!964 Merc Comet Project

[64Comet]

Anyone with Photoshop skills care to create my newest project in to a pro-touring image?

Car: http://img233.echo.cx/img233/3699/dscn01419qr.jpg

Wheel style: http://img55.echo.cx/img55/228/e2sm4gv.jpg

[Kevin@W2W]

Messed around on my lunch with it.


Modified the moldings, eliminated the turn signals on the fenders.
Sorry the rims don't line up as well as I like but the image you supplied was hard to work with.

[Midwest Performance]

There was a 1964 Comet at Sema that looked good from 10' but the quality was not there.

My dad has recently purchased a 64 comet to restore. He is making it like the car he had when he was 18. If your interested I'll post the pictures.
It was his first car,first new car, and a car given to him from his father on his birthday for working the farm for 3 years without pay. His dad passed away around 1975.

[DarkBuddha]

Well, I'm home sick and couldn't sleep, so here's my version...

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

EDIT: I thought it needed to be more colorful.

[vanzuuk1]

the sema car did look good in the photo. then again farrah fawcett still looks good in photos.

[65chevelle''ss'']

Here's my attempt!!!


https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

[64Comet]

You guys are the sh*t with Photoshop. i have tried my hand a few times and couldnt get it to look half as good as you guys. Darkbuddha's is pretty much what I am gearing towards, not that the rest are not good. but I am going with a color similar to that, but i do like the two-tone paint scheme too. Dang! You guys have put some serious fire under me to get this completed.

Kevin: if you could post some pics and suppliers he used, that would be great. parts are hard to come by, especially sheet metal.
And I am sure he knows, but almost all chasis and suspension parts interchange with same year Falcon and 65-66 Mustang.

[64Comet]

Got it.

[DarkBuddha]

Nice job on the 2 tone... I thought I'd try it using the upper body line instead, but it doesn't look as good I don't think... oh, and you might try to keep your pics in the 7-8 inch wide range so they fit better on the screen.

Anyway here's my 2 tone version, with modified grill, and new lower grill in the bumper too. I like the grille mods...

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

[DarkBuddha]

You guys are the sh*t with Photoshop. i have tried my hand a few times and couldnt get it to look half as good as you guys. Darkbuddha's is pretty much what I am gearing towards, not that the rest are not good. but I am going with a color similar to that, but i do like the two-tone paint scheme too. Dang! You guys have put some serious fire under me to get this completed.
I'm glad you like the photochop. It really wouldn't take much to get that look pretty cheaply... basically I lowered it, gave it some rake, tinted the windows and blacked out the vent window trim, blacked out the wipers, shaved the antenae, door handle, emblem, and hood ornament, and rear pillar trim, and I modified the side trim by raising the lower part. So, some drop/cut springs, some lowering blocks, some simple body work and door actuator kits, and you'd be 90% of the way there... then you've just gotta do the other 90%. :hammer:

BTW, in the 2 tone version I posted, I modified the grille and chopped the front bumper to add a lower grille (which copies the top grille) as well. I also shaved the outer part of the headlight extention trim. I'm not sure I like the 2 tone totally, but it there is something about it...

[65chevelle''ss'']

Sorry about the size!!! I will keep them smaller next time.. Hope you liked it!!!!

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

[kmcanally]

dang 65chevelle dude...what are those 30's?

[64Comet]

Dark: I am actually going to try to fab a Mustang "Shelby R" racing front apron to the body in place of the bumper. I am going to modify the apron rather than the body in case it doesnt work out. I saw it done to a Falcon a long time ago and it looked sharp. I think the R apron design and huge front vent will go really good with the grill setup on the Comet. I think the toughest part of the build is going to be the offset and backspacing for the rims i want to use (18x8.5 fr and 18x9.5 rr). The company I called to order them from only has them in a 35 and 40mm offset. They had no clue about backspacing, so i need to call the manufacturer. They are designed to fit BMW, Audi, Acura NSX etc. The rears will be easy to fit, its the fronts that concern me.

[65chevelle''ss'']

dang 65chevelle dude...what are those 30's?


Ya I probably got a little carried away on that one!!!! I was kinda in a hurry, my bad!!! It's the thought that counts, right???

