The exterior certainly had some work to be done, with a very real and very rough patina, though mainly solid, with a few patches of bondo work which needed improving.
Bodywork is always painstakingly slow and arduous, hours of preparation work before the final paint. Having established the way I was going, I set to panel by panel, all finished with rattle cans and a matt varnish. But before all that there was the sourcing of whatever trim I could find, badges that were missing and most importantly another ridiculously long aerial to balance out the standard single unit already fitted.
Started with the hood which had these subtle scooped out panels which were begging to be matt black and so they are. Found some nice 350 badges in line with the engine transplant and a ridiculous hood emblem from an earlier Bel Air model, a '57 I believe.
From there I decided to carry the matt black theme a little further and go for a kinda WWII bomber look, using the patina higher surfaces and spraying the bottom panels matt black.
Everything had to be prepped as the final matt varnish cleacoat was applied to top and bottom giving the rust, bare metal, undercoat and bondo a matt finish too.
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I added in some little accents here and there like this front bumper mount which I wanted to highlight with the same metallic red I had used for the wheels.
Talking of the wheels here they are with their red look and chrome trim. The fuel cap I decided to add some cosmetic rivets that do nothing other than look quiet cool.
Used the same theme to cover up a big ass hole in the front wing where I guess there had been a massive aerial mounted at some point.
Likewise, again with the help of my dear friend Chuck of Windtower Racing, an ex Boeing engineer and master fabricator, we made up a couple of matching panels to cover the rot in the lower front wings which I understand is fairly common in these cars.
Mirrors were off a later model Bel Air with that nice bullet shape mount, which again tied in the the wheel nuts I had found.
The rear Center Line drag racing wheels I found on ebay and had to gently persuade the rear arches to let them in, rolling them out to give just a little more room. It's a really nice snug fit and with the lower profile tires, it helped drop the rear end a little too. I may get some for the front if I find some I like at the right price, but for now I like the mixed look with the red standard Chevrolet Rallye wheels.
Afew decals and a little stencil work here and there added to the character / theme.
... and so it continues!