Andrew D Charger Chaser

Hey y'all, Been away from you too long, working on what I thought was an impossible project that I almost gave up on. I'm now ready to begin posting an amazing (and frustrating) journey to build the most accurate Cooter's Tow Truck ever done. Maybe. First off, there were several tow trucks used over the series. Here's (mostly) when each appears: -Season 1: Brown Chevy, simple tow rig -Season 2: White/Blue Ford with Red Holmes wrecker -Seasons 3-4: Big Yellow Ford -Late Season 4 through 7: White/Blue GMC with Red Holmes wrecker By far my favorite is the GMC. There was also a similar White/Blue Chevy with a much wider wrecker rear that showed up in a handful of episodes mid-series. THE PROBLEM: Not only is the MPC kit of Cooter's Tow Truck completely fictitious, but there is NO kit or conversion available in existence to make the correct Holmes wrecker (everything aft of the cab). This would be the most ambitious scratchbuilding project I've undertaken to date. Let's begin with a photo of my target subject, the GMC with Holmes wrecker:

Thank you all for the very kind comments and encouragement! Spike, I haven't entered a model show in a long time, last time was Nationals in 2010 and I did place in a couple categories....that was before I started the Hazzard stuff though.

Finished in record time, considering the extreme nature of the build Only major regret is the wheel spacing....wide tires were definitely used, but I really am drawing the line at redoing the suspension to tuck them in more. I've just had enough.... Hazzard collection is now 7 vehicles strong.

Very nicely done! Now need to make Rosco's car with the back half blown off by the bazooka

Thanks for giving me a place to, Rog, I am very grateful! Also grateful to have finished this beast in record time... Re-chromed the bent bumpers and other parts with Alclad, and was lucky to have located the proper wheel hubs. Also broke the right door handle to match the real thing. Wide tires from the MPC Sheriff's Dodge Monaco. Windows tinted with Future floor polish and food coloring. Sheet metal for the front and back from a disposable roasting pan from the Dollar Tree. Airbrushing dust and dirt all over the chassis and bottom of the body.

Final bodywork touchups and priming, and ready for paint. Tough to match the exact color, since in the episode (the way I'm making it) it was disguised/obscured with gray scratchwork all over it, and the recovered wreck was apparently quite weathered and faded. Did the best I could. Finally settled on a mix of 5 different blues and greens. It's actually darker than the photos show.... I settled on: 2 parts Testors Gloss Dark Blue (#1111); 2 parts Testors Dark Beret Green; 1 part Model Master Dark Sea Blue; 1 part Testors Gloss Green; 1 part Gloss Light Blue.

FRONT BUMPER Need the front bumper to look like bent metal, and not a bent plastic model part. Made an aluminum foil cast of the central section; removed that plastic, attached the ends to the foil cast. Very carefully bent and dented it to match the photos. Filled with CA glue with wire reinforements for the structure. Primed, will be coated with Alclad chrome tomorrow or Thursday.

I could've lied and either said no, it was really me in the General ...or, that faint image is really the Ghost of General Lee

LOL yep...I'm still too low-tech to be able to do screen-grabs from the TV. I'm sure the capability is there in what I've got, but just need to be shown how to use it. More importantly, I need to care enough to upgrade....but I just do what works for what I need.

Finished roll cage:

Here's how the scratchbuilding went, using 1/16" rod for the frame and tubing fitted over the rod for the padded sections around the driver's side:

ROLL CAGE Tip: Do NOT use the roll cage from the MPC "General Lee" for this project. Wrong style, wrong design, wrong size. I also found some drawings online which purport to be the actual design sketches for the original. They do match what I see in all the photos.

Hey, nice concept, nicely done!

I've never taken as much trouble as this for the accurate steering wheel, but here's what I finally accomplished:

Roger, I am very moved and humbled by your words....speechless, even. I can only offer my sincerest thanks and appreciation!

Hey, neat one!

Thank you Flint, I appreciate it!

The interior needs special work. From what I can see in the episode, the interior panels under the rear windows were removed along with the back seat, although I've read that only the seat was removed to install the full roll cage. So, I had to remove the rear panel and totally rebuild it as the interior structure that the panel would normally cover. Was a 2 full day scratchbuilding job, daunting at first but well worth it in the end. The carpet will be well worn and stained soon.

Once damaged to taste, the foil is filled from behind with tons of gap-filling superglue and plastic strip reinforcements. Then to the body itself, the same treatment but MUCH bigger. LOTS of superglue to fill it all from behind. Then priming and sanding in appropriate areas.

If I can't replicate the body damage, the entire project is pointless. If I only heat up and bend the plastic body it will look toylike, as the body thickness when scaled up would be akin to a couple inches thick. Not convincing at all. THE SOLUTION: Make aluminum foil copies of the body sections to be damaged. Let's try it on the hood first:

For those who didn't know, the Charger wreck used in Episode 4 "Repo Men" was the same car that made the jump at the very end of the show's opening credits. LOVED this car the first time I saw it as a kid, did not know how important it was until decades later. Replicating this wreck in 1/25 will be a VERY ambitious project.

Lol that would be kewl, but no.....

I appreciate the kind comments! If you like these 6 so far, you're in for a treat when I post in-progress pics hopefully soon of the one I'm working on now.....definitely the most ambitious one to date, if you don't count the engine bay in the General....

Thanks for that! Ended up liking it much more than I thought, too....