ULTIMATE SCRATCHBUILD: 1:12 Hot Rod-Updated 03/12/06

the rod is really taking shape. i know how it is to work with sheetmetal. i work at a custom chopper shop so i feel your pain!!! keep it going it going to be sweeet! let me load some pics in my gallery and you can see some of our bikes.(and my pinstriping too)

the rod is really taking shape. i know how it is to work with sheetmetal. i work at a custom chopper shop so i feel your pain!!! keep it going it going to be sweeet! let me load some pics in my gallery and you can see some of our bikes.(and my pinstriping too)

Sweet you build choppers too. Thats awesome, I build choppers over the summer as well as hot rods. Pretty much anything that deals with metal I do. I also do pinstriping, havent done it in quite some time though. I also paint real cars. Speaking of which the paint on this will be killer.

Well I got a little OT there.
Thanks for the comments, if it were just a little bigger I would have pounded out all of the dimples. I cant wait to start the roof. Its going to be probably one of the most difficult parts, but I cant wait!

thats kool as helllllo that we do alot of the same stuff, go below here and check out my gallery and let me know what you think!!!!!

Well I talked to my machinist about the rims. I expected them to be expensive, but not a couple grand.

Setting up the program: $200 For front, and another $200 for wheel. The rims are two different sizes
Threading:$200 per wheel
Setting up the blank (turning a square into a circle):$150 per wheel
The costs go on and on.

I am still talking to him about just machining spokes and I just use some RC blanks for the brim.

If worst comes to worse then I will just modify some RC rims.
Here are some R/C rims I have found. I really like thse, but I would modify them so the spokes set deeper in the wheel. Also I would probably purchase the white or black ones because the chrome ones are a couple bucks extra. Whats the point in spending the few extra bucks when I am just going to chop and cut the wheels???

Here are the rims:
http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/503/60524hpic0059.jpg

One problem. The front wheels are smaller, about a scale of 15" and the rear are a scale 18"or 19". How would I make the brim smaller? As well as the spokes???

Does anyone have anymore model sites besides HLJ and TowerHobbies I can look at for model stuff and RC Stuff???

check out these wheels............

http://www.pro-lineracing.com/proline/wheels/tc_wheels.html

Id just order two sets of those if it comes with two 15's and two 19's, then you can go all 19's or all 15's.

2,000$ for rims, might as well spend it on a real drivable car! my dads 18's on his car with tires were only 1,200$

Id just order two sets of those if it comes with two 15's and two 19's, then you can go all 19's or all 15's.

On roadsters the front wheels are usually smaller than the rear wheels. Also since these are R/C I cant find multiple sizes.

2,000$ for rims, might as well spend it on a real drivable car! my dads 18's on his car with tires were only 1,200$

Keep in mind these wheels would be custom machined. CNC machining gets rather expensive. Also the size of the wheels makes a difference, since these are much smaller new tooling parts would have to be ordered and custom made. Another thing is since these wheels are only 52mm in diameter there is no blank for these wheels so a blank would need to be machined as well.

Mike, before I spent 4g's on a model's wheels, I'd buy another corolla to use as a parts car.

how much bondo do you plan to use?....It looks like alot! looks more bondo then sheet metal?

how much bondo do you plan to use?....It looks like alot! looks more bondo then sheet metal?

Not much bondo. I wouldnt have used any but it is to small for a planishing hammer, which sucks. My next project should be large enough for a planishing hammer, I am planning on scratchbuilding a 1/4 scale Hot Rod.

Looks like more bondo than sheet metal? Theres actually much more steel there then you can see. The bondo that's there is barely 1/16" thick, its just there to "smooth" out the dimples that were there from the forming.

Thanks for the comments though.

Those wheels look cool as hheelll, those would be sick on that rod!

Those wheels look cool as hheelll, those would be sick on that rod!

Thanks for the opinion man. Ill be making those rims deep dish. Ill cut out the spokes and set them in about a scale 2".

Thanks for the opinion man. Ill be making those rims deep dish. Ill cut out the spokes and set them in about a scale 2".
yeah set back like that would be great, you goota have big-n-littles!

i figured u were just using it to smooth it over, but some spots looks heavey, hey it is looking nice. i cant wait mroe new pics.

