I already filled in some of the gaps with the putty I bought.   I started to paint the bottom pan.

after it had dried well enough,  it was masked off and the bottom was painted flat black

the underside of the upper body was also painted with the flat black,  where the wells are.

 

you still can see some of the base plastic in the front........the headlight parts aren't in place yet..........I want to remove the chrome.  I painted the back parts of the tires / rims,  and chrome is a terrible receptor for paint.  this is the filler I bought.  it seems to be pretty good........gotta work with it fast though 'cuz it wants to skin over fairly quickly.  there is no applicator / nozzle for it........I'll have to figure out something to aide in that respect.

those are the headlight parts off to the right.  a cap of brake fluid will be perfect    I'll post more should I do more today.

[Old Collingwood]

I think Its all the more special when we attack an older kit with the skills that we have now  - keep up the great work mate.

 

OC.

[popeye the sailor]

I hope your right OC.........a fly did land in the ointment.   there are some models that are best to avoid.  ......not say'in this is one of them,  but for lack of a high parts count,  there is an abundance of challenge here  

 

so,  as was decided,  the interior cockpit was cemented to the top section of the body,  I did put some putty on from the inside,  in an effort to smooth it out on the outside.   sanding the dash area,  which jutted up from the body,  and scribing the ripples on the back deck,  was part of the task.  I did note that the canopy will cover these areas around the cockpit,  so it should look OK. 

 

now......I used testor's paint on the lower portion of the body and the canopy,  using a brush to do it.   to paint the upper body will require a mask for the cockpit.  I had a bumper sticker hang'in around,  and after finding a good place for the sticker,  I took the backing and laid down two pieces of tape.  the cockpit was then traced on the tape,  and then cut out.

peeling the tape off the backing,  it was laid over the cockpit,  and it worked out pretty good.......I may need to do some tiny touch ups.  I remembered that I had that rattle can of red........I decided to use that instead.   inspecting it after spraying it show lighter areas and ghosting.........so I gave it a second coat.  this is where it all went bad.   inspecting it a bit later showed that the first coat became active and 'wrinkled',  much like a previous model I did.  I crossed my fingers and hoped it would calm itself down.  it did to some degree,  but the blemishes are still noticeable.

 

 

this red has a sort of Scarlett hue to it............doesn't match the Testor's color hue at all.  so after agonizing over it for a moment,  the decision was made to repaint the bottom body section.  I was afraid that it would happen to it too,  since it already has a coat on it,  but it didn't do it.   

 

 

best guess as to why it happened,  was that I didn't use a primer on the upper body..........but then again,  neither did I use it for the bottom half either. 

     more on her soon   

[Egilman]

I don't think it was the lack of primer brother, (you have orange peel and crinkle finish from the same can. The usually means that the carrier has gone south)

Just an old can of paint that has probably existed past it's usable life.... My rule of thumb is if I can't remember when I bought it, it goes in the trash....

[Landlubber Mike]

Sorry about the paint issues

 

If you have Netflix, there is a show called Car Masters - Rust to Riches which is a sort of reality show following Gotham Garage.  They did a replica of the Futura in the first season I believe.

Edited August 23, 2021 by Landlubber Mike

[CDW]

Great project Denis! Just found your build log. Love the oldies like this, they bring back so many good old memories.

[popeye the sailor]

the can doesn't look too old though.........it didn't do it when I laid the paint over the testor's paint.......just when I gave the upper section the second coat.  

   the body has had quite a bit of time to dry......I could try buffing them out.  I'll have to look at it.......

 

thanks for the kind word folks!  

[popeye the sailor]

it's been a busy couple of weeks.........work has been a bear.........celebrated my birthday on the 31st.......replaced the right front axle and lower control arm in my son's car,  as well as all the lug studs on the left front.  he took it to a dealer to have the transmission replaced  {a month ago} and they over torqued the wheel lugs,  ruining the left front rim.  he bought a replacement rim the other day,  per my suggestion.  I went to take it off and two of them were loose again,  as well as one of them being seized.  I got the tire off by snapping the lug with a breaker bar and length of pipe,  for more leverage    it's bad when you can look at the lug holes and actually see the damage!  the right front was over torqued as well,  but he hasn't had to retighten them {he stopped by the house one day complaining of a noise in the left front........that is what we found}.  it's a long story.........sigh   all the rain we've had.......I also got to mow the lawns finally........the jungle had returned.

 

one issue I've run into with this project,  is that when I repainted the bottom pan,  I removed the masking,  only to find that the adhesive had stuck to the part and not on the tape .   true,  I left it on for a couple of days,  but the other masking tapes I have hasn't done this.  I'm not sure,  but I think this is Tamiya tape.

 

so now I want to remove the adhesive so I can repaint the undercarriage.  once I get it off,  the black can be touched up and I can move on with it.  I am in the process of testing the tape.  I stuck some on a wing and will leave it a couple of days,  to see if it is just a time thing.........but I think the introduction of paint and paint thinner may have caused it.  we'll see.

