Radio Control Dukes cars

[RogerDuke]

Hang in there Jim. This will just make the finished product even more rewarding and satisfying. 

[Jim85IROC]

I had more issues with paint and decided to start over on the police car. In brighter news, I got my first video in the series up last night. This one is a comparison of the 4 available body options for General Lee builds:

 

https://youtu.be/3h4aj6EsYQI

[RogerDuke]

Hey Jim, just watched the video...really cool! I don't know much about those but I was really impressed with how big they are. I was even more impressed with your knowledge and skill.....3D printing! Wow!

I have to say that I've never heard the term "shelf queen" before...lol. Thanks for getting a couple Rosco laughs in there and thanks for your dedication to the Dukes of Hazzard. Despite all it's been through (and partly because of it) the General Lee is still the most famous and recognizable car in the history of the automobile....and it's great to see you paying tribute to it. 

[HossC]

Very interesting video. I look forward to seeing the build videos.

[Jim85IROC]

4 hours ago, RogerDuke said:

Hey Jim, just watched the video...really cool! I don't know much about those but I was really impressed with how big they are. I was even more impressed with your knowledge and skill.....3D printing! Wow!

I have to say that I've never heard the term "shelf queen" before...lol. Thanks for getting a couple Rosco laughs in there and thanks for your dedication to the Dukes of Hazzard. Despite all it's been through (and partly because of it) the General Lee is still the most famous and recognizable car in the history of the automobile....and it's great to see you paying tribute to it. 

Thanks!  The 1:10 scale cars really are a LOT bigger than the 1/18 scale stuff that most model & diecast collectors are used to.  The best part about the RCs though, is that you get to see them in motion.  In the RC world, a "shelf queen" is a pretty common term for a car that you build more as a functional model as opposed to one that you plan to use and abuse.  It's real common in the vintage RC scene where a lot of guys will lovingly restore some of the more desirable models from the early to mid 80s, and as you can imagine with something like that, although it is restored to be fully functional, it won't ever get used because they want it to stay pristine.  For me, it's a little different in that my goal is to mimic the show in the sense that I want to have the "hero" car that will get used for some of the close-ups and the general driving footage, and the "stunt" car for, well, the stunts.  These lexan bodies are pretty durable overall, but they still take a beating.  The 3d-printed bodies (Rosco's car) are even more fragile, and I don't think they'll tolerate jumping at all, at least not without some significant help.

1 hour ago, HossC said:

Very interesting video. I look forward to seeing the build videos.

Thanks!  I'm looking forward to the actual running videos that I hope to eventually make after I finish these cars.  I really enjoy making the running videos, even though they don't perform well on my channel at all.  I'm hoping that the Dukes videos do a lot better than my normal running videos.  What few well-done dukes RC videos there are seem to have quite a following.  This one here is probably one of the most well done, and is one that I've watched a bunch of times.  If I can capture some of the realism from his videos, but add to it by including chase scenes with Rosco's car, I'll be a happy camper:

 

[HossC]

42 minutes ago, Jim85IROC said:

Thanks!  The 1:10 scale cars really are a LOT bigger than the 1/18 scale stuff that most model & diecast collectors are used to.  The best part about the RCs though, is that you get to see them in motion.  In the RC world, a "shelf queen" is a pretty common term for a car that you build more as a functional model as opposed to one that you plan to use and abuse.  It's real common in the vintage RC scene where a lot of guys will lovingly restore some of the more desirable models from the early to mid 80s, and as you can imagine with something like that, although it is restored to be fully functional, it won't ever get used because they want it to stay pristine.

I had a couple of 1:10 Tamiya RC cars in the '80s. I started with the Holiday Buggy and then moved on to the F150 Ranger. For the latter, I also had the wheels and VW Baja Bug body to make it into the Sand Scorcher. The Ranger and Bug bodies where quite hard plastic, but very detailed. Seeing the prices they go for now, I kinda wish I still had them! There is an original Kyosho Optima partially disassembled in a box at my parents; house, but it's been there for over 30 years and I can't remember what parts it needed.