[DarkBuddha]

Dark: I am actually going to try to fab a Mustang "Shelby R" racing front apron to the body in place of the bumper. I am going to modify the apron rather than the body in case it doesnt work out. I saw it done to a Falcon a long time ago and it looked sharp. I think the R apron design and huge front vent will go really good with the grill setup on the Comet. I think the toughest part of the build is going to be the offset and backspacing for the rims i want to use (18x8.5 fr and 18x9.5 rr). The company I called to order them from only has them in a 35 and 40mm offset. They had no clue about backspacing, so i need to call the manufacturer. They are designed to fit BMW, Audi, Acura NSX etc. The rears will be easy to fit, its the fronts that concern me.
The Shelby front valence would be cool. I think it'd be easier to maybe start with an actual Mustang piece and then modify it to fit.

As for the wheels, backspacing is always an issue. Most modern cars actually use positive offset which isn't right for our older cars. Worst case scenario you'll need spacers.

[DarkBuddha]

Your idea + 10 minutes of my time =

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

[64Comet]

Interesting...now that its on the car, it doesnt look so good. I think I have mixed feelings on it, doesnt flow as good as i thought it would. It looked like it was a natural fit on the Falcon. Thanks for the addition. I think it looked better in my head...I am going to have to think about that one. I may form something in the bumber like you suggested or leave it bone stock and shave a few things.

[DarkBuddha]

Interesting...now that its on the car, it doesnt look so good. I think I have mixed feelings on it, doesnt flow as good as i thought it would. It looked like it was a natural fit on the Falcon. Thanks for the addition. I think it looked better in my head...I am going to have to think about that one. I may form something in the bumber like you suggested or leave it bone stock and shave a few things.
It could be that my rendering just doesn't do it justice. I certainly
didn't get the color quite right, and it doesn't have any shine at all.
You might just look at some pics of Falcons with the same valence if
you can find some and see how you feel about those.

[litevette]

The newer mustang wheels (bullit?) that look like the old torque thrust "D"'s would look good on that car. Can anyone photoshop those on his car?

[DarkBuddha]

Cake... oh, and I tried painting the bumper to get that "stock car" vintage trans am look.
Whatcha think?

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

[64Comet]

Those Torque thrusts look better than i thought too. What about the Vintage Shelby Cobra rims like are are the Eleanor Mustang...can you pop those on?

[DarkBuddha]

Here ya go... these wheels always strike me one of 2 ways... either race badass, or just too visually busy. Strangely, I can't decided in this case. :dunno: Whatcha think?

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

[vanzuuk1]

Buddha , now that you mentioned the stock car look, that car would look cool with the old nascar look, black wheels, cage, hood pins , aluminum spoilers etc.

[64Comet]

Dark: That pic isnt coming through...I keep timing out on it.

[DarkBuddha]

Dark: That pic isnt coming through...I keep timing out on it.
I'll double check the link in a bit...

[DarkBuddha]

I'll double check the link in a bit...

[64Comet]

I would go with the TTD's, but it seems like every freakin classic out there has them. i love the look, just want something different. the Shelby's would be different for my style car. But i also wanted to go with something a little more Euro-Touring. What sucks is I passed on a great set of 15x7 mini-lites at a swap meet for $120...couldnt get the guy to $100 so i walked. Not that they are that different from everyone elses ride...just a great deal. Cleaned and polished they would go for much more than that if i didnt decide to use them.

[64Comet]

Hey Dark, I really appreciate all of the renderings you have done on my project. Could I bother you for one more? Trying to see what vintage wheels look right cause i dont think the wheels I want are going to work out. Here is the wheel. Thanks again and the renderings are top notch!


http://img257.echo.cx/img257/950/saltflatm4701vh.jpg

[DarkBuddha]

I'll see if I can get to it tonight...

[64Comet]

Darkbuddha: Any chance you could throw this set on the Comet for me?


http://img266.echo.cx/img266/4795/5star0kp.gif

[Steve Chryssos]

Darkbuddha,
Your skills are excellent--especially paintwork. If I may make one suggestion: Try rotating each wheel & tire layer until the "camber" better matches the picture. You can also "squeeze" the wheel layers by scaling horizontally or vertically until the perspective looks just right. Send me your photoshop layer file and I can show you what I mean.

