Slow down brother we got 4 months! Hehe, I know it's not your way. Maybe you knock this one out, then you come play in the unlimited class...
Carl.
Carl.
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BO15 RaTs GaSs...Great year all!...pg 26
- Thread starter OddJob
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I like the Drag Racing theme. I have something similar in mind.So, we are in a strange time world wide right now. With that thought firmly planted in your mind, here's another unusual thought. OJ will be doing a 'shiny' rat build this year~!
Not only will it be shiny, it's going to be colorful as well! My experiment with the Dupli-color Metalcast paint last Fall on RaTsberry Buffet has entranced me ever since. This summer I will be going full bore on that paint plan!
I have long admired the 'gasser' hot rods and their exaggerated colors, jacked up front ends, big fat rear / small skinny front tire combos, colored glass windows, and added graphics and stickers / decals. Expect ALL of those on my build....RaTs GaSs.
Here are some of the inspirational photos I found this winter while planning my build:
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Then, while digging deeper, I found this Hot Wheels gasser photo.....and I knew this was it!
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This March, as the seasons and our lives were changing, my buddy Scotty at Arizona Wholesale Bikes asked me to come in and help him build bikes and keep the shop humming to keep up with the explosion of bike sales. I spent 5 mornings there, enjoying his company and building cool cruisers. On the last day, I asked him about a frame set that had been hanging in the corner of the shop. "Was that a parts donor? It looks like a new frame. Any issues with it?" He told me he had taken the wheels / tires and saddle off of it to 'customize' another new bike the way a customer wanted it. So no, the frame and fork were basically new.
I offered that I would take that frame and fork in lieu of some of my day's wages, and he walked over, grabbed it off the rack, and handed it to me! It's a 'classic' styled frame ( that is the actual model name of this Zycle Fix bicycle) with a great chrome finish. Perfect for my Metalcast paint application!
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I told Scotty about my gasser build idea, and he mentioned a really cool custom auto paint store that was just a couple miles away. So I swung in on my way home that morning. The store is called Space Age Auto Paint, and is a unreal set up! Custom paint mixologists, every brand of base and paint you can think of, or have never heard of. And the aisle with Dupli-Color Metalcast was packed full! I brought these home from the shelves....
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Yep! I'm doing a fade paint job just like the Hot Wheels car. Can't wait to get started!
I am also back now in Minnesota and working every other day at our bike shop in the 'hood. Put in a couple of parts orders, and here's what I have so far in the queue.....
26" chrome fender set
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20" Rant tire. Not sure if I will go 20" or 24" in the front. Have to try both and return the one I don't use. That employee discount sure comes in handy.
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BMX style lay back seat post. This is a larger seat tube than the vintage frames I usually work with, so I'm going this route. Chrome, of course.
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Last Fall Trek had some closeouts on Electra parts ( Electra is owned by Trek ) and I got this 24" x 45 mm wheel with the Shimano Nexus 3 spd hub and 24 x 3 Fattio tire dirt cheap!
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MX style stem in chrome, natch.
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Option 2, 24 x 1.75 front shiny wheel with Kenda Kwest 24 x 1.5 tire. The tire tread matches up with the Fattio rear really well. Just, skinnier.
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So, that's way more than you cared to know about RaTs GaSs . Can't wait to start throwing the bike parts around in the BACK40 !
RaT oN~!
Wow! Amazing take on what might have been a "Davey" for starters?!
Keep those inspiring elements coming guys!
Keep those inspiring elements coming guys!
Haha! You know me well, Carl. I actually have come up with another idea, just a couple nights ago, that would require some cutting and pasting (angle grinder and welder). Will have to see if I have the time and can squeeze another build into the confines of the BACK40.
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The engine, handlebars and body are from the Davey kit. The body has been modified for shape and to put the arms and legs where I wanted them. The head is highly modified and came from the Digger kit. Everything else is scratchbuilt except for the scoops which came from a T'rantula.
Psycho, some winter let's host a 'Rat Model Build-Off' with your above ^ parameters as a guideline. Parts from various kits, and scratch built parts added in! I could really get into this big time! And have it be a Weird RaT focus.
I think you made the right choice on the wheel change. The 20" with that fender was just too out of scale. Killer mag sprocket too. Looking forward to the triple tree.
Fink on brother.
Fink on brother.
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OJ, do you know there is a current repop of the Schwinn Krate model kit?
A couple of months ago, I finished up a modified Huey's Hut with a new body/head that I sculpted. (Kept the arm from the kit)
Didn't want to drag your post way off topic, but Weird-Ohs and Finks are near and dear to my lowbrow heart.
