[TC18] Ms. B's Hot Rod

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

It made no sense to have such a big front body since the engine is in the back, so this got redesigned. 

I decided to give this spoiler a try. It's not unarguably nicer, but it's fun, so..

I also tweaked a few things here and there. 

Edited April 14, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

I think it's more balanced with a slightly wider hood. 

Edited April 14, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[Erik Leppen]

I think you have very good panel usage. My favorite detail is the usage of the "old" small white panels at the back, above the rear wheels. Also the panels you used for the front wheel fenders are a nice find, even though you're probably not the first to use those panels for that.

I think the colors work rather well, also with the light gray.  But I wouldn't use the dark gray headrests though. That's maybe just one color too many. Maybe you can try full red seats? Another suggestion but I don't know if it's possible, but slightly inclined seats? With the seats completely vertical, it does look a bit "square", I think if the seats are slightly at an angle, the design may "flow" better.

It does sit rather tall though (maybe you could experiment with lowering the front fenders?) but this is probably needed to fit the rear suspensoin setup with the engine and all the gearing. Your solution looks ingeniious and also quite sturdy.

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

59 minutes ago, Erik Leppen said:

I think you have very good panel usage. My favorite detail is the usage of the "old" small white panels at the back, above the rear wheels. Also the panels you used for the front wheel fenders are a nice find, even though you're probably not the first to use those panels for that.

I think the colors work rather well, also with the light gray.  But I wouldn't use the dark gray headrests though. That's maybe just one color too many. Maybe you can try full red seats? Another suggestion but I don't know if it's possible, but slightly inclined seats? With the seats completely vertical, it does look a bit "square", I think if the seats are slightly at an angle, the design may "flow" better.

It does sit rather tall though (maybe you could experiment with lowering the front fenders?) but this is probably needed to fit the rear suspensoin setup with the engine and all the gearing. Your solution looks ingeniious and also quite sturdy.

Thank you very much! Much appreciated. 

In fact, what you see here is almost everything I have in terms of white panels or light blue pieces altogether.. It's sometimes more the pieces that dictate the design than the opposite! 

Alas, I don't have those 1 stud connectors in red for the headrests. I've tried black, but it doesn't work. I've tried this :

And I think I'll keep it. Thanks for that! 

I would have loved to recline the seats, but they're structural.. They're L shaped beams, and I just don't have enough red left to do something fancier. But I totally agree with you on that.

Ideally, I would have put the front fenders 1 stud lower and 1 stud back. But indeed, the bulky custom suspension structure is in the way. 

Same with the rear: with the pieces available, I could maybe sit 1 stud lower, and probably at a significant cost in terms of sturdiness, but not much more.

I don't have the parts pool to go for an amazingly refined build like some that are already popping out and run for victory in this contest. My objective with this entry is mostly to have fun. And share some of the fun with my kids, so I often pick up the more sturdy solution over the more realistic.

Arranging the few parts I have into something that catches the eye has been a blast so far. Thanks again for helping improve it! 

Edited April 11, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

16 hours ago, Erik Leppen said:

Another suggestion but I don't know if it's possible, but slightly inclined seats?

I've been thinking about it a lot. And after an acceptable (color swap) scavenging from other builds, I managed to slightly improve the seats:

I had to keep the top vertical since it is part of the structure, but the lower part at an angle improves the flow, I guess. Funny detail, the 3L red beams are held in position by captive 3L minifig sticks, so that they don't rotate forward.

Cheers! 

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

Miss Butterfly had her ride pimped! More race looks with a new body kit: spoilers, mirrors, rims, carbon disk brakes, fuel tank caps and more.

A much needed upgrade; with all those fancy cars popping around, she was becoming shy to ride along in the neighborhood. 

Edited April 15, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

I threw the last dark azure beam I had into this build and raised the window heigth one stud. Helps with the hot rod looks IMO.

Steering, full independent suspension, gearbox, classic fake engine, 2 seats and a decent body. It's getting near complete!

