jbwelda Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 (edited) well i have taken this lull in painting weather to start up something i have thought about, talked about, suggested to others, pretty much everything except build it myself, for some years now. i am taking the excellent tamiya 66 VW karmann ghia (i owned a 65 for many years so its a subject sort of near and dear to my heart) and making a few modest upgrades. i am transplanting the Porsche Carrera Quad-Cam mill from the fujimi/testors enthusiasts series 356, including the super detailed transaxle assembly that so well compliments the hyper detail (by out of box standards anyway) of the quad cam, dual ignition, dual weber, dry sump oiling system Carrera motor that was included in that kit. in addition i plan on incorporating a lot of other parts from the Carrera to make a fairly realistic VW street sleeper much like the sort i had (uh, no quad cam though...) and many others drove around back in the 70s and 80s. most obviously i will be using the more than excellent porsche chrome wheels, disk brakes in the front and big porsche finned drums in the rear (thats the way we ran em), seats and some interior accourtrements like steering wheel and shift lever from the porsche and i am thinking about transplanting the whole porsche dashboard with its multi instrumentization into it as well. even the already robust transaxle will have porsche upgrades: huge anti-sway bar and solid mounts for the trans from 4 directions assure the rear end stays where its supposed to. i am planning on keeping the paint simple and to the point like mine was: black exterior (in this case, tamiya gloss black followed by a coat or two of black metallic or pearl, followed by clear), tannish interior, maybe a biscuit to simulate leather upgrade, and the stark bare chrome of the porsche wheels, the only real giveaway of what we really got here. so, enough of the jawboning, lets see where this is going...one caution: i move slow sometimes so expect another long drawn out thread with possibly no conclusion! heres the KG box, along with previous build of the quad cam and transaxle that i am using for measurements, reality checks, etc: and the infamous body-crushing testors rebox of the fujimi enthusiasts series Porsche 356, one of the most spectacular kits ever if you ask me: now look at these wheels and tires and tell me if you have ever seen a more beautiful reproduction of a set of wheels in your life! i have not! disk brake (small center) for the front and drum brake wheels for the rear. oh yeah, subdued stockers to the right...no comparison. and here we have the semi finished transaxle nestled into the chassis. fit was remarkably similar to the tamiya motor/transaxle, but a considerable amount of fitting, fabricating and fiddling were required to get to this point...but axle line remains stock position and front and rear mounts line up. another shot of chassis with transaxle in place: semi completed motor block, painted up and ready for detailing and further building: a few of the remaining parts for the motor and there are others not yet picked out and trimmed! ive started to plan the stance, photos to follow next! thanks for looking! Edited June 5, 2010 by jbwelda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted January 14, 2010 Author Share Posted January 14, 2010 like i was saying i am messing around with the ride height. as is so typical i think this model sits too high out of the box so i want to lower it. the smaller wheels/tires will help (they are about 2 scale inches lower in profile than the stock tamiya ones) but on examination it will be very easy to drop the front end (even though not strictly realistic...on my car we took apart the front end and welded in an authentic porsche select a drop (vs the really crummy aftermarket abominations)) simply by raising the front axle on the front of the chassis. i took some photos illustrating before and after...even though the whole thing is just in the mock up stage. when the time comes i am going to snip off the mounting tab on the front end, drill holes in its place and put some rod to register into similar holes higher up on the front chassis plate. this should be good for 3 or 4 more inches of drop and should give the car the nice nose down stance i want. here are some stock height shots: and similar shots with the front end brought down 1/8" - 1/4": and lastly, just because i think they look so great, a close up of a front wheel and tire. these will really come alive with some weathering of the tire and some wash on the chrome! well thats it for tonite! any comments or jeers cheerfully accepted! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Modelmartin Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 Cool concept. I like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whale392 Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 I have the same Ghia kit (although mostly built and started back in 1993) an LOVE what you are doing with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxer Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 Two great kits there and this sounds like it will look good. Those wheels ARE fantastic looking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffs396 Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 I like it! Always wanted a 1:1 Ghia...and a kit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shucky Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 Very cool project! I have one in the works myself. Really great kit and the wheels your using are excellent! Cant wait to see more progress. Keep up the good work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Cole Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 Will someone PLEASE cast those 356 wheels in resin?! I would love to have a few sets! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Len Carsner Posted January 14, 2010 Share Posted January 14, 2010 I like where this one is going! Looking forward to your next update. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djway3474 Posted January 15, 2010 Share Posted January 15, 2010 I have been using the fujimi as a donor for bugs for some time. comes out kewl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony T Posted January 15, 2010 Share Posted January 15, 2010 I love the wheels in the 356 kit. They are awesome, especially the Porsche 5x205 wheels, my personal favourite! Looking forward to where you take this one! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted January 15, 2010 Author Share Posted January 15, 2010 post some pics djway...i would like to see some examples. