VW Dave

I'm mildly disappointed about this, as buying from Norm is a big part of the NNL East for me, but I have the utmost respect for him as a businessman. He is, for want of a better term, "the goods."

I'm not sure if I get the 'rounded triangle' thing.....have any pics of it? The coil-over thing might not be the way to go if the OP is doing a rat rod Depending on the front axle being used, making it into a 'suicide' style setup is a good way to lower the nose and gain a few scale inches worth of wheelbase as well. On my 'Channel Surfer' '32 roadster I separated the leaf spring from the axle, drilled out the spring ends and drilled corresponding holes in the axle, and pinned it together for gluing. The one on the left is the modded one, and you can see the difference in height at the frame horns. For mock-up and comparison purposes I used the same wheels & tires on both frames, and the axles were both Revell kit-supplied parts.

I was gonna say Toyota for both, based on the bed rail shape, although dating them is not my bag.

I agree 100%, but I also don't restore older builds because they rarely get (re)finished......my theory is that I didn't have the same inspiration or drive to build it the second time around. In the later 80's I attempted to re-do 3 of my older builds, and just one made it back to the shelf.

Every spring I get in the same spot; warmer weather comes along and I do more stuff outside with my 1:1 toys and my family. Every fall/early winter gets me back into plastic again. I've been building for over 30 years, and my occasional breaks probably add up to 3-4 years altogether. That being said, I will echo the sentiment from the previous posts: don't sell it off, just pack it away for the proverbial rainy....or snowy....day.

IMO yes....and I happen to have an unassembled one that I can spare. PM or email me with any trade ideas. I used a Tamiya engine as the basis for my V-Bucket's drivetrain:

Whenever I'm planning a replica build, the first step is always reference pics of & notes on the real car....having the RR kit and the real GTX within reach can tell you what needs to be done.

Fujimi's Enthusiast Series 911 kits often had nicely-detailed engines, but you'd probably be on your own as far as any detailing/plumbing beyond what the kits had to offer. Revell's STI has a decent engine in it, but you'd again be on the hook for a lot of fab work to adapt it to the Bus. Why not do up a turbo VW engine, based on the Tamiya '66 Beetle or Ghia? There's lots of good reference material available on the web, and I can send you links to some good spots.

I agree that Ebay prices are based entirely on what people will pay. I had that same kit from new in the 1980s, and I left it alone because the body was so poorly designed; after 30 years I was all of a sudden seeing it as a 'MIB' kit. Mine sold on Ebay to a Shelby collector in FL for just shy of $120.

As a fan of VWs and weathered models I really like it, especially the photography....looks like it's really on the pavement. I agree with the above comments regarding the sunroof; my 1:1 '66 Micro was in slightly better shape, but his sunroof was worse.

Most of my 'head scratcher' kits wound up on my trades list for that reason

I like the one that Jimmy Flintstone offers; it is based on the old Revell 'Orange Crate,' and the chop is agressive like the cars done by Rolling Bones....the downside is that it's smaller than the new Revell kits and won't fit the frame from those newer kits. I'm using a modified Phantom Vickie frame under mine. I just cut into one of my Revell sedans, in the hopes that I can make it work.

Here's a shot of my in-progress '32 roadster, with a channel of about 7" in scale: A '32 Ford frame is about 6" tall, as I'm told; that's where I get my guesstimate from. Compared to a 'box stock' stance on the left, you can see how much lower mine went with a channel job: Here's a link to the whole build so far, which might prove helpful(depending on the style of hot rod you're doing): http://public.fotki....el-surfer-32-f/

All of mine are rattle-canned: http://public.fotki.com/vwdave/my_model_cars/

He's not copying them; he sent me the one he had.

I like how this one's coming together, and you really oughta send pics to Ken & Keith @ Rolling Bones when it's done. Minus the channel, you've nailed their style.

I've had a light 'cube' for a few years now, and I'm very happy with it...pretty sure it was about $30 shipped from Ebay, and I dropped another tenner on a mini tripod. Using the tripod with my digi set on macro and the timer made a huge difference in my pictures. groo12's pictures are well-focused, but I agree there needs to be more light. I'm über-frugal(read: 'really cheap'), and I don't have any indoor setup; I take my cube out to the table on our deck on nice days and shoot away:

I agree with Jim that brass rod would be easier to work than styrene. If the OP isn't a confident solderer(not sure if that's a word, but I'm rolling), 5-minute epoxy applied with small disposable brushes works well too. I used that method on my '56 Beetle's roof rack: Under the in-progress rack is a small strip of wax paper - epoxy will not stick to wax paper, so there's no fear of gluing your project to the bench if you lay down a sheet on your work surface first. If brass tubing is deemed more realistic than brass rod, I'd recommend inserting the corresponding-size brass rod into it to prevent kinks when bending it and 'fish-mouthing' the ends with a round file and/or Dremel for a more finished appearance. www.berrienbuggy.com and www.larrysoffroad.com are a couple of sites I'd recommend for good reference pics of bare frames

roadhawg to the rescue...thanks, Tommy!!

Essentially, yes. The hard work was done, and body/paint were next on the builder's list when Hollywood came knocking. He had planned to finish the clone after he got it back, but he liked it so much he left it 'as-is.'

Nope; those are nice to have around, but not strong enough. I meant the prep pads that are often used prior to an injection, and they are usually found in a first aid kit....or in your doctors' exam rooms when they step out and leave you alone.

A 40% coupon is a good thing, and the occasional 50 percenter is even better.

I've had good luck removing black Sharpie from bare plastic with an alcohol prep pad(like you find in a first aid kit)......can't hurt to try it on a small spot

Soft aluminum 'armature wire,' which is intended for sculpting, makes for nice exhaust tubing; it's lighter than solder, bends by hand, and polishes up with little or no effort. It's available in several sizes: In the bead aisle, these 'bead cones' spoke to me: Once I got them home, I turned at least one and some armature wire into a VW 'stinger' header assembly in short order

There's not too much call for them, but it also makes nice curb feelers: 3/16" eyelets make decent carb stacks for hot rods: I have a couple more, but Fotki is giving me fits right now....