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JennyMo

The STUMPscorcher - two Tamiya icons in one!

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I doubt anyone here would argue that the Sand Scorcher is without a doubt, the most iconic RC kit that Tamiya has ever made?

Way before I realised it had so many metal parts, scale dampers and a beautifully detailed [hard plastic] body, it just looked so darn real - sitting there on the shelf, in Betties circa 1981... three times the price of anything I (or more accurately my parents) could ever spend on a 'toy'.

If you've seen my showroom, you'll see I essentially satisfied that original craving back in 2009 when I built my 'Fro-Sco' - using a Frog/Brat chassis, with a Blitzer Beetle shell... typically just a year before Tamiya re-released the 2010 Scorcher in all it's blister-packed, cast alloy, new-car smell, glory!

I was sorely tempted to buy an SRB back then, just to enjoy the build - but at the same time, knew that trying to properly replicate box art was not something that had ever really inspired me, and that I actually preferred both customising [the shells], and as importantly, the physical challenge of re-engineering something, and fundamentally - making something unique.

It was also around this time that I built the original STUMPkin - the ba5tard love-child of an old Midnight Pumpkin shell I'd had since the late 80's, and a brand new Wild Willy 2 kit chassis... and it was then began to fully appreciate the joy driving the WR02 chassis - it is awesome fun!

I've always loved Willy of course (no tittering at the back there please!) and more recently I have finally embraced the Willys shell in building the Nailer Scaler - since I never felt the original Jeep body sat particularly well on the Wild Willy 2 chassis, that it was somehow just perched on top, rather than fully integrated?

Anyway, that rather longwinded introduction is really just to set the scene for my latest build project - yep, actually one with wheels this time!

If we concede that Sand Scorcher is the most iconic Tamiya RC kit, then I trust you will also agree that the Wild Willy has to be up there too - certainly amongst the aficionados... and it is to you guys that I trust this latest project will particularly appeal:

What if we had a Sand Scorcher that could do wheelies?!

Exactly!

So, I started with a brand new WR02 chassis (actually the Samba Bus kit - and yes, the bus body is for sale x), and a new re-re Scorcher shell:

IMG_2286_zps5b3aa832.jpg

Yes, I know what you're thinking - this is going to need some drastic surgery if it has a hope in he-ll of ever going together!

Fortunately, the amount that needed to be taken out of the body [to be close to the WR02 wheelbase] was pretty much exactly the length of the original doors note. The front arches need more space to allow the wheels to turn on full lock, so the 90mm length of the doors proved perfect. So I marked up the body for the initial cuts:

IMG_2287_zps64c435fb.jpg

Taking a Dremel to a £40 body shell was an act of faith - especially late at night!

IMG_2289_zps6017bdac.jpg

But I was pleased how it actually went together - I think with a little work from the heat gun around the roof, this baby is going to work!

IMG_2290_zps2ac0dd88.jpg

I particularly like the rear aspect - the battery ought to be accessible without removing the body, and I've also trimmed the rear aches - both for clearance of the huge tyres, but also to emphasis the 'phatt-ness' of the whole concept...

btw. I apologise now for using the term 'phatt' - I'm truly sorry - it won't happen again...

By the way, I also apologise for using the term 'btw.' above, I realise I am not writing all this in a text... to a fourteen yr old. Dang, did it again.

IMG_2291_zps3bd02851.jpg

Not only do I think the proportions of the car are going to look fantastic once the shell is fitted to the chassis, but rather fortunately, the reshaping of the cabin area means the interior plate from the Holiday Buggy (that I had in my spares box), fills the inside of the car perfectly! And of course Willy has to be behind the wheel of this one!

IMG_2292_zps1a4328a8.jpg

IMG_2294_zps507f45c9.jpg

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So that is where I'm up to now - more to follow once I've shaped the roof, and glued everything together...

I've already ordered a Blitzer Beetle nose cone (I feel the longer version will actually suit the chassis better) and the chrome parts (after all, its all in the details), and feel some simple LED lights (just the OEM headlights and some tail lights - probably high level, although they might look cool inside the 'exhausts' on the battery holder?) will enhance the look, without detracting from the 'factory' appearance I am hoping to achieve...

Less is more as they say, and this one is going to be all about the driving!

Toot toot!

