Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

Getting it There...

In my blog posts on the Punky Manor Tribute Build up to this point I have focused on the race car itself. Eventually I will need to figure out how to haul the car to the race tracks and various car shows in the area.

I only have a couple of pictures of Punky's car haulers that he used back in the day. The first one is a mid 50's yellow Ford with the Torino on back. The other hauler that He used for the rest of his racing career was an early 70's white Ford.

The White Ford hauler I remember fairly well as I rode in it to a couple different races. At that time it had a regular two-door cab on it. Sometime after that, the cab/truck was extended to have four-doors. 

When I first started out on the planning for the Tribute Torino, I thought It would be nice to find or build a dedicated long-frame race car hauler that was common back in the 70's.

I did a few searches and found what I thought were a couple of good candidates. Then I started to wonder what I would use the race car hauler for in the off-season? There is also the issue of storing a fairly large vehicle when not in use?

After thinking about it a bit more, I started to explore a 2nd more practical option. I think it might be a better option to find and fix up an early 70's Ford truck and then buy an open stock car trailer. That way I could use the Ford truck as a daily driver and when needed, use it for both hauling the race car on the trailer and to do our mural painting projects.

So, I have started to look for both an early 70's Ford Pickup in decent shape and a 2-axle open car trailer. I would really like to find a 1970 - 1972 Ford Pickup and a trailer that is set up already with a tire rack. But I may need to lower my expectations a bit!

Well, that's the plan for getting the race car to the track. With some luck and perhaps some help from friends, I can locate a good truck and trailer option for the Tribute Build.

Thanks for visiting....take care

  

Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

Build Exploration...Part 5

In the 5th installation of the Design Exploration of the Punky Manor - Tribute stock car build, I would like to discuss the remaining elements of the project. I'm sure I will touch on many other design aspects during the build, but I can expand on those when I get to each element.

I would like to talk a little bit about vintage stock car aesthetics past and present and what is driving me to make certain design decisions. 

Back in the early 70's dirt track racing was a lot less complex then it is now. You could go out and get a full frame 2-door car and weld in a set of roll bars and tweak the chassis a bit. Then drop in a high torque big block engine, a 3 or 4-speed transmission, and a low-gear rearend and you were pretty much ready to race. There was a few dedicated race car builders back in the day, but a lot of people built their own cars back then.

The cars were usually built on a tight budget and the finishes were usually not very high-end. Wheel wells were cut larger by hand and not always all that straight. Rectangular tire-rub tubing was often used to keep the body panels in place. By the end of the year, the bodies usually looked like they had seen a lot of tight racing!

I have seen vintage race car builds that use elements or finishes that are too modern and end up taking away from the overall vintage appeal. When vinyl lettering is installed on a vintage race car it places the car in the present because vinyl was not used on any 70's race cars! The same happens with modern wheels and tires. I know some of these parts are very hard to find but some builders go to the extra trouble, and it shows in the end.

Everyone builds their cars to the best of their abilities, and I am not trying to say what I am doing here is the best approach. I am just hoping that when people see this particular completed dirt track race car, that it transports them back to that era.

Here are a few more areas I am exploring design direction on...

Engine

Back in the era when Punky drove race cars, most people were running Big Block engines. Most modern dirt track race cars run Small Block engines. It would be much easier to find and build a small block for this Tribute car but I would prefer a large cubic inch engine. In this case, something with a "four" in it's name....427, 428, 429, or 460 cubic inches.

Exhaust

 

One of the things I remember most about Punky's Torino Late Model was the exhaust system. He used what were called back then "180 degree" headers. They are also referred to as crossover headers. Basically, it is a set of exhaust headers that wrap up over the back of the engine and go through the firewall and run down and out the lower bottom of the passenger side door. I might have to build my own set, but I will be using this exhaust set-up on the Tribute Car!

Wheels

I am still trying to decide what wheels I would like to use. Back in the early 70's it seems like there was a wide variety of different steel and aluminum wheels being used. Sometime truck hubs were used, "wide 5" style hubs were also used back then. A quite a few cars back then started using aluminum slot style wheels. I will most likely have two sets of tires, so I think I will just buy a different style wheel for each set of tires.

Tires

I remember Punky and several other drivers running McCreary brand tires back in the day. However, in 1992 McCreary changed it's name to Specialty Tires of America. In 1994 Specialty Tires of America introduced the American Racer brand. I thought that I would be forced to buy a set of "new" tires which I felt would greatly affect the overall vintage appeal. Luckily I was able to locate 7 vintage McCreary racing tires and will be using them on the race car and the tire rack of the hauler.