Good work so far, mike. I'm looking forward to the roof- it better be the lowest mamma jamma I've ever seen! ;)

I really cant wait for more progress!

Good work so far, mike. I'm looking forward to the roof- it better be the lowest mamma jamma I've ever seen! ;)

Thanks Colin. I dont see you here much, I was begining to wonder what happened to you. Hows that mini and 350Z? Wish we saw you around here more often man.

I can not wait until I start the roof, it will be all one piece of metal, not multiple like on the real rod. I cant wait until I start pounding that steel into shape, to bad Im not as anxious to do the other side. :grinno:

I really cant wait for more progress!

Neither can I. I cant wait to get home and start working. Pretty sad considering Im down here in Florida having fun in the surf.

yo, i got the perfect rims for ya...so 1/16 scale spinners from a dubcity...or i have 2 sets on nonspinners lemme know and i will post some pix if u want

yo, i got the perfect rims for ya...so 1/16 scale spinners from a dubcity...or i have 2 sets on nonspinners lemme know and i will post some pix if u want

You mean 1/18? I appreciate the offer Andrew but I have to decline. The dubcity rims have two problems for this build.
a) The size is too small
b) They would be a little tacky for a hot rod, dont you agree?

Thanks for the offer though!

, I am planning on scratchbuilding a 1/4 scale Hot Rod.
dude that's rediculious!!!!!!!

can't wait to see it though. you have one bad ass build going on here.
keep it up.

dude that's rediculious!!!!!!!

can't wait to see it though. you have one bad ass build going on here.
keep it up.

Yea it is pretty rediculous. It will be roughly 4ft long. The only problem would be finding a V8 Motor 1/4 scale with out busting my wallet; or just make it curbside. The rims for that will most likely need to be custom machined, unless Im lucky to find some.

Back to the build going on right now. Thanks for the comments on this build. I cant wait to get back to it.

Yea it is pretty rediculous. It will be roughly 4ft long. The only problem would be finding a V8 Motor 1/4 scale with out busting my wallet; or just make it curbside. The rims for that will most likely need to be custom machined, unless Im lucky to find some.

Back to the build going on right now. Thanks for the comments on this build. I cant wait to get back to it.

Man at four feet long you are better off just making it work like an RC car. Now that would be cool! :p

yeah, you could probably shoehorn in a honda generator motor into that beasty. a servo for the throttle, one for steering and some clever (/expensive?) engineering to take the power to the back wheels and you would have one hell of a radio controlled car. FAST too :iceslolan

You could get in your own car and race your model hehe.

Wow, I didn't realize it was that big! I have to agree though, mike, the other side will be a pain.

My 350z is done but crap. Since then I built an s13 silvia, which is crap. After that, I did an r33 skyline which is pretty good, a Hemi Cuda which is pretty awesome, and now I'm working on a supra.

Man at four feet long you are better off just making it work like an RC car. Now that would be cool! :p

One problem...crashing. If I crashed that thing I would be so pissed off, so much work, so much effort, so much time, turned into a pile of metal. 60-0 in under 2 seconds.

Wow, I didn't realize it was that big! I have to agree though, mike, the other side will be a pain.

My 350z is done but crap. Since then I built an s13 silvia, which is crap. After that, I did an r33 skyline which is pretty good, a Hemi Cuda which is pretty awesome, and now I'm working on a supra.

The next project will be 4 feet long, this one is roughly 18inches.

Get pictures of the Supra and other models, we would love to see even if they arent the best. We thrive on pictures!

I'll have pictures soon, I need to find the usb cord for the camera.

I'll have pictures soon, I need to find the usb cord for the camera.

What about Eric's camera? Wait, that might actually take longer than finding your USB connection cable. :iceslolan

Anyway, Its good to see you here, come here more often. I will be updating this project next week.