As for the Comet, I like the "Eleanor" Edelbrock wheels best.

[DarkBuddha]

Darkbuddha,
Your skills are excellent--especially paintwork. If I may make one suggestion: Try rotating each wheel & tire layer until the "camber" better matches the picture. You can also "squeeze" the wheel layers by scaling horizontally or vertically until the perspective looks just right. Send me your photoshop layer file and I can show you what I mean.

As for the Comet, I like the "Eleanor" Edelbrock wheels best.
Thanks for the compliment. I know what you mean about the wheel camber thing. I've become more aware of that over the last few weeks. I've been using a combination of scaling and using the transformations like "skew", "distort", and "perspective", which I wasn't doing very much when I did these Comet pics. The perspective transformation has proven very effective of late, especially when folks have asked for less common wheels for which finding decent angled pics can be tough.

[Steve Chryssos]

Yeah. Try rotating the wheel/tire layer first. Get the planes parallel, then squeeze or stretch.

[Restomod]

Man that is a clean looking Comet!!! And everyone is doing some super shops on it!!! I like the signal removed and I like the Halibrandt version. As for offset I am useing a set for the late model Japanese cars (Lexus/Nissan,ect) 32/35mm if I remember right. Convert the inches to MM's and look around Ebay,I just typed something like ...18" wheels 114.3(ford BP in mm) x5 this will show you everything on there.Find the wheel you like and see if it is available in the right offset.

[DJ Mabe]

That does look bad a**. I agree with Steve on the wheels. The "Eleanor" wheels look the best, so far that I've seen.

Derrick

[64Comet]

Restomod: Do you have pics of your setup with the 18's? Also, I had thought of purchasing 1989-2001 or 2002-2004 Mustang wheels and buying the adaptors from a classic Mustang parts shop. But if you think its possible to find Euro or even Japanese rims to fit, that leaves me some great options. I like the Eleanors the best, but at $400 a wheel, i will have to wait until next year for those. This project is on a tight budget. I spent extra on the car to get a straight clean car. I can pick up a set of 17's with tires, mounted balanced and shipped for free for $700 and 18's at $900 a set with tires, balanced and shipped, but its Euro or Jap. offsets and backspacing.

[DarkBuddha]

I finally got around to doing the Saltflat wheels. I kinda like it a lot.

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

Oh, and if you'll let me know who makes those other wheels I might be able to 'chop those as well.

[Restomod]

Sorry the car is on my rotisserie right now. Just remove your wheels and measure everything,I found mine just like I said in my last post. Just took some time online (mostly ebay tons of wheels there)till I found what I liked.

[Steve Chryssos]

That looks hot! A lot!

[64Comet]

Sport Max makes them and they are model 962. Thanks again for the chops! Trying to find a good wheel and tire combo that works on the cheap is allot harder than I thought. SO far, the Eleanors are beating everything out, but at that price they're just going to have to wait.

[USAZR1]

Dark,I really like the two-tone color scheme you did.
Any chance you could photoshop my El Camino with Silver on the bottom? I'm thinking about having the car painted that way and it would be nice to see what it looks like,before starting.
Thanks,

[Restomod]

I really dig the Salt Flats,they fit the style of the car very well. If it were mine that is what it would get.

[DarkBuddha]

Dark,I really like the two-tone color scheme you did.
Any chance you could photoshop my El Camino with Silver on the bottom? I'm thinking about having the car painted that way and it would be nice to see what it looks like,before starting.
Thanks,
I'm only doing stuff intermittently these days since I'm short of time... I don't have time right now, and I'll probably forget your request within the scope of this thread, so you might start another thread asking for some photoshop help (as seems to have become so popular recently :hmm: ).

[madmax]

DarkBuddha - you do awesome work. I can't even come close to the colors, but along the lines of what streetfytr68 said, I like using the option "free transform" in photoshop. It alows you to move the wheel to fit exactly within the tire and in the same position. It may not be the best way, but its my little trick. Now I'm trickless :hand:

Max

[DarkBuddha]

Sport Max makes them and they are model 962. Thanks again for the chops!
Glad to do 'em... wheels can be easy or hard... these were a bit harder, but I think you'll get the idea. Oh, and I inset the original image just for comparison kicks. Just goes to show how a little work could make all the difference. Here's the pic:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

[USAZR1]

I'm only doing stuff intermittently these days since I'm short of time... I don't have time right now, and I'll probably forget your request within the scope of this thread, so you might start another thread asking for some photoshop help (as seems to have become so popular recently :hmm: ).

