Pro-Line Ambush '77 Chevy Van

[ToSte]

I was lucky enough to have Santa drop off one of these little rigs. I always wanted an old Ambush 1/10 body but for some reason I couldn't wait to build a custom body for this thing. I've got a thing for old vans, so after much research I picked out a model.
First thing I wanted to change were the wheels and tires. I couldn't find anything to match what I had in mind, so I hacked up the ones provided. Lopped off the face and used a pipe between the two pieces to gain about 5mm width, a deeper dish, and some nice bulge to the tires.

As fore the tires I sanded off the side lugs and slapped some white on there.

Did you know model kits are like $30 these days? So I got a already cobbled together model for $10 to make sure everything actually looked right. First thing to do was hack up the floor for clearance of the shocks and motor.

Once that was good enough I plopped on the already done body.

I dug it! So I picked up a new version of the same kit cast in white because I wasn't positive I'd get as bright a yellow I wanted when painting, plus this gives me an extra body for heavy beatings.

I originally mounted the auxiliary lights to the bumper, but that made issues when popping off and on the body, so I opted to bolt them to the grill. The body uses magnets to attach to the floor, and the floor to the chassis. A bit wonky but close enough.



I used scraps to make a ladder, roof rack, window vents, and hood scoop. The roof accessories are from Hobby Gear. The gas can is my first venture into styrene, not too bad I think.
Now for some sweet off roading shots:

[Phylodog]

Nice job, I dig it!

[JatoTheRipper]

This is amazing!!

It's crazy that models are friggin' $30!

[Xenon]

Wicked Ambush ! I like what you've done to the wheels and i never thought a van could look so cool.

Beautiful execution.




lol leaf spring mafia i love that.

[aver3]

Originally Posted by JatoTheRipper

This is amazing!!

It's crazy that models are friggin' $30!

I agree on both points. OP did an awesome job with this!

I remember buying a ton of model kits at Walmart when I was a teenager, and most of them were $8.88. I think the last one I bought at a hobby shop was about $20-25. I still have many of those kits from Walmart sitting unbuilt in my parents' basement. My wife might kill me if I tried to bring some down to Tennessee, but she did ask why I didn't just buy model kits instead of buying rc trucks. She said the models would be much cheaper...

[R.Billy Rob]

Originally Posted by aver3

My wife might kill me if I tried to bring some down to Tennessee, but she did ask why I didn't just buy model kits instead of buying rc trucks. She said the models would be much cheaper...

Now you could do both! Grap those model kits, and pick up an Ambush, and have some fun. That might really piss her off though!

[R.Billy Rob]

ToSte, nice van! I also have a thing for vans. Yours is looking great!

[Natedog]

Very nice job on the van build, crazy the price of models...those were about $3-$4 when I was a kid, built tons of them.

Cheaper and more productive than eating out and going to the bar, build one, have fun, reduce your stress. Maybe wife needs hobby too.

[crashradius]

The van is very cool, and my wife definitely needs a hobby

[TheLetterJ]

You beat me to it! I've been looking for a '92+ E-series body for years to build a 1/24-1/10 scale version of my 1:1. Ironically, I stopped by my Dad's house yesterday and he handed me a model I had started on almost 25 years ago that I'd long forgotten about... "disco van" by AMT, a Ford Econoline from the same era as your G10! I already started mocking it up on my son's Sumo.