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Post by cturner on Apr 15, 2021 8:07:19 GMT -5
Just my 2 cents worth....am not a big fan of the square headlites on that era vehicle. Somehow it don't seem right. I like the rest of what you've done so far though...and am anxious to see more.
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Post by spex84 on Apr 15, 2021 10:01:16 GMT -5
If you want another laugh.......I was eyeing up '61 Thunderbird front ends thinking that the basic shape and placement of the headlights would work out well if you could find something similar and less angled (the Thunderbird grille wraps in and downward; and is not quite flat enough)! But, it had the right 'menacing' look I felt. I think we're on the same wavelength...one of the grilles I tried out was a '57 Ford, with the 3D printed '57 Ford truck headlight doors. It has that downward jog in the center, like my foam mockup, but because it's a chrome piece I couldn't quite visualize how the final result would look. Sort of the same shape as '61 'Bird, but inverted without the roll-under. The key to the menacing look is recessed/hooded headlights, and that's why I had hopes for the 3D printed '57 truck headlight doors. They're singles (quads make the front of the truck look too narrow)) and they're hooded. And I could black out the centers to give it a sunken-eyed appearance. I might just throw some paint or sharpie on them as a test.
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Post by krassandbernie on Apr 15, 2021 10:42:49 GMT -5
If you want another laugh.......I was eyeing up '61 Thunderbird front ends thinking that the basic shape and placement of the headlights would work out well if you could find something similar and less angled (the Thunderbird grille wraps in and downward; and is not quite flat enough)! But, it had the right 'menacing' look I felt. I think we're on the same wavelength...one of the grilles I tried out was a '57 Ford, with the 3D printed '57 Ford truck headlight doors. It has that downward jog in the center, like my foam mockup, but because it's a chrome piece I couldn't quite visualize how the final result would look. Sort of the same shape as '61 'Bird, but inverted without the roll-under. The key to the menacing look is recessed/hooded headlights, and that's why I had hopes for the 3D printed '57 truck headlight doors. They're singles (quads make the front of the truck look too narrow)) and they're hooded. And I could black out the centers to give it a sunken-eyed appearance. I might just throw some paint or sharpie on them as a test. The '57 Fairlane grille was actually the first one that came to mind last night before I looked at photos of the '61 Thunderbird! LOL! I also was trying to envision the '58 Fairlane grille mesh inside the '57 grille work. I guess we're more on the same wavelength then we realized! LOL!
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Post by skip on Apr 15, 2021 18:15:38 GMT -5
Just my two-cents; but I am not feeling that bumper; or any bumper on the front; and likely not even the back! Your drawing pretty much nails the look in my book; yet your mock-ups feel too far removed from the original styling exercise........strictly speaking of the grille/headlight choices here. Don't be going all 'Canadian Ford' here in the styling department! LOL! This is one of those iconic Ford pickup front ends where you either get it right (if you are customizing it) or you don't.............no in between in my opinion. I like these two examples: I also (more strongly) feel that you can have the custom/rodded feel without customizing the grille/headlight area. Many were left with the stock grille while the rest of the truck was chopped, louvered, flamed, sectioned, etc. I always pictured your project with a stock chrome grille quite honestly. It keeps it more 'street' to me instead of strictly custom show circuit. I'm leaning with Ed here, the front ends on those '53 - '56 F100's are so massive that when you start fiddling with the grill and headlight placement that the builder often loses proportion. My older brother currently owns a bone stock '53 and I owned a Hot Rodded '56 in the '80's so I'm pretty familiar with the front ends of these pickups. Structure wise, there is the flat panel (radiator support) running between the two front fenders which the grill bolts to, then the roll pan at the bottom and a few stiffener rods hold the front in place from vibrating around. The other problem aesthetically is what to put into that huge void left when the stock grill is removed without looking like some sort of whale's maw! Even with pinching the lower front fenders and using the Chrysler 300 grill and quad headlights the proportion is almost always off. Some of the best looking customized '53 - '56 F100's that I remember seeing have used either a bone stock grill or combination of the three years grills, look closely there are some distinct differences from one year to the next. It's also hard to make that front end look right with squared up grill features and or rectangular headlights, it ends up looking like a square peg in a round hole to me. I've also seen pictures of F100's that had nearly the entire front end off of Cadillac's, Buick's, even a '58 Chevy, none of them could beat the Henry designed F100 front sheet metal and grills. These trucks respond really well to just a shave and a haircut cleanup versus a massive overhaul of something that's hard to improve on.
