Disney's VW Love Bug aka "Herbie": WIP

[Edward Gore]

The dark paint in the louvers added super realism. 

[David G.]

19 hours ago, LennyB said:

Back in the late 60's my family had it's own ' FrankenBeetle '. It was a 63 that had been in a front end collision. My father replaced the whole front clip and got it back on the road. Resprayed the dark grey color in the garage and it looked pretty good. My younger brother used to climb all the way in the back behind the rear seat into the small storage area. One day my mother drove me to school and when she got home couldn't find my brother. She freaked out and drove back to the school thinking he had gotten out there. Needless to say he had fallen asleep in the storage area and see just couldn't see him. 😲

Sadly a few months later the bug got rear-ended and that was the end of that. Maybe a dark grey car that matches the color of the pavement is just not too visible on the road.🤔

I'm glad they found your brother! It's amusing because it did have a good outcome.

A bummer about the Beetle though, that's what happened to mine too. Unfortunately it doesn't take much of a bump to the back end to wreck those cars.

Here's a couple of before and after pics of mine...

 

And the one that did 'er in.

 

11 hours ago, Edward Gore said:

The dark paint in the louvers added super realism. 

Thank you Bobby.

David G.

[Anglia105E]

I used to own and drive a 1960 V.W. beetle that was bright orange, and one day I remember driving rather too quickly round a sharp bend . . . At the time, I had two passengers with me in the car and as we negotiated the corner, the passenger side door flew open, and my passenger was thrown onto the pavement . . . Thankfully my friend was not hurt and we continued on our way !

David

[David G.]

56 minutes ago, Anglia105E said:

I used to own and drive a 1960 V.W. beetle that was bright orange, and one day I remember driving rather too quickly round a sharp bend . . . At the time, I had two passengers with me in the car and as we negotiated the corner, the passenger side door flew open, and my passenger was thrown onto the pavement . . . Thankfully my friend was not hurt and we continued on our way !

David

What a great story! It's a good bit of luck that your friend wasn't injured.

It's good fortune that so many of our youthful misadventures gave us amusing stories rather than serious injuries.

David G.

[LennyB]

13 minutes ago, David G. said:

What a great story! It's a good bit of luck that your friend wasn't injured.

It's good fortune that so many of our youthful misadventures gave us amusing stories rather than serious injuries.

David G.

That just reminded me of the time back in high school, and I think it was just before graduation, we did the old "how many people can you fit in a VW" routine. I think we got 11 people in and drove down Main St. Went about a block before we had had enough and all jumped out, except John who was driving of course.

[David G.]

2 minutes ago, LennyB said:

That just reminded me of the time back in high school, and I think it was just before graduation, we did the old "how many people can you fit in a VW" routine. I think we got 11 people in and drove down Main St. Went about a block before we had had enough and all jumped out, except John who was driving of course.

 

A clown car!

 

That's funny!

[David G.]

Hello Everybody!

As some of you already know I had some issues regarding this kit with stickers and decals. Now, here's a part of that of this story.

Instead of water-slide decals, this kit comes with... stickers. 😕

I gave the stickers the benefit of the doubt and tried to get them to work the way I wanted them to. To make them look the way they should on the model. They just wouldn't go. Not only did they not conform well enough, the didn't stick well either. The lack of adhesion may be my fault though. The stickers were very shiny and I didn't think that shininess would look right so I sprayed the stickers with some flat clear to kill the sheen which may have compromised the adhesive on the back.

I managed to get the racing stripes to work fairly well. And I'm sure that if I tried them, the number gumballs would probably work decently on the flat-sided doors. But getting the front gumball sticker to conform to the boot lid just wasn't going to happen.

 

 

Luckily, I anticipated this problem and had the foresight to scan the sticker sheet so I could print my own water-slide decals.

 

 

The next obvious step was the removal of those stickers. Those... those... things.

 

 

Though it took some care attention I was able to successfully remove the stickers over the course of one build session.

 

 

After the stickers were dealt with it was time to polish it up and make it ready for the decals.

 

To be continued!

David G.

[Mr. Metallic]

On 4/28/2024 at 7:37 AM, David G. said:

 

Is that really why the "25" is stamped into the boot lid, the inspector number? 

 

Pretty sure that is the part number. You can see others on the underside as well

 

Anyway, thank you for taking us along on your ride. I have this kit in my stash, but I don't plan to build it as Herbie. But knowing the assembly issues ahead of time is a great help.

 

[Anglia105E]

With great respect to yourself David. the more I see photos of your VW beetle build, the more I think the car looks loads better without the stripes and numbers . . . I shouldn't imagine for one minute that you have any intention of abandoning the ' Herbie ' idea, but what do you think of that possibility?

Having got this far, you are of course commited to the 53 Love Bug Herbie concept . . . This suggestion of mine would be like you suggesting that I abandon the Phantom III colour scheme of black and cream, and go with the two-tone gold instead . . .

David

 

[LennyB]

3 hours ago, Mr. Metallic said:

Pretty sure that is the part number. You can see others on the underside as well

 

Anyway, thank you for taking us along on your ride. I have this kit in my stash, but I don't plan to build it as Herbie. But knowing the assembly issues ahead of time is a great help.

