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Building the
A.J. Foyt USAC Camaro
By: Randy Derr
• The origins of this project trace back to a local charity car show held
in November of 1993. It was there I first spotted this very tidy
Camaro race car that had once been raced by none other than the
great A.J. Foyt. It really captured my interest as a great scale
project. As is the case with many of my projects, they seem to
spontaneously pop up when I least expect them.
• I was running low on film in my camera (remember film?) so I shot
about 6 pictures to get an overall perspective on the car. I figured
either that would be enough to build a decent replica, or I would
have to track down the car later for additional information.
(Did you ever notice that when you are at a car show trying to get a good picture of a car, some clown
always manages to get in the way?)
• My first thought was that this should be an easy replica build; just
add some fender flares to a Camaro body, adapt a Monogram
NASCAR chassis to fit underneath, use some Fred Cady decals and
call it a day.......but it doesn‟t always go the way you think.
• So that is how I began the project, shortly after taking those original
photos. I started with a Monogram 1/24th scale „78 Camaro Z-28 kit,
added some vacuum-formed flares to the fenders, began filling in the
t-tops and so on.
• Additional research led me to find the owner of the car, and I made
arrangements with him to photograph and measure the Camaro,
thus adding significantly to my reference material on the car. As
many of you know, good reference material is one of the most
important aspects of any replica model project.
• A number of notes and sketches were also made while
photographing the car, thus allowing major feature and component
dimensions to be known during the construction of the replica. This
information proved to be very helpful later in the project.
• After completing this first phase of documentation, I realized the
flaws of my original plan, as the actual car was mechanically quite
different than I thought. I quickly concluded the standard NASCAR
chassis would be inaccurate and a proper replica would require
some fairly significant scratch building.....and that‟s when it went
back into the box for a few years of “styrene aging.”
• Fast forward to 2001 when I discovered some discretionary free time to
devote to model building again. Naturally, the Foyt Camaro came to
mind, and I pulled it out of the box, now properly aged and ready for
some serious model building attention.
• I now had extensive documentation, thus allowing me to build a model
with a higher level of detail. Having built my previous “contest model”
in 1/12th scale, I wondered if I had what it took to build competitively in
the smaller 1/24th scale?
• Taking all the information into consideration, I decided to make this
model a fully detailed, accurate replica of the Foyt Camaro, worthy of
entering in any contest.....so that‟s how this project began (for a
second time).
• I typically begin projects of this nature by constructing the chassis.
In the case of this Foyt Camaro, I needed to make a drawing of the
chassis and major mechanical components for two reasons: 1)
accuracy to the original and 2) to make sure all major components fit
where they were supposed to.
• Frame construction began with a front clip borrowed from an RM
NASCAR T‟Bird kit and the rest scratch built using Evergreen plastic
shapes and sheet. The use of the front clip was as close as this
model got to the original idea of using a NASCAR chassis and fitting
the Camaro body to it.
• The rest of the “sheetmetal” was made from 0.030” Evergreen sheet
styrene to finish out the rear section of the chassis. The top of the
dash panel and the driveshaft tunnel were also borrowed from the
RM NASCAR chassis and blended with the sheet plastic to form the
interior panels.
• During one of my earlier photo sessions I discovered an engraved
gold plaque on the dashboard indicating the Camaro was built by the
legendary Hutcherson-Pagan Enterprises in Charlotte NC. A quick
check of the Charlotte phone book yielded their phone number. After
building up my courage to contact them, I finally dialed the number
and inquired if they had any records of the car. I was told the one
person who would know about that specific car was Dick Hutcherson
and he still came to the shop a few days of the week.
• A call back the next day and I found myself talking to none other
than Mr. Dick Hutcherson himself. He was more than happy to talk
to me about the car, as it allowed him to indulge in some great
reminiscing. He did indeed remember building the car for A.J. and
gave me some wonderful stories about the car and its early history.
Unfortunately for my purposes, he did not have any drawings or
specifications available, but he said I should call A.J.‟s race shop
and talk to his crew chief, Jack Starne, as he would certainly be able
to answer my technical questions!
• Since my call to H-P worked out so well socially, if not technically, I
worked up the courage to actually call A.J.‟s shop and ask to speak
to Mr. Starne. He too was delighted to talk to someone about the
car and its race history, and fortunately for me, he was able to
answer many of my specific, detailed questions. (He probably hung
up the phone thinking “What a crackpot!,” but I hope not.)
