mongoose1983

For years I've been curious about this. And to my surprise I haven't seen this done anywhere before, so I thought about sharing my experience with this kind of custom vehicle. I will use a new built 1984 original Hornet buggy chassis, and a 1986 Blackfoot Ford F-150. My goal (apart of making an unusual pickup truck) is not to modify the body, nor the chassis. I just don't have the heart to touch cars that are classics. Now had I have access to newer re-re stuff perhaps I would have gone to extremes, but not with vintage parts. Here's a look at some real Sand Dragster that worked as inspiration for my build. And this is my chassis. I built it from original parts as you can see. Oh and of course those are old-school CRP hopups. The motor was donated by my good friend @Blissard Thank you Bert! The wheels were taken from some European Graupner buggy, and the tires originally belong to a Lamborghini Cheetah (fronts) and Sand Scorcher (rears). They fit perfectly on these wheels, I don't like to stretch my tires. By the way, the Sand Scorcher tires (rears) are the only thing re-re in this build (along with the windshield used in the Ford truck). The metal bit you see in the middle keeps the tip of the axle rotating in place, that means the axle swings alright side to side, making the stock side springs useless. The thing works great. I love the chassis. Unfortunately (as opposite with the Ford body) I never had the chance to have a decent Hornet body for it. So I decided to take it out of the box for this project and try and relax a bit with this build. Can you believe I got these vintage Hornet parts in a trade for two Mabuchi silvercans? I'll show you the body and custom parts to mount the body over my Hornet chassis soon. Y'all stay safe and have a good weekend!

The front saver is really the weak point of the mechanism Kym. Once you tight that one (or replace it for a solid one like I did), you'll see there's no problem with the rear one. There's a crack risk with overtighting the front saver, be careful with that. But It's definitely worth a try.

Hi Paul, Here's the cheapest dogbones you can find for your cars. I use these on my original Avante: https://www.ebay.com/itm/292727270438

I love the Clod Buster. Just last night I was watching some videos of mine from over a decade ago. Anyway, what you built there looks fantastic. Do you know you can get rid of the smoke of the chrome wheels easily with nail polish remover. One detail I like to do on my trucks is to paint matt black the vertical parts of the red "pumpkin bumpers". So you get the looks only going to the double horizontal bars in red. It's a nice detail. Oh, and what a nice set of motors! If you get to run that truck I don't need no crystal ball to know you'll have a VERY nice time! Regarding the steering, the servo capacity isn't the point. The problem is in the front servo-saver knuckle. You either have to get it super tight, or try a one piece bit. My truck goes with a single aluminum block bit there (the rear one untouched) and a cheap regular Futaba servo makes the thing turn fantastic. Here's a picture. Have a good weekend!

Yes, same wheelbase. Now, the combination you plan to make has been done by some of ours friends in here, the main problem being the front shock towers -they make the Manx/Sand Rover shell sit too high on the SRB chassis. So far the nicest one I have seen is one by @Toykid He first modified one combining parts of the Sand Scorcher chassis, but still the body sat too high. See here: https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.asp?cid=109460&id=50 After that one he went ahead and designed a new chassis plate himself and other bits. This is a very nice one! See: https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.asp?cid=120622&id=50 More: https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.asp?cid=120651 And more detail: https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.asp?cid=118110 https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.asp?cid=117952 If you can spend the money, that's probably the best way to build a nice one. BUT... why not get the original Sand Rover, and then keep both cars in your collection Have a good weekend!

I have some metal bits. Let's trade

Nice work with what is actually Tamiya's greatest RC vehicle to ever hit the dirt anytime anywhere!

I had a look at your showroom hoping to find some pictures of that Scorpion. I'm curious about the colors you painted the body with. Oh, and NICE purchase by the way.

My project car is incomplete For some reason I happen to have three rears and only one front of these chrome wheel covers. If you're in the opposite situation or simply have one of these front wheel covers lying around please let me know. Perhaps we can make a deal or a trade? Y'all have a nice Wednesday!

