Completed November 2018
Now, this was a build that I found tricky. It was the Revell Volkswagen T1 "Samba Bus" 1/24th scale kit. What made it tricky was that not all the parts fitted nicely, as opposed to what I'd come to expect from a typical Tamaya kit. This was especially the case with the body panels. Still, as with most of my builds, I generally enjoyed making this one.
Contrary to my usual pratice, I started by making the Bus, and in particular, with the engine, follwed by the body panels. My masking skills were stretched to the limit! Especially by the small windows.
On with the accessories for the base..... complete with bong!
As this was to be a camper and not a bus, I omitted the middle seat, and built in a table with bar stool.
The inside of the roof had no shortage of ejector marks!!!!
The idea was to get the look of a rusting, but functional, surfer bus so I had to be mindful of not rusting it too much. There was no shortage of reference photos of VW busses in this state.
.......and before I realised it, I had completed the bus.
I had always wondered how to make a scale fire.
For this one, I used thin, clear cellophane and painted some orange, red and yellow streaks in it.
I applied some matt black Tamiya acrylic to pieces of wood, which I
quickly dipped into ash from the fireplace. Why simulate when you can use the real thing?
(If anyone has a better method, then please mail me. I'd love to hear from you).
I battled a bit to get the surfboards glossy, but eventually I succeeded. Rust-Oleum's orange spray does not seem to like the Rustoleum clear.
The lighting makes it look uneven, but the finish is as smooth as glass.
Of course they needed a beach umbrella so, examining our one, I designed and made one.
After making the frame, I cut the shape of the covering from thick white paper towel ensuring the right size and fit. I then painted a thinly diluted mix of cold glue and water overthat and let it dry. Once dry, I masked it and painted the lines. Once dry, I fitted the "canvass" to the ubrella frame.
After that, all that remained was to make the base, and put the whole lot togheter. I added a backdrop picture to show that they were at the beach.