TOPIC:

frog66 wrote:

Manotas
thanks for the offer but I have many of beetle bodies

No prob mate !

OK,
WOW that's a great looking chassis!! What have you decided about the body? I like the beetle option, perhaps a beetle estate, or station wagon style, with the motor mounted in the back and that would be visible through the long rear windows?
Just my 2 cents worth, I will keep watching, it looks great!!

For now I found a V 8 engine, restrained to the idea of using the beetle body.
I mean using two but I still do not understand how to join them.

frog66 wrote:

For now I found a V 8 engine, restrained to the idea of using the beetle body.
I mean using two but I still do not understand how to join them.

I don't see how you could make one long beetle body out of two regular ones - there are just too many curves. Instead I think you'll have to stretch one - on my "Blue Max" project I gained 50mm on the front end by remaking the bonnet, that didn't have arches but I think moving or stretching the front ones would add time rather than more difficulty.

Clearly 50mm isn't enough of a stretch for your needs, the only other obvious place to add in extra is at the B-pillar (i.e. between the back of the door and the rear side window - adding a door (modfied) from a second donor shell (or making a flatter replica) would add something like another 100mm. It's possible you could find a flat enough 100mm section from the roof to be helpful, but again I suspect you'd need to make so many modifications/use so much filler it would be easier to craft your own piece to let in.

Another option (easier, not so pretty) would be to have one body kept as original, plus another (held down seperately) cut off at the B pillar & the gap filled in (a bit like the trailers some people have made from 1/2 a car).


5 minute lash up to show the first stretch ... actually pretty ugly

I saw the great work you did on your elongated beetle.
The limousine idea that gives me is also great, the main problem being the roof curves, in the longitudinal and transversal directions.
I was thinking about these two ideas:

Some neat ideas there, Jonny, I like you mock up as well and agree the roof curves are a bit of a nightmare. I did see an amazing job at a car show years ago where the owner had shrunk and grafted the rear of a VW van onto the front of the beetle. The body elements are the same and it worked very well, I will look for a picture. My racing partner and I were planning one our selves for a while but just made a shortened van instead.
Frog66, Those pictures are great, the double decker flatbed conversion is incredibly awkward looking but still very interesting, must be some mind altering substances at work there
The second photo is spot on though! I love it, I would love a 1:1 scale one very cool...very cool.. It could be done but again you will need 3 bodies to get all the door pieces ( it looks like the rears are made from the rear sections of 2 doors) the bed would be an easy enough build. Perhaps a version of that with a shorter 2 door body and a longer box with double fenders?? Hmmmmm

Very cool build apart from the clamping of those join plated you've made, Do the gear boxes bolt together in any other way?

I agree that the tubbed tray version is the best looking option



I found this pic and like JR suggested, it just doesn't look right

My plate guarantees a very strong clamping between the two gearboxes.
My concern concerns the synchronization of the two engines.

frog66 wrote:

... My concern concerns the synchronization of the two engines.

I don't see why, it's not any different to "official" two-motor Tamiya Cars (Clodbuster, Wild Dagger, etc); you've got a matched pair of motors oriented in the same direction, presumably with the same pinion & spur gear - the options are a pair of matched ESCs (23T or better, to take account of the advanced timing & greater current draw of the sport tuned motors) joined by a Y-lead from the receiver, a dual motor truck ESC of sufficient power handling (usually perplexingly expensive), or a no limit (or 11.5T/better: 23/2) ESC & fit "Japanese" 3.9mm double bullet connectors yourself


Looking at the body options, the "stretch" version is a lot of work & will still look like it's been beaten with an ugly stick, the pickup is a lot simpler, but only the double decker truck is properly epic enough for your 6 wheeler chassis

Yes is the solution I had thought.
Only that I have not tried, usually always comes up with some problem.
Personally I'm more skilled with the mechanical part.