Whats Next?
The other side panel was planned to start work on, however the right side is not finished. I forgot about creating hinges. The next step in the long process will be designing hinges, fabricating hinges. However, I need acces to the inner part of the panels. :banghead:
I have already attached the interior flat panels, and attached lots of stuff to those panels. So now I must rip off the interior flat panels, top of the side panels, create hinges.
:banghead: I guess I wll be stuck on this side for another week or two. :banghead:

hey, um, how are you holding the steel together? Solder?

hey, um, how are you holding the steel together? Solder?

Solder does not stick to steel. I am using heavy duty epoxy. I was going to weld it all together but my TIG welder is up in Michigan, not to mention it would be very challending welding such small detail, especially without a MIG welder to tack the pieces together.

Solder does not stick to steel. I am using heavy duty epoxy. I was going to weld it all together but my TIG welder is up in Michigan, not to mention it would be very challending welding such small detail, especially without a MIG welder to tack the pieces together.
yeah, something that thin, you're likely to go right through it.

yeah, something that thin, you're likely to go right through it.

Correct, usually the thinnest steel I weld is 16Gauge TIG Weld or MIG weld. 20-26Gauge is really pushing it, youre better to spot weld it if you must. But to spot weld you have to have two flat plains meet up flat (sorry that sounds confusing). And Spot welds look like shit, absolute shit. So I figured I would be best off to epoxy it, the epoxy kicks in roughly 5-10minutes, and cures in 30, then gets rock-solid in 36hours. So I am going to have trouble ripping those plates off.

The best way to remove epoxy is heating it up, but when epoxy gets hot it smells like shit. Its worse than anything you can imagine.

Guess we dont have to worry about you huffing melted epoxy!

UPDATES:

Well, I was tinkering around in my shop thinking about the project. I am staring at it thinking about hinges. Then I notice the door sill, just a little to low. This is just the beggining of everything about to go wrong.

The door sill is roughly 1/8" to the bottom of the side panel, uh-oh. The chassis frame is 1/4" x 1/8" rectangular tubing. The bottom of the side is supposed to overhang on the chassis leaving about 3/32" of clearence between the bottom of the sidepanel and the floorboard.

The floor board needs to be 1/2" above the bottom of the sidepanel. That would make the door sill 3/8" lower than the floor board. How ugly would that be? The bottom of the door sill should be above the floor board roughly 1/4"

Then I notice the problems with the doors hinging, its not possible. The door is to thick to open up swiftly. Also the wheel well is to far forward to create a hinge.

See how slowly everything is falling apart?

Then I look at the sides curvature (Top to Bottom) I decide its to curved.

Let me sum it up; the Wheel is to far forward, doors will not open properly, no room for hinges, side is to curved, floor board sits to low, the door sills are two low.

In other words, I have to start all over! What I have now is usless, two new sides need to be hammered into shape, new templates made, and I new design with better measurements (will be done in AutoCAD) so for the next couple weeks you may just see drawings, sketches, and CAD designs. Sorry if that will bore you guys to death, and make you leave this thread (please dont).

I would like to start the chassis soon, but I need a design and a motor (thus I need cash, I am dead broke. Needed cash=$20. Anyone want a Tamiya Calsonic Skyline R34 for $20)

:banghead:

Dont get down on yourself. Think of the positive in this. You have seen what works and what does not work. So you can use this information to your advantage when you build the Project Roadster II. I was excited on just the fact that somebody was scatchbuilding a 1/12. I will most definatly stick around this thread! Dont give up!!!

About the money thing. There are plenty of ways to make money. You can always sell crack like Fly. JK. Try selling some of your models on eBay or something. Best of luck!!!

Don't worry, youll get it done and it will look awsome. And the drawings won't be boring, just be sure to post every once and awhile. Good luck.

Well thanks for the encouragement guys, it helps. I've decided to change a couple things.

The new Project will be Project HotRod II, no more roadster/Alumatub. Since I was altering the design I decided to go ahead and start HotRodII It will be a Hot Rod with fenders. I will try to post pictures tonight, but I am having problems with the upoading.:mad:

Also the scale will be 1/8. HOWEVER, if it is 1/8 scale it will most likely be curbside. How much would you guys object to that?

hey GTMike, lets see some more pics, can't wait to see it finished. You have come this far, no turning back!! We have a meeting May 2, I will pm you as it gets closer. more pics!!!!!!!!!!!

this is cool, but ar eyou seriously considering 2 Grand on rims?! i thought 20 for aoshima 19s was expensive :lol:

1/8. I like. The bigger the better!