Jenny xx

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A bit of filler and it'll be good as new ;)

One heck of a cut n shut - will be awesome when finished

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Thats looking sick (apologies for that teen term too lol) beyond belief. Great vision Jenny, did you wheel cut in the Dremel? A good way to cut this media too is a Zona razor saw, you get such fine clean cuts, and can literally use them to score along your cut line, till you get a decent groove to actually use a sawing action.

What are you using to sculpt in the roof after forming it?

lee

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Hi Ralphee - thanks for your kind words, that's totes amazeballs!

Yes, I did use a Dremel cut-off wheel (the very thin one), but like the sound of this Zona saw - I'll look into those for the future...

Because this (the first one x) was always going to be a bit of an 'experiment' to see where the cuts needed to be made, I wasn't going to be too precious about having to use a bit of filler/glue here and there... but I hope to ultimately have a template for subsequent versions if it works out.

What I am hoping is that using my heat gun to soften the area around the top the door frames (note. there is currently 4-5mm discrepancy between the front and rear portions, as the original roof is tapered towards the front), everything should like up pretty well, which is why I've left a bit of overhang for the moment.

To narrow the rear roof edges to line up with the front, I feel the best solution will be to cut a V in the middle of the roof, and bring everything together by heating and bending...

I may well have a go at 'welding' the plastic together with a soldiering iron where it touches, then fill in the gaps with Araldite, which is a surprisingly effective plastic filler I've found - although I am open to suggestions in this regard...

Jx

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Magicsculp for the filling Jenny, think your US based? Its easier to get it in the US too. Its epoxy based, but once mixed, use water to soften, and you can really sculpt this stuff till your happy, you can get to the point where you will use a sponge to smooth it all out wet, leaving way less sanding once cured overnight, great stuff as long as you don't roll her about too much, but this stuff should work fine, and look very "dope" once smoothed out with fine grit!

lee

Edited the product, it turns out the name has changed!

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Looks uber-cool - I think our friend Willy might need a 'shoe horn' to get in and out - or be drip fed and live in it , and why not ;)

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Nice Concept Jenny . Personally I think the way to do this is to do a chop top first . As you can see the rear of the roof is actually wider then the front on a Beetle . I would make the first cut as you have in line with the front of the sunroof and the second all the way across the body where the rear door edge falls . However I would then completely remove the remaining rear section of the roof by cutting along the topline of the boot lid and extending those cuts so they line up with the the bottom of the rear window .

Doing it that way you can angle the roof downwards to line up with the curve of the remaining front roof section . All ( lol ) you would then need to do is reshape the rear window and styrene / fill a new in fill section of the rear pillar .

Just my thoughts and as they say there's more that one way to skin a cat .

BTW I helped a mate do something very similar with a 1:1 Mini some years ago . I remember that getting the roof profile to look 'right' was a real badword of a job .

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You're a brave lady chopping that much out of a shell but if anyone is capable of pulling this off it's you!

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JennyMo, I suggest you to use my friction welding technique for this body.

You will not need any glue and the body will come back one piece as magic.

Max

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JennyMo, I suggest you to use my friction welding technique for this body.

You will not need any glue and the body will come back one piece as magic.

Max

Hi Max - yes, I saw that and was very impressed - do you have the link to it again?

Jx

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Looking forwards to seeing how this turns out - I've seen a couple of 1:1 beetles that have been shortened like this - they look very cute (plenty of pics on google). This one is going to look nuts with those wheels though!

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I could have donated a shell for this, I have a bug shell that is beyond my repair but I am sure you would work wonders with it.

If you need any more shells, put a shout out. ;):D

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Looks very good!

A few years ago when I was an active member of a fullsize beetle, buggy and baja club, one of my clubmates had a Sand Flea - a shortened, doorless baja bug that looked very much like this. Even though it only had a 1600TP engine, it could perform sustained wheelies with ease. Lotsa fun!

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Great to see you taking your "Stumper" idea into Baja-land too JennyMo!

I'm not as creative or productive as you are, but I started on a model some years ago that's not quite unsimilar:

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=72067

That totally rocks Mokei!!!

I hadn't considered flipping the suspension - neat idea...

Mutual love and silliness all round here!

Jx

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Looks very good!

