The Virus

[Psychographic]

Started another one. This victim is a VW 60's Beetle.

 

See this pic below? This is where this kit belongs. If you want to build a Beetle, Don't, I REPEAT, DON"T buy this kit. Maybe on it's first release this was a decent kit, but the one I have is horrible, I don't think there is one part with a clean edge to it. This thing is a blob with some flash thrown in as a bonus.

 

 

This is what I call a "What if" build. What if is simply cutting stuff up with no direction or plan what the next step is. Hopefully in the end I have something worth looking at. I like Volksrods so let's start by cutting the fenders off.

 

 

I decide to chop it but not cut the back of the roof off completely, but to lower the whole back of the car with the roof. Why? I don't know.  I started by cutting the roof about 3/16" behind the top edge of the windshield, Then I scored the base of the windshield/cowl, and cut 2 notches in the "A" pillars. This will allow me to chop the top and lay the windshield back rather than cut it. It's stronger, and the angled windshield has a more modern look. Then I took out 1/8" from the "B" pillars and half of the "C" pillars.  this will drop the roof and the back of the body.

 

 

And put back together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 21, 2016 by Psychographic

[espo]

Great start. The chopped top almost looks factory. Can't wait to see what comes next.

[mod3l Lover]

    Wow David,

   I like the approach you used for the chop work!!  It just looks

so right that way.

  The VolkRods I see in1:1 are such layed down roofs that I

just stare in amazment as to how they got them to look so

good with what they must have done to it metal work wise.

  But I just love the look, and you got a nice build going

here for sure.  I will be watching this one!!

 

      David S.

[Psychographic]

I've got the fenders back on, I raised them as much as possible. The back fenders have been widened 1/4" and moved forward about 1/4" ,the front fenders have been widened 1/8". The "B" pillars have been removed and the "C"'s have been reshaped.

 

I had to shorten the chassis pan, then raise the back to fit the raised fenders.

 

 

The tunnel had to be raised and shortened. I am also redoing the rear suspension. You can also see the spacer I put in to move the transmission forward to match the relocated rear fenders. It's simply a slice of 1/2" tube cemented to the hole in the plate between the engine and tranny.

 

Filling the gaps.

 

 

The rear window has been filled and will be replaced with a back window from a 40 Willys.

 

Edited December 21, 2016 by Psychographic

[Foxer]

Maybe is a bad kit, but looks like fun to me!  

[Psychographic]

I thought the front needed to be lowered a bit. I put a bunch of cuts in a piece of .060 x .250 and started wrapping it around the lower edge. Once it sets up, I fill the cuts with SB.

 

 

After a little sanding it blends right in.

If you look carefully, you can see I shrunk the windshield opening by adding some sheet stock to the top edge. I didn't like how the full size opening looked in comparison to the side window openings

 

 

Next up was to fix the square bottom of the trunk. Two cuts and it's gone.

 

I used tape to keep the piece from gluing itself to the body, I only want it to attach to the hood. It still needs some sanding to get the final shape. It kinda looks like one of those dogs that can't keep it's tongue in it's mouth doesn't it?

 

Edited December 12, 2016 by Psychographic

[Psychographic]

This is why I didn't want the nose piece to cement to the body. The trunk needs to be a bit wider to properly fit the body. I started by cutting down one side and making filler pieces.

 

 

I also had to add to the sides.

 

 

Almost there. What gaps you see now will be filled with SB once the underside of the body is cleaned up. It's a lot easier to sand without the trunk in the way.

 

 

It's at this point I found a direction to take this build. I joined the Lowrider CBP, so a lowrider it is, or will be.

 

I used 1/2" tube and some scrap sheet to make the recess for the gas tank, and cut a notch for the pumps to fit. The circles you see drawn on each side of the notch are where I'm hoping the front cylinders will mount.

 

 

Pegasus pumps, and a tank I think came from a Red Baron kit.

 

 

 

Edited December 12, 2016 by Psychographic

[cobraman]

You are so right about this kit being a dog. That being said I am sure you will make something cool out of it.

[bobthehobbyguy]

Progressing nicely. And the tank is from the red baron.

[JTalmage]

I really like the way this thing is going. A friend of mine built a volksrod one time.... years ago.. chopped it, took 8 fenders and made 4, slammed it, and left it rusty. It was awesome. I'll see if I can dig up a pic...

[David G.]

Nice work so far!

David G.

[Psychographic]

Thank you all for the comments and for following along, I'll try not to let you down.

 

I guess it's about time I buttoned up the front extension. Again, some .060 notched to make the bend.

 

Gooped up with some SB and a few shims.

