1958 Pontiac project.... "Marlowe-ish!"

PART 2:

Interesting project. Progress looks good. What did you use to cut out the trunk?

Posted by: @ed-davis

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What did you use to cut out the trunk?

My trusty $6.99 Jeweler's saw - that's about the 12th 1/18 trunk I've cut out.   😀 😏 

@chris   This isn't helping my envy problem.  Nice work!

@gdh  Thanks!   (I'm always doing something... )      Perhaps you might enjoy this project, from a few years ago: 1/18 1956 Ford COE car hauler project…. – Forum 18 – The Diecast Zone Forums

NOTE: There's 11 pages to it, so....um...   beware!   😳 😳    Or, I suppose, you could just skip to the end, Page 11.   😀 😀 

amazing work Chris, can I ask how do u plan to fill in the gap at the rear of the hardtop, this one:?

Posted by: @geoff-jowett

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"How do you plan to fill in the gap at the rear of the hardtop on this one?"

Honestly, that's the least of my worries.   I'll fill ANY gaps in ANY areas like I've always done:  "Any way possible."    

That is, "large gaps"  will be filled in with scrap plastic sanded & shaped to fit then anchored down with glue.   Any smaller gaps will be filled with Bondo-body filler, followed by spot putty.   The area(s ) will then be sanded smooth, filled again with spot putty, then sanded again, etc...    until every surface is just right.     

Like all bodywork; it's labor intensive but relatively E-Z peazy  stuff.    Any one of my numerous, but more involved, posted project tutorials has documented this routine.  😉 

@chris   Taking shortcuts leaves one with fewer experiences.  I'll do the full eleven pages for the fun of it.

Your project is coming along quite nicely.  The photo I've attached shows that the proper shape has been achieved.  All that's required now is the finishing stuff.  

I couldn't help but notice that you cut and removed the entire cowl section.  It differs from my approach, which was to cut at the base of the "A" pillars.  I recall being concerned that without that bracing provided by the cowl, body warping could be a problem.  I'm sure you considered it as well and didn't view it as a potential problem or took precautions to minimize that possibility.   

@marty-johnson Correct, "stability"  was a concern, but it was decided that the best course of action was to section as I did.   PART 3 will show all my attachments points in greater detail.

PART 3:

Pretty self-explanatory - filling in body voids & gaps by any means possible.     Appearance is of no concern because body-filler & primer will eventually smooth everything out.  It does appear, however, that I'll need to extend the deck lid closer to the rear window, then reshape the opening to include two slight curves.

Saty tuned, right?  🙄 🙄 

For me, there is something visually appealing when, at this early stage, the pieces are combined together, and the vision that was just a vision is now a reality.  

PART 4:

Basically, PART 4 wraps up all the "bulky work."    

Unfortunately, I had to cut the cowl section free to reposition it upward.  My initial clamping (while the epoxy dried ) had inadvertently smashed  that area too far down.  Also, I had to remove the R door hinge and reposition that to achieve the proper alignment - tedious work, but it had to be done.

All the big pieces are now in place & hinged including the elongated trunk.   '58 convertible trunks are shorter than '58 Bonneville hardtops, therefore the opening had to be made larger - going toward the rear window.

I then grafted a re-shaped section of the Impala trunk onto the Bonneville's to fill the void.   A machined lap-joint (stronger than a butt-joint ) was incorporated for strength.  The final step will involve scuffing the underside to facilitate a strong bond once a layer of epoxy putty is laid down - like a blanket.

PART 5 will start the body work - filling in ALL the gaps & seems with thin strip plastic, Bondo  and/or Tamiya putty.    Stay tuned......

This is coming together really nicely.  Once again, you're slavishly adhering to getting it "right!"