Hey mike!!

so all this work and you are thinking of redoing it! MAN!! well i can see how the hinges wont work by the pics in you signiture! but think of this one as a pattern to build off

hey GTMike, lets see some more pics, can't wait to see it finished. You have come this far, no turning back!! We have a meeting May 2, I will pm you as it gets closer. more pics!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey ol' dude, I guess you didnt see the bad news? What I have so far is scraped, useless, I made a few bad measurements (a couple posts up has the full story).

There fore I am starting a new one, it will be continue in this thread since technically they are the same project, just started over. Also the new one will be 1/8 scale (roughly 2 to 2 1/2 feet).

As a matter of fact I just got home from the craft store with a bunch of posterboard to draw out the plans, to scale. I'll try to get pictures of the designs so far.

Cant wait to here about the meeting, I might actually have a rolling chassis by then. But I need cash, dammit.:banghead:

Does anyone want a Calsonic Skyline R34 GT-R? PM me.

Hey Mike, im sorry to hear about the mistake. Get one Aim so we could talk. Good luck on your next one.

how do you go about basing your designs? a little indepth tutorial may inspire more to build the way you do, and that would be great as you are very very skilled

how do you go about basing your designs? a little indepth tutorial may inspire more to build the way you do, and that would be great as you are very very skilled

Wow, thanks for such a complement. That means a lot coming from you.

Designs, I go about designs in different ways, it depends on what I am designing. If its a normal car, like an import or truck I try to think of the coolest, never thought of, weird ideas. Sketch stuff on paper as soon as I think of it usually. Sometimes I make templates of a car and make copies of them.

If its a Hot Rod to be designed, I take a look at some hot rods (stock or slightly modified) and either modify, or get ideas from it. For instance, my new plans are somewhat of a cross between a '34 ford and Boydster. I'll post pictures of that stuff tonight.

I might do a tutorial on designing. However not all of it can be covered in a Tutorial because a lot of design is creativity.

Once, again, thanks for the comment Chris.

UPDATES:

You wanted pictures of the drawing, I give you pictures of the drawings.
http://spectrum.web1000.com/newdesign.jpg
This is the earliest design of whats going to be built now. The final version is being drafted at full 1/8 scale right now. The only modification to this version is the length of the hood, the final version has the hood longer.

Comments are required!

looks sweet! smae way i go about it!! lol i guess if you are into designing stuff like i have since i was young it comes naturaly, some people cant even dream of doing things i do. i just thank the man upstairs for giving me the creative mind to build whatever comes in my head! all i can say to CHRISMCGEE is practice, practice, practice.....draw alot and just try your best to make whatevr you have in that brain in real life. take your time and trial and error is the best way to learn everything!

Nice! i know a cheep way to get rims:P buy rims for RC-cars in 1/8 ther is alot of nice rims for RCcars...=) i like the new disign=)

Nice mike, nice. Why aren't you ever on aim? I'm getting pictures soon.

dude...if you have any drawings with exact measurements i could Draft them for you on AutoCAD. I could mail you the plots if you want. All i need is a drawing with the measurements.

Nice! i know a cheep way to get rims:P buy rims for RC-cars in 1/8 ther is alot of nice rims for RCcars...=) i like the new disign=)


How? I need some 5 spoke rims, can you help me. PM me on the details. Thanks for the comments.

Nice mike, nice. Why aren't you ever on aim? I'm getting pictures soon.

Thanks Colin. Why arent I ever on AIM? A better question would be why arent you ever on AIM? I was on vacation for 2 weeks, so Im online now. Joeham was telling me about your models, I cant wait to see!

dude...if you have any drawings with exact measurements i could Draft them for you on AutoCAD. I could mail you the plots if you want. All i need is a drawing with the measurements.

