Jonathan Posted March 28, 2014 Posted March 28, 2014 I passed over this kit when it was last reissued back in the 1990's (I think). Not too long ago, I found the most recent issue at a great price and decided to give it a whirl. I don't now about the older issues, but this one has some slight issues around the rear doors in that the frame area doesn't seem to be 100% formed. No bother though; it's a custom! Anyway, so far, I've shaved the bumpers front and aft; and I split the rear doors into two parts along the vertical center line. The whole folding down rear door thing seemed hookey to me. I considered making the rear doors open, but finally abandoned that idea when I couldn't quite figure a good solution for the hinges. I'll need to snap a photo of the back later. I've also included some "wood paneling" courtesy of the wild, wild web. I found a pattern I liked, download it, made some copies, and hit the ol' printer. Once all is said and done, not too much of it will be visible anyway. I've added flocking to the floor and ceiling. I'm planning to add a "chain" steering wheel from some lowrider parts that I had; and I was considering possibly making a CB for the cab area. I've slapped on Testor's Inca Gold (what, no black for the Vandal? Blasphemy!) Right now, I'm trying to decide on wheels. Should I got with the slotted wheels that come with the kit, or perhaps these "solid" ones that I found in the parts box? (last pic, front wheel) Oh, and the Firestone lettering came from Joseph of Fireball Modelworks. I realize the decals aren't right for the tires, but he does great work, and I liked the look of having something beside Goodyears on the Vandal. (I do, however, have Goodyears on my 1:1 truck, in case anybody wants to know. ) Now that I've been messing with this kit, I've had several ideas for customized Vandals. My favorite, but I'm not sure I could pull it off, would be to swap the entire cab and engine such that it became Right-Hand-Drive. Then, I'd make it a Postal vehicle with "Going Postal" or "Express Mail" or some such markings.
Jonathan Posted April 9, 2014 Author Posted April 9, 2014 A little update. The weather has been too good for working at the bench lately. (Imagine that! After a long winter...) Anywho, I've settled on using the kit's wheels, but with tires that came from some 1/24 Monogram kit on the rear. I used the kit's front tires. I need to finish the exhaust and start buttoning things up. The canopy (windshield?), wheels, and other sundry parts are just sitting there at the moment awaiting final assembly. I recently realized that I failed to paint the license plate holder when I painted everything else. Oopsy... Please pardon the high-quality cell phone images and background clutter (*cough*, *cough*) I split the rear doors and reassembled them, hoping they would look more realistic than just "dropping down". As if this is suppose to be realistic anyway... I trimmed the canopy/windshield with a strip of black "rubber" by using a sharpie marker around the perimeter of the kit's "glass". Tiny bit of engine wiring. Never mind the lack of a radiator or other necessities. I think I'm going to try to fashion some sort of "strut" to hold the side door open. Still thinking on that one...
JTalmage Posted April 9, 2014 Posted April 9, 2014 Love it! Makes me want to pick this one up now! I too passed on it before... but this looks great! and aluminum slots look great on ANY 70's custom!!
Billy_C Posted April 9, 2014 Posted April 9, 2014 Jonathon, I have seen some smaller scale diecast construction toys with "hydraulic rams" that slide when buckets/scoops/booms are moved or tilted. Maybe that would work for your door strut.
Hondo Posted April 9, 2014 Posted April 9, 2014 Admitingly, I'm not much of a custom kinda guy (that doesn't reflect on your fine work). This will be cool to see finished. I definitely have to get one of these, if only for the mini bike !! Nice work my fellow Carolinian.
Jonathan Posted April 10, 2014 Author Posted April 10, 2014 I'm betting earlier releases of this kit are a little better, in that this one seems to suffer from flash and a tiny bit of "shortness" around some of the openings. The flash was no big deal; the not-so-straight edges I should have caught during the primer stage. But, I didn't. Oh, well. Hopefully the golden color will detract from any obvious shortcomings in assembly. Hey, it's a hobby, right? Thank you all for the kind comments. I hope to get this joker finished up soon. Billy_C - thanks for the suggestion, I had not considered looking at construction toys. Dano, JT, Bob, Richard, Slusher - thanks! Hondo - where 'bouts are you located? I'm smack in the middle of the RTP area. Well, sorta.
slusher Posted April 10, 2014 Posted April 10, 2014 Build is really looking sharp Jonathan, real nice custom touches...
Hondo Posted April 13, 2014 Posted April 13, 2014 Originally from the QC, Jonathan........ Now 12 miles from Graceland & the home of FedEx.
Jonathan Posted April 16, 2014 Author Posted April 16, 2014 Some minor updates. Aside from the license plate holder, which I failed to paint when I painted everything else, I think I'm finished. Oh, and I need to get that confounded pollen off of everything. Pollen is a hazard of working in the garage these days. I'll admit, I was hugely inspired by some of the Vandal builds I've seen on this forum. I didn't realize quite how much so, until I started taking pictures of this one. The driver's compartment. I added a different "chain" steering wheel, and a bare-foot gas pedal. Front 3/4 view. There is no clutter in the background. That is merely your imagination! Smoothed the rear doors... Made some "struts" from wire and a cut-up paperclip: Small bit of wiring:
rsxse240 Posted April 23, 2014 Posted April 23, 2014 Looks great! I never take these radically custom car kits very seriously until I see something like this. You are doing a great job, keep it up!
Jonathan Posted April 23, 2014 Author Posted April 23, 2014 Thanks! I've decided to call it done, even after a workbench crash created a need for some quick repair. Here's the link to the finished project: http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=88662
426-Hemi Posted October 14, 2014 Posted October 14, 2014 -I've always wondered aboutthis kit. what "van" was it actually based off of? I know I'm a Mopar fanatic, BUT it looks as tho its a Dodge or something (I could be wrong) cause I see a little Ford in there as well as a Chevy line here and there as well..... What was this made from in real 1:1 scale? Odd unit, but interesting "Custom" I'm NOT bashingi t here everyone, just tryin to figure it out! And yes the Inca gold looks AWESOME on it!
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