Interior

There are a couple of things I need to do in the interior of the car to replicate Punky's original Torino race car. One is to close off the rear seat area with sheet metal or more likely aluminum. The other is to fabricate and install a black vinyl cover that snaps into place over the entire passenger side seating area. I remember this cover having chrome snaps so that it could be easily removable in order to have easy access to that area.

This is a scale stock car model chassis which shows the area I am looking to cover...

  

I would like to use a vintage seat but may need to use a more modern one in case I want to compete in the Vintage race car series. 

I will also need to find a set of vintage looking gauges. I am still trying to decide on using the black or white faced gauges. The older ones were mostly black but the white ones are more visible. I guess it depends on whether I do much actual racing with the car?

Differential

One other thing I would like to find and install in the Torino Tribute car is a Quick-change rearend. These types of differentials have an easy to access set of gears that allow you to quickly change gear ratios. I remember pulling the back plate off from Punky's Quick-Change a few times and filling it back up with 80-90W gear lube.

So that rounds out the 5 part series on design and build exploration. There are a lot more decisions to be made along the way and I'm sure there will be changes to the above menu list.

These types of projects kind of take on a life of their own once you get rolling. I will try and document things in greater detail once I get to each specific area of the build.

Next up we will look at some new parts that I have purchased. More prep work ahead!

Take care, Thanks.

Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

Build Exploration...Part 4

In this blog I would like to discuss another element of the design thinking behind the Tribute Torino Build, the paint job!

There are many different approaches to building a vintage stock car. I have seen some of these race cars built using old methods and techniques, keeping the appearance very period correct. Then I have also seen some who build their cars using current technology, tools and finishes.

One area where these differences can be noticed is in how a car is painted. Over the past 40 years, automotive paint finishes have changed dramatically. Back when Punky built the original Torino, Basecoat - Clearcoat paint systems were not yet in use. Basecoat paint systems were first used in the late 70’s and were too expensive initially to be used on anything but high-end automobiles.

Having used both types of paint myself over the past 40 years, I can tell the difference between a single-stage (acrylic enamel) and the new Basecoat Clearcoat (urethane) finishes. The question is, whether or not I want it to look like the original paint job or something that might look relatively new?

Since I will be hand-lettering the race car, I believe I would prefer to have the paint/finish look like it was done 40 years ago. So I will eventually be painting the base colors using single-stage paint.

First off, I need to find the paint codes from the early 70's. Once again I did some searching and located the Ford paint color chart from 1973.

Here is what I found...

There are two different colors of white on the chart and it is hard to tell which one would be the bright white I am looking for. I have another chart that shows the Pearl White as being darker, so I will need to do a test panel. I believe that the yellow I need to use on this project is Code 6E Med. Bright Yellow. Once again, the test panel will help confirm the colors before I invest in large quantities of paint.

If you ever need to look up a vintage paint code, TCP Global has a webpage where they say; "We will match any paint color." It can be found here...

http://www.autocolorlibrary.com/

I found the correct color chart by entering the Year and Make in their Classic (1950 - 1977) Section.

I was then able to look up cross-reference paint code number on a site called PaintRef.com. 

http://paintref.com/paintref/index.shtml

Now that I have all the correct (up-to-date) paint code numbers, I will be able to purchase small quantities of paint and do a test panel for the base paint colors and hand lettering samples.

From the artwork I have already created, I put together a small version of the numbers, Punky's name, (and His Dad's business name for the deck lid), and will paint these all on the test panel (two-sided).

I will be painting the test colors on an 18" X 24" piece of Aluminum Composite Panel. The panel will be shot with primer on both side and then I will paint the white and yellow.

Here is the test panel artwork....

In my next blog in the series on design direction, I will discuss some of the other elements of the car. I need to explore how to cover over all the holes in the factory sheet metal. Wheels and tires are another area that I need to explore. The interior is yet another area that needs further design exploration. 

Take care until next time....thanks

     

Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

Build Exploration...Part 3

As I mentioned in my last post, I have decided to use elements from both Punky's 1963 Galaxie and his 1974 Torino race car paint jobs.

On the 1963 1/2 Ford Galaxie paint scheme, Punky had several small contingency decals on both front fenders. I only have a couple of pictures for reference, but I was able to make out most of the decals.

So, where does one find these 40 year old decals? As I do with most things, I did a few searches on the internet and found a few sources. I ended up buying most of the decals I needed on Ebay, one at a time. 

Here is the set for the passenger side front fender...

And here is the set for the Drivers side...

I was not able to identify a couple of the other decals, but I think I have enough here to get the look I am after.

