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Showboat Dragster

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Showboat Dragster Empty Showboat Dragster

Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 4:59 pm

Hi everyone. I want to do the other half of this Revell kit.

Showboat Dragster 100_0216


This is an older build that I am archiving here but feel free to comment as we go along. Let's get started.


When I was way younger I saw this car run. I was maybe 12 or 13 at the time. TV Tommy Ivo came to Bremerton Raceway and made exhibition passes. 3 times this car went down the strip, 3 times the chute came out and 3 times I cheered until I was hoarse. In those days they didn't have slipper clutches so you had to spin the tires. That's why these old dragster's smoked the tires for almost the whole 1/4 mile. Then I went to one of the Beach Bingo movies and there the car was with a Buick Special Station Wagon body on it. Ugly thought I but what a cool car.

The reason for the multi-engine cars was simple. NHRA had ban Nitro Methane. So it was gas only. The common thought was the way to go faster was put more engines in it. Tommy Ivo also had a dragster with 2 Buick's in it that was called the Twin Mill. The Freight train was one of the most successful dragsters ever campaigned and it only had 2 engines. This car was a handful to keep going straight. It was really like 2 power trains. 2 V-16 engines driving a differential. The V8 engines were hooked together to make the v-16 concept. The two on the left drove the front wheels and the 2 on the right drove the rear wheels. 2 clutches one for each end.

So with all that said it's off to the build.


Here is the mock up on the frame. You can see how big the frame tubes are. Had to be to handle the weight and the torque.

Showboat Dragster 100_0217

I started this build and then went every which away. I went ahead and painted the body. It can be curing while I put the engine together.

Showboat Dragster 100_0218

I had the frame done so I went ahead and painted that and set it aside.

Showboat Dragster 100_0219

Went and got a can of Dulpi-color Buick Red paint and started on the engines. Built the long blocks and then did the paint.

Showboat Dragster 100_0220

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That gets it started. All comments and question are welcome. Thanks for looking in.


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Post by Tumbler75 Fri 22 Mar 2013, 5:15 pm

Great build! I love these old mutl engined cars. I've seen videos of them run and even have seen a few up close at shows but never seen them run in person. Can't wait to see more Buck.
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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 5:21 pm

Thanks Clay, I can understand his excitement I feel the same way. I just got another one of these kits( at a very fair price),thank you to Dave Holmes. I plan to build the Showboat with an Allison Aircraft engine. The Challenger I will build as the first Challenger. No Blowers, No scoops, flat through the middle.

John wiring and plumbing this one was easier than the Challenger 1. All it's got is fuel and spark. LOL

So let's get after it. I didn't like the intake manifolds that were in the kit. The plumbing was cast into them and it looked lame.

Showboat Dragster 100_0224

So I took a flat mill file, turned it on edge and removed all that. Then using a silver bead and some craft wire I plumbed each injection unit. Seems to look way better.

Showboat Dragster 100_0315

Decaled up the body.

Showboat Dragster 100_0316

So with all the intake manifolds done, the magnetos drilled and wired and the engine long blocks built it was time to start the assembly line rolling.

Showboat Dragster 100_0317

I almost forgot. At the start of this build I threw some the chrome parts into the Bleach. There was so much flash on them I didn't know what else to do. No way to clean the header pipes and preserve the chrome. You see you get 4 headers flanges, 64 header pipes and 2 jigs. all the header need to be built.

Showboat Dragster 100_0428

So I started the headers about now in the built. That way the glue could be setting while I worked on other things.

Here they are waiting on paint.

Showboat Dragster 100_0429

And here they are done. The paint is Krylon Chrome over a Gloss Black base coat.

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Time to start putting the engines together.

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After awhile you end up with this.

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Time to put them in the chassis and start on those headers.

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And last but not least, all the headers and injector tubes in place. I also want to say that the 3 little short headers that hang down in the center are right in the way of everything you do.

Showboat Dragster 100_0436

Well that's it for now. All questions and comments are welcome. Thanks for looking in.


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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 5:26 pm

Thanks to everyone that has looked in and followed along. I am going to finish this one up tonight.

Start with the seat. The reason it is notched like that is to make room for the offset differential. So instead on the drive shaft going up between your legs, it is to the right of your right leg.

Showboat Dragster 100_0318

Drag chute pack. I don't think they had the drag chute as we think of them yet. In the good old days they used surplus military cargo chutes.