• Chassis construction now was in high gear, and as I studied the
photos and sketches of the full size car, I realized the frame
construction was a bit unconventional (which probably is why Dick
Hutcherson referred to the car as “a neat little cheated-up race car”).
• This underside view shows the completed rear suspension featuring the
scratch built brass leaf springs. The rear axle is the combination of a resincast gear housing and an aluminum-tubing axle housing. The U-bolts are
made from 0000-160 threaded rod and nuts, with clamp plates and shackles
made from 0.015” brass sheet. The front suspension is roughed in as well,
with the scratch built reaction rods and modified steering linkage installed.
Also visible is the fuel cell can and floor pan detail.
• The front frame upper loop has been added and the radiator ducting is also in
place. The inner door panels are installed and are made from brass for
dimensional stability; covered with Evergreen half-round plastic strips to
replicate the upholstery used on the full-size car. These panels will be painted
with black shoe dye to give the proper vinyl appearance. Also visible are two
small brass pins protruding from the frame side rails. These are locating pins
for the bodywork I use wherever possible to make sure parts fit the same every
time they are assembled.
• As I continued through the build, I found myself still lacking certain
pieces of information to accurately duplicate this vintage race car.
Lucky for me the original still resided in the garage of its owner, only
20 minutes from my home. Also lucky for me, he was a very
gracious gentleman; happy to let me come to his home and take
more photographs and measurements.
• Several more trips to the owner‟s garage yielded many more photos
and dimensions that would prove to be invaluable in building the
model. I was even able to take along a floor jack and jack stands to
elevate the car so I could get good photos of the chassis
construction and details.
• The build continues and next up is to fit the body to the rolling
chassis. The vacu-formed fender flares are blended into the body
and the hole from removing the stock rear spoiler is now filled in with
sheet plastic. The deck lid was also opened up and hinged at this
time. The T-tops were also filled with 0.040” sheet plastic.
• Once the body was roughed in and aligned to the chassis, it was time
to finish the chassis itself. Here is a view of the primered chassis. I
typically complete all fabrication of the components prior to painting
any parts, but in this case, I had to paint the underside of the rear
sheet metal before installing it on the frame. I did this to ensure all
corners and partially blocked surfaces would get a coat of paint.
• The body work is nearly complete with only small areas of clean-up
still needed. The flares were blended in and the louvers in the front
fenders are opened up using a motor tool to slowly remove plastic
from the inside of the fender until the slots are open. It‟s starting to
look like a vehicle now!
• The chassis is now completely painted and assembly can begin.
Here is the interior with the dry sump oil tank (machined from
aluminum billet) and the rear end cooler/pump installed. Pro Tech
braided lines and hand-made AN fittings finish off these components.
• The full-sized car had heat insulation covering the entire interior floor.
Replicating this in scale was one of the most perplexing aspects of this
project. After trying various fabrics, papers and other materials, I finally
duplicated it by painting athletic tape with silver lacquer and applying it to the
painted floor pan. Thick electrical tape was used to replicate the foam
padding on the floor boards and the side of the tunnel around the shifter.
• This photo shows the chassis during final assembly, including the stand I built
from brass tubing and square plastic rod to hold the chassis during this phase
of the project. This stand allowed me to work on assembling and detailing the
chassis without directly handling the finished part, thus minimizing the chance
of errant fingerprints and damage.
• Detailing under the hood has begun with the installation of the brake master
cylinder and brake lines. Aluminum sheet was used to make the heat shield
around the steering shaft. At this point, the body was painted and is being testfit to the chassis. I lost count of how many times the body was assembled and
disassembled on the chassis, as I was so focused on making everything fit
correctly, and once it was glued in place, there would be no chance of fixing
even a small error.
• Here is the completed engine ready for installation into the chassis. The
engine is based on the R-M GM stock car engine. You can see the scratchbuilt headers formed from solid solder and aluminum tubing, as well as the
scratch-built oil pump and pulley system.
• The body was removed from the chassis (again!) and the engine installed.
Final under-hood and chassis detailing is nearly finished at this point.
• Now it is time to install the interior components and details. The seat belts were
made from self-adhesive nylon material and utilized photo-etched buckle
hardware. The drink thermos, with clear fishing line used for the drink tube, and
the fire extinguisher are also visible in this view. The finished door panels can
be seen as well, with the embossed aluminum panel at the top of them to
replicate the bead-rolling used on the full-size car.
•Adhesive-backed nylon found in fabric stores makes excellent seat belt
material, as it is thin enough to thread through photo-etched buckles and the
adhesive allows the material to be doubled over to hold to itself.