There are a few other elements that I need to include in the overall paint job on the Tribute Torino. One of those elements is a sponsor's name. Although Punky's original Torino's paint job did not include his Dad's business name on the car, most of his other cars did. I believe it needs to be part of this tribute.

Punky's Dad Neil (Sr.) owned and operated an Auto Body Shop and Used Car Lot in Altoona, WI. I have decided to include this sponsor name on the rear deck lid of the Torino I am building, because it offers the largest area to paint on. 

I will be hand painting this logo, so I wanted the name to look like it was painted over 40 years ago. This calls for a bit of research and design. 

Modern race car lettering is a huge departure from vintage race car lettering. In fact they look nothing like the era I am trying to recreate. Having worked in and around the sign business for the past 3 or 4 decades, I have seen the evolution first hand. The script lettering that is available on modern sign making equipment lacks the uniqueness which is evident in hand painted lettering. 

It is my belief that the only way to make a vintage race car look period correct is to hand paint as much of the lettering as they would have back then. So I will be hand painting everything on the Tribute car except the contingency decals pictured above.

The lettering samples I have created below were designed using 40 year old reference font books and images from old race cars. Fortunately I have the software available to scan, manipulate, and print the lettering I need for this project. 

This is what I put together for the deck lid...

And for the Driver name on roof and the engine size (for either side of the hood)... 

One last element for this paint job is the Schlitz Logo for both doors. Some people might just opt to have these printed on vinyl and cut out to stick on the car. Seems to me that these were hand painted back in the day so that is what I will be doing. I might introduce a bit of brushed gold leaf on the logo border to add a bit of sparkle.

I think this pretty much takes care of the parts of the paint job that are getting put on top of the paint. But what about the color of the car itself? How does one go about finding the original paint codes for the base colors that were used back in 1973/1974? 

I think I will tackle that question in my next blog...thanks again for visiting.   

  

  

    

  

   

Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

Build Exploration...Part 2

In my last blog I mentioned sketching up a few concept renderings to explore the final paint job I want to do on the Torino Tribute car.

There are many ways of doing sketches and over the past 30 years or so my technique has evolved into something that works for me. Some people might go about this process in a totally different way and that is fine. This is the fastest and most accurate process that I have come up with to accomplish my visual exploration goals.

I started drawing and sketching cars in my early teens and started hand lettering race cars when I was 16. Later in life I worked for an advertising firm where I learned to screen print my designs on a wide variety of garments. I can also hand paint automotive illustrations in a wide variety of media and scale. 

To start my drawing process I did an online search for reference images of the different views I wanted to draw. I found quite a few images of 1972 Torinos that I could modify and or manipulate for my purposes. I use these images to get the proportions correct and to speed up the drawing process. Once I get a composite image assembled, I build up each finished rendering from a basic pencil sketch.

I used Adobe's PhotoShop program to add the number, sponsors, and the tires and wheels over the photos I found online. I then print the reference image out at full-size and tile and tape the different letter sized sheets together (if final rendering size is bigger that letter size).

Here is one of the rear view images I am going to use.

  
And below is the same image with the number, logos, decals, and tires and wheels added.

Once I have the image printed, I can then do a transfer on to the Illustration board or whatever substrate I am going to do the final rendering on. The transfer can be done by using carbon paper or by applying graphite to the back of the printed reference image pages.

Here is the initial sketch after being transferred to a sheet of 14" X 17" Bristol and highlighted a bit with a No. 4 hard pencil. I have just started to apply marker details here as well.

Once the initial sketch is completed I use a wide variety of pencils, markers, french curves, ellipse templates, and various other tools to complete the full color version. 

Here is the rear view fully rendered....

And below is a couple of views of the front end....

I believe I have decided to go with a composite of both the 1963 Galaxie and the 1973 Torino's paint jobs. The Schlitz logo is an icon from the 60's and 70's that a lot of people can relate to. The contingency decals also give the car the vintage race car feel. I also want to include Punky's Dad Neil's Auto Body on the deck lid.

Now all I have to do is locate a bunch of vintage racing decals and design the layout for the trunk. I also need to do some research on the original 1973 Ford paint colors.

Next up, I hope to have located the decals I need for this project and to explore a paint color sample panel.

Take care...

Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

Build Exploration......Part 1

I am the kind of person who likes to do a fair bit of planning up front when I begin something new. When I start organizing for a trip or vacation, I look up maps, I check out where to eat, who to visit, and what there is to see and do in the area. 

It is the same when I start out on a design project. I like to create a road map that points me in what is hopefully the most appropriate direction. In this case, it is much easier to explore ideas with pencils and paint, then it is to do it with thousands of dollars of parts and equipment. 