Showboat Dragster 100_0319

The next few pictures will show some of the final assembly and then it will be on to the NMA. I know this isn't a very detailed OTB but these pictures were taken when I first started writing OTB's and didn't really know what all was involved. Sorry about that.

Showboat Dragster 100_0437

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I know it seems like a lot of engine shots. But believe me when I say the engines are the focal point on this build. Nothing else seems to matter. ;)

Thanks for following along. All questions and comments are welcome. See you for the next one.

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Post by Tumbler75 Fri 22 Mar 2013, 5:30 pm

Wow! The extra work really bring out those engines. Keep'em comin'! Love it.
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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 7:10 pm

The above WIP was the first I ever wrote. it was written in 2002 or 2003. After doing it and then looking at the model everyday for 8 or 9 years I decided to finish it like it should be finished. I scratch built a fuel tank and plumbed the fuel system. The rebuild was done in 2012.

This WIP is the rebuild of the Showboat.


Last edited by Zbuckster on Fri 22 Mar 2013, 7:19 pm; edited 1 time in total

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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 7:18 pm

I got one here I what to do before I go back to the Challenger 1959. I built this in 2002 or 2003. I have never shown it but feel like I would like to. Over time the decals have wrinkled up and there are a couple of injector stacks missing. It never fails to amaze me how these things can sit on the shelf and fall apart. Any way I have another Showboat kit that I got with the Challenger 1959 donor. I decided to paint the body and decal it with the kit decals. I am going to replace the injector tubes with wire ferrules of the right size. Also while it is apart I will see if there is any extra detailing I can give it.

This picture shows you the decals.

Showboat Dragster 101_5910

Showboat Dragster 101_5912

Got the body off the chassis without doinking anything up. That was a relief.

Showboat Dragster 101_5913

This one really shows the decal problem well.

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The new body is all primered and painted.

Showboat Dragster 101_5915

And that's were we are with this one. Thanks for looking in all questions and comments are welcome.


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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 7:32 pm

Thanks for all the comments guys. I was emptying the camera card, getting ready for the 24 hours build, and decided to update this at the same time.

What year was the picture of Tommy Ivo taken? The reason I ask is some time ago the Showboat was changed into a show car. A Buick Special Station Wagon body and nose was added.

Showboat Dragster Tommy_10

A few years after that a clone Showboat was built that looked like the original and it was shown for a few years on the circuit. The clone was sold last year at an Auction held at the Petersen Museum. That is a great picture of Ivo standing beside the car.

Here is a video about it.



Anyway back to what I got going here. I got all the injector tubes removed and the 4 intakes drilled.

Showboat Dragster 101_5916

I measured one of the kit injector tubes and found ferrules that are very close to the same size.

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I used a .035" craft wire to make the pins to put the injector tubes on. I know that is huge, mass over kill. My plan is that .035" wire gives me about .010" wiggle room to move the injector around and make it easier to line them up. It's like having a .250 slot to move them around.

This gives you a rough idea of what they will look like.

Showboat Dragster 101_5918

I glued the craft wire into the intake and then painted the pins with Brass paint.

Showboat Dragster 101_5919

So now when you look down the injector tube it looks like there is a brass butterfly in the bottom.

Showboat Dragster 101_6010

Now all that's left is to touch up the paint on the frame, headers and magnetos. Then I will glue the injector tubes down and put the body back on it. I have to decal the body and then clear it and wet sand and polish. So I will be back later with another update.

I was going to add the fuel system lines from the tank to the injector pumps. The model does not have a fuel tank nor a place to put one. I was looking at the photo's of the car trying to see where it is at and what it looks like, but don't see it there either. I know that the chassis is 3 inch tube, because of the weight. I wonder if they used the frame rails for a fuel tank. Does anyone know about this?

Thanks for looking in. I am clearing my bench off for this 24 hour build. I will get back on this one first part of the week.


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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 7:46 pm

Thanks for the comments, links, input, etc,etc,etc. On this one. I wanted to do an update on this one now. This is Super Bowl weekend. I have people coming from out of town to play a little guitar on Saturday and party the game away on Sunday.

This started out as a quickie rebuild to have another model ready for the Portland Roadster Show. Now It will be ready for the Portland Roadster Show but won't be a quickie.

I got the body all done. New body, new paint (Super Red II), new decals on. The decals are buried in clear so it really looks good.

Showboat Dragster 101_6210

I will wet sand the body and polish it out later.

Then I decided to go ahead and add the complete fuel system. The first trick was to make a fuel tank that would fit in the tight spot. I dug around in the scrap yard and found a tank that looked like it was the right size but to short. Then using scrap styrene I made it taller.

