July 2010 Under Construction

1967 Chevy Chevelle
1:1 Scale Model
When you're too small to build cars of your own, 1:25 scale versions are a good place to start. Jeff Lawrence of Laguna Hills, California, didn't have a car in the family to tinker on. He was left to use his imagination on plastic models until he was old enough to buy a car. He loved the Tri-Five cars, and dreamed of a '57 Nomad, but high school budgets allowed him a '55 Bel Air instead. By the time he was 16, it was in car show condition, and he took it to every show he could get to. Fixing up a car and parading it around really made him happy; he knew that would be part of his life forever.

After high school, Jeff got a job at a machine shop, but realized his aspirations of working for a major commercial airplane company couldn't be put on hold any longer, and he went to school for his degree in electronics engineering and got his FAA licenses. He now works in the quality engineering and special project divisions at Boeing. Jeff told PHR: "Planes are like huge powerful cars that can fly. What's not to like?"

Since the '55, he's had a couple cars over the years, but his career limited the amount of time he could dedicate to building them. A couple years ago he picked up this Virginia-based '67 Chevelle convertible he found listed on the Team Chevelle forum. He set out to look for a place he could hand the shell over to for the body and paintwork, since he doesn't have the time or place to do that part. He was referred to Best of Show Coachworks in San Marcos, California, for the job. Jeff prides himself on being a hands-on guy, so he's building the chassis and engine at home while the body and paint gets done at the shop. Jeff's wife is still getting used to why there is car trim being stored in the living room.