Thanks,anyway.

[64Comet]

Darkbuddha: If your still around, any chance you can chop these rims on the Comet. Just bought these to hold me over until I can get the ones i want. I have no clue what they will look like, but the deal was right for now. Thanks!


http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/9742/svt98cobraci3l6hs.jpg

[DarkBuddha]

Darkbuddha: If your still around, any chance you can chop these rims on the Comet. Just bought these to hold me over until I can get the ones i want. I have no clue what they will look like, but the deal was right for now. Thanks!


http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/9742/svt98cobraci3l6hs.jpg
I'm still around, but rather intermittently as of late... just too busy to do too many photochops lately. That said, since I've already done all the hard work on yours, I should be able to do the wheels fairly quickly. I give it a go tonight.

[64Comet]

Thanks! Havent seen you in for a while. Hope all is well. I hate settling, but to get the car on the road I am going to have to. Cant get my real setup until early next year.

[DarkBuddha]

Here ya go... I think they look darn nice personally...

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://www.imageshack.us)

[64Comet]

You're the man buddha!!! Thanks again! It looks better than what I had pictured in my mind.

[hechtrod]

Sorry to bring up an old thread, but I love Comets. My dad had a '64 Comet Cyclone that I wish I could find. Its been 22 year since he sold it, I was only 7 years old or something. I've got some old pics from mid 70's. There was a sweet white '64 Cyclone with salt flats but prostreet tires in rear. It was at the Route 66 Rendezvous last weekend. My favorite car there! :) Any updates on this comet? I've got those last wheels that were photochopped on my '94 Mustang, 18x9's. I personally like the salt flats or Eleanor style wheels. Any updates would be cool!

[cad]

Comet on some big cans...
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

[62fairlane]

I am trying to toss bullits under my fairlane.....good luck...

I have 1" spacer to get them to clear the suspension but they stick out to the outer edge of the fenders still. The wheel openings are not big enough for them either if you have a dropped car (I got 4") so the only way they will prob fit is at stock rideheight....unless you are into sectioning a fender or making a full new suspension with different spindles that will clear it.

[DarkBuddha]

Hey, I sent a PM, but I thought I'd post this with the old thread too...

When I first found a pic in a recent Ford builder magazine, I'd wondered if you might've finished your car. The resemblance of the car in the magazine is amazingly uncanny to the photochops I did here. I was hoping it was your car and someone didn't nick the idea and do it before you could. As it turns out, it appears that they did a no-pillar'd hardtop instead and it looks great. It certainly is annoying that someone kinda beat you to the punch... makes me wonder if they haunt these forums ever? Anyone know if anyone from Blue Moon Motorsports ever hangs out here at p-t.com? I think they make Control Freak suspension stuff.

Anyway, here are the pics from the magazine:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://img148.imageshack.us/my.php?image=fordbuilderarticle0ru.jpg)

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://img148.imageshack.us/my.php?image=fordbuilderarticle28un.jpg)

And a side by side for comparison sake:

https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif (http://imageshack.us)

[64Comet]

Sent you a PM buddha, but this royally SUCKS!!! I do appreciate you bringing this to my attention. i dont have the means to just throw around $40k and have it done overnight. Someone definitely beat me to the punch. I guess what gets me is the fact that I started this car because it was a rare body style for Pro-touring. I think the chances of someone else coming up with the exact plan i had all by themselves is pretty slim! Pretty much pisses me off too! I wish I had sponsors or something to get ahead of the game. Feel like I got blackjacked in the back of the head only to wake up days later finding everything was jacked from me.

[64Comet]

Thats ok, I have already come up with a new idea and i think its the sh*ts better than my original idea. I am just not going to publish my ideas for everyone any more. Really sucks! Buddha, since you are excellent with PS, maybe when you have some free time (which i know is rare) you can put some of my ideas down and just email them to me or something? Let me know. I would love Kris Horton to lay them down, but I dont have the cheese and this will be a budget build.