 

[popeye the sailor]

here is a small update on the progress of this model.  the testing I did on that tape showed that unpainted,  the glue did not transfer to the model.  it peeled off as it normally would.  so I would suspect that the thinner,  and leaving it on the model a prolonged period of time,  caused the adhesive to separate from the tape.  I tried a couple of things,  but without damaging the paint,  I had no other choice than to scrape the adhesive off....including the paint {flat black}.  going over it later with some sand paper smoothed the areas out good enough to repaint the underside.  I have since removed the tape for the cockpit......this did not result in the same unsatisfactory result........and that came out reasonably well { a few touch ups}.   one other sticky wicket that I know of is the rear bumper.  there are serious gaps along the sides where they meet the body.  I will need to fill these areas in with plastic strip and fit the bumper.  I bought some Plastruct strips for the PT boat.......I can use some  for this {only a little bit}.  so this is where I'm at on it.  I guess paint the affected areas and I can continue  

[mtaylor]

10 hours ago, popeye the sailor said:

 one other sticky wicket that I know of is the rear bumper.  there are serious gaps along the sides where they meet the body.  I will need to fill these areas in with plastic strip and fit the bumper.  I bought some Plastruct strips for the PT boat.......I can use some  for this {only a little bit}.  so this is where I'm at on it.  I guess paint the affected areas and I can continue  

That almost sounds like the real thing, sir.   Back then, fit and finish wasn't a real priority it seems.   And lets not forget the orange peel finish many cars had....

[popeye the sailor]

yes........this shows the primative nature of the older model kit.  the model enthusiasts of today has gained quite a few insights and details of the models we build........we've come to expect much more      this is a good trait that stayed with the mediums as we evolved.....we've always wanted to add an aspect of detail,  not found in the normal 'out of the box' kit.  one person added this.........and another person added that......pretty soon we arrive to the idea that the kit really isn't as detailed as once thought.  the model manufacturer sees this as well,  and the model kit evolves along with the expectations of the modeler.   the modeler CAN dictate the detail content in the models they buy!  I guess this is one of the reasons why I look at when the kit was produced.......it gives you a fair idea of the research that went into it.  digress if I may...........look at the example of the Revell 1:96 ship kits.  they are a series that I hear so many touts about.  I hear so much about the shortcomings with the plastic eye bolts,  the hollow masts,  and lack of critical detail.....

......one has to take into account,  when these kits were produced.   a couple were produces as early as 1956.......the year I was born!  to make matters worse,  these kits didn't go through any retooling as time went on.  Revell flooded the market with these kits,  and this added to the problem in updating the kits.  even today.......on E-bay these older kit still surface.  I love these kits......I think they are the some of Revell's best offerings.  I've never run into the issues that some have complained about.   the company in the U.S.  has changed,  leaving Revell / Germany as the prime holder of the name.  Mindset has been changing as well.........model kits were model kits,  made primarily of plastic.   outside of the metal axles you get in car kits,  very few used different materials in their kits {some kit even had plastic axle rods}.  today,  with detail reorientation and higher expectations,  aftermarket parts like resin and P.E. have begun to be included in kits.  for folks who are much better modelers that I,  this is great news.  it brings the challenge level back up to what they expect in their kits  

 

meanwhile.........back on earth......    I hope to do something on it this week     custom work today has kinda gone back to the nostalgic,  leaving the original patina on the cars they do....make.....build   trucks seen to showcase the brunt of this styling   some look really cool!

[popeye the sailor]

happy to report that there is some movement with this model.    it was touch 'n go there for a while.......the darn thing didn't want to fit together,  but to this point in time,  I managed     pictures in a bit......the admiral is anxious to take the new {used} car out for another spin.   we got errands to run.

[popeye the sailor]

apologize for the delay.......too much going on    the admiral is having issues that we've been dealing with....finally getting good results.  we bought another vehicle...a 2010 Nissan Marano..........barely a week and already in the shop.  we brought it back to them because of a minor EVAP leak.  these are the more prominent upheavals........  every time I turn around........we gotta go somewhere.........

 

har-umph!  I must have started this too late..........now I gotta go grill supper 

[popeye the sailor]

par-don yet again..........grilled supper,  but got tied into a movie while I ate.   blame it on Vin Diesel    the guy doing the drum roll on this big reveal is very happy to see me.......ok.......you can stop now    now......this starts out with the car showing her bad side.  the body is back together,  but when I went to fit the front bumper,  I found that the halves weren't matched up correctly.  so I had to split the halves apart again and refit them,  so the bumper would line up.  touch ups have been done.

it looks terrible now,  but along the sides,  a long chrome strip goes on from front to back....both bumpers have to line up.  as you can see,  I have the front bumper in place already.

I decanted some of the paint,  to paint the undersides of the headlight tunnels.  I focused on the gaps I saw when I did the last dry fit to the rear bumper.

I found that the chrome strip will cover over it,  so I need not be concerned.  so that the chrome strips will fit flush to the body line,  I sanded the mating line from front to back......made it look even worse.

I did some chroming to the canopy........

I may go around the base of it.......still to be done.   the chrome strips actually went on pretty well.......I used CA to cement them in place.  this is one of the few times I've actually used  CA on plastic.

 

and the rear bumper is in place now.  I was in the process of digging up some deeper red for the tail lights.   not much more to go  

the steering wheel is nearby......I painted around the rim of it.   more soon......