I appreciate the offer but I have a drafting class at school that I have already completed my assignments in so I can draft it in there. It would probably be easiest for me that way since I will prolly change stuff around as I go. Thanks though!

sounds nice mike cant wait to see more. at my school well not at the school it is a place called new market they have classes you can take. this summer i am doing auto body and auto cadd crap

lol thats the reason i asked...i have a drafting class to!

good luck on the new one. Its gonna look awsome

lol thats the reason i asked...i have a drafting class to!

good luck on the new one. Its gonna look awsome
Heres an example of why it would be easiest for me to do them following the measurement problem.

Last night I found tires, 4 inches in Diameter, and wheels 2 3/4" in diameter. I go back today to find the width and now the tires are 4 1/2" in diameter and the tires are 3 1/2" in diameter. These are 1/8 scale Dune Buggy wheels.

To count for the large wheels and tires since they are for a dune buggy I am changine the scale to 1/6, so it looks proportional (also to account for the tires being 1/2" bigger than expected). Now I have to redraw all my plans.:banghead:

The new 1/6 scale Hot Rod should be roughly 32"...big enough?

Here you have a link to a RC-cars company... it is one of the best companys. and there under wheels you can look if you find some thing that fits=)
http://www.hpi-europe.com/
I hope that somtink might be usefull....
I hope that this project will go beter tan the last one=P
Cheers

Here you have a link to a RC-cars company... it is one of the best companys. and there under wheels you can look if you find some thing that fits=)
http://www.hpi-europe.com/
I hope that somtink might be usefull....
I hope that this project will go beter tan the last one=P
Cheers

Thanks for the link.

I hope this project goes better than the last also. But right now its being a bitch. Rectangular tubing is hard to find in large sizes. I need some by Saturday too.

I need to find 1/2" x 1/4" Rectangular metal tubing. I have found one online place that has it, but I want to go out tommorrow and buy it.

You guys have no idea how frustrating this is. My God. I have been punching around with numbers, and scales etc. Such a pain in the ass. Rims sizes are off, or doesnt look right. The doors are 4 feet tall, something keeps screwing this stuff up.

Very frustrating...tommorrow night will be a late night.
:banghead:x10^999,999,999,999,999

http://www.aircraftresourcecenter.com/, click on "Tools n Tips" and they have a great scale converter.

Hey, I just read through the entire thread. I let it get long while on my own spring break and finally had a chance to read it.

First, this project is GREAT. I love the ambition, scope, and all the design, construction, and technical aspects it encompases. Your metal work skill is great.

A couple things though... I would go back to 1:8 scale. Why? Because of this. (http://www.revell-monogram.com/store/ModelDetail.cfm?Id=452&SubjectId=0&SkillId=0&ScaleId=4&TypeId=0&StartRow=1&FromSearch=1). You could totally lift the engine and wheels from it if you were so inclined. The engine especially. Also, before you start up on this next one, really sit down and try to make a list of every construction challenge you will meet along the way. Now, I know this is impossible, but try. Think about the doors, the hinges, how you are going to transfer drawing to metal, etc. Go sit in a car, look at every aspect of it and make notes. Inspect things like hinges... is there any hardware you can use in its place, something you could find at Home Depot or somewhere? Are the doors going to latch, how? Oh! Look at a real car door, how the skin sticks out about 1/2 beyond the door itself so the shut lines can line up and the door can open smoothly (I was wondering about that earlier in construction, before your post about the minor setbacks). If you need, take pictures of everything you can. Nothing sucks worse than wondering about something and not being able to find out about it 'till later. A project like this takes an enormous amount of research and planning. Any sort of scratchbuilding or fabricating does. I'd venture to say research time = planning time = construction time on a project like this.

This post isn't to harass you, just some things I noticed and wondered about throughout the thread. The door sill/jamb bit did end up biting you in the ass, and I hate to say it but it was almost expected. I really think you have plenty of skill, talent, and drive to do this model. I think if you plan it, extensively, before hand you'll come out with a winner that just falls together. Almost. But you get what I mean.

Plan plan plan, is all I can say. I spend many a class hour planing my models instead of paying the prof attention. It's actually my favorite part, building is just execution of the plan, the plan is the opus.

Good luck, I can't wait to see you start it up again. Your skills are incredible and your subject choice impeccable. Just fantasmagorique.