The Rejected Ronin Project... or what to do with an unwanted G500 body

[xagoras]

So, those that followed my daughter's rig build thread will know that the first body came out pretty nice, but not the color she expected

The Wild Lady..... Mercedes G500 Project





I was thinking of different ways to mod this body and turn it into something unique to keep me busy and still be able to crawl with it. And then I came across this:






https://www.mansory.com/star-trooper-pickup-edition#2


Pure inspiration and really shows the potential this body has. I'm not going to replicate this exactly, but it's a good starting point for the general idea. So I've started collecting all the necessery parts and materials for the build.

For the time being it will sit on my daugther's rig, until I decide if I'll get another TRX4.

[xagoras]

This is where the cuts will be made to the body

[durok]

Ah!

Living dangerously!

(this could be VERY interesting...)

[xagoras]

The body is cut. I used an exacto knife and a lot of patience. But it came out pretty good and clean.






I need to dremel it a little bit to make the lines perfect. Both bumpers will go. I haven't decided about the fender flares yet. I'll probably trim them to get shorter if I can't find a decent rubber set without visible screws.

[mash914]

I also have a G500 and I'm also not sure about the flares. I don't like how far they stick out, but the way the edges fold over makes me worried they'd be significantly weakened if I cut them back. The other issue is, the more you cut off, the bigger the wheel opening gets - which IMHO is already a bit large. I was looking at these as an option (https://store.rc4wd.com/Big-Boss-Fen...10_p_5250.html) if I cut them all the way back, but they'd need to be mounted so high you'd have to mess with the side trim and everything.

As far as a set without visible screws, I have these (https://www.rc4x4-shop.com/Toyota-La...ab=description) for my LC70. I just checked and they're pretty similarly shaped.

[mash914]

Also wanted to say, I really like the color you have there and I'm looking forward to how this works out Good luck.

[xagoras]

For the rear, I will be using the GRC Huntsman truckbed.




It's made for the TRX-6 but sits nicely on the chassis




Had to trim it in the front to make room for the battery




That's how the body sits with the truckbed on the chassis

[xagoras]

Next step is mounting the truckbed on the chassis. I used 2 magnets mounted on the rear rock light position in the inner fender, and a third one on the truckbed to get the required height.




It was easy to mark the exact position, by placing another magnet on top of the truckbed to position itself and then mark the drill point




Nice clean install. I used nylock nuts to secure them. I'll probably paint them black when I'm done with the body.






The truckbed sits at the same level as the body line now. The 3 magnets on each side give a pretty strong mounting. Once the spacers are installed to lock the lexan to the trackbed, should be rock solid on the chassis.

[AnimalHippie]

Really digging where you're going with this rig! Can't wait to see what you turn it into! Defender fender flares might work for you and they're pretty tough. I had to e6000 and bolt mine on. I'm kinda rough on my rigs LoL! Good luck!

[xagoras]

I've been looking at those Defender fender flares for a couple of days. Not sure if the plastic support will fit on the inside, that's why I javen't pull the trigger on them yet.

[xagoras]

I ordered the Defender fender flares. I'll have to see how they fit on this body, before I cut the lexan ones. Time to cut the removed roof, to make the back of the cabin.





It bugged me if I should mount it on top of the front part or below. At first I thought to make it as large as the remaing roof and lock it with the roof lights plastic. The roof lines are curved and it wasn't going to go as smooth as I'd like to so I decided that it would be better to go underneath.









I'm still waiting for some flathead screws to attach the two pieces together. Should be here tomorrow.

[xagoras]

This truckbed comes with a rear door that can be opened, so I though it would be cool to somehow implement the rear body section on it. The inner fenders needed some trimming.





Had to trim the rear part to make it work. The latches need room and the lower middle part was hitting the chassis when open.





On the side, it leaves a small gap, around 7mm that I need to think how to fix it.





It now opens as it should.

[Benp]

That’s really cool!

Great job!

The straight cab look for that is awesome!

[xagoras]

The body reamer got very busy! After a rimming marathon, all the mounting holes are done on the body. 25 of them to be precise.

For the cabin, I used some Traxxas 3X8mm flathead screws with nylocks. Perfect for the job. For the body and truckbed mounting some 5mm flatheads.













It does look like the Frankenstein monster atm

Had to drill new holes for the truckbed's cabin back, to move it further back and tilt it a little bit.






I found some very handy spacers with holes, made of flexible plastic. They are used in robotics and come in various sizes and shapes. 2 of them wrapped together on each side of the truckbed will provide the required support for the mounting screws.

[smog]

I am definitely not one who has any affinity for the G500 body. You are doing a great job cutting one up, it’s looking better all the time. I look forward to the rest

On another note. I read the first two sentences of your last post aloud to my girlfriend. She gave me the oddest look in response...lol

[xagoras]

Between our Easter weekend and work, not much time to work on this. Today I managed to get some free time and fitted the rear lexan part on the door.

My initial though was to use some double sided tape, but it would probably not last very long so I went the safe route instead and made some more holes on it





I used some 3mm screws and nylocks to secure it on the door. Had to trim the door a little bit to make room for the light casing and the nylocks.









Tomorrow I will hopefully finish the with the rear gap and permanently attach the body to the bed.

[xagoras]

I used 2 pieces of the front bumper to close the gap on the rear. Made 2 holes on each piece and attached them to the body on the inside of the side trim and to the bed on the latch screw.









I need to use some carbon tape there before I permanently attach it to the bed, to make it look better.

[xagoras]

The small piece on the back is attached to the body with some 3d carbon tape.





That was the last thing to do before attach the body and the truckbed.











The flatheads extend way too much inside the bed, so I'll have to replace them with shorter ones or cut them. Sorted out the rear lights as well so that the door opens and closes without issues.

[xagoras]

I replaced the longer screws with some shorter ones. Looks much better now.

[HumboldtEF]

Wow you're really going at it!

I know its too late but E6000 (glue) works great for piecing back together a body, its incredibly strong. Magnets can also be use to clamp the pieces together while the glue sets.