joemac Posted January 20, 2011 Posted January 20, 2011 I'd like to know if anyone can help with making some louvers in styrene. The louvers I need to make are the slat-type, sort of like venetian blinds. I need to install ten in the lower side and three more in the upper panel of a VW van. The kit came with fake louvers, which stuck out. I need to make the ones that are flush with the surrounding panel. Any ideas?
Draggon Posted January 20, 2011 Posted January 20, 2011 I think the simplest way would be to cut out the louvers, square up the sides of the hole, and glue in some evergreen 1/4 round strips. I know the curve on the louvers would be convex rather than concave like the 1:1, but I bet in scale it woudl look great.
Dr. Cranky Posted January 20, 2011 Posted January 20, 2011 Oh man, a couple of pictures would help visualize this better.
Draggon Posted January 20, 2011 Posted January 20, 2011 I think this is what he is after. Right, Joe?
Mike Kucaba Posted January 20, 2011 Posted January 20, 2011 I'm not sure how well this would work,but maybe these special shapes would help. http://www.plastruct.com/picat/STRCTURAL_SHAPES_FTGS_9.pdf http://www.evergreenscalemodels.com/Sheets.htm#V-Groove%20Siding
joemac Posted January 20, 2011 Author Posted January 20, 2011 (edited) I think this is what he is after. Right, Joe? Why yes, Glenn, they be the guys. Thanks for supplying the image. I looked, but I didn't find anything through a Google Image search. You mean there's no tool I can buy and snap out my own perfect louvers? Hey, hey... I'm joking. I'll probably give the quarter rounds a try. This model sure is giving me the challenges... like rear wheel arches that look like they were cut out and flared, rear lids that are too small, as well as shaped wrongly, no panel seams, beltline profile all wonky, no bumpers and rear wheels and tires that wouldn't look out of place on a 1971 F-150... Thanks for the ideas. You guys are swell. Edited January 20, 2011 by joemac
Tony Bryan Posted January 23, 2011 Posted January 23, 2011 Roger Inwood done a great little tutorial on making louvres you can read it here My link all you would have to do is reverse what he has done
VW Dave Posted January 24, 2011 Posted January 24, 2011 Joe - Being a Bus fan and also building a few of them in scale, I may be able to help you out. The Hasegawa '67 panel Bus kit has the correct later-style louvers already molded in, including the upper 'panel only' vents, and I may have those body sections available from a cut-up 'donor' body. Even if I can only turn up one side section, you can easily cast & copy it because they are not side-specific. Email me a nudge, and I'll check my stash: plasticman1432@gmail.com
VW Dave Posted January 24, 2011 Posted January 24, 2011 Oh man, a couple of pictures would help visualize this better. The pre-March 1963 style of louvers he's trying to get rid of: And here's what he needs: The upper vents were only put on panel vans; the green & blue one posted above was a camper conversion(most likely by the Sundial company), based on a panel.
VW Dave Posted January 24, 2011 Posted January 24, 2011 Sorry for the multitude of posts, but I just had an epiphany while perusing my VW Bus reference library: The best course of action IMO would be to start with the Hasegawa '67 panel kit. VW went with the later-style of louvers at the same time they widened the rear hatch(for the '64 model year), so any of the Revell kits would need pretty heavy body mods in that area altogether. The Hasegawa body is far more accurate for a '64-67 panel from the get-go. Depending on the kit you are working with, I can help out for sure.
mr moto Posted January 24, 2011 Posted January 24, 2011 Plastruct stairways! Check out this thread I started a while back. The ones I'm using aren't wide enough for what you want to do but they come in different sizes. Maybe another size would be right. http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=19621&st=0&p=182274&hl=mothra&fromsearch=1&#entry182274 BTW, I never have finished that build! One of these days!
VW Dave Posted January 28, 2011 Posted January 28, 2011 After a little digging, I discovered that I still have an old resin transkit for that Revell Bus made by Think Small Models(Dennis Chung). It included stock US-spec bumpers, a stock VW nose emblem and filler panels to correct the hogged-out and flared rear wheelwell openings in the Rubber Duck/California Roller kits. ...Now if the OP ever gets around to contacting me, I'll gladly help him out.
VW Dave Posted February 19, 2011 Posted February 19, 2011 Still no word from joemac...I wonder if he's given up on the project?
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now