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•Here‟s how to duplicate bead-rolling on those interior aluminum panels: First
cut out the pattern in a piece of 0.030” sheet plastic and add two locator holes.
Make a matching base with two posts to align with the holes on the template.
Use a needle-point needle to scribe the pattern into the base plate, creating a
groove about 0.020” deep.
•Slide a piece of aluminum pan material in between the pattern and the base
and emboss it following the template using a pointed wooden dowel to create
the raised bead. Cut the piece to shape and install.
•Making matching left-hand/right-hand panels is also easy; just make two sets
of pegs on the base and flip the template to produce the mirror-image panels.
• The gage panel was detailed with photo-reduced gages and a hand
engraved dash plaque to duplicate the one Hutcherson-Pagan installed on
the full-size car. A pair of vacu-formed goggles are hanging from the mirror,
right where A.J. would put them after a race.
• Here is the finished chassis with all suspension, engine, interior and trunk
area components installed and detailed. At this point the chassis was set
aside as I concentrated on completing the body details prior to final
assembly to the chassis.
• This is it! The body is permanently installed on the chassis, so any mistakes
at this point will be virtually impossible to recover from. The numbers, Gilmore,
and Valvoline markings are from a Fred Cady decal sheet, while many of the
remaining sponsor markings were created using Microsoft PowerPoint and
Paint, then printed on blank decal film using an inkjet printer. Still missing are
the windshield, hood, hood hinges, and lift cylinders, as well as the front air
dam and the rear spoiler.
• Now with the body in place, the trunk detail was finished with the installation of
the fuel filler and the overflow/vent tube. The trunk lid is held open by a
torsion-bar spring made from a 0.010” music wire. The rear spoiler was made
from aluminum flashing found at the local home improvement store.
•A toothbrush bristle was used to make the radio antenna. The flexible nylon
bristles are a much safer and durable choice than the more commonly used
music wire.
• One of the distinctive things about this car is all of the polished aluminum
used for interior trim and blank-off panels such as these on the side window.
Baking pan aluminum was used for the panels and pop rivets added using
the Pentel pencil technique.
•Modify a Pentel mechanical pencil by sharpening the metal sheath that
supports the lead. Use this as a punch to cut out small dots of aluminum
furnace tape which can then be applied using the lead advance mechanism
to “eject” the dot, replicating a pop rivet.
• This underside view shows the exhaust dump pipes made from 3/16”
aluminum tubing, and the heat shield on the floor above the headers made
from aluminum foil. The dry sump tank, battery box, and completed front
and rear suspensions are also shown. The bead rolling on the floorpan was
duplicated by scribing the pattern into the sheet plastic.
• Looking in this front corner shows some of the many oil lines, the brake
cooling duct, and the brake assembly. The telescoping hood lift cylinders
made from 0.032” brass tubing and 0.020” music wire are also visible.
• Paper surgical tape was wrapped around a coil of fine wire, then
painted black to make the brake cooling ducts.
• Here is a good view of the engine compartment and under-hood area
showing the machined aluminum air cleaner and the various lines and
hoses. The radiator shroud and plenum cover were made from an
aluminum foil baking pan.
• Having this in your rear view mirror would be a very uncomfortable sight for
most drivers, especially if you were leading the race at the time! The grill
screens are stainless steel mesh with aluminum surrounds. The hood lock
pins are formed from 0.008” music wire and attached to the car with fine
twisted wire lanyards.
• This is my favorite shot of the completed model. Looks like it‟ll be ready for
some hot laps after a change of left side tires. I added some light
weathering using black, grey and brown pastel chalks to take some of the
“new car” shine off this race car.
• When it came to making the artwork for the various sponsor
markings, I needed a way to determine the correct size for each one
and I had a good side view photo of the car, so I developed a
technique used to calculate the size of the various sponsor marking
on the car, based on this side view.
• Since this side view is not perfectly square to the camera, the scale
factor for the front of the car is smaller than that at the rear. The
following described method will correct that “perspective error”.
Start by drawing a vertical line at the centerline of the wheelbase
and through the centerline of each wheel.
• Then draw in two more lines equally spaced to the original three.
• Then draw in eight more lines equally spaced in gaps between each
of the previous five, thus sectioning the side view of the vehicle into
twelve equally sized segments.
1.094”
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Now measure the vertical dimension of a known feature at the centerline. In
this case I used the height of the door panel. Using this measured dimension,
calculate the scale factor at the center of the photo. The door on the full size
car is 31” tall and in photo it is 1.094” tall.
