atomicholiday Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 I finished this one a little over a week ago, but I was waiting for my new light box to arrive. Then I picked up a wicked head cold, so it had to wait another week to be revealed. This is the AMT 1971 Superbug Gasser, from the Coca-Cola Unity Collection. I picked this kit up for $5, thinking it would be cool to have a Beetle in the stash. I didn't realize it was the short-body version, so upon opening the box and seeing the body, my first thought was "this will never get built". But as luck would have it, last summer was spent learning to paint. For a fiver, I figured it would be a practice body, and that would be the end of it. As I was really just using it for practice, it got painted and stripped something like 3-4 times before getting it right. But the final paint job turned out to be one of my better attempts. This inspired me to continue on and finish the little bug. Speaking of paint, the color is Testors Extreme Lacquer Star Spangled Blue, straight from the can, followed up with clear lacquer (I forget the brand). The idea for the build was to create a tribute to one of my favorite old red-line Hot Wheels cars. Most of the kit was built straight from the box, but a few modifications were made for various reasons. The hydraulic steering damper was reworked, because the original part feels like it's not even from the same kit. Doesn't even come close to fitting properly. Battery cables were added just for fun and because I'd never done it before. Also, the exhaust was completely reworked. The kit supplies two exhaust options, neither one of which did much for me. Finally, if built straight out of the box, the engine cover won't close. Instructions even tell you to glue it open. I couldn't live with that, so the engine was moved inward and modified. For those that are interested in the build, the WIP can be found here: Without further ado, here's my take on the AMT '71 Superbug Gasser. As always, questions, comment, and constructive criticism are always welcome. Thanks for looking! 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TransAmMike Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 That is really cool Jeremy and very nice paint. Did have to laugh at the 6 volt battery tho😊 Great job👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karbuildr Posted January 28 Share Posted January 28 Very cool VW. I like the short body look with the wheels and tires. Very nice paint. Star Spangled Blue is one of my favorite Testors Lacquer colors. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PappyD340 Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Cool build! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zippi Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 That's pretty sharp looking. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yeah Nah Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Nice! Have to get me one of these. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moparman18064 Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Great color choice. It really looks like a high end Hot Wheels car, just like you planned. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mustang1989 Posted January 29 Share Posted January 29 Nice n' tidy paint work coupled with all the detailing you put into this one makes for a great finish up Jeremy. Great photos in that light box too dude. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slusher Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 Beautiful looking little VW, Jeremy! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XYHARRY Posted January 30 Share Posted January 30 Cool vw there Jeremy, colour looks great. Well done. Cheers, David. 😎👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swatters53 Posted January 31 Share Posted January 31 Very nice, clean build! The Myers Manx kit with a bug body. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atomicholiday Posted January 31 Author Share Posted January 31 On 1/28/2024 at 4:08 PM, TransAmMike said: That is really cool Jeremy and very nice paint. Did have to laugh at the 6 volt battery tho😊 Great job👍 On 1/28/2024 at 5:45 PM, karbuildr said: Very cool VW. I like the short body look with the wheels and tires. Very nice paint. Star Spangled Blue is one of my favorite Testors Lacquer colors. On 1/28/2024 at 7:14 PM, PappyD340 said: Cool build! On 1/28/2024 at 9:29 PM, Zippi said: That's pretty sharp looking. On 1/29/2024 at 4:42 AM, Yeah Nah said: Nice! Have to get me one of these. On 1/29/2024 at 8:35 AM, Moparman18064 said: Great color choice. It really looks like a high end Hot Wheels car, just like you planned. On 1/29/2024 at 12:11 PM, mustang1989 said: Nice n' tidy paint work coupled with all the detailing you put into this one makes for a great finish up Jeremy. Great photos in that light box too dude. On 1/29/2024 at 10:56 PM, slusher said: Beautiful looking little VW, Jeremy! On 1/30/2024 at 5:12 AM, XYHARRY said: Cool vw there Jeremy, colour looks great. Well done. Cheers, David. 😎👍 2 hours ago, swatters53 said: Very nice, clean build! The Myers Manx kit with a bug body. Thank you all for your generous compliments! I appreciate you all! It was a fun build, but I'm glad to be done with it. I'm ready for the next challenge! ('71 GTX, I'm looking at you) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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