Edited April 18, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

Yesterday, I've been looking for a solution to lower those fenders. Ideally, they should go right in place of the most external stud of the top 2 grey beams protruding over the wheels:

The light grey ones in the center are 5 x 3 L shaped and are the ones the suspension arms are connected to. The dark ones around are there to maintain geometry. The front one should be enough, the thing was a bit overbuilt, as always... But even if I get rid of the top one, switch the 5L for straight 7 and connect to the top longitudinal ones, the steering stil is in the way. This should also move, then..

And that implies a lot of reworking. I could think of solutions that imply pieces I don't have at hand, or some that are a lot weaker. In the end, I only managed to fix a small issue with the steering on fully compressed suspension...

On the other hand, I'm quite happy with the suspension! 

 

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

I took the whole body apart to, once again, tinker with those fenders, and realized I did a relatively decent job of modular building.. 

In the process, it struck me; what's wrong is that it's built like a tractor! It's way stronger than really required. I guess that can fit with the hot rod theme, and that my builds will get slicker as my boy gets older..  

But I finally came to some improvement. Putting the fenders at an angle helps with the global flow, I think. And, well, it's still robust enough. 

In the end, had I managed to put them on stud lower, the only way they would have fit is also one stud to the inside (narrower). And the tires are already wider without that, so I think it wouldn't have been better altogether. Surely narrower tires would have been a better fit in this case. So all in all, I'm happier! 

Edited April 25, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

I was searching for pieces for a fire extinguisher ( @Shtykoff) when I came across this x-mas tree bulb...

Yep, a squeeze horn. Must have, ain't it? 

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

I ordered a few white parts for the rear wing arches. Black was all I had, but they kinda disappeared in that color. I think it's better now.

I also improved the front axle; the steering and suspension work flawlessly now. The downside is that I had to move it half a stud forward.

[Edit:] I rolled that back. I figured another way to strengthen the front axle that does not force me to move it. Much better now.

Anything I should fix or improve? Feedback is welcome.

Cheers!

Edited April 25, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[Mechbuilds]

idk it's starting to look pretty cool. 

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

Updated pictures!

Cheers!

Edited May 9, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

On 4/24/2020 at 2:46 PM, Mechbuilds said:

idk it's starting to look pretty cool. 

Thank you! 

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

It was my birthday a few days ago and look what I got! 

I had to tweak the car a bit: the original headlights really aren't to my taste. I also switched the wheels to the spokes side.

Doing so, I realized the motivation for this contest: this blue car really feels like an empty shell.. 

Also, I understood why its roof is (too) so low: that's about the max height allowed in the lower deck. 

Of course now that I finally have wheel arches (had none before) and a 3-stud differential, I could re-work the hot rod. But I think I'll leave it as is and start working on a new car: there's plenty of room left on that truck! 

Maybe RC and low enough to fit under..

Edited May 4, 2020 by 1980SomethingSpaceGuy

[Tomik]

It is interesting to see where you got from initial idea with pullback motor. I thought I was the first who got this idea but I was wrong...

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

Thanks. Well I think I came first with a pull back motor prototype picture. But @agrof came shortly after with something so advanced he surely was on it beforehand: 

Very elegant design, by the way.. 

[agrof]

@1980SomethingSpaceGuyHappy Birthday! 

Nonetheless, I think it is a good change You did, as technically your Hot Rod is more exciting (see: Technic) - meanwhile I sacrificed every mechanics for visuals (see: statue ). Ms. B is for sure happy with her ride! 

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

Agreed, I was going nowhere slow with my shot at pull back. Moreover, switching to more Technic gave me more to build, which is the part I enjoy the most.

She's quite happy indeed! It started as a joke, but she loves to squeeze that horn and make funny noises, so I'll keep it. 

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

On 4/26/2020 at 3:28 PM, 1980SomethingSpaceGuy said:

Maybe RC and low enough to fit under..

Well I did it. And more... The family now:

Two side projects: Rocket Boy's Pullback Roadster and Daddy's Sports Wagon. I had to... There's so much room on that truck!

Cheers!

[1980SomethingSpaceGuy]

I updated the pics on my entry post. Still not totally happy about them, but I'm glad Jim allowed for it, leaving the TC18 topic open today.

I think it's a cute little thing. It's quite creative, yet nice and robust, very playable. Fits the Technic theme!