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Skottoman

Bored of Lexan...

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I've found recently, that after getting into much more detailed builds, I much prefer the hard bodied kits, to lexan bodies.

While I have taken many lexan bodies to new levels with the use of styrene, lights, wood, etc, They just aren't as satisfying to me now. You can do quite a bit with a lexan body, but something about them just never seems as realistic.

I have tons of spare lexan bodies I guess I will eventually get used, and built up, but I find myself looking for new kits to buy that are hardbodied. I also am finding that I don't drive them as much due to not wanting to mangle the hardbodies in a crash.

I wonder if my thoughts will change as I get back into some lexan bodied kits... (I do have some great ones NIB that I have been avoiding).

Do you have a preference?

Cheers,

Skottoman

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Do you have a preference?

Most certainly prefer hard bodies, but they are better suited to slower models or models that you run on your own. When you race with others the lexan can't be beaten for durability and taking a knock or two in collisions.

My favourite hard body is still (and prolly always will be) the Grasshopper. In all it's use I've only put it on it's roof once. Can't be said that I drive it gently either with the 4600Kv Mamba pushing it along.

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Yes I agree that lexan for sure has it's place... and you're right the hard bodies are better for slower models.

For me lately I've been spending more time building than bashing (And I've bashed the bejeepers out of a few lexan bodies for sure!)

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I actually prefer polycarbonate because I find it easier to paint when building an RC car. If I wanted to make a hard plastic body look presentable, I would paint on both the inside and the outside whereas polycarbonate can only really be painted from the inside, driver figures excepted. I do not have to worry about surface finish either; just making sure that the coats are on the shell, are reasonably tough and maybe backed with ideal colours is sufficient. It used to be that I never liked cutting out the bodies by hand, but I have become decent at that since my first model.

Of course, I would still enjoy a nice hard plastic bodyshell for its scale looks and - due to my experience building plastic model kits - familiarity.

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Lexan bodies are much better for runners, especially ones run hard or by the kids. There are in the maina quick build too - a hour or two cutting out the shell ans masking, an hour painting and an hour for decals, They always look nice when finished due to the high gloss but the level of detail (crease lines, door apertures, window rubbers) is of course missing or vague at best.

There' nothing better than an odd lexan shell for a quick build in between more custom and lengthy hard shell projects.

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I guess the tough part is there are a lot of lexan shells out there for some really great cars/trucks.

It's not like Tamiya makes a hardbody of the Unimog, or the Alfa GTA, etc. That's the part that is a bummer.

And since they can't be *quite* as detailed as a hard body, I have found myself shying away from my lexan kits recently.

Guess I need to get one out and try to detail it as much as possible...

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Lexan is a huge turn-off for me!

If anybody could imagine anything sadder than a Toyota Bruiser sporting a lexan body.

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I don't really have issues with either. I've painted a couple of hard bodies and tons of lexan, and I find that the lexan is like a vaction after detailing a hardbody (and is as detailed as I need for things like fiat 500s and Minis - however, a Pajero MTW, Mu, or F350 wouldn't be as awesome in lexan)

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I am of the opinion that certain types of chassis call out for lexan shells, while others call out for hardbodies, and some don't mind what they wear.

For example, a racing buggy or touring car would look wrong wearing anything other than lightweight polycarbonate, while a ladder-framed 3-speed would look wrong without a hardbody. However fun bashers and entry-level chassis can get away with wearing either - the Grasshopper/Hornet is a fine example.

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I've found recently, that after getting into much more detailed builds, I much prefer the hard bodied kits, to lexan bodies.

While I have taken many lexan bodies to new levels with the use of styrene, lights, wood, etc, They just aren't as satisfying to me now. You can do quite a bit with a lexan body, but something about them just never seems as realistic.

I have tons of spare lexan bodies I guess I will eventually get used, and built up, but I find myself looking for new kits to buy that are hardbodied. I also am finding that I don't drive them as much due to not wanting to mangle the hardbodies in a crash.

I wonder if my thoughts will change as I get back into some lexan bodied kits... (I do have some great ones NIB that I have been avoiding).

Do you have a preference?

