OldNYJim

I’ve actually had some pretty good luck with AIRBRUSHING this stuff…although the pens have a very short shelf life before they’re useless, as some have noted. I like that it doesn’t need a black enamel base like Alclad, it’s easier to apply, it self levels pretty well and is AS tough as Alclad (in my experience) if allowed to dry for a couple of days or more before being handled. I’ve never experienced the ‘stickiness’ people mention, personally, and I don’t do anything special with the stuff except letting it dry naturally I couldn’t immediately find any good pictures of projects I’ve used it on, on my phone, but like most materials and techniques you CAN get decent results with it with some experimentation and perseverance…but I’ll agree with others here that the pens aren’t the best and you do still need to handle it carefully…and the longevity of the stuff is still relatively unproven…

Thanks everyone! Good leads - thank you! I was familiar with 89 Design, but not King 3D…some cool stuff there! Actually, yeah, I picked up probably 10 of the Revell VW kit last year, plus this and the pink version, plus a couple of Hasegawa ones, plus a couple of Tamiya ones…think I’m set on Beetles for a while - all that’s left now is to build them all ? You’re absolutely right - yes! Lack of VW knowledge showing thru…. It’s workbench Saturday, so time for an update…got a bunch done… Designed and o rinted some headlight buckets - the kit ones are just little flat washers and I wanted some depth to them: Whilst I had the printer running, printed some embossed license plates… …and a cooler to maybe throw in the interior…couple of big hints on colorscheme there in case anyone is curious… Resin cast some disk brakes and started messing with the rear end…got it low as I can feasibly get it I think: Need to do a fresh mockup once the glue dries again, but I think I’m good… Did a little bodywork - deleted the (wonky) chrome trim and cleaned that area up, plus patched some holes: And removed the little sun visors and pinned them so I can paint those separately: I’m thinking of using this fabric roof cover, whatever those are called - it’s kinda lumpy and big and inelegant but I kinda like it…modified it a little so I can have it easily removable and or swappable with the ‘up top’: Patched some HUGE holes in the floor that are visible from the underside…they’re there for mounting the seats but they could’ve found a more elegant solution… Speaking of the seats, I assembled the kit (stock) seats and sat them in the tub and HATED them…found some more visually pleasing ones in the parts stash that match the doorcards ok: And, speaking of the door cards, they’re nicely rendered EXCEPT for two big ejector pin marks in the top that would be hard to make disappear whilst blending them in to the surrounding texture: A little Vallejo putty stippled on with a brush: Let it set up for a half hour and carefully remove the masking: Way better! Better than a couple of holes, anyway… Thanks for looking - more soon, soon as I’ve done more!!

Wow, that thing’s wild looking - love the exposed transmission and the steering wheel thru the seat! This’ll be a cool build!

Great looking build John - can’t wait to see some pics in ‘the park’ of this one! EDIT; nevermind, posted my reply and found a whole other page with finished pics ?.

Figure I’ve only got about five more hours and it’ll be ready for primer ?? A little update - still not feeling great so benchtime has been limited, but got a little done… Mostly finished messing with my ‘air ride’ front end, until I get to adding details, that is. I think that’s what they call ‘in the dirt’… Everything still fits, and, actually, if this were 1:1 and you put enough air in the shocks to get it JUST off the ground the front wheels can turn in the arches. Not that it really matters, but I like at least trying to justify these dumb ideas I have with SOME basis in reality… Need to figure out a better attachment of the body to the chassis - there’s four tiny tabs for gluing but they’re not very substantial… Next up, figured out where I want the backdated bumpers I printed to mount: And this kit comes with what I think Beetle guys call ‘elephant foot’ lights - but they’re way too big for my taste. Found some that I liked more in my VW parts stash and started the backdating process… Next big hurdle to overcome is getting the suspension lowered on the rear end to achieve the same trick as I did on the front…despite it’s age everything on the rear end of this kit actually fits together really nicely…pity I’m not using it as Revell intended or it’d be a walk in the park: Just a small update, but more soon, soon as I’ve done more! Thanks for looking!

