Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

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LewisF1
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Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Tue Jul 29, 2014 7:41 pm

I have begun my next build, and as the title states it's another Fast & Furious movie car replica build, and another of Toretto's rides. It is the Black Dodge Challenger SRT8 which he drove in movies 5 & 6, I guess I have a love for some of those awesome rides.
:okay: :manual:
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FF5 Challenger by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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2011_dodge_challenger_f34_fe_313132_717 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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2011_dodge_challenger_r34_fe_313132_717 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr

I picked up a Hwy61 Challenger SRT8 to use instead of the Maisto option, as it is closest in appearance to the 1:1, and has some of the necessary details needed in order to come as close as possible. As far as the work needed to be done goes, I have to widen the front fenders, add the widened rear bodykit, lower the ride height slightly, and obviously a wheel swap. Oh and one of the biggest changes, is to replicate the hood and make it a shaker-style hood.
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HC50852 (1) by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
First step as always strip it down, which wasn't as easy as most models I've tackled.
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IMG_20140417_073021 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140419_104217 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140419_104408 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140419_104302 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
The wheels were quite a task to remove, the brake calipers have to be detached from their mounts, and the wheels pulled off ever so carefully, as not to break the axle pins they're mounted to. Of course some broke, but I had to get them off.
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IMG_20140419_104639 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
In order to access the front springs, the fenders which are glued in place, had to be delicately separated from the chassis, to access to be screws. But the lower suspension assembly which is also glued to the chassis, also had to be separated in order to get the springs out.ImageImage
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For the rear springs it's much easier, remove all the screws on the chassis plate, and carefully remove from underneath the exhaust pipes, an watch out for some of the finer detailed parts attached that they don't get broken.

Paint stripped:ImageImage

Part sprayed with primer:Image

I got ahold of a shaker hood scoop from a Hwy61 'Cuda, marked and cut the hole out of the hood and the under hood liner.ImageImageImage

I filled in the hood with putty, shaped and sanded it and the edging around the shaker.ImageImage
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Primed the hood:ImageImage

I did a little moc-up with some wheels that are very close to the 1:1, just tire size is off(too low a profile).ImageImage

Added putty to the front fenders for the widened look I will need to achieve.
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[KRAFTIG]
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by [KRAFTIG] » Tue Jul 29, 2014 9:40 pm

Yum!

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StratosWRC
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by StratosWRC » Tue Jul 29, 2014 10:44 pm

Deadly

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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Tue Jul 29, 2014 11:28 pm

Front fenders had first sanding and shaping done, and touch-ups with spot putty. Rear body panels also just puttied, waiting for them to dry to get at it.Image

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Due to the reassembly process, the chassis has to be put in place before the rear bumper so that it can all fit back together. Which means the putty for the lower rear bumper has to be done when the car is reassembled, kind of hard to explain, but you may understand with the pics when they're posted.
This model was the most difficult disassembly I've ever done, due to the shape/curve of the body, and location of mounting screws.

OK, so sanded all areas to the thickness needed, and spot filled imperfections, and putty work is 90% done, just a couple areas need a bit more work, then onto the door trim.

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As mentioned before, I had to do the lower rear bumper putty work separate in order to reassemble the car. So once the black is painted and cleared, I will reassemble the entire car, mask off everything except the body kit trim, and then fill the gap between the two parts and spray the Matte grey on the trim.
It will definitely be way different to anything I have done before, so I will need to be extra careful to completely mask off everywhere necessary to avoid any overspray.

More progress made on the trim kit, door pieces puttied, as well as the little lip on the wheel wells was added on.Image

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Wheelwells sanded and primed.
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Wheels arrived. :)
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Doors, Hood, Trunk, Front & Rear Bumpers painted.Image

A quick Moc-up with parts installed and wheels.Image

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These wheels were the closest match to the 1:1 that I could find, just the center of the rim has a different look, but the rest(spokes and rivets/trim) is almost a perfect match.
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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Wed Jul 30, 2014 12:07 am

Thx Mike, they are from Uli Nowak.

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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Wed Jul 30, 2014 10:51 pm

[KRAFTIG] wrote:Yum!
Yes Sir, Very Tasty :drool:

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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Wed Jul 30, 2014 10:53 pm

StratosWRC wrote:Deadly
Thank you Sir! :beer:

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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Wed Jul 30, 2014 11:01 pm

I was able to mask-off the rear body trim and get to spraying some paint. I chose a Black Metallic colour, 3-4 coats, and 3 coats of Clear.Image

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Wheels painted Gloss Black & Metallic Silver detailed.
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Front Bumper reassembled.Image

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I noticed a couple issues with the paint, with the biggest issue being that I had to use 2 cans so far, and noticed the trunk and doors which were painted with the 1st can, look different to the rest of the car painted with the 2nd can, AAARRGGHH! It may never even be noticed by anyone, but a close inspection will reveal the difference. So I have to decide whether to repaint it or not.
The other issue is that the separation lines that were masked, didn't do the best job in certain areas, so when tape was removed, it caused some lifting of the paint. So I will have to touch-up these areas.
A Lil' moc-up pic.
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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Wed Jul 30, 2014 11:15 pm

