Lowlife ! !

Wow thanks everyone for replies, very much appreciated.... DaveM.... I hope some of you will be inspired to try one, as you mentioned an old skool fleetline heres mine........

Looking great as usual Chris, but you got me confused ! Looking at the real one above, it looks like the shifter plunger connects to the chrome steering part, at the front, via the bar with holes in ?? Compare the mock up with your engine fitted and the plunger looks to be below that bar.... So will it still fit like this or is it the camera angle ?? ( does this make sense ??? ) Im not picking holes mate, its just the plunger looks too far forward ??? Keep up the great work....... Lowlife ! !

Now that's a paintjob....... ...... you can stick shiny paint, this ROCKS ! ! Perfect stance, wheels, engine, great job im loving this, .............Lowlife ! !

Sorry its been awhile with any updates, and thanks again for the comments...... With the bug now on a rolling chassis im getting back to the bodywork, a primer coat showed how much more I need to do....( Also with the rain and snow I cant even paint primer...) So as soon as I feel there`s something to show you all I will be back ! ! Started another project too based on a 409 Chevy, might post that up soon.......Thanks guys..... Lowlife ! !

Cool, you got my attention.... Love the pickup that's a really unusual idea for a bug, ( cant help wondering if you might be better off starting with the Tamiya beetle kit, its a lot nicer than those Revell versions...) good luck with it anyway, im gonna be watching along ! ! Lowlife ! !

Really nice job on the fairlane, good job..... ........ I know the feeling well, building stuff that no-one else gets to see, but this forum is great for showing your builds and getting tips and ideas..... PS...There`s no excuse, you got an audience now, so were waiting for another build from you ! ! Lowlife ! !

Looking good, you got no 40 fenders you could try, or 37 ford may look cool ? look forward to more ! Lowlife ! !

So there functioning, and adjustable springs........... Cant get my head around the fact this is 1/25 scale....... Wow, let me go lay down ill get back to you......... Lowlife ! !

Chris , Thanks for showing the el Camino , I used to be jealous of your Vega build, now im jealous of your real car too........ ....... ( Jus kiddin mate, awesome Chevy its a beast alright... ) and great progress on the engine too. Love the colour on the blower and valve covers, polished ally effect is perfect ! I know you probably wish this and that was finished, but hey enjoy the build, we certainly are. Perfection takes time, your building THE most accurate replica of this car on the planet, so no-ones rushing you. When you finish it your appreciate every moment you spent on it, but im still looking forward to more progress, its a fantastic project ! ! Martin.

Great progress as usual Chris, that's a great result for Alclad I thought for a mo you had it chrome plated !! Got to ask what`s the 1:1 beast lurking in your garage ?? ( Is this why its taking so long to build the Funny Car ????? ) Keep at it mate...... Lowlife ! !

That's brilliant, these were so common in the UK and every one looked just like this ! ! I don't think they ever came clean and shiny from the factory...... ...... So glad you built it used and abused, looks great ( but needs UK no. plates !! ) ......... Lowlife ! !

James..... ..... How you doing ? Not seen any of your builds for a while, glad to see your still at it ! ! Anything looks cool with Astro`s , but a wagon is just killer ..... ...... Going to be following this one, hope its stays that low too, perfect stance ! ! Lowlife ! !

Really nice job with the Scort !! Funny I owned 2 of these, but always wanted a Mk1.... They was cheap run-arounds when I was a kid, but there BIG money now. Your doing a fantastic job on this, a excellent tutorial too, ( not just on the Mk2 but a great way of building any car ) . Ever part is as clean and accurate as possible and I look forward to more progress..... ......Lowlife ! !

Looking good, a slammed min-bin....... ......just a suggestion here but.... if you look at the pic from the back the car sits very much on the edge of the tyres. In real life they would squash down a bit, so if you sand them a little on the edges it will also lower the car more ! Looking good its nice to see something a bit more unusual being built !! Lowlife ! !

