How To Make Opening & Functional Doors, Hoods, and Trunks

[charlie8575]

I've never tried opening a door, but I'd wonder if something like a panel scriber might be a better alternative?

Charlie Larkin

[W-409]

I've used Trumpeter's panel scriber (what ever is the name...) and it works fine. Don't push too hard, many times just pull it without hard pushing, otherwise scriber comes out of the panel line and then you need putty... That's very easy. But hinges aren't really easy to build. I have used MIG wire and some pipe, where the MIG wire goes. Don't glue MIG wire, or any other wire to that pipe, otherwise the door isn't opening. I think, the best tip for hinging them is a good picture.

This may help?

[tylersloan]

im building the revell 32 five window special edition and since the trunk was not molded in i want to cut open the doors .

i have an exact o knife but i dont want to slip and mess up the body so can any one help and maybe post up some pick's with a how to

[John Pol]

The best to do this is use the backside of your blade number 11 blade. And go slow until you go threw I hope this helps you.

Anf than just make your own hinges.

John Pol

[JustBill]

You can also use sewing thread. Its very time consuming and you'll go through a lot of thread doing it this way, but its a very clean cut. Also it doesn't remove as much plastic as the knife will so that means a tighter fit when the door is closed.

[Fender]

Sewing thread? What kind of thread and how do you do it?

[ewaskew]

You can stick a double layer of masking tape on both sides of your door line

and if it slips the tape gets the damage.

Like someone said take your time.

I cut the doors and trunk on a 1/12 scale 69Camaro and it took 2 hours,but

the end result was worth the extra effort.

As for using the sewing thread I found out that I didn't have enough hands

for that'when it came to working it back and forth and tring to hold the body

while I did it.

[JustBill]

Sewing thread? What kind of thread and how do you do it?

Just regular sewing thread you would use to sew on buttons or repair clothing with. You can find it just about anywhere. I usually buy a sewing kit. Comes with lots of thread and some needles and such.

Like I said its very time consuming and can be tricky as stated above trying to hold everything. I use a little vise to hold my project in while doing this. Just make a little slice in the door jamb and insert the thread through it. Then work the thread back and forth. This method also works good for suspension parts if you want to separate them.

Maybe not the best method, I just like that it removes very little plastic.

[Bastardo]

I fully-opened a Fiat 131 using a scriber. I just pulled the scriber along the pannel lines slowly, taking out a few 1/100s of a milimeter at the time. Yeah, it takes time and patience, but during one DVD you'll have 'er fully open

[tylersloan]

ok thanks guys ill try it wish i could post up some pictures of my build but my computer is acting up

[Stickit2gether]

How do you cut open the doors and then not end up with toooooo big of a gap when you hinge them back on?? I want to try this but I am scared of the gap left behind after cutting them out. Looking for advice.

[warra48]

OK, I've done this on a few of my models. Same with cutting out the trunk (boot in Aus).

You need to slowly and carefully score the gap with the back of a #11 blade. Go slowly, and eventually you will work your way all the way through the plastic, enabling you to take the door out.

Then file/sand the edges smooth. It will likely leave a bit too much gap, but I glue a strip of thin Evergreen sheet styrene into the door aperture to fill the gap. Once it's dry, I file/sand it level with the surrounding body work. Test fit along the way to make sure you are happy with the result.

I'm not aware of any way to cut out a door, and not leave too large a gap. In my experience, they all need filling by some means.

Good luck, and it's not as hard as it sounds.

Another thing, you will also need to cut the inner door panels and fix them to the inside of the cutout doors. Then there's the gaps between the outer and inner skins, which I fill with Evergreen sheet styrene shaped to size to fit the gap.

Edited August 25, 2011 by warra48

[Stickit2gether]

Ok that is a pretty good explanation. When I try it Ill post pics and we can see how I do. Now to find some styrene sheets.

[Bastardo]

I used a home-made scriber to open doors and trunks on my models. I took an old screwdriver, made the tip sharp and needle-shaped and bended it a bit. Here's a pic I used on a Slovenian forum:

"Smer vleka scriberja" means "dirrection in which the scriber is pulled"

Take the scriber, place it in the contour of a panel you want to open and start scribing. Slowly, after some repetittions you should be able to see how the plastic has thinned

I DO NOT recomend using any kind of blades - the blade will:

- slip and leave a nasty wound on the palstic

- make a huge gap, as it doesn't remove palstic, but only "pushes it away"

HTH

[TurboKitty]

I like to use a Tamiya Precision Panel Scriber, it takes off a smooth & very thin strip of plastic with each pass. Only cost $10 too.

[rhs856]

I like to use a Tamiya Precision Panel Scriber, it takes off a smooth & very thin strip of plastic with each pass. Only cost $10 too.

