Renting to own... My son's first ASCENDER!

[mgputer]

It's always nice when our "things" work as intended!

I know I have a box full of "things" that are just waiting to be used to build something else because they were wrong! Practice makes perfect!

[2mtech]

Nice sheet metal work there, Chris...how much blood was shed?

[Shinchu]

none.

i was wearing gloves. mostly because i thought of you guys complaining about me not being safe lol

[2mtech]

Originally Posted by Shinchu

none.

i was wearing gloves. mostly because i thought of you guys complaining about me not being safe lol

Good man.

[Shinchu]

Starting to look like a turk!



Got the dash raised




Just need to take a bit more off the bottom of the dash so it will sit all the way down.


Also figured out easy battery access...
Yes it's more weight up high but I might get smaller mah since it will be simple to swap packs on the trail.

[mgputer]

Looking Good! Interior looks great. That size battery there should be just fine, well unless you decide to drop a 350 under the hood?

[Shinchu]

350 isn't going to happen due to the GCM forward motor kit orienting the can backwards. *rolleyes* its the only downside of that kit.
unless... i take some pointers from a certain somebody and just DIY/fab some mounts to get a scale drivetrain in there... ;)
but Andrew asked about that last night and i said "well lets just get her running first and we can take care of stuff like that later... much later." i don't think he realizes how much those setups cost. all of this is funded by him, BTW. its a lesson in financial responsibility. or... irresponsibility lol
the only time i pitch in is for labor ;)

oh, and i have an idea to make sure the battery doesn't get ejected through a hood that popped open on a rough trail hit.
think about how people keep a 1:1 hood closed... ;) (NO, not bungee cords!!!)

[Shinchu]

Ok fellas, since its 2018 i have a VIDEO update
and yes i know my bench is a mess!

[2mtech]

Your bench is a mess...and it's 2018 for about another 15 minutes. Andrew deserves better having to go through life as a squid kid and all

Seriously though, it's looking like something good and coming along fast! Back of the cab came out really good and you certainly resolved the dash height issue.

Carry on.

Sent from my SM-G930R4 using Tapatalk

[Shinchu]

thanks brother! you could have just said "your bench is a mess" and would have had better impact lol
i still nearly spit out my coffee. im always up for some ribbing

i nearly took out more dash right behind the factory radio location, but Andrew actually spotted where it was getting hung up.
interior floorboard was hitting the bottom of the ascender transmission mount (now on driver side shock tower due to front mount).
quick dremel massage and now it fits like a glove.
but that trans will never be center mounted on a skid ever again.

[mgputer]

Originally Posted by Shinchu

thanks brother! you could have just said "your bench is a mess" and would have had better impact lol
i still nearly spit out my coffee. im always up for some ribbing

i nearly took out more dash right behind the factory radio location, but Andrew actually spotted where it was getting hung up.
interior floorboard was hitting the bottom of the ascender transmission mount (now on driver side shock tower due to front mount).
quick dremel massage and now it fits like a glove.
but that trans will never be center mounted on a skid ever again.

My bench is always messy because I always have a few projects going at the same time. IMO messy=busy.

It's coming along nicely. He'll have a great crawling rig and it will look scale.

[Shinchu]

thankya!
my wife was cleaning her office desk and i told her its fine, a cluttered desk is a sign of work being done.

im really stoked at the battery setup. once i put the hood hinges on, and fab up the "locking devices"... if it works as well as i hope its going to look awesome, and highly functional!

i hope to have it painted and windows installed this weekend.
Santa will most likely bring the rear cage. and maybe a bumper/winch

[Shinchu]

its not primer grey anymore...