You’re not kidding… And that wobbly trim running down the side…urgh… Thank you sir! Yes, you’re 100% correct - the reference photo I was using showed the axle center sitting very slightly behind the center, so I made it that way to match…which of course meant spacing the whole assembly forward slightly: They’re slightly too far back on mine, but the arms on the 3D file I found are slightly short, it looked like…so I’m fudging three or four inaccuracies in different places to make it work right HOPEFULLY. I THINK my measurements are good, and my wheel centers are just where they were with the kit axle…lots of mocking up and tweaking to do to be certain though before I can glue anything for good. Thank you for pointing it out in case I was making an error - that’s appreciated! And thanks to the rest of you guys too! Today’s progress started with roughing in a steering rack…I’ll add detail to this later but wanted to make a start: Then next job was printing some spacers to allow me to mount the photo etch brake disks that I wanted to use: These actually stack together with three or four parts to make vented disks…but I would like to try lathe-turning some of my own too. These are my plan B, which may become my plan A…printed some calipers for them too (and some brake pads, but I neglected to photograph them…) While the printer was running I printed a couple of better detailed engines…I’d LIKE to use the kit parts ideally… …but it’s hard not to admit that there’s a decent different in detail level between what was in the box and what we can print at home now: I need to do some more research but I’m not 100% sure what year Beetle this is meant to represent? A 70-something? Anyone know? Whilst the printer was running, took a half hour to start cleanup on the front fenders - WAY better but I’m sure primer will reveal more sins: Amazing how nicely this older styrene sands compared to the softer stuff in use today… And last project for the weekend; I’m intending to run front and rear bumpers on this thing so I test kit the kit part: Blurgh. That’s, umm…not attractive. I printed an older style bumper which is MUCH more like what I imagined… I wonder if there’s some faux-pas in the VW scene about putting earlier parts on later cars? Like putting a Model T grille on a Deuce Coupe? I don’t wanna be THAT guy ?. And that’s about where it sits right now…lot of work at the bench today for not much progress, but it’s SOME! Thanks for looking - more soon!

Oh man, all those little details to check out ?. So nice to see another of your builds in progress John - thanks for sharing!!

Beautiful paint! I assume that’s a 2K clear on there?

Beautiful work on the CAD for those tires - and the curing jig is a great idea!

Thank you! And yep - agreed…I’ll have some healthy camber on the rear end…I just couldn’t make the wheels pose ‘cambered’ for the photo and got tired fighting it ? My idea for this one is to have this thing sitting in the dirt, but to build an air-ride system into it to demonstrate that it COULD be raised up and driven conventionally when not parked up in ‘show mode’. I did some decent research the last couple of days and learned some about how people achieve that goal in 1:1, and made a start on the front end. I WAS planning to modify the kit front axle and trailing arms, but they’re not the best starting point…decided on printing an already-lowered axle instead: The 3D printed part still needs to be cleaned-up and cured in this pic, but it’s clear how much this will help with getting the front end in the weeds… This part is designed to work with the Tamiya kit, which has separate steering spindles, so I had to make my own for this project…not a super exciting scratchbuilding project, but I made an approximation of the 1:1 parts based off some reference photos: I had to add a styrene ‘receiver’ to the frame (floor? Pan? Floorpan?) to take the new axle, but otherwise it looks like it’ll work perfect first try… A trick I saw mentioned on a VW site I was researching on mentioned a way of reengineering the spindles so you can flip them side to side and gain an extra little drop in ride height…so I did the same, but seeing as the parts I made are only a very loose approximation of the look of real ones it’s not really noticeable…I could’ve built them a little more to scale and accurate to the 1:1 but I don’t think they’ll be very visible when installed and I didn’t want them to be too fragile… Test fit: Just a little progress, but I’ll finish this front end up tomorrow and then figure out front brakes…more soon, soon as I’ve done more!