There's a guy I watch on YouTube who does great videos of the Tamiya 1:14 trucks. It's amazing how technology has progressed to have models with multiple working lights and realistic sounds. I'd love one, but doubt my modeling skills after so many years, and I'd struggle to justify the expense. Also, it'd probably end up as a "shelf queen"!

[Jim85IROC]

Since I no longer have a printed body to work on until I can print another one, I've shifted my focus to one of the Generals. I'm starting with the Kyosho.  For this car, the biggest task is to convert the front end from a 70 to a 69.  I am doing this by removing the 70 chrome piece, cutting out the lexan behind the original grill, and installing a 3D printed grill that I'm designing. 

Here's the original 70 front end:

Here's the front end with my conversion in place.  Aside from tweaking the grill angle slightly, I think my design is essentially done. When I print the final one, I'll use a much lower layer height, but even with the draft quality, I'm super stoked with how it looks.

Next step is to figure out a bumper.  I'm hoping to cut down the 70 grill and see how it looks.  Even though it won't extend back toward the wheel well, I think overall it'll look better than a printed bumper.

[RogerDuke]

Impressive! 

I went to the dirt bikes races today and picked up a 1:12 scale Kawasaki KX450. I already have the bigger 1:6 scale of it. 

[Jim85IROC]

Today I cut down the 70 front grill to make a bumper.  I need to decide whether to keep it like it is or to try to extend it back over the fender. Doing that will leave a bit of a visible seam in the chrome, so I'm not sure if it's worth doing vs just leaving it this shape and cleaning it up a bit.

[Jim85IROC]

Been a little while since I posted an update.  I bent up a kydex plate that attaches to the underside of the chassis and serves as a push bar mount.

I designed the pushbar in Fusion 360 and printed it, with a couple revisions until I was happy with the fitment and appearance.

Since a printed push bar won't be super strong, once I was happy with the part, I printed a template and transferred it to Kydex for the uprights.  For the tubes I used some carbon fiber tubing, with a 3d printed insert to screw into.  I ended up liking how the carbon fiber looked so much that I decided not to paint it.

I'm real happy with how the front end came out.  I also printed another grill in higher quality, sanded it smooth and painted it, but I haven't put it in yet.

 

[Hobie Hartkins]

THAT is awesome! That came out as good or better than any I've seen!

[Hobie Hartkins]

On 9/2/2022 at 3:49 PM, Jim85IROC said:

Thanks!  The 1:10 scale cars really are a LOT bigger than the 1/18 scale stuff that most model & diecast collectors are used to.  The best part about the RCs though, is that you get to see them in motion.  In the RC world, a "shelf queen" is a pretty common term for a car that you build more as a functional model as opposed to one that you plan to use and abuse.  It's real common in the vintage RC scene where a lot of guys will lovingly restore some of the more desirable models from the early to mid 80s, and as you can imagine with something like that, although it is restored to be fully functional, it won't ever get used because they want it to stay pristine.  For me, it's a little different in that my goal is to mimic the show in the sense that I want to have the "hero" car that will get used for some of the close-ups and the general driving footage, and the "stunt" car for, well, the stunts.  These lexan bodies are pretty durable overall, but they still take a beating.  The 3d-printed bodies (Rosco's car) are even more fragile, and I don't think they'll tolerate jumping at all, at least not without some significant help.

Thanks!  I'm looking forward to the actual running videos that I hope to eventually make after I finish these cars.  I really enjoy making the running videos, even though they don't perform well on my channel at all.  I'm hoping that the Dukes videos do a lot better than my normal running videos.  What few well-done dukes RC videos there are seem to have quite a following.  This one here is probably one of the most well done, and is one that I've watched a bunch of times.  If I can capture some of the realism from his videos, but add to it by including chase scenes with Rosco's car, I'll be a happy camper:

 

That was fantastic! They looked almost real! Amazing!