You've certainly made a point with that. And by the way I'm no fan of the FB website.

For me will always be this one. Although YEAH there's many that are absolutely brilliant, the Midnight Pumpkin boxart is totally awesome!

Finally painted the Blackfoot body and the rollbar lamps. I have to do the body detail now, add a pair of decals and finish the driver, too. More on the build thread... Y'all have a MEGA weekend!

Spent literally hours working on this one today. Thing is I was saving a spray can of cheap Chinese enamel for the inner cup of a Spacial Age lamp that I was going to restore. The rattle can says "Cream white", so I thought about testing it and I've found out it works fine. Not better than a regular Testors spray can, but I like the fact that the tonality has a darker shade to it than your regular white, that means it looks a lil more realistic. Anyway, here's a couple of pictures so you can have a look at what it's like. As you can see I also took the time to prepare and paint the rollbar lamps. The results are fantastic on those with regular enamel. So now I have Gene here waiting for his truck to be ready... You all have a fantastic weekend!

ME LIKEY! Good job! I love the stance of the BIG BOSS! I have the Corvette version Hi-Rider and love it

What a fantastic piece of work. Hat's off to you, mate.

...I wonder if it is the Technituned motor? Anybody knows? You all have a good Tuesday!

That's right. If you are dealing with AM receivers, you can cut the tube to whatever you like it to be, but the wire itself must be left the way it is. You can use a piece of plastic to wire a portion of it, but the tip of it should be placed higher than the car, no matter what type.

Hi Hi Hi! Who doesn't love the Lunchbox!

A lil elbow grease got me here. Ford Flareside Ranger body all fixed & ready for some enamel

Alright, I spent literally hours sanding the body. There were lil scuffs on some corners, and I also got rid of the molding lines that I hate. The ones from the cab (behind and two on the roof) are nasty! Anyway, after a lil Putty job the body is finally worked up, ready, and covered in primer. Curiosity led me to try on a corner of a section of the Blackfoot donor hood some primer and afterwards some regular enamel. I wanted to see if on top of the Testors primer the cheap Chinese enamel would not damage the Ford body. Well, it did not! I might be excited about that, but still unsure. Any idea about this?? Well, here's some pictures for you to see. Finally ready! And yeah, that below is the fixed tab, see? No way to go wrong with a brand new ORIGINAL Ford tailgate! Another look at the results. So how do you like it @beefmuffin? I'm trying my best here, pal. That's for now. You all have a fantastic Sunday!

The bike and the tire rack behind it are NICE!

That SuperChamp looks sweet -and complete, at least to my eye. What's missing?

Thanks! Well, not completely excited about the blower, BUT I will definitely try to solve the feeling by doing a decent paintjob... someday.

Finally fixed the hood of the Blackfoot Ranger: Results (donor beside). Build thread in detail here: https://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?/topic/91225-rc-project-for-2019-non-boxart-orig-blackfoot/&tab=comments#comment-790364 You all have a good weekend!

I finally got to work the Ranger's hood. Cutting it off is so dang out of whatever I wanted, but I would have gone through a big risk if I tried to fix it to stock condition. So I chickened out and I went ahead making a "nest" with plastic from another Blackfoot hood piece. Clearly NOT the cleanest friction weld job, but stays strong, looks good, and the blower fits very well. Now how do we mount the body on the chassis? That's another story, but it doesn't go as deep down as the front attaching post, therefore finding new ways to get it there won't be too much of a hassle (fingers crossed!). Some pictures of today's work. Initial weld to keep the hood in place: Before and after shot: A look at the nest. Not the cleanest welding as you can see here, but indeed friction weld works fantastic. Thank you @yogi-bear for turning me into this technique! This is where the blower will sit: Fixed body and donor beside: Sideview: And here's the results. Sunlight is fading away in here as I write this. And it's been a cold day. I hope to do the sanding sometime this weekend, and if weather allows to spray some primer over the body. I am extremely frustrated I can not get spray can enamels nor thinner to use the airbrush to finish my projects. One more step, alright. You all have a good weekend!