Use the following formula to calculate the scale factor for the center section of
the photo:
Scale Factor => 31”/1.094” = 28.34
This means that every 1” on the photo (specifically at the centerline) equates
to 28.34” on the full size vehicle.
0.578”
0.547”
• Knowing the scale factor for the centerline of the vehicle is only part
of the solution. You also need to calculate the same ratio for the two
vertical lines through the centers of each wheel. The actual wheels
on the car are 16” in diameter and on the photo the front wheel
measures 0.578” and the rear measures 0.547”.
• Front wheel => 16”/0.578” = 27.49
• Rear wheel => 16”/0.547” = 29.25
103 %
100 %
97 %
• Now we use those three scale factors to calculate the amount of
perspective error present at the front and rear wheels:
Front perspective error = 28.34/27.49=1.03 or 103%
Rear perspective error = 28.34/29.25 = 0.97 or 97%
106 % 105 % 104 % 103 % 102 % 101% 100 %
99 %
98 %
97 %
96 %
95 %
• Next fill in the remaining perspective errors for the other sections of
the photos using linear interpolation (big words for evenly dividing
up the amount from one line to the other). This gives the relative
scale factor for each of the 12 sections of the photo.
94 %
106 % 105 % 104 % 103 % 102 % 101%
26.74 26.99 27.25 27.49 27.78 28.06
100 % 99%
28.34 28.63
98%
28.92
97 %
29.22
96 %
29.52
95 %
29.83
• Finally, using the centerline scale factor of 28.34, fill in the scale
factor for each of the sections using the centerline scale factor
divided by the perspective error. Example: 28.34/0.96 = 29.52
94 %
30.15
106 % 105 % 104 % 103 % 102 % 101%
26.74 26.99 27.25 27.49 27.78 28.06
•
100 % 99%
28.34 28.63
98%
28.92
97 %
29.22
96 %
29.52
95 %
29.83
94 %
30.15
Using these various scaling factors, calculate the actual size of the sponsor
markings by measuring them on the photo and multiplying by the
appropriate scaling factor. Example: The Champion decal on front fender
measures 0.172” tall by 0.344” wide and is in the area of 101% error. Using
the scaling factor of 28.06 (101%), this translates to an actual size of 4.83”
tall by 9.65” wide (likely a 5” by 10” decal). These dimensions can then be
divided by 24 to arrive at the size (0.208” by 0.417”) on the model.
106 % 105 % 104 % 103 % 102 % 101%
26.74 26.99 27.25 27.49 27.78 28.06
100 % 99%
28.34 28.63
98%
28.92
97 %
29.22
96 %
29.52
95 %
29.83
• This same basic method can be used to scale any feature or
marking from photos, providing they are in-plane for one of the
major axis and some primary measurements are available from the
full-size prototype.
94 %
30.15
A.J. Foyt USAC Camaro Replica
Features:
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Chassis and roll cage scratch-built
using Evergreen styrene strip, rod
and tube.
Rear leaf springs made from
brass strip and 0000-160 thread
rod and nuts
Machined brake rotors with
RMCoM calipers and 0000-160
threaded wheel studs
Scratch-built front suspension and
working steering linkage
Front and rear shocks made from
Evergreen tubing and 0.030” wire
Scratch-built fuel cell using sheet
plastic and sheet brass with MCG
photo-etched inlet plate
Brake cooling ducting made from
surgical tape and soft 0.010” wire
Scratch-built master cylinder
Scratch-built shifter and linkage
Scratch-built battery and tray
Turned aluminum pulleys on
engine drive system
Pro Tech braided lines with
scratch-built fittings
Headers made from solid core
solder and aluminum sheet/tubing
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Photo-reduced gages with turned
bezels
Interior panels replicated using
sheet plastic and bead-rolled
aluminum sheet
Scratch-built oil tank and rear end
cooling system
Floor insulation made using silverpainted athletic tape
Roll cage padding made from
heat-shrink tubing
Safety belts made from nylon
material with photo-etched
buckles
Vacuum-formed windshield and
back glass
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MCW Foyt Orange paint
Decals are a combination of Fred
Cady and custom printed using
blank decal sheet
Working hood and trunk pins
using 0.008” music wire
Grill screens made from stainless
steel mesh
Scratch-built hood hinges and lift
cylinders
Scratch-built trunk hinges with
torsion spring made from 0.009”
music wire
Radio antenna made using a
toothbrush bristle with a turned
aluminum base