[Jim85IROC]

Got the rear of the car done today. I painted the rear black, and also painted the inside of the chrome trim red on the bottom and black on the other 3 sides to better match real 69 tail lights.

 

[Hobie Hartkins]

That's excellent! It looks perfect!

[RogerDuke]

This is amazing. If the other things weren't in the pictures you wouldn't be able to tell this car wasn't real. Thanks for updating us and posting pictures. Keep 'em coming! You have skillzzz! 

[Hobie Hartkins]

. If the other things weren't in the pictures you wouldn't be able to tell this car wasn't real.

 

That's exactly what I was thinking!

[Jim85IROC]

Progress over the last couple days includes replacing the draft grill with the final one, followed by laying out the decal positions in preparation for application.

[Hobie Hartkins]

looks Great!

[Jim85IROC]

The first of the General Lees that I'm building is done!  After I get the rest to this point I want to do some additional work to them, but this is good until then.

[RogerDuke]

Spectacular! You are a true artist. But even more important, a true fan of Hazzard County. Thanks for taking the time to share this project. You have a one-of-a-kind General Lee that you deserve to be proud of!

[Jim85IROC]

I just got the video for the Kyosho build posted.  I hope y'all like it. 

 

https://youtu.be/L17vEDxZ6zU

Edited September 28, 2022 by Jim85IROC

[HossC]

The car, complete with 3D printed pieces, looks really good. For some reason the sound was about six seconds out of sync when I watched it, but it seems OK now that I've refreshed the page, so it was probably an issue at my end. Just one little criticism - the side markers on the front fenders are further forward and higher on a '69 Charger.

BTW. I used to work in the sign industry many years ago, before the modern re-positionable vinyls were available. We used to make our own application spray with a dilution of a detergent called Brij. I don't know how easy it is to get hold of.

[Jim85IROC]

Hoss, thanks for the info.  I did plan to move the front side markers but it turned out that there was a slight indentation in the lexan that would have been visible with the decals gone, so I opted to leave them where they were. I had originally planned to mention that in the video, but as it approached 40 minutes in length, I started going back and trimming more and more out of it, including that.

[Jim85IROC]

Car number 2 is on the bench. This is going to be my "stunt" car, so it needs to handle jumps. This uses the RJ Speed body, which is oddly proportioned, which works to my benefit here because I can butcher a buggy with more suspension travel instead of using another touring car chassis. What I ended up with is the WLToys 124017 V2. 

You can see that the track width is close

The track width is almost perfect, but the 228mm wheelbase is a far cry from the 274mm wheelbase that I want. So, to get the wheelbase I want, a custom chassis is in order. 

I started by adding tape to the bare chassis in order to trace it out and mark all of the necessary holes.

I added a couple parallel lines to help me align the halves when I transfer them to cardboard. 

I added wings because I want the chassis to extend all the way out to the body. I can attach the body to it, plus it will look better jumping with the bottom closed up. I may decide to narrow this and replace the wings with something lighter later.

Here's the cardboard all cut out.

Cardboard was transferred to 1/8" aluminum and cut out.

Next, I clamped the original chassis to the aluminum and transferred all of the holes that I'm using, then countersunk them.  Lastly, I bent the ends of the chassis to line up with the front and rear diff housings.

With the front and rear axle assemblies bolted up, it's starting to look like an RC car again.

And it's really starting to look like something with the body set into place

Now that the chassis is done, I need to focus on the center driveshaft.  I disassembled it and decided that making a new one would be difficult. Getting the flat spots accurate and concentric would be difficult. It would also require getting the length perfect or packing in a bunch of shims to get front and rear gear mesh correct. I think an easier solution is to cut the center shaft and sleeve it. I can add the sleeve with the two halves installed in order to maintain correct gear mesh, and as long as the sleeve fits properly, the driveshaft should atay true.

[RogerDuke]

Thanks for sharing this Jim. It is really awesome and made me think......They did a lot of different things with the General in 7 years but never made a body out of glass. It would have been fun to watch it jump a creek.