Cheers,

Skottoman

I prefer the hard bodies as I don't tend to run cars so much now. Lexan is good for anything that is likely to roll though, although lexan can be damaged easily when a car hard as the body mounts can punch through the lexan anyway. I usually try to attach lexan shells with velcro if possible, so in the event of a rollover the shell just gets ripped of the car. I never feel totally relaxed when running a hard bodied buggy in case of damage, but am not so bothered about giving stick to a lexan bodied car. The hard bodies are just too expensive to replace when damaged. I'm quite into tanks as well, which come with detailed shells made from ABS and huge opportunities for adding extra details, and likelyhood of damaging them whilst running is fairly low. (Sounds like this is what you need for your next project ;) ). Of course, for durability and withstanding impact damage, nothing beats 6mm thick steel dovetailed and welded B).

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I have been going just the opposite direction; after filling up a shelf with hard-bodied models that look too pretty to get dirty, I'm rediscovering the joys of a one-color Lexan lid with a couple stickers. But I go in cycles; right now I'm more into running and tuning and tinkering with chassis parts than I am into detailing. I'll probably turn back to super-detailed hard bodies at some point.

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Nah! Who would say an RC vehicle that tends to roll as much as, say, a Wild Willy would have had so much appeal if instead of the LOVELY detailed hard body would have come with some dull lexan body????

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And yes, I'm bored of Lexan too.

Hard plastic bodies are more prone to be repaired, modified and restored. You can add your fantasy and model skill and you can do what you want. For example I'm restoring a Grasshopper II in this period and I decided to close all the holes on the body and make underside body mounts. I made a driver cockpit and I did it the same on the Grasshopper I body. I'm not sure I'll do the same on my Hornet.

Grasshopper I driver cockpit:

img24_09042012042320_8.jpg

Grasshopper II driver cockpit:

img24_27092012025207_2.jpg

Body without mounting holes:

img24_27092012025207_1.jpg

One of the new handmade body post:

img24_27092012025207_7.jpg

This is impossible to do with Pexan. Even the plastic bodies are more detailed than Lexan ones.

Max

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I agree that each medium has it's place. As an in between on some of my scalers I've been running Kamtec 2mm ABS bodies. They're very resilient (almost as tough as poly-carbonate) but they're able to be detailed very nicely. The downside is that it is harder to work with (cut) than Lexan but you can use the common ABS/Styrene and PVC cements with them.

here's a Kamtec Defender 110 pickup I recently built from their 2mm ABS. I could etch, carve and cut detail in and if it rolled on the trail it was a non-issue. I finished the bare body in black primer, then covered it in a testors metallic silver. Finally it was given a coat of tan. When the tan was scratched or weathered away, the silver showed through nicely.

1.jpg

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NICE CRAWLER

Thanks :)

Here's another Kamtec 2mm abs body I just finished up...the headlights and grille too a bunch of time on this one.

20.jpg

P1040362_zps1ecb5c39.jpg

Then again, with some imagination and some vinyl lexan can really POP!

a34.jpg

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I guess the best scenario for me is to take a lexan body and add so much styrene/plasticard, that it's a hybrid.

I agree that interests in this hobby tend to come and go, perhaps soon, I'll be going for a 1 color paint job, with just a few stickers and bash it to bits.

Then again, I have a problem now, where I just MUST keep adding detail!

I prefer the hardbody for sure, as it just feels more vintage to me. I'm bored with the plain lexan body, but by adding styrene, I guess they are still good.

Lexan Unimog shell, rest of body is custom styrene.

cc01_39.jpg

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I guess the best scenario for me is to take a lexan body and add so much styrene/plasticard, that it's a hybrid.

I agree that interests in this hobby tend to come and go, perhaps soon, I'll be going for a 1 color paint job, with just a few stickers and bash it to bits.

Then again, I have a problem now, where I just MUST keep adding detail!

I prefer the hardbody for sure, as it just feels more vintage to me. I'm bored with the plain lexan body, but by adding styrene, I guess they are still good.

Lexan Unimog shell, rest of body is custom styrene.

cc01_39.jpg

the Mog really lends itself to a hybrid approach like you show! Love that!

RJ

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