;)

base coat is on i want to hit it at least once more for good coverage and maybe a few coats of matte.
i'll snap pics once its together. trying to do a complete/finished reveal here. progress pics are neat but sometimes i like the maximum WOW factor ;)

one question though... i asked what color he wants the trim. i was kinda thinking matte black but he said weathered silver. so like the stock stainless stuff, and maybe dull down the chrome parts like grill and mirrors. maybe lightly hand sand with 1,000 grit then hit it all with matte clear?
if it turns out like crud i will just hit it all with some aluminum testors spray i got for the axial griffin radiator on my yeti. then hit that with matte clear.
maybe even color match SOME of it to the body color?

what say you, ascender fam?

*oh and the cage arrived from RPP *COUGH* i mean "SANTA" last week. gonna wait to reveal that too. obviously. as its wrapped under the tree right now.
it came with a $3 hilift jack (hpi? its getting full weathering so didn't matter) and some RCCRAWLER.COM sticker sheets too ;)

**AND i still need to fab up the fancy scale hood locking mechanisms... ;)

[smog]

Weathered silver is a cool choice. After a fine grit sanding to reduce the shine you might consider using some highly dilute back, greens and browns to get some grunge into the seams, nooks , crannies and such. Certainly a flat clear will help reduce any residual shine and seal your weathing work.

That kid has vision! He has you doing some great work

[Shinchu]

ok yeah im pretty good at washes. lots of experience painting custom action figures so this hard body thing is like instinctive to me. (lexan on the other hand... bleh.)
i have some Tamiya brush paints for the door trim and such. i'll probably use that in conjunction with sanding/spraying the other chrome bits.

thanks for the sanity check!

...now if this weather will just hold up a bit so i can get those last spray coats in. maybe i'll post a teaser tonight ;)

[mgputer]

Originally Posted by Shinchu

its not primer grey anymore...

;)

base coat is on i want to hit it at least once more for good coverage and maybe a few coats of matte.
i'll snap pics once its together. trying to do a complete/finished reveal here. progress pics are neat but sometimes i like the maximum WOW factor ;)

one question though... i asked what color he wants the trim. i was kinda thinking matte black but he said weathered silver. so like the stock stainless stuff, and maybe dull down the chrome parts like grill and mirrors. maybe lightly hand sand with 1,000 grit then hit it all with matte clear?
if it turns out like crud i will just hit it all with some aluminum testors spray i got for the axial griffin radiator on my yeti. then hit that with matte clear.
maybe even color match SOME of it to the body color?

what say you, ascender fam?

*oh and the cage arrived from RPP *COUGH* i mean "SANTA" last week. gonna wait to reveal that too. obviously. as its wrapped under the tree right now.
it came with a $3 hilift jack (hpi? its getting full weathering so didn't matter) and some RCCRAWLER.COM sticker sheets too ;)

**AND i still need to fab up the fancy scale hood locking mechanisms... ;)

Sounds Fantastic! Can't wait to see the pics.

[Shinchu]

Sneak peek before matte clear...



First coat of matte clear in natural light...



**Started on the grill...
No pic yet but I think matte clear over lightly sanded chrome is the hot ticket!

I gotta try not to cringe when Andrew slams this into a rock haha

[HumboldtEF]

Its really taking shape now, Looking Good!

I think for a weathered silver look I might try a silver base coat and then a very light spray of black or gray from fairly far away so it just gets a light speckling, maybe even do this top coat with the silver coat still wet so it blends a little bit.

[Shinchu]

Tyler currently napping on my chest while mom wraps a few Xmas gifts.
Din din in the form of uber eats nachos soon then back out to see what else I can prep while the exterior paint cures overnight.
Oh amd I will snap a shot of the grill as soon as I can.

Thanks for the tip Casey, I will try something to that effect. Maybe more like a wash. I need to bust out the brushes anyway to do some detail work on the grill. And that raises the question...

Gold bowtie, or blue?

[HumboldtEF]

Originally Posted by Shinchu

Gold bowtie, or blue?

At one point I researched what the various colored bowties mean and all I came up with was pictures and ebay badges, so I gave up looking. I know you're a Ferd guy but maybe you know the difference?

I prefer the blue but the gold looks a bit more vintage to me.