A few years ago when I was an active member of a fullsize beetle, buggy and baja club, one of my clubmates had a Sand Flea - a shortened, doorless baja bug that looked very much like this. Even though it only had a 1600TP engine, it could perform sustained wheelies with ease. Lotsa fun!

Yes! - I loved that photo you posted up on Mokei's thread - stick it up here too if you can, it is very much what the STUM-SCO is going to look like I feel!

Jx

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Sure, here is a pic of a Sand Flea Baja:

03bc_04.jpg

This isn't my mate's one - his was white, with a slightly different cage arrangement. However, as with most custom vehicles, every Sand Flea is different. There is plenty of scope for individual customisation.

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The crazy thing is that picture could be a 1/10 or a 1/1 - with that whip ariel, it could be RC! In fact, when I found the picture on google images I thought it *was* RC and was surprised when I realised it was real! :D

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Sure, here is a pic of a Sand Flea Baja:

03bc_04.jpg

Ha! I'm amazed how much the STUMPscorcher is going to look like this! - presumably they had to cut the roof off that 1:1 so you could get in and out?!

Certainly that was one option I considered (as BromVW suggested) - and either reshape/model with styrene as required, or even simply leave it open as a convertible - particularly as I'm going to build a full interior for this one, and no doubt Willy will have a load of scale accessory junk in there!

However, I also want to retain as much of the Sand Scorcher silhouette as possible, so for the time being, will press on with a hard-top version, and Willy will just have to wiggle himself in and out of the rear window or something - or else live in there and be drip-fed as Kev The Rev suggested!

So I did a little more work on the shell this afternoon... a quick measure (by eye), and I made a few cuts - in an effort to stitch as much of the original roof together as possible:

IMG_2305_zps7a6f318c.jpg

This way, by heating and bending, I was hoping the two halves of the roof would fold into the centre line, and pull the sides (since the roof is wider at the rear) in to line with each other above the side window frames...

IMG_2312_zps909d61ea.jpg

As you can see, it pretty much worked! (with some extra trimming, soldiering iron welding and dollop of Araldite), however, there was a slight depression in the roof, and the top edge of the rear window also needed a bit of jiggling... in the meantime, I also used the soldiering iron welding technique on the inside:

IMG_2309_zps2a9a7f93.jpg

Obviously this works better the closer the original cuts are to each other... and where there was the odd gap, I bridged/filled that with Araldite Rapid epoxy (as you can see in the roof section above). I also spread epoxy over the inside of all the welded joints, for extra strength.

So with the glue dry, I mixed up some Isopon P38, and added a little extra depth to the roof, which will be sanded to shape, to create a smooth curve to the roofline:

IMG_2314_zps4f679d5c.jpg

Similarly, while the Araldite was an excellent filler/bonder on the side panel joints (note. I put masking tape on the outside of the shell, and put the glue in from inside, so it forms a nice smooth surface flush with the outer panels once dry and the tape removed), I also covered the outside of the joints with P38, which will be sanded back to create a totally smooth surface - the idea being it will look like a single moulded body shell once its been primed:

IMG_2315_zps93f46dd4.jpg

That I am hoping to be able to do a little later this evening... it could be another late night tonight!

Toot toot for now!

Jx

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wow quick progress . Not quite what I had in mind but I have to say its very cute .

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wow quick progress . Not quite what I had in mind but I have to say its very cute .

Thanks Brom' - I wanted to try and avoid having to fab up new panel work if possible - as I I don't have any suitable styrene anyway, and was running low on P38 too (must go shopping tomorrow!)...

I really like the way this has worked out, although I was/am also tempted to open up the whole back of the roof down to the vent panel above the boot lid - very much in the same was as the 1:1 in the photo XV Pilot posted - as it would really show of the interior, which would be fun... and perhaps include a folded/rolled tonneau like the old Citroen 2CV had?

Of course there is nothing to stop me making another shell somewhere down the line too - eh, Wolfdogstinkus ;o) - and I have to say, I can really see one of these with just the sides in place, together with an interior cage and a rack of lights...

Jx

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You know, with the angle of the front windscreen and the rear roof section, it kinda reminds me of an 80's era Porsche 911 from the side.

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I deffo think you should open the roof up like that 1:1 car, there's no way Willy's helmet would fit through any of the holes otherwise (ooer)!

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