BMF makes a pretty good one too.

[MrObsessive]

Okay! I must be old fashioned or something as I still like to use a plain 'ole back edge of the Exacto Blade. Gaps are going to be caused by how thick the plastic in the body is. If you've got a really thin body, you won't have to scribe as much to break free the door, trunk, or what have you.

If the plastic is overly thick (some of RC2's are the worst) you're going to end up with a sizeable gap simply because you're going to get deeper in the blade, scriber, etc------and those tools get a bit wider the deeper you go.

I've got a mini tutorial here which I'll show how I cut open doors........this is what's worked best for me, and I've been doing this a little while. Of course, your mileage may vary................

This example here was the guinea pig for an article I wrote for MCM a couple years ago...............I won't go through all that was in the article as it dealt mainly with hinging-----but if you check the back issues here on the site,(Nov '08 IIRC), you can purchase the mag and get the whole skinny on what I wrote.

First, I had an overly thick body such as this AMT '55 Chevy Bel Air...........a nice model that was done during AMT's second good 'ole days before RC2 took over. I made an approximation on where the door lines were, and got out my Dremel and started grinding away around the perimeter of the door.................

Once I was satisfied on how much was ground out, then I took the back edge of the Exacto and starting going around the door lines slowly but deliberately.............

As I started to see daylight, I then took the back edge of the blade and went on the inside of the body...........

And PRESTO! The door is now free!

But wait! There's more-------------stay tuned!

[MrObsessive]

Now we have that pesky gap to deal with. As I mentioned I don't know of a sure fire cure to prevent the gaps from getting too big when you're cutting out doors...............it's what goes with the territory in model building.

One of the things that's turned me off when I was a judge at a show, are too huge of a gap when someone has taken the time to open doors. Some may recommend buying two kits--------cut out the doors in one a bit larger than the door opening, and the second kit is the one with the doors cut out per normal.

In this day and age of high unemployment, not to mention high kit prices, I'm not an advocate of that. A much cheaper method is to simply add plastic back to the perimeter of the door to lessen the gap.

Here's a pic of the door put back against the body after it was cut out.............as careful as I was, I still have a huge gap which to me is woefully unacceptable!

I have a method of getting acceptable shut lines when doors are opened. Here's how I do it................

Take some .020 sheet styrene and add it to the parts of the door you want filled in gap wise..............I like to use Ambroid Pro Weld for all my liquid gluing BTW.

Now sand and shape the piece to the contours of the door, and let's see what we have here.................

A door that has acceptable shut lines with no super huge gaps. The bottom part of the door could stand to be filled in a scooch.........I'm not building this one as of yet, so I won't worry about it at the moment.

I also like to use the "3x5 card method" for checking gaps. If a 3x5 card will slip in and out without binding, that should be good enough to allow for paint so there's no scraping. Here's a pic of the Turbine Car I was building a while back which shows this...............

Anyone who's built this kit knows how the door fit is just a bit dubious!

Anyway, I hope this helps you out...........anymore questions ask away!

Edited August 25, 2011 by MrObsessive

[shucky]

Bill thanks for posting this. And great job by the way.

[High octane]

Great turorial Bill by a "master builder" and I'll have to give this a try someday. Thanks.

[Guest]

To get the smallest,cleanest gap possible,buy yourself a set of photoetch saw blades. They work a lot better than the #11 exacto blade. Same method,much smaller gap. No filling required. They also won't slip out of the body lines and create those oops like a #11 blade can. The small blades will follow curves unless they are very sharp like a rounded corner,but then I use a new #11 blade for those.

[diymirage]

i use regular sewing thread

it takes a while and it brakes rather often but it works very well, just wrap a bit aroun each index finger and run the thread back and forward over the panel line.

the thread will slowly cut through it while following the panel lines

[Stickit2gether]

Very interesting methods. Looks like I have several to try on my days off!! Thanks guys!!

[manymodels]

hay im working on a the super stallion mustang i made it a convertable an now im working on opening doors im think of just getting some lil hindges from the hardware store and super gluing em in. anybody do opening doors before and have a better way to do it or any tips?

[MoparWoman Jamie]

I do open doors almost all the time on my projects when I can, it depends on the model your working on an the body shell contures. You don't want a body conture hitting the door an taking paint of both pieces (fender an door). You can use round stock either in evergreen or brass with wire rod running through it an bending the wire rod in either a slight "v" shape or "u" shape (to clear the door opening an the fender) an glue the round stock to the shell an glue the wire rod to the inner side of the door. but to glue the stuff in an to make sure the stuff is all line up. Tape the door in place an work from the back side, an use a ecto knife to help slide the hinge into place an glue then. I don't think the hinges from the hardware store will work though unless the area is nice an flat.