RCCrawler Forums - Volvo C303 Scratch Build on CC-01

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Volvo C303 Scratch Build on CC-01

Hey All,

I bought this kit and assembled it over the weekend. I painted up the Unimog body that it came with, but I'm not interested in ever using it.

Anyway, below is the Ugly Unimog complete. For some reason, I went with Camel Yellow and Black, not realizing it was going to look like a school bus. A short one. :ror: No matter, it's not going to see much use!

Started by printing out the front end of the Volvo C303. This thing (in it's day) was a bullet-proof 4x4 with lockable diffs, and portals on all four wheels (obviously). They can still be imported through a few people, and if I had an extra $12k kicking around, and a wife that wouldn't kill me, I'd buy one in a second. They're very unique looking and extremely versatile. Heck, they even ran in the Paris-Dakar rally! I plan to paint it in that livery.
http://a.imageshack.us/img413/9278/8...3031978jpg.jpg

I first came across the C303 by chance in the trailer for the upcoming "Thor". They're driving one around, and I had no idea what it was when I saw the brief glimpses of it. A little help from forum friends, I had my answer, and my next build.

Using the CC-01 chassis seemed like a perfect fit. The wheelbase is really darn close to the 1:1 vehicle, and I knew it to be a very usable chassis that can withstand a fair bit of customization. Also, because everything is quite low in the tub, I think I'll have plenty of room for a full interior. For the time being, I'm probably going to leave the drivetrain pretty stock. I know that portals exist, and can be fitted to the CC-01, but I need to tackle one thing at a time, or nothing will get completed.

So here we are, Day One! I began by printing out the blueprint for the front end, and started cutting up some styrene. Being my first scratch build, I don't think I'll be able to get this perfect to scale, but I'm going to do the best I can, and hopefully learn a few things as I go. If by chance you see me doing something stupid, by all means, let me know.

looks good so far!"thumbsup"

:cry:

I was gonna attempt the very same thing, scratch building a C303 (but over a CR-01), this winter.

Oh well, guess I'll still try!

Cool project! I was wondering when someone would build one of these. I'm sure you have no shortage of pictures, but I photographed a C303 that was getting it on at Northwest Mogfest a couple weekends ago. It was a blast to watch.

Entire set here: Northwest MogFest

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/...74de2f59_z.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4098/...58de7ea2_z.jpg

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/...e77c9b00_z.jpg

That's really helpful! Thanks very much sir. I'm pretty stoked. Going to rush home and get some more work done tonight!

A little more progress. I didn't get as much accomplished tonight as I had hoped, but still moving forward. Got the two front fender areas cut as well as the windshield.

I went back and looked at the wheelbase and made an ever so slight adjustment to the overall length of the C303 so it fits better with the CC-01 chassis. I estimate around 4 inches (1:1) were lost, if that.

More progress. Got all the windows cut (scored and then bent - took forever :oops: ) and mocked up the cab section. Decided that since this is my first scratch-built project, I would not make functioning doors. Body lines and full interior, yes.

very cool...are you using the tamiya cement in the background in the last pic??? have you ever used anything else? and how do you like it/how does it compair to others?

I am thinking about scratch building a camper down the road and was wondering...will be watching this for sure.

Quote:

Originally Posted by squatch71 (Post 2616676)

Yep, using the Limolene Cement. Seems to work just fine. Bonds nicely and doesn't melt the styrene too much.

A little progress from last night.

Nice plastic work so far. Can't wait to see it complete :)

Big update! The body (in it's raw form) is nearing a point where I can start working on the interior and mounting points for the chassis.

I had a bit of a problem to solve in terms of how the roof is going to come together. It's rounded along the top edge, and I think the best way to achieve this is to sandwich a few pieces of styrene together, then fill in the gaps and sand it down. I also was considering hinging it in some way so I could easily show off the interior, but I think I'm canning that idea as well. Still doing a scale interior, but the roof should be solidly mounted to the rest of the body, so I don't lose any structural integrity. I'm getting really stoked!

I'm having a tough time deciding on paint schemes. I thought I wanted to go with the cool Dakar paint scheme in post #1, but I've been researching these rigs a lot, and most of them were military service. The ones that are in private ownership are a mixture of camo and civilian paint. In the end, it's up to me, but I'm curious to see what others think.

Started working on assembling the body. The top half is just resting as well as the grille. Need to finish a few other things before I start cementing everything together. The interior and how I'm going to mount everything is giving me some trouble, but ideas are percolating and I should have it figured out soon. I've run out of the large sheets of 2mm styrene, so most of the major stuff (like the roof) is on hold, so I figured I'd start jammin' away on the interior bits. Dashboard's a work in progress.

Ive been wanting to see one of these built, these things will go!

Haven't gotten too much done in the last couple of days, work has been the priority (sounds crazy to me too), but part of my order from RC4WD came in, so I thought I'd show off the chassis with the proper wheels and tires. Best part, and mostly by fluke, the wheels offset created a perfect track width for scale. I'm quite happy about that.

As an aside, I plan on swapping out the stock Tamiya can for a 55T motor. That should help with all the wheelspin generated by the CC-01, right?

Wow, I just realized I've left this thread dormant for too long!

Some major updates. Aside from cosmetically nearly finishing this rig inside and out, mechanically I made some upgrades. Full bearings all-round, plus a Rockhard 55T motor. It certainly gears it down a little, but it's still plenty fast. Maybe too fast. Might have to reduce the end point on the throttle so I don't smash into a tree. The included Tamiya ESC is crap. No instant reverse or drag brake? Whaaaa? ;) Might need to upgrade that so I can actually drive this pig. It's heavy, really heavy.

Anyway, as you can see from the pix, there's been a ton of progress on the body and all it's little details. I'm very happy with the end result so far.

WOW! Looks great, I can't believe that It's your first scratch build.

WOW!!! That turned out awesome!!! "thumbsup""thumbsup""thumbsup"

As above,turned out brillant,looks like the real thing.