After searching around for a shade of grey close to the 1:1, I finally found one to try.Image

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This is the first time painting two-tone colour, I was told to use Tamiya Masking tape to separate the areas which I did, but these areas didn't seem to seal very well especially on the side trim. And because the grey is to have a flat/satin finish, I have a defined raised line between the finishes, you can see in the pics what I am referring to.
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I'm thinking I will have to lightly wet sand the whole car back down to redo these areas, maybe overspray the Black onto the trim kit areas, then mask and spray the Grey, then mask off the Grey and spray Clear over the Black, very tideous work.
So as I patiently wait for photobucket to reset(once again Sorry for the screw up), I uploaded the current progress pics to Flickr, so that I could continue posting the build.

So my solution to the paint problem was to strip it all off and start over again :(. Thankfully the putty underneath the paint was not affected in any way by the paint stripper :).

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IMG_20140522_161806 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr

Next up was to attach the wheels to the chassis. The wheel set I got was (4)17.5mm wide rims with 8mm tires, and because it wasn't available with narrower front 14.5mm rims and 8mm tires(only 6mm low profile tires), I had to glue the insert into place closer to the front lip of the rim(can see in the pics), for the front wheels to get the look I needed.
Also seeing as they would be static, I had to make hub extensions to glue to the back of the wheel inserts, so they would sit nicely in the wheelwells.
The brake rotors and their hubs would then glue to those extensions.
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IMG_20140521_092637 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140520_143221 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140521_141433 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140522_161846 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr

Moc-up pics before paint was stripped.Image
IMG_20140521_161237 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140521_163118 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140521_163447 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140521_161027 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr
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IMG_20140521_163618 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr

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StratosWRC
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by StratosWRC » Wed Jul 30, 2014 11:17 pm

Yeah it must have been pretty damn difficult painting around the flared wheelarches.

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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by [KRAFTIG] » Wed Jul 30, 2014 11:18 pm

So the wheels spin and the calipers are floating using existing hardware from donor?

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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:19 pm

[KRAFTIG] wrote:So the wheels spin and the calipers are floating using existing hardware from donor?
No the wheels are static and don't roll, but the calipers are original and they clipped back into their original spots, once the wheels are mounted.
:beer:

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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by [KRAFTIG] » Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:26 pm

TX. I couldn't be bothered either on a few simple projects I completed too :)

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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:30 pm

So as mentioned above, car was stripped and repainted, but this time I sprayed everything Black to avoid the same issues I had before with the colour separation lines. I will mask off the whole car except the Body Trim kit areas, and spray those the Grey.
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I began reassembly, so I can finish the last stage of the painting, and with the whole car back together, I encountered a couple of problems.
First one is more serious, because the suspension is lowered, the steering rod is pushing down on the cradle that the steering wheel rests in on the steering rack. This is raising the driver side front corner, thus the car sits crooked. I didn't even think of this during modding, as all test fits were done without the dash & steering attached :( .
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Driver side:
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Passenger side:
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Front view:Image
Test fit without Dash & Steering:Image

The second issue is that the paint on the doors chipped in the top corners when they were opened. I sprayed them in thinner coats, and made sure to adjust the fitment when I reassembled them. But as my luck would have it, they still got chipped after I opened them. So I will have to add a little touch-up to those areas.
Regarding the first issue, I think I am going to have to disassemble it again, and either cut the steering rod short, bend it upward so it doesn't push down against the cradle, or see if I can make the cradle area deeper, so the rod fits lower down.
No matter which way I go, it has to come apart AGAIN!!
So annoying! :(

Onto the completion of this build. The steering rod was cut to allow the suspension to sit correctly,Image

the rear quarter panel area was finished off with putty joining both top & bottom, with side marker light area cut out,
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Wrapped & Masked for final paint, being super careful not to get any overspray anywhere.
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Paint done, now added front Dodge Logo.
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Final step was reattaching side mirrors.Image

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As mentioned before, the masking for that separation between the 2 colour, gave alot of headache, and I am still not 100% happy with the final result. But I learned from my mistakes on this build, and will apply it towards any in the future.
Here are a couple pics of the finished model, I will post a better photoshoot later. :)

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LewisF1
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Re: Toretto's Challenger SRT8 - F&F 6

Post by LewisF1 » Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:40 pm

Only 1 thing left to finish, which is the rear side marker lights, one just up and walked away, so I need to find something else to use to replace it with.

And now for the photoshoot, Hope you like :)

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Thanks very much fellas! :)

Here is my take on the original movie shot, minus the Sweet Tropical Backdrop. :woot:

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IMG_20140607_211710 by lewisf1fan, on Flickr

Cheers!

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