There are certain elements of the Punky Manor Tribute Torino that I am pretty set on including in the project. A Big Block Ford engine (390, 427, 428, 429, 460 cubic inch), 180 degree headers (a.k.a. crossover headers), exhaust pipes out the passenger door, a 4-speed transmission, and a Frankland quick change rearend would be nice as well. 

But there are certain things that I wanted to explore in more detail. One of them is what the paint job on this race car would look like. I only have a few pictures of Punky's Torino to use as a reference. He didn't really have much for sponsors on his car for the 1974 season, so it made me think of the car he ran the previous year.

For the 1973 racing season Punky built a car for what was then called the Hobby Stock class. He picked a 1963 1/2 Galaxie Fastback or Sports Hardtop. The Fastback roofline was added mid-year to improve looks and make the cars more competitive on the Nascar tracks.

Punky also picked a 1963 model year Ford because in order to enter the end of the year Late Model Feature races, you needed to have a car no more than 10 years old. He won his first trophy that year at the local Mall's Race Car Show for "The Best Looking Car". So I started to think about adding elements from the 1963 Galaxie to the Torino Tribute Car's paint job. 

Below are the two cars I am referencing, 1963 Galaxie top, 1973 Torino bottom.

First thing I wanted to figure out was how I was going to do the number. I am guessing that the 57 number was probably hand sketched right on the Torino and then painted in? 

I have about 2500 fonts on my computer and I have a few books with vintage hand lettering samples in them, but I could not find anything similar to the style of those specific numbers.

I use a design program from Adobe called Illustrator to create what is called vector art for this type of work. Vector art is basically an outline which can be scaled to most any size and it will retain the line quality. A bitmap image is made up of small dots that look like a jumbled mess when they are enlarged too much.

I located a font that was somewhat similar to the one on the car and made a few modifications to get it looking close. I then created the red outline and made the drop shadow fall in both directions, so the numbers look like they are facing forward on both sides of the car.

There is a sign makers rule that you should not use the color red directly next to the color black. There should always be a space or outline between them to prevent the two colors blending together,especially at night.

In this case, I tried the space between the colors but it seems to look too different from what was originally on the car. I think I am pretty set on the number style that I have put together below. 

    
The only other elements that I can see on the photo of Punky's Torino was the cubic inch on the hood and the flag decal on the fender. The engine size 427 c.i. is painted on the hood but those engines are hard to find, so I will figure out what to paint there once I find the engine I am going to use.

I did a search on the internet and was able to locate and purchase a set of the flag decals that look very close to the one on the front fender of the original Torino.

Once I had the elements of Punky's original Torino paint job figured out, I started to wonder what it would look like to add the contingency decals and the Schlitz Logo from the 1963 Galaxie's paint job. So I decided it might be a good idea to do some sketches of the car to explore the overall look.

Next up I will cover how I go about doing concept sketches or renderings...take care

       

Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

Parts Hunting....

Quite a few years ago, I restored/modified my 1969 Camaro. Even back then it was fairly easy to find either aftermarket reproduction parts or the used parts that I needed for the project. I think I could have bought nearly all of the parts needed to build a '69 Camaro from scratch.

Perhaps that is why I thought locating parts for my Torino Tribute car would be fairly easy? I had no idea how few aftermarket parts were available for the 1972 Gran Torino Sport. So the search began.

At the very least I needed to find some replacement sheet metal for the body of the car. There had been some panel repair done, a few pieces of the front end were missing. The rear bumper was in pretty rough shape. I also need to find a drive train, and hope to locate a Big Block Ford Engine and 4-speed setup (still searching for those).

Where to start....

To begin the search, I headed over to Ebay. I did a search for 1972 and 1973 Torino's, and Ranchero's and saved the searches so I would be notified daily of new parts being listed. Then I started doing searches out on "OneCraigs.com" which lets me search everything listed on Craigslist nation-wide on one page. Then I started doing searches in local junkyards.

Most of what I found was pretty high priced because it was intended to be sold to people restoring a Torino. I do not need high quality parts because I am building a dirt track race car. Then again, I don't want to spend hundreds of hours doing repairs just to make something presentable.

First Item I located was the right front Fender Extension. Found this item on Ebay, stripped it down to bare metal and fixed the small dings. Followed that up with a couple coats of white primer. 

Next up, I discovered an all Ford junkyard over in Hastings, MN which is only a 25 minute drive from our home. Joe's Auto Sale's has been specializing in vintage, rebuilt and new Ford parts for over 50 years.

My wife and I drove out there one Saturday a while back and spent a few hours walking around. She was busy taking reference photos for her artwork and I was busy trying to locate several Torino's, Wagons and Ranchero's. 