New month, new project! I actually very casually started this yesterday but I have Covid right now so I’m very slow and unproductive… Here’s what I’m starting out with: Not the best Beetle kit in my collection, not the worst - but the only convertible, and I wanted to build a drop-top…stance as I imagine it is about exactly like in that pic above. I really liked these wheels that this builder, Eero, used on his patina’d Beetle: I didn’t recognize what they were, so I reached out and Eero replied that they were kitbashed from a couple of different wheels. I decided to try drawing some ‘inspired by’ wheels of my own - I’ve printed other people’s wheels before but never designed any…ended up with this: These are just test prints, but I achieved the general look I wanted without totally copying Eero’s…getting that stance is going to be tough tho…I need to drop the spindles THIS much: Quick mockup with test print wheels… My camera was really struggling with that green and the blue AND the gray of the 3D printed resin…apologies for that washed-out nuclear look. Anyway…just a start on this thing….happy Friday everyone!

Thanks everyone…I forgot to post a link to the finished pics… Thanks for all the nice comments!

Thats a great find, Dan! The cowl looks a little rough, as do the seats, but probably nothing that can’t be fixed physically once the parts are printed…nice find - thanks for posting

The Amazon fairy came today, couple of new additions to my to-do list… I never picked up one of these the first time(s) around: I’d be curious to know if that box art helps sales or hinders them, compared to the old version with the yellow car on the box… And this has been on my to-build list for a while too - AMT Double Dragster kit: I’m sure I read on here you can almost build three kits out of this one if you wanted, which seems feasible…there’s three frames and three bodies and three engines - a good deal for the $23 delivered I got this for…the Topolino will be a cool companion to the Atlantis/Revell Topolino kit if and when I get to them both… Plenty of build options too! Cool!

Good start Steve! I REALLY like that blue color you figured out for the block…that would be a great color for a future build I had in mind… Looking forward to seeing this one come together!

First one of ‘24 in the bag! I’d been wanting to work on my bare-metal (or ‘natural metal’ as the aircraft guys call it) painting skills, and I haven’t built a Deuce in a while, so this seemed a logical project to start the year Used the Revell 3-window body, chopped, with the 2nd Gen Hemi from the 5-window kits, 3D printed wheels and tires, switched out the airbagged rear end for a Revell Parts Pack Quickchange with a T spring and used about every metalizer paint I own for the various finishes. Build thread here: And some pics…thanks for looking!

Happy Sunday everybody! Wrapped this thing up today…just had a bunch of loose ends and some assembly to handle, but it came together pretty quickly… Painted the license plates…decided to go with bare metal for those too, to fit the theme… Only ended up using one…I tried a front one but didn’t like it so we’ll have to take the tickets for not running it… Got the front glass installed, along with the felt bead that would protect the paint if there was any… Then came a bunch of activity all at once - attaching interior to body, body to frame, installing lights and the steering and a bunch of little bits… I really like how this looks with the different contrasting metal tones…everything from bright chrome on the exhaust tips and steering linkage to the clean aluminum on the valve covers to the slight crustiness of the headers… One of the last jobs was getting the taillights installed straight and even…a little low-tack tape is helpful for laying out some guides for jobs like this… And with that it was just time for some final touch ups before wrapping this thing up and making a chopped-cheese sandwich . I’ll do a thread with some finished pics, but here’s one in the meantime… Thanks for all the nice comments and encouragement everyone - it means a lot! Time to clear the shop and get rolling on the next one…

I think this is as good a place as any for it… Nice start! That frame looks great!

Thank you!! That’s a good lead on the Semperfli - I’m going to order some…thank you! And thank YOU both too! A little more progress today… Assembled the interior…a couple of little touch-ups and it’ll be ready to install: I had some more ideas for it but it’s almost impossible to see what’s already there, so I’ll save THOSE for a roadster build… Started gluing glass in place, got the headlights and taillights done and then got the rear window attached…also painted the windshield frame so that I can add glass to that tomorrow… And the rest of the day was spent messing with the engine - adding the alternator and bracket, fuel lines and stuff like that: That black rubber hose is from Hobby Lobby - makes great scale radiator hose. And finally for today, got the engine glued in it’s forever place… It’s starting to look like a thing! Probably should be able to wrap this one up tomorrow, all being well…thanks for looking, more soon!