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Post by krassandbernie on Apr 15, 2021 18:25:43 GMT -5
I believe the most popular swap to do on the '53-'55's was to put a '56 grille in them.
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Post by Plowboy on Apr 17, 2021 8:11:05 GMT -5
I think you should go with your original idea in your drawing Chris. That has a killer look to it! When I built my '55, I just simply restyled the grille from the kit.
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Post by cturner on Apr 17, 2021 12:59:13 GMT -5
VERY cool Roger!
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Post by spex84 on Apr 17, 2021 18:53:55 GMT -5
Wow, I've stirred up some sentiment with the front-end restyling! I appreciate the feedback, even though I'm still gonna go my own way. YOLO! I will build another F100 with a Chrysler grille and canted quads, but this one demands something different. Roger, that is a super-clean re-imagining of the already powerful and balanced front-end styling of the F100. I really like the two parallel bars, and the indicator lights are actually a very important element in that they ground the design and tie everything together. I'll have to keep that in mind.
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Post by Plowboy on Apr 18, 2021 7:57:14 GMT -5
[quote source="/post/241835/threa d" timestamp="1618703635" author=" spex84 "] I appreciate the feedback, even though I'm still gonna go my own way. [/quote] That's exactly what you need to do. Look forward to seeing what you come up with! It's not easy coming up with a grille treatment that both looks right and fits/fills the opening.
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Post by spex84 on Apr 18, 2021 9:53:31 GMT -5
Now I'm leaning back towards the '48 grille with the '57 Ford truck headlights. BUT...can anyone tell me if a '60 Ford Starliner grille will fit in a '53 PU? I don't have one in my stash to try out.
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Post by Dave from Pleasanton on Apr 18, 2021 11:33:06 GMT -5
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Post by spex84 on Apr 18, 2021 12:45:27 GMT -5
Fascinating, thanks for the photos Dave!! As far as I know, the '53 kit's custom grille is based on the Barris Wildkat, which had a completely custom-formed grille and headlight surrounds (according to Kustomrama)....but clearly the dimensions are very, very similar to the '60 Starliner.
Hmm....
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Post by robtrat on Apr 18, 2021 13:38:32 GMT -5
Chis, I really love your design (above left), It's too bad the Starliner doesn't have a separate grill surround, it's on the body. I'm thinking you need too find a grill that has a flat front profile like the leading edge of the '53 hood, anything with a point or a curve is going to fight with the design of the hood and fenders.
if you have an AMT '64 Merc Marauder take a look at the Adonis inspired front (and rear!) grill(s). These both are flat with a field of tiny bullets and give you lots of possibilities to place headlights. Sorry I don't have pics.
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Post by spex84 on Apr 18, 2021 17:25:17 GMT -5
I was just looking at pictures of the Adonis, Rob! It's a beautiful design, but I don't think I want to do the full bar-grille thing, or drawer-pulls. Thanks for the observation about the starliner grille surround; I could see myself cutting the entire front of he car off and stuffing it in the '53 pickup opening, but that's getting a little drastic.
I still have a couple other ideas I'd like to try...
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Post by spex84 on Apr 18, 2021 17:29:54 GMT -5
Here are some taillight ideas I was kicking around a while back; I quite like the '67 LeMans units (triple rectangles)in the tailpan and the '64 Dodge fender-mounted lights.
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