 

Craig, that's exactly what it is, I was just joking about the inspection number

[OldTrucker]

Great looking build going on there David.

Worked on two of these in 1:1 at the VW shop the white was a very close match to Fords Wimbleton White.

[Dann Tier]

Exciting!...its getting close!

[David G.]

21 hours ago, Mr. Metallic said:

Pretty sure that is the part number. You can see others on the underside as well

 

Anyway, thank you for taking us along on your ride. I have this kit in my stash, but I don't plan to build it as Herbie. But knowing the assembly issues ahead of time is a great help.

 

Ah, that makes more sense.

 

19 hours ago, Anglia105E said:

With great respect to yourself David. the more I see photos of your VW beetle build, the more I think the car looks loads better without the stripes and numbers . . . I shouldn't imagine for one minute that you have any intention of abandoning the ' Herbie ' idea, but what do you think of that possibility?

Having got this far, you are of course commited to the 53 Love Bug Herbie concept . . . This suggestion of mine would be like you suggesting that I abandon the Phantom III colour scheme of black and cream, and go with the two-tone gold instead . . .

David

 

No offence taken kind Sir!

Believe me, I certainly thought about completing this kit unmarked, especially after seeing the paper decals provided on the kit. I even went so far as to rationalize that decision with the thought of claiming that it's Herbie as seen in the first few scenes of the movie. Before the addition of his race livery. 

A valid representation to model.

But I, like many other car fans of my generation have always wanted a Herbie of my own. This kit being an official licensed representation, despite its inaccuracies is a better option than making another kit into something I already have in hand. Being an officially licensed kit also staves off any criticisms as to its accuracy. Whereas if I make a Herbie from the Ravel or Tamiya kit, then that's on me.

Aside from all that, I already have a good stock Type 1 in the display case.

 

And a custom.

 

And a dune buggy.

 

And a Type 2.

 

With VW so well represented in my collection, a Herbie in full regalia would just be the next logical addition.

But of course, I'm always open to, and appreciative of suggestions.

-D-

 

18 hours ago, LennyB said:

Craig, that's exactly what it is, I was just joking about the inspection number

Yeah, thinking about it, that makes much more sense. A good loke though!  

 

17 hours ago, OldTrucker said:

Great looking build going on there David.

Worked on two of these in 1:1 at the VW shop the white was a very close match to Fords Wimbleton White.

Thank you Johnny.

 

3 hours ago, Dann Tier said:

Exciting!...its getting close!

Thanks Dann, it's good seeing you back on the boards again.

Thanks to all of you who took the time to post your comments, I do enjoy reading and responding to them.

David G.

[David G.]

Hello Everybody!

I managed to successfully remove the old stickers without any serious damage to the paint. I then moved on to my next option, a set of home made decals that I printed from a scan of the stickers provided in the kit. I've had fairly good luck making my own decals and I was able to get a good print on these. 

 

 

The problem came when I installed them. As you can see, the image on the decal stock cracked as I manipulated them into position. I did clear coat them, first with some semi-gloss clear and then some flat clear because I didn't like the shine of the semi-gloss.

 

 

Maybe the second application of clear was too much and caused the ink on the decal to become brittle and crack. I don't know but this is obviously not acceptable. I do have some aftermarket markings that were sold as decals but are actually stickers. 😕  In any case, it's time for another cleanup.

 

Thanks for taking the time to follow along and if you have any comments you'd like to share, please feel free.

David G.

[LennyB]

David, that's a shame about the cracking.  I assume since you said ink you are using an ink jet printer.  I have wanted to print my own decals for some projects but was going to try it with a laser printer that using toner.

[Anglia105E]

Well that's annoying with the cracks David . . . I would be inclined to agree with Len, and my guess would be the ink jet printer produced decals are likely  part of the problem. Maybe some chemical in the clear has reacted with the chemicals in the ink ? . . . Rather than be forced to go out and buy a laser printer, which are not cheap, perhaps the stickers from the kit box could be the way to go . . . 

David W.

[David G.]

21 hours ago, LennyB said:

David, that's a shame about the cracking.  I assume since you said ink you are using an ink jet printer.  I have wanted to print my own decals for some projects but was going to try it with a laser printer that using toner.

Thank you Len. No, it's a laser printer. I think I just used the word "ink" out of habit. My previous ink jet printer actually did quite well when it came to decals. I printed these plaid patterns for the seats on my 51 Chevy.

 

I'm starting to think it may be the age of the decal stock.

 

20 hours ago, Anglia105E said:

Well that's annoying with the cracks David . . . I would be inclined to agree with Len, and my guess would be the ink jet printer produced decals are likely  part of the problem. Maybe some chemical in the clear has reacted with the chemicals in the ink ? . . . Rather than be forced to go out and buy a laser printer, which are not cheap, perhaps the stickers from the kit box could be the way to go . . . 

David W.

Yes David, annoying indeed! But as I say, "Model builders, we're problem solvers who create our own problems to solve!"