We don’t drink wine very often, but I have heard that is meant to work well…I should look for a bottle that has the metal foil! To the wine aisle! ? ? Four little pieces of progress tonight - none of them earth-shattering… Shot some primer on my license plates having cleaned them up. My brain sometimes has evil ideas that I can’t forget until I try them, and tonight’s evil idea was to try foiling just the letters after painting the rest of the plate. I wish my brain wouldn’t think of these things because now I have to try it, but it might look cool… Easier would be chroming them, like these bits I brush-painted tonight. Molotow self-levels nicely and it’s way easier than Alclad, even if it has it’s detractors… Added some detail to the brake master cylinder, which you won’t really be able to see, and also made a driveshaft seeing as that’s the final thing I needed to make… And we’re almost down to just assembly jobs now. Should get this one mostly wrapped up this weekend, unless I decide to do the 24-hour build thing a lot of people seem to be doing…can’t quite decide… Thanks for looking - more soon!

B.T. Sherwood is back, maybe?

Howdy y’all! It’s Friday eve! A little more progress tonight…designed some license plates…I’ve been enjoying making these stamped-looking plates lately, even though they’re a pain to paint… I never tried one with the reverse-detail though, because normally you can’t see it. You might be able to on this build though, depending on where I decide to put them, so I added it to these: I printed a couple of thicknesses…they’re not even CLOSE to scale stamped-metal finish, but the effect worked ok… The less in-scale the thickness of the plates, the better the effect works, ironically, but I’ll paint both kinds and see what looks good… Also this evening, I’d been wanting to try using some thin metal sheet to make seatbelts. I’ve never been super satisfied with just using ribbon, the pattern is too large, paper kinda looks, well, paper-y and thin styrene sheet doesn’t conform well. Seeing as the interior is barely visible on this build anyway, it seemed like a good candidate for some experimentation. Test piece - one belt with PE buckle: I didn’t want to risk ruining the paint by installing the photo etch AFTER, so I brush painted these with the buckle in place…effect works ok I think: Nice thing is, you can add some more depth and texture to these pieces same as I’ve been doing with weathering the metal - add some pastels for shade where the belts sag, or add some light spots to highlight the tops…I think I’ll use this technique again and keep messing with it Just a small update today, but it’s nearly the weekend! I can assemble the interior now, paint the final few pieces that need color and then we’re in the home stretch. More soon!

Thanks fellas - appreciate all the nice comments! A little more progress tonight… Simple job that I hadn’t done yet was adding a blackwash of Tamiya Panel Liner to the grill insert - quick and simple and adds a lot… I’d really like to try making a 3d printed version of one of these with gaps between the bars, but I think that would be a trick project both to design AND to print, so I’m working with the kit piece on this one… Next up, working through the final few pieces that I need to paint…painted the seats (more on those tomorrow) and also the headers. Shot them with four tone of Vallejo (black, gunmetal, dirty steel and natural steel), picked out some welds to demonstrate a repair at some point with a dipping pen and some Molotow chrome, then added some pastels to add a little wear and age to them: I’m not going to rusted out and ruined on anything on this build, but the headers needed the heaviest weathering and it was fun to not be AS restrained with the black and brown tones on them… And finally, back on the frame, playing with some spacer bars for the frame…I wasn’t going to use any, but now I’m thinking maybe? Adds another bright and clean tone to the frame, which was always intended to contrast with the relative roughness of the unpainted body…I’ll sleep on that and see how I feel when I look again tomorrow…. Thanks for looking - tomorrow’s project will probably be license plates and seatbelts! More soon, soon as I’ve done more!!

I’ve had this on the shelf for a few years - maybe this should be the year I actually restore it: Will need to repair some parts and I want to resin case some of the more interesting unique-to-this-kit parts for use on future builds first…I kinda wish I’d kept the brand-new-in-box mint kit I had a few years ago but someone offered me a crazy amount of money for it so I let it go…

Appreciate you sharing it with us over here! Great looking build!