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted January 25, 2010 Author Share Posted January 25, 2010 (edited) actually making some progress despite my power going out (downed pole and exploded transformer) and a 4K volt shock wave coming through my house blowing out all my breakers and leading to 5K$ worth of work...but back on with the power and the water now, so will post some pics later. the mill is coming along nicely, the trans done, detailed and in the chassis, the front axle lowered (raised actually to lower the front) and a lot of interior planning done. pics to come later tonite or tomorrow though truth be told theres not much to show...motor takes awhile because of all the cleanup necessary but you never really know it unless youve done it. Edited January 25, 2010 by jbwelda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted January 26, 2010 Author Share Posted January 26, 2010 as promised/threatened, here are some progress photos: first, the trans more or less mounted in the frame...the gap between the trans and the bracket will be covered and not noticable though the trans does fit down snugger...its final position will be determined by the angle of the motor in its compartment: full chassis with front axle in place (mocked up still): front axle showing amount of drop: closer shot of axle and drop: some shots of partially completed motor: shot of motor with air cleaners in place...they still need the chrome nuts picked out and i am not going to install them until the car is around the motor in case i have to switch to velocity stacks to reduce height of motor in compartment: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted January 26, 2010 Author Share Posted January 26, 2010 and some more: close up of dual ignition system drive and aluminum distributors with wires, ready to be attached to motor front: wow these close ups really reveal the flaws! im gonna have to touch up over that red paint around the bolt heads! some misc junk including dry sump oil tank, muffler parts, and front brake rotorsL more misc half finished junk: finally, a comparison of the tie rod that came with the KG, in black, with the tie rod that came with the 356. notice same shape and length...what a coincidence. also note how much more detailed the 356 one is...im using it. thats all for now, hopefully i can get some more done if gods willin and the creek dont rise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted January 28, 2010 Author Share Posted January 28, 2010 the miracle of photos: the above photos caused me to reroute the fuel line to along the case instead of above the cooler fan, touch up numerous paint flaws, detail the fan housing hardware and some other stuff...not to mention put in a few hours fiddling to see some progress! more photos soon, perhaps of more substance! thanks for looking folks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pauly Posted February 4, 2010 Share Posted February 4, 2010 Very nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted February 14, 2010 Author Share Posted February 14, 2010 alright a quick update: ive been working on the interior but dont have photos yet other than the narrowed and trimmed 356 dashboard, but porsche seats etc are being prepped and painted, motor is almost done, some work begun on the body (should be a cool breeze but you know how that goes ). wheels are next up for some detailing and setting the actual track width (oob seems way too narrow, i like it more aggressive with wider track). thanks again for looking! some shots of motor, still needs twin coils installed and wired other than that its about done. and a few from the bottom with the exhaust system fitted. im using the stock (but Carrera) system but have made larger exhaust pipes from aluminum tubing...they will be trimmed off to fit after body is fitted. here is the Porsche 356B dash that i narrowed to fit the ghia interior, it was a near fit right from the box: finally, not all is rosy. i had some kind of strange paint reaction when spraying body color on inside of body shell. i had NOT washed body and thats probably the problem. so this ugly mess occurred when i pulled the masking tape i used to mask off for the interior color. bummer. but i think a good sanding and a partial reshoot will suffice. i sure am going to be particularly careful with the outside after this happening...prep city for sure! its kinda funny (well, not FUNNY funny...) the paint just did not adhere at all to portions of the plastic. its tamiya black and it just kind of peeled off there...stuck together like no getout but not at all to the body in spots as you can see. ive never had anything like that happen to me before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren B Posted February 14, 2010 Share Posted February 14, 2010 its kinda funny (well, not FUNNY funny...) the paint just did not adhere at all to portions of the plastic. its tamiya black and it just kind of peeled off there...stuck together like no getout but not at all to the body in spots as you can see. ive never had anything like that happen to me before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted February 14, 2010 Author Share Posted February 14, 2010 (edited) no i didnt as i mentioned in the post. my mistake, but ive never washed bodies before painting unless ive done body work on them. that will change now. and again the power of photos, i see a few improvements starting with routing, again, the right side fuel pipe so it looks more natural. oh and the tach is over on its side for a reason...red line straight up. my punch slipped a bit when cutting the tach out so its kinda trimmed poorly. i may dig another decal out of my other copies of the 356 to remedy that although i doubt it will show once inside the interior. thanks again for looking and any comments welcome! Edited February 14, 2010 by jbwelda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted February 27, 2010 Author Share Posted February 27, 2010 (edited) alright things are coming together a bit, heres a short progress report: chassis done other than some minor touch up and the center plate being put into place, interior done but not completely assembled, still need to make some seat belts but the front 356 seats and dashboard look impressive. motor looks like a monster in that little engine compartment! a shot of the finished motor bottom, with a good look at that massive anti-sway bar and the porsche transaxle mounting, made a car a lot more stable to reinforce this area: overall pic of bottom of pan: a view of the still under construction interior: a couple of front end detail shots: have the wheels and brakes all finished up and ready to mount to chassis. finally got inside body shell acceptable so given some decent weather i am going to try to get paint on it over the weekend. many thanks for looking and as always comments, questions or otherwise cheerfully entertained! Edited February 27, 2010 by jbwelda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbwelda Posted February 27, 2010 Author Share Posted February 27, 2010 (edited) just a few more shots of the motor, finished and in situ: thing looks bad with the body around it! thats it for tonite! Edited February 27, 2010 by jbwelda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raul_Perez Posted February 27, 2010 Share Posted February 27, 2010 The engine detail looks awesome, Bill!! But..you missed the NNL West!! What happened? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Flowers Posted February 27, 2010 Share Posted February 27, 2010 With all the detail you put into the motor. There is one thing that just bugs me. That is the gaps in the cylinder heads where they join together. I hope that does not make you mad. You have nice build going here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VW Dave Posted February 27, 2010 Share Posted February 27, 2010 thing looks bad with the body around it! Yes, but it's the best kind of bad.....I'm loving this build, mister Bill. I love the chassis attitude, but the only thing I would have suggested is a narrowed front beam; it can help fit 'normal' sized tires under the lowered nose for driveability, but it also adds to the 'look.' That's the same paint scheme I'm using on my Tamiya Ghia, and I recently picked up a 4" narrower beam for my 1:1 Beetle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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