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When it was primed it looked like this.

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Painted Color Place Flat Black and at home in the chassis.

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Here it is with the start of the fuel lines. The lines are .012" craft wire.

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After it was fitted so I could plan out the route for the lines. I noticed that the .012" is just to small. It is in scale but doesn't look right to the eye. I am going to start over at the tank and go with .018 " silver craft wire. It will look better with the plumbing I have already done.

Here is the small wire.

Showboat Dragster 101_6217

I notice on the real car the tank is held down by chrome rod. I will replicate that with the same .018" or a .022" craft wire. We will see what looks best.

That's it for now. I am off to make a dump run. I can't believe it's 54 degrees and sunny on the 3rd of February. Maybe I am in Oz and don't know it.

Anyway enjoy the update, enjoy the game and I will see you next week with a complete fuel system. All comments and questions are welcome. Look what that last bunch inspired. ;) 8-)

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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 7:50 pm

It's been quite awhile since my last update so this is where we are at.

After getting the fuel tank built and painted I started to add fuel lines and the straps that hold the fuel tank down.

Showboat Dragster 101_6218

Then ran the fuel lines back to the fuel pumps.

Showboat Dragster 101_6219

In the reference pictures the fuel delivery line goes from the pump to a brass tee and then out to the fuel distribution block on each injector unit. To replicate the brass tee. I used a #1 brass wire crimp from the bead store. The real trick here was to drill a .025" hole in each one without shooting the crimp out of the tweezers and into where ever that stuff goes. There should be a big enough pile of parts there to see by now.

Here is a picture by a pencil lead so you get an idea of size. The hole there is .025" so that gives you an idea.

Showboat Dragster 101_6220

So that's where we are at. Now I have to take the fuel lines back out of the pump and add a brass fitting on each of them. Fore thought failure again.


Thanks for looking in. Al questions and comments are welcome.


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Post by Guest Fri 22 Mar 2013, 7:56 pm

Thanks for the comments guys. It feels like it's been two forevers since I sat down and posted an update with build pictures.

After I found out it was possible to drill a .025" hole in that little wire crimp I was in business. The hardest part then was to keep from losing them. So as you can guess when I rebuilt the Model Shop what got lost? My drilled crimps and the fuel lines I had bent up. So I had to do it all again. Since I had an idea about how and what I was doing it went much quicker this time.

So it goes like this, from the fuel tank to the fuel pump, from the fuel pump to a Tee in the fuel line, from the Tee a line runs to front and rear fuel blocks. So that's what I built. It looks like this.

Showboat Dragster 101_7712

This line is about 1/4 inch to long on both ends. That way I can move it back and forth to get everything lined up and then cut off what I don't need. The brass crimp in the center will act as the Tee. The hole in it will have the line from the fuel pump to the Tee. It is just a simple "L". When it all together it looks like this.

Showboat Dragster 101_7713

After I got all the fuel lines on I added the injector stacks or tubes, depending on where you live.

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The soft craft wire bends quite abit when you work with it. This picture shows how crooked everything is.

Showboat Dragster 101_7715

After the super glue has set over night I will take a pair of tweezers and straighten everything out, as best as I can. Then put the body on it and take the final pictures. I will do that tomorrow.

I want to thank everyone that followed along on this rebuild. Sorry it took so long. But Life is better because of it. My Model Shop is a better place to work and the Showboat Rebuild is almost done. Probably 30 minutes work left on it. Now it's on to another project that I want to have done before the community Build #3 starts May first.

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Post by Guest Sun 17 Nov 2013, 5:44 pm

Love this! Great project.

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Post by Guest Sun 17 Nov 2013, 6:24 pm

Thank you Curt.

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Post by john2308 Sun 17 Nov 2013, 6:54 pm

Thanks Buck Showboat Dragster 3887228019  Got two of these in the stach for both of them and this will help when I get ready to build them. Great work and the extra detail really sets it apart from the norm. Showboat Dragster 3331969777 
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Post by Johnag Sun 17 Nov 2013, 8:21 pm

Hi John,

WOW, this is some car, both model and 1:1 version, so two engines run the rear wheels and the other two run the front wheels, how on earth did they manage to sort out the gearboxes...

Fantastic work so far Sir...

Andy...

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Post by Guest Mon 18 Nov 2013, 1:08 am

No gear boxes they are direct drive. It really works like two V-16's as opposed to 4 V-8's. The two engines on the left hand side of the car turn backwards. That's what I read while researching it.

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