Now this is my kind of thang ! ! You nailed this one, so cool I just hope it gets copied in real scale. For those of us who didn't see the mag feature any chance of posting it up ? Great stuff I look forward to more of your Crazy builds .... .... Lowlife ! !

Incredible start John.... ..... Ive admired your work for years, not surprised you were asked to build this for the museum. Good luck with the paint, I think that could prove one of the hardest parts of this build, im sure your manage anyway ! Looking forward to more of the same....... Lowlife ! !

Absolutely amazing paint job, don't worry about the how-to video, can I just send you my models to paint instead ....... ...... Are you going to finish the jag now its painted, or was this a paint trial, for now ? .... ..Lowlife ! !

Thanks again guys, and Jason I would be interested to see what you could do with a bug, your 49 merc is amazing....... .... ! I was in my local hobby shop once ( in the UK, so they don't sell many cars, mainly just Tamiya sports cars. ) and couldn't find anything I wanted, and I saw this bug. It was so far away from anything id normally buy, that it just seemed a cool challenge to build it ! Once home I nearly regretted getting it, I considered a pro street version, a lowrider, a sled, even a gasser, but it went back into the box till I could decide. Its fun now, though I still hate bodywork, but at least I will (hopefully..) be a little better with the filler after this things built...... ..... Thanks for taking the time to comment on this build, like most people say it does inspire the builder to get back to the modelling desk and get a bit more done. Talking of which I will post pics of it in primer soon, just need to find my filler, I threw it somewhere..... ..... More soon........ Lowlife ! !

Thanks guys, hey Rob I love cars `layin frame` too, but this is 1mm off the floor ! ! And thanks for the suggestion Rich, yeah been thinking I might blend in the top and bottom of the foglight hole, leaving slits as indicators maybe ?? Not sure yet, thought id get it on wheels, then go back to the bodywork ! More soon.... Lowlife ! !

Here is a couple more pics, how the bug sits now the suspensions all done...Radiator and engine are fitted too, ........... I said this thing sits Low...... .......

Next up was the rear end... Now I thought id try something different here, seeing as the rear suspension is more visible, so I thought id scratchbuild it. I wanted hydraulics, so I devised a swing arm system with a triangle kind of 2 bar support, !! In real life it might work, it might not, but I enjoy this kind of thing so if it looks cool that's fine with me ! I remade the axle with metal tubing too so it didn't break again, added the prop, and wired up the hydraulic lines..... Heres some pics, hope it makes sense now.......

Thanks, thought id get you up to date with this one, front suspension first... As I said I wanted this as low as possible, so I used 1mm plastic to hold up the chassis and built the suspension around it ! The spindles were scratchbuilt, coils cut, and I had to trim a little of the tyre edges to fit...... ...... They are made to turn slightly too, so when the body fits on the wheels can settle in. Cant see much of the details but heres pics.......

Hey this should look cool, great engine choice ! As your going for a modern feel how bout colour coding the engine, add a smooth engine bay too ?? Wheels look great , im looking forward to more progress...... ......Lowlife ! !

Wow I thought heres just another merc build, but I read through it and Im hooked .... ..... You do great modifications, and there are loads of ideas to copy..... ..... Thought you would go for a old style engine set up, the new one looks fantastic ! Have you considered making the rest of the car look more modern, new wheels, interior parts maybe ? Love it whatever you do mate, very inspirational build I will look forward to more......... Lowlife ! !

Thanks, yes the engine is quite set back but does fit under the bugs bonnet (hood??) Made the engine, ive changed the induction pipes as they didn't fit, and its painted ! Colour is plasti-kote Lavender for the engine and Tamiya lavender for the chassis, these are the colours im using for the rest of the car too. The first engine pic looks pink.... ...., after a couple more pics I got a true colour in the second pic... Funny how different two shades of lavender can be eh? .... More soon, thanks for looking in and as usual comments and suggestions etc gladly accepted ....... .....Lowlife ! !