Building Revell’s FOOSE ’56 Ford Pickup

Have you ever built a model that went together with such ease that you could not believe how much fun you were having? Well this was that kit for me. There were absolutely no problems to report as everything fit as it was supposed to. Better yet, I did not make any mistakes that required me to draw on my modeling skills acquired over the years to correct unforced errors.

If you are a car guy you know who Chip Foose is, and probably watch his TV show Overhauling on occasion. It goes without saying that Chip is a Big Gun in the world of car design and produces some incredible award winning cars for shows like the LA Roadster Show and the SEMA Show in LaVegas.

Like several other car designers, Chip has produced several model creations for Revell Models, and this 1956 Ford FD-100 is one of those kits.

Originally owned by his father, Chip bought the truck at age 13 and spent 3 years rebuilding it, and then drove it all through high school. Years later, his father acquired the truck once again, and using Chip's drawings, rebuilt the truck once again, leaving no panel untouched. The plan is to give the truck to Chip's son when he is old enough making it a 3 generation project.

The kit is molded in white and starts with building the engine. There is only one kit option, but there is plenty of detail. I only added plug wires using .010 solder painted red, otherwise the engine bay is stock.

Next up is the chassis, suspension and drive train. Nothing too tricky here and the kit provided two metal axels, the front going through the engine block. Everything lines up nicely and results in a good-looking stance to the model. I used Bare-Metal foil for the chrome trim around the windows.

The wheels are FOOSE original design with nice low-profile big and little tires. The interior is simple but still has nice detail, and the instrument panel decal snuggled right down. I chose red as the interior color to contrast with the exterior color. I used Tamiya spray can white primer undercoat and Tamiya Light Gun Metal for the metallic color coat with no clear topcoat.

I thoroughly enjoyed build this model and highly recommend it for anyone looking for a fun project.

8 additional images. Click to enlarge.