PROGRESS 1996 WS6 Trans Am

[99civichic]

Got started on the next big project today. Hope to have it done in two weeks (ie before Spring Break), after tonight that looks promising.

The challenge: No modeling company made a WS6 ("Ram Air") LT1 Trans Am/Formula Firebird, at least none that I could find. The owner of the 1:1 car this one is to emulate also has 2001 Corvette wheels on his car. The kit I got to build it came with a Formula style molded spoiler instead of the raised Trans Am spoiler. I had to shop around a little, but I was able to kitbash enough to get the right spoiler and wheels using the following kits:


Lucky for me, the kit with the spoiler was at Toys'R'Us for $4. Also lucky for me, even being a "Snap fit" or whatever the spoiler was seperate from the car so I could use it with very little modification. This kit also had the taillights molded in transparent red, which will look much better on a white car. Other than having the completely wrong spoiler, and quite a bit of flash, I am amazed so far at the quality and detail of the moldings, and how well the parts fit already. For an AMT, this one is a nice kit!



I sprayed some parts in bulk tonight:




Also got a little something else accomplished, the thing I was most afraid of....it's far from done, but I think it's a decent start. The hood:







Still needs a LOT of sanding, more putty work...I think the nostrils are a little too big, tell me what you think. Nothing's been done that can't be changed!

[proosen]

See it in two weeks then!? That's gonna be a cool ride when you finish it, looking forward to that moment.

Niclas

[TanKaBoY]

nice!

[blubaja]

Hey,

Good luck with this Kat.

Frank X.

[THX]

This is exactly the car I own, a 1996 WSG Trans Am, the first year for reintroducing Ram Air. Looks like you're off to a teriffic start so far. The nostrils on the hood do look a little bit too large but should be easy to steer them more to the correct shape. Another detail of the WS6 cars are they have 1" larger wheels than normal Trans Ams. You could leave the kit whees how they are, or perhaps use some Corvette whees like I did on my Firehawk, to simulate. In some respects the AMT kit is superior to the Revell kit, though the Revell has some advantages too. If you need some reference pics of my 1:1 just let me know. My Firehawk post you should also be able to locate via my user ID as well. Looking forward to seeing this come together! What color will it be?

[99civichic]

THX, I'm building this car for a friend of mine and his 1:1 actualy does have the 2001 Corvette wheels on it. Here's about how it's going to sit:

[Sidewinder-03]

Great start on a great project! I don't mean to step on your toes or anything but, I'm concerned about that hood.I have successfully grafted the scoop from a Revell-Monogram '98(?) Ram-Air Firebird. Here's a couple of pics:



I also took the spoiler from the revell kit.

[73superduty]

99civicchic--That looks great! I will agree that the nostirls are a bit large as well. I think you got the width down, just need to drop the nostrils closer to the hood. Other than that you got it going on!

Sidewinder! That looks awesome. However the later WS6 Trans AM hood is totally different than the earlier WS6's.
Chris

[THX]

Originally Posted by 99civichic

THX, I'm building this car for a friend of mine and his 1:1 actualy does have the 2001 Corvette wheels on it. Here's about how it's going to sit:

Looks great! Like I said, the AMT kit really doesn't hold any surprises, it's easier to build than the revell kit. The only issues are the hood fit - but looks like you've glued yours shut and solved that; also the rear taillight lenses are a bit of a pain to detail with the black stripes behind the lens. On the 98's I've built, I created a hex pattern on my computer and printed a decal for myself, if I were doing a 96 I'd go that route as well. On my original 93 I built, I painted this detail by hand and reached okay results, but I would try the decal method if you have that as an option.

Keep going - I can't wait to see this one come together!

[99civichic]

THX-The snap-fit kit has a rear panel (well, the area where the lights go) with the ridges molded in already, which will make it much easier to paint. I may do a transplant. The snap-fit also has the taillights molded in transparent red so I think I can make them look pretty good. I built a 96 Formula a while back and I remember the kit decal for the taillights looking plain stupid, and not even fitting to boot. This one will be better. Also, I didn't glue the hood down, I even think it's a little crooked in the second pic from when I turned it to take the picture!

Sidewinder--as already posted, the 96-97 WS6 hood is way different than a 98-2002 WS6 hood. The early ones had a solid scoop with a center divider, while the later LS1 engined WS6's had the two molded nostrils like the one you posted.

I'll work on the hood some more next week and see if I can shorten the hood a bit. Not sure how much I'll be able to modify, and it doesn't look so big in person as it does on the car.

All this Trans Am talk...All I really want is Revell's 98 kit! It would look so nice by my LS1 Camaro...

[Jeep_Rubicon]

Looking good.

[JTRACING]

Looking good so far!! I like these cars!!,
I notice you like doing lots of body work lol

[99civichic]

Originally Posted by JTRACING

I notice you like doing lots of body work lol

Too much, I think! I just found this great stuff called BONDO! It's certainly cheap enough, let's hope it works!

[99civichic]

Threw together the engine in record time!





I also mixed my own paint for the first time for the interior. Trans Ams don't have black leather, they have "charcoal." I was too lazt to go down to Hobby Town and look for a close match, so I dumped some Flat Light Gray into a bottle of flat black and I think it worked out nicely. This is also my first time to airbrush an interior, and I must say it was much much easier.




I'm headed out to the strip to chat with some car guys, I'll be back in a few hours to do some final detail work to the interior (namely the dash) and to assemble it. No painting today, too humid. No painting for the next week actually, as it'll be rainy and wet. Spring and its stupid showers! JK, later.

[blubaja]

Hey,

Lookin good! Is that alclad on the motor? Nice job on the seats. Keep up the great work Kat!

Frank X.