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No, I did not know that. Have to check it out.
@gowjobs , Dave... that model is Kool with a kapital K~! So, you'd be in on a Weird Rats Model build challenge I take it? 
Some fodder for a few months from now when the cold wind blows....
Now, as far as RaTs GaSs goes , if and when I add parts that aren't already chromed, I am going to try this wrap I got from Vinyl Frog. It's 1 ft x 5 ft, so I should have enough for a tank, frame insert, or other accoutrements that may don said build. It's adhesive backed I guess. Never used it before, and will have to see how it takes to the Metalcast paint as well before it makes the 'cut'.
Some fodder for a few months from now when the cold wind blows....
Now, as far as RaTs GaSs goes , if and when I add parts that aren't already chromed, I am going to try this wrap I got from Vinyl Frog. It's 1 ft x 5 ft, so I should have enough for a tank, frame insert, or other accoutrements that may don said build. It's adhesive backed I guess. Never used it before, and will have to see how it takes to the Metalcast paint as well before it makes the 'cut'.
@gowjobs , Dave... that model is Kool with a kapital K~! So, you'd be in on a Weird Rats Model build challenge I take it?
Some fodder for a few months from now when the cold wind blows....
Now, as far as RaTs GaSs goes , if and when I add parts that aren't already chromed, I am going to try this wrap I got from Vinyl Frog. It's 1 ft x 5 ft, so I should have enough for a tank, frame insert, or other accoutrements that may don said build. It's adhesive backed I guess. Never used it before, and will have to see how it takes to the Metalcast paint as well before it makes the 'cut'.
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Wow! Is it heat appliable? Like those foils used on cars?
I am not sure Spike. I haven't unrolled it yet. But if it is, I'm hoping my wife's hairdryer will do the trick!
As long as the surface is clean and smooth, that should stick fine. You can use a heat gun/hair dryer to aid installation. I'd suggest watching a video or two on installing vinyl wrap.@gowjobs , Dave... that model is Kool with a kapital K~! So, you'd be in on a Weird Rats Model build challenge I take it?
Some fodder for a few months from now when the cold wind blows....
Now, as far as RaTs GaSs goes , if and when I add parts that aren't already chromed, I am going to try this wrap I got from Vinyl Frog. It's 1 ft x 5 ft, so I should have enough for a tank, frame insert, or other accoutrements that may don said build. It's adhesive backed I guess. Never used it before, and will have to see how it takes to the Metalcast paint as well before it makes the 'cut'.
View attachment 118931
Thanks for the tip! Yeah, Youtube is my friend on anything I'm attempting for the first go round.
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I'm in, I love doing a little kitbashing!
RaTs GaSs Day #4
So, according to the tracking, my triple tree fork should be here tomorrow. While I wait like a kid on Christmas Eve day, I got into a project for one of my 'add ons' , gee gaws as some of my Southern friends refer to them.
In my dreaming / research stages of my R.G. build, I learned that the gasser had that small, 2 gal max tank bolted on the front of the car in order to lighten the car, and have just enough fuel to get down the track. I thought that tank was really a unique part of the gasser look, so I went about finding a 'close to scale' version for the build.
From my early beer drinking days, around age 13 or so, I remembered our iconic local brewery brand Hamm's, had a barrel shaped can for a short time. Sure enough, I found a few on the 'bay. I had it shipped to me in Feb in AZ, and hauled it home with a few other goodies back to it's place of origin; St Paul, MN.
Today I primed it, and sprayed it with a metallic color out by the paint stump in the BACK40.
Rat Fink approves! And ol' O.J. is pretty pleased too.
So, according to the tracking, my triple tree fork should be here tomorrow. While I wait like a kid on Christmas Eve day, I got into a project for one of my 'add ons' , gee gaws as some of my Southern friends refer to them.
In my dreaming / research stages of my R.G. build, I learned that the gasser had that small, 2 gal max tank bolted on the front of the car in order to lighten the car, and have just enough fuel to get down the track. I thought that tank was really a unique part of the gasser look, so I went about finding a 'close to scale' version for the build.
From my early beer drinking days, around age 13 or so, I remembered our iconic local brewery brand Hamm's, had a barrel shaped can for a short time. Sure enough, I found a few on the 'bay. I had it shipped to me in Feb in AZ, and hauled it home with a few other goodies back to it's place of origin; St Paul, MN.
Today I primed it, and sprayed it with a metallic color out by the paint stump in the BACK40.
Rat Fink approves! And ol' O.J. is pretty pleased too.
