I do the same with 1/64 plywood. or monocate. I have stopped going all the way through i like the stiffness of leaving the top hole.
Ladder cars?
- Thread starter rickmc01
- Start date
I do the same with 1/64 plywood. or monocate. I have stopped going all the way through i like the stiffness of leaving the top hole.
I've used stickershock23.com before. His specialty is vinyl wraps for model rocketry but he'll do custom vinyl wraps in any size for other applications. Lots of interesting creative possibilities.
I wanted to cut all the way through but was concerned about warping of the body and of course stiffness. So, I cut out the weight pockets and body voids with the full block. then before reducing the body thickness to ~1/4", I installed balsa inserts. This way, I hoped warping would be reduced when I cut to final thickness. I sand the base flat before final cut.
I then used the 5Kids approach and printed label graphics for the covering of the Cub cars. For a BASX I am working on, I used Monokote on top and bottom but similar technique to stiffen with balsa. A few pics attached.
I then used the 5Kids approach and printed label graphics for the covering of the Cub cars. For a BASX I am working on, I used Monokote on top and bottom but similar technique to stiffen with balsa. A few pics attached.
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You may be right. I have seen debates about to drill before or after cutting. I did drill holes afterwards, so maybe did not help me. This was my first shot at this body style, so was trying to sift through all the advice and take my best shot. The cars turned out well and we won all levels at the pack races. Districts are tomorrow, so I will see how they hold up to next level of competition.
I'll throw in my two cents on that one. If the body is warped before you drill the rears, and you clamp it into a drill fixture for your holes, it will flatten when you clamp it but spring back after you release the clamp. Now, is your alignment "good" or not? I say no. Is it enough to matter? Maybe. My OCD side would sand the car body flat on the bottom before I'd clamp it in the fixture.
Hi Rick,
You definitely want to build a ladder type car if you can. There is a really good video on how to build lite weight bodies made by Bulldog. It is in the premium video section of the forum. You might want to subscribe to the video section. There are good tutorial videos in this section.
Keep things simple. Just buy some monokote for the top of the car and bottom. Or you can just monokote the top and use packing tape on the bottom. Or put packing tape on the top and bottom if you cannot get monokote. Someone found some really cool packing tape with some nice graphics that he used on his cars. The cars looked good.
With the Bulldog method you should be able to build 6g bodies or less. He gives instructions on how to build jigs to make consistent bodies quickly. I use this method and can build bodies very quickly and consistently. What took me hours now takes a few minutes.
You definitely want to build a ladder type car if you can. There is a really good video on how to build lite weight bodies made by Bulldog. It is in the premium video section of the forum. You might want to subscribe to the video section. There are good tutorial videos in this section.
Keep things simple. Just buy some monokote for the top of the car and bottom. Or you can just monokote the top and use packing tape on the bottom. Or put packing tape on the top and bottom if you cannot get monokote. Someone found some really cool packing tape with some nice graphics that he used on his cars. The cars looked good.
With the Bulldog method you should be able to build 6g bodies or less. He gives instructions on how to build jigs to make consistent bodies quickly. I use this method and can build bodies very quickly and consistently. What took me hours now takes a few minutes.
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You can Go with monokote but I use sheets on vinyl you can get at hobby lobby. I went by a vinyl sign store and they gave scraps free. One scrap piece I made four cars. The man said they though it away everyday. Get 1/4 cubes of tungsten if you don't have any. These are a must have for a good ladder car. THIN to WIN.
I ordered some vinyl sheets online one time which ended up being too thick and heavy, so watch out there as well. My BASX cars have Monokote. My Street Stock and Unlimited have 3m Vinyl from the scrap bin at the local sign shop. That is actually the lightest coating I have but it isn't as strong as the Monokote.
I also don't ladder my cars. I cut out the center like most people, but run a strip of balsa diagonally across it from the non dominant rear side to the dominant front side. So I have a triangle structure between the three wheels I use. I figure the lifted wheel doesn't need extra support.
I also don't ladder my cars. I cut out the center like most people, but run a strip of balsa diagonally across it from the non dominant rear side to the dominant front side. So I have a triangle structure between the three wheels I use. I figure the lifted wheel doesn't need extra support.
I did not find graphics on a specific web site. I asked each son what he wanted on his car. I then did a google search to see what we could find. My oldest son found the mindcraft image himself and I adjusted to make it work on the car. My middle son wanted spiderman, so it was easy to find options. The dog, for my youngest, was the hardest but found a kids book mark that he loved. So, it really is just searching around and having some computer program that allows image manipulation to make it into the car shape.
Those are beautiful....brings a tear to my eye! Incredible consistency.
Nice!! So, did you make those fenders or did you buy them somewhere? I'd love to purchase some if I knew where.
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