I managed to find a 1973 Ranchero that had a pretty decent set of doors on it, so I made arrangements to come back with tools and pull them off.

The doors were on a Squire Model Ranchero, so they had the wide trim pieces running down the sides. I stripped the doors of everything I didn't need (glass, crank mechanism, hinges, & mirrors), but they were still quite heavy.

After getting them home, the doors needed to be stripped of paint and all the inner metal and jams had to be removed to leave only the exterior panel. The Squire trim was held on using clips which required two rows of big holes down the length of the door.

A variety of hand tools were used to strip the door of their excess "dead weight". I used a 4 1/2 inch grinder with a thin cut-off wheel to do most of the cutting. There were a couple spots where I had to use a sawzall (reciprocating saw) with a bimetal blade. I left a bit of the inner door jam lip around the shell in order to maintain some strength. I will make final cuts and adjustments once I am ready to replace the rest of the sheet metal.

Here is the excess metal that I cut off the doors and rear bumper. The doors measure 4 feet - 8 inches long and were quite heavy until I trimmed them up. The unwanted scrap metal was then deposited at the local recycle station.

After removing all the exterior and interior paint, I cut out large steel discs and welded one on the back side of each of the trim holes. Once that was completed I ground the weld flush with the front of the door and then ran a dual action sander over them to flatten the repaired areas out even more.

After much grinding, sanding, a bit of spot putty, and a couple coats of sanding primer, 
I shot a final coat of white primer on to prevent oxidation while I gather up more body parts.

Joe (at Joe's Auto Sale's) also had a few bumpers laying around for a '72 Torino, so I dug through the pile and picked out the best rear bumper I could find. It has one small dent but I can push it flat using a hydraulic press.

Well, that's what I've managed to find for the 44 year old race car so far. I have a line on a few other parts, but they are a 6 1/2 hour drive away, so I will need to make arrangements to drive down and pick them up. More on that when the story develops.

Thanks again for stopping by. If you have any questions, please drop the in the comments section below. And if you have any Big Block Ford engines sitting about, please let me know!  Take Care!

Punky Manor - Vintage Stock Car - Tribute Build

My First Torino Build...

Sometime in 1974 I built my first model of Punky's Gran Torino Fastback stock car. It was a 1:25 scale model kit that I most likely bought at our local dime store.

I should start this story out by explaining how I would end up in Altoona, WI helping on Punky's race car.

Usually at the end of my school year, (at one of the earliest races of the year) Punky's Mom Joanie Manor would see me in the pits after the race and invite me to come stay at their house in Altoona. Punky's race car shop was directly next to Punky's Dad's (Neil Manor) Used Car lot and Auto Body shop. 

Joanie would say to me, "Come stay at our place and we'll take you racing!" So I would pack up a little bag and go stay with the Manor Family and either hang out in the body shop or help on the race car. I was only 13 at the time, so help was limited to certain things. I will share some of the things they did let me work on in future posts.

During one of my stays that year, I was building the above Torino Oval Track Racer model and needed to paint the plastic body. 

I went to Neil and asked if he could paint the car model the same color as Punky's race car. Neil pointed up at a can on a shelf in the shop and said, "right there is the paint He used on his race car, you mask it off and I'll paint it." He also told me that we would need to apply a clear coat (used on Corvettes), so the paint wouldn't melt the plastic body.

So Neil painted it up and I painted on some numbers and his name on it.

I wish I could say I still had that model car but I do not. Unfortunately I sold most or all of my model cars when I was trying to raise money to move back to the Midwest from Idaho. That is another long story, too long for and mostly unrelated to this blog.

Later on in life I started building models again. My daughter Jacque was born 8 years after Punky died and she had only seen pictures and heard stories. So I made it a goal to build a scale model of every one of Punky's race cars.

I started that goal by building the model cars in the same order as he built the real ones. I purchased another Torino kit and started the series. This time I mixed the yellow paint color the best that I could. I also added some sponsor names by making my own water-slide decals.

Below are the results of my "2nd" attempt...

  

When I set out to design or build something, or do most things, I like to have an idea where I am headed. Luckily I have the ability to see a vision of the destination before I get there. 

I think I learned some of this from my Father, he used to do a rough drawing of some of his projects. I also have a degree in Industrial Design, so I have been trained to follow this method of development. Working with a scaled version or sketching, allows me learn what to do and more importantly, what not to do.

Hopefully this up front exploration will help me save time, money, and refine my project before I make full-sized mistakes!

Thanks for checking in....my next blog will explore some full-size parts....take care