The paper stickers from the kit just didn't conform to the curves so I removed them and tried my home printed decals shown above.

I do have the vinyl self-adhesive "decals" that I bought from MidWestern Clipper. The vinyl is soft enough and thin enough that I think they have a good chance of bending to fit the car.

 

Thank you both for your interest and your suggestions.

Regards,

David G.

[slusher]

I sure hope you solve your problem, David!

[David G.]

18 hours ago, slusher said:

I sure hope you solve your problem, David!

Thank you Carl. It's pretty much been solved, I just need to post the photos.

David G.

[David G.]

Hello Everybody!

 

Removing the decals proved to be more of a challenge than did the stickers. When I cut the decals, the printer ink chipped off the edges in some places so I touched up the edges with red and blue Sharpie pens. The decal setting solution caused the ink to bleed into the paint. 😕 

 

 

I managed to get most of my previous mess cleaned up. I ended up repainting the ragtop, it was just easier that way.

 

 

The scarring was a little worse here. The next set of markings should cover most if not all of this mess.

 

 

And here's the next set. Listed on eBay as decals, these are actually printed on self-adhesive vinyl by a company named MidWestern Clipper. They're well printed in the proper sizes and colors and provide for both the early and later versions of Herbie's race livery. So they should work for just about any version of Herbie that one would want to build. I'm hoping the flexibility and thinness of the vinyl will help them conform better than the paper stickers did.

 

As always, thanks for taking the time to look and please feel free to comment.

David G.

[Anglia105E]

Those stripes and numbers are giving you one hell of a fight David, but I have a feeling that this self-adhesive vinyl set is going to be your best effort yet !

Good luck with a successful result . . .

David

[LennyB]

1 hour ago, David G. said:

Hello Everybody!

 

Removing the decals proved to be more of a challenge than did the stickers. When I cut the decals, the printer ink chipped off the edges in some places so I touched up the edges with red and blue Sharpie pens. The decal setting solution caused the ink to bleed into the paint. 🤞 

 

 

I managed to get most of my previous mess cleaned up. I ended up repainting the ragtop, it was just easier that way.

 

 

The scarring was a little worse here. The next set of markings should cover most if not all of this mess.

 

 

And here's the next set. Listed on eBay as decals, these are actually printed on self-adhesive vinyl by a company named MidWestern Clipper. They're well printed in the proper sizes and colors and provide for both the early and later versions of Herbie's race livery. So they should work for just about any version of Herbie that one would want to build. I'm hoping the flexibility and thinness of the vinyl will help them conform better than the paper stickers did.

 

As always, thanks for taking the time to look and please feel free to comment.

David G.

Boy, these stripes are really putting up a fight. I can understand why the toner bled into the paint. Most people don't realize that toner is nothing more then  ground up bits of plastic. So it likes to stick to other plastic.

David, I hope on the next attempt you hit a home run.   🤞

[David G.]

On 5/7/2024 at 6:11 AM, Anglia105E said:

Those stripes and numbers are giving you one hell of a fight David, but I have a feeling that this self-adhesive vinyl set is going to be your best effort yet !

Good luck with a successful result . . .

David

Thank you David, they actually worked out pretty well. Not ideal but well enough. 

I'll be posting the photos soon. There's a bit of a lag between my build cycle and postings. It's probably due to the number of projects I have going and the time it takes me to edit the photos and compose my comments on them.

I've been trying to catch up on that but we each work at our own pace, eh?

23 hours ago, LennyB said:

Boy, these stripes are really putting up a fight. I can understand why the toner bled into the paint. Most people don't realize that toner is nothing more then  ground up bits of plastic. So it likes to stick to other plastic.

David, I hope on the next attempt you hit a home run.   🤞

It hadn't occurred to me about that toner is made of plastic. Based on that, wouldn't ink actually be better for decals?  Ink would cut down on the chances of reactivity and interactivity with the plastic oriented chemicals and surfaces we work with.

Thanks for your kind wishes Len. The vinyls worked out fairly well, I'll be posting the photos soon/

David G. 

[David G.]

Hello Everybody!

The kit itself was a simple and easy build. The race livery markings, not so much. After three attempts, success! 

Though not perfect, the vinyl decals do a good enough job of conforming to the complex curves of the boot lid. With a little gentle heat, they might even lay down even better. But I'm not about to mess with that.

 

 

They even covered up that mess on the rear deck lid. 

 

That wraps up this build. I'll post the final photos to the Under Glass section soon.

Thanks to all of you who offered your support through your comments, compliments and encouragements

David G.

[LennyB]

2 hours ago, David G. said:

It hadn't occurred to me about that toner is made of plastic. Based on that, wouldn't ink actually be better for decals?  Ink would cut down on the chances of reactivity and interactivity with the plastic oriented chemicals and surfaces we work with.

 

David G. 

It's a bit of a toss up I suppose. Inks are usually water based, some are oil based, so you need to clear-coat the sheet after printing otherwise it will run. The toner won't run but can react to a solvent applied over it.

 

Anyway, glad you got it working with the vinyl decals. It looks good. And like you said, don't mess with it any further, just call it done.😀