 

Next is the doors. The nice thing here, there's more room for hinges behind the doors than in front, so lets get suicidal.

 

I laid out the cuts to move the door handles. Once cut, the left handle goes on the right door, and obviously the right handle goes on the left door.

 

 

Now this will show you how stupid I can be. I never checked to see if the kits door handles are even usable as many of the parts are pretty much junk. I've got my fingers crossed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 13, 2016 by Psychographic

[Psychographic]

Progressing nicely. And the tank is from the red baron.

Thanks Bob. I thought it was from the Baron kit but wasn't sure

[Psychographic]

Reshaping the hood (?). The inside rounded line will hopefully be the new body line. I cut along this line, just shy of the top and removed the squared corners.

 

Then I taped the inside and filled with SB.

 

 

Set in place to see if the curve looks good. I think it's an improvement. I'll let the SB set up to where it's pretty solid but still pliable and make sure it fits the contour of the body, then tape it in place to finish drying.

 

 

If I don't screw this up, I might try to make a center spike like the older Beetle has, along with lengthening the hood. It doesn't line up to well along the top edge, so if I cement the top to the body and rework the shape before making the new cut, it should line up better and be easier to do. Should, being the keyword here.

 

 

[bill_67]

To start off I could not agree with you more on this kit it's terrible, I'm building one now. But you are certainly doing a great job on this especially with no plans to start with, very much looking forward to following this build.

[Foxer]

way too much fun watching this and I like how it's headed!

[Dodge Driver]

Nice work, David! What is the SB you're using for filler? Looks smooth and easy to work with.

[Psychographic]

SB stands for Styrene Bondo, which is a term I made up. It's styrene melted in MEK. 

Edited December 15, 2016 by Psychographic

[Belugawrx]

Awesome body mods David!

Watching this one

Cheers

[paul alflen]

DAVID, ON THE STYRENE BONDO HOW MUCH PLASTIC TO HOW MUCH MEK? DO I DIP IT IN THE MEK TO SOFTEN , OR DO I CHOP IT TO STYRENE BITS AND MIX IN THE MEK? INTERESTING CONCEPT!

[Psychographic]

Paul, what I do is fill a small bottle (I use an old Plastruct Bondene bottle) about 1/2 way with MEK, then fill it with Styrene scraps and old sprue, cap it and let it sit for a day or two. I've found the proper mix is when I put a toothpic in it and pull it out, it will drip off rather quickly. Too thin and most of it will be MEK and evaporate out, not that big of a deal, but it will take many more coats to fill any gaps. Too thick and it takes forever to dry. When mixed properly I've found a thick layer 1/16" will be dry in about 24 hours to sand, if it isn't dry enough you will know right away as the plastic will ball up as you sand. Think of SB like the old Testors Orange tube glue, too much and things will melt and get distorted. I apply it by dipping either a toothpic or if the level in the bottle is low, a skewer into the SB and transfer it to the joint and spread it quickly as it skins over pretty quick.A couple of other things to note, if you use it a lot, you'll have to add some MEK now and then as it will start to thicken as the MEK evaporates when the bottle is open. If you make a real thin mix, look at the bottle before using as it can start to settle and will leave a noticeable color separation, a quick shake and it will mix right back up.

 

 

The main things I like about SB is it's strong, fills incredibly well, and it seems to be just a tad softer than the kit parts, but much closer than any bondo or finishing putty. The drawback is the wait for it to dry, a 2 part filler will dry in minutes, where I usually have to wait anywhere from and hour for a very thin coat, to a day or two for a heavy coat of SB. I use it on almost all of my joint seams after cementing with MEK just to be sure the gap is 100% filled.

 

I'm at the point now where about 95% of my bodywork is done with SB. If you follow my builds they are very heavily modified and some are very fragile while building. As I progress to using more SB for the heavy mods, I still break stuff, but nowhere near as much as before the use of SB. I'm thinking of one day building a car without paint, just bare plastic. It would be the model equivalent of a 1:! bare metal car.

If you have anymore questions, just ask.

Edited December 21, 2016 by Psychographic

[Dodge Driver]

David, I really appreciate the in depth answer. I often wondered how styrene/MEK worked. Thanks!

[Psychographic]

Happy to help Frank.

 

I almost forgot, MEK is bad for you Blah Blah Blah,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Edited December 15, 2016 by Psychographic

[Dodge Driver]

Happy to help Frank.

 

I almost forgot, MEK is bad for you Blah Blah Blah,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Those Big Macs are bad for me too, but I ate 'em anyway

[misterNNL]

You seem to be working like a mad man on this,unafraid to cut deeply and often going where no VW has gone before.Great project!be sure to keep us up to date and thanks for sharing.