The Van Dordt Executive Beetle

[JeroenS]

Hi all, this is a build I've kept off the books so to speak, working on it every now and then over the past couple of months. The kit was a birthday gift from my kids who went to the model shop together (well, they're adults, so that in itself wasn't an achievement) and looked around until something caught their eye. And they did very well indeed, giving me this: 

 

 

And I must say, this is a really nice little kit. Nicely moulded, excellent fit, just really good. So the build was a fun one. I knew right away that I, for once, wanted to do my best to make a nice shiny vehicle. I think you know by now that it's normally not really my cup of tea! But I went for it. And gained more respect for everyone of you who gets these great looking results every time. 

 

To make matters worse for me I decided I wanted this one to be black with chrome trim. Because when we at Van Dordt go out riding, we ride in style!

 

I only made a few pics during the building phase, but maybe it will give you an idea of what this kit has in stock. 

 

These are all the major components, not that many parts and they all go together well. I noted moulded on seat belts, on proper supports. You could sand the belts off and make real ones easily. Also, there's a headliner provided which I think is very nice!

 

 

The interior detail, which I pretty much left alone, I just painted it a nice colour to match the black.

 

 

The engine is good, way better than the T1 kit's anyway. 

 

 

There are hinges provided for both bonnets but I glued everything shut. Plenty of room for detailing though. 

 

I didn't have much to do in terms of cleanup, the body is well moulded. Just some slight sink marks around the head lights on the front fenders. 

 

 

So this was paint. Tamiya Gloss Black over Mr Surfacer Black, all thinned with levelling thinners of course. 

 

 

Tamiya X22 clearcoat. 

 

 

I was actually pretty pleased with how this came out, I was very careful not to get dust on it and it worked out fine. But... it's kind of nerve wracking! I don't normally care that much. 

 

Polished with the Tamiya compounds which I bought for this build because I wanted to try them out. They're a keeper for me, although they'll probably last a good while 😉 

 

 

Pretty good for a truck builder if I say so myself 🙂 

 

However, this may well be the last time I do this, especially in black! The photographing was horrendous! It all looks fine, take a picture, open it on the laptop: dust everywhere! I really struggled to get some decent shots. Wiping, blowing, brushing.... The above photo may well be the cleanest one!

 

Anyway, that's probably enough waffling, let's have those pics then. Please excuse the specks I couldn't seem to get off. 

 

 

I printed my own plates using the Silhouette cutter to make the stencils. 

 

All chrome is Greenstuffworld Chrome, either sprayed (wheels and bumpers) or brushed (the rest). The strip on the doors is BMF, my first time and I really struggled, redoing some parts until I was happy. It's a really small strip. I learned not to put it down too tight right away, but just lightly. Then cut, then trim if needed and rub down properly.

 

 

The chrome on the wheels is better than on the bumpers, I sprayed a little too thick there but I kept it like this, because it doesn't look odd on a bumper. I think those wheels have a nice realistic shine on them. I like this chrome, it dries fast and you can handle it all you want, it won't come off.

 

 

All windows go on from the outside which I like a lot. 

 

 

 

 

It really is shiny. 

 

 

Bonus shot 🙂 

 

 

I really enjoyed this one, and I learned a few things along the way too, so that's a win-win. I hope you like it. 

 

Thanks for watching!

[Andy J]

That's a superb beetle Jeroen well done with the black paint as it's not the easiest colour to spray well.I have never polished any of my builds but I may have to invest in some of these Tamiya compounds they look like a decent product 🙂👍

[dnl42]

Brilliant results, literally! 

[BluesModeller]

Excellent result!
 

Chrome looks good, especially on the wheels.  Lovely shine to it too.  Will have to get some of that Tamiya compound!

[JeroenS]

7 hours ago, Andy J said:

That's a superb beetle Jeroen well done with the black paint as it's not the easiest colour to spray well.I have never polished any of my builds but I may have to invest in some of these Tamiya compounds they look like a decent product 🙂👍

Thanks Andy. Your builds don't seem to need it, but I do like those compounds. I got their cloths too, which are expensive but better than the old t-shirt I was using before when I did polish a build (I have one or two of those). 

[Bengalensis]

That is very nice indeed! You absolutely need to build more shiny and well polished cars! 😎

[JeroenS]

4 minutes ago, Bengalensis said:

That is very nice indeed! You absolutely need to build more shiny and well polished cars! 😎

Thanks Jörgen! I can tell you that at this point, I don't have anything in the stash that qualifies 🙂 

[Fnick]

That is a very good finish on a difficult colour. Looks like I'm going to have to try and get some of the green stuff chrome...

 

Nick

2 minutes ago, JeroenS said:

I don't have anything in the stash that qualifies

Looks like its time to send the kids back to that shop! 😄

[TonyW]

That's an amazing finish. The shine is perfect. It passes for the real deal, with everything in scale and balance. The chrome on your VW looks so realistic and proportional to the paint, without the OTT look of plated chrome. Outstanding work.

 

The bumper irons maybe could do with toning down a bit, I don't know if VW chromed them, but that really is a tiny nitpick and I could well be wrong in the first place.

 

I'll be trying the Greenstuff world chrome. I use Molotow ink at the moment and like it a lot. It will be interesting to compare the two.

[JeroenS]

24 minutes ago, Fnick said:

That is a very good finish on a difficult colour. Looks like I'm going to have to try and get some of the green stuff chrome...

Thanks Nick!

 

10 minutes ago, TonyW said:

I'll be trying the Greenstuff world chrome. I use Molotow ink at the moment and like it a lot. It will be interesting to compare the two.

Here's a link to an excellent video on the stuff. It's a bit long but covers the subject well. The short version: there's a version for airbrushing and one for brushing. The latter is ideal for small parts, you load the brush, touch the part and the paint will flow nicely. It's way cheaper than Molotow and much sturdier as well. The airbrush version is used in very, very, thin layers over gloss black. 

 

 

[keefr22]

For someone that doesn't do shiny, that is SHINY....!!!  

 

Absolutely gorgeous finish Jeroen, and as mentioned in one of the most difficult colours to get right - super work! I've got both those GSWorld chrome paints but haven't tried the airbrush one yet, looks like I need to!

 

I'm very impressed by how Revell have given seatbelts in the front of the car too - never seen any other manufacturer do that before!

 

1 hour ago, JeroenS said:

I can tell you that at this point, I don't have anything in the stash that qualifies

 

Hang on, I'll send you all mine to paint...!!

 

I'm going to tag Chris @bigbadbadge in here as I know he loves Beetles and will want to see your stunning little Bug!

 

Really beauriful model J !

 

Keith

[JeroenS]

11 minutes ago, keefr22 said:

For someone that doesn't do shiny, that is SHINY....!!!  

Thanks Keith!

 

12 minutes ago, keefr22 said:

Hang on, I'll send you all mine to paint...!!

Of course I wouldn't mind having some of your stash 😉 

I'm just afraid I'd have to move to a bigger house again.

[bigbadbadge]

Hi Jerons 

Wow  that looks lovely and would love to have that as a real car in my Garage😉 . You have done a wonderful job on this . It is a lovely kit, I built the later Sedan model with the Euro bumpers for a friend's Wedding present , his Fiance at the time asked if I would build a replica of his Beetle and it was the best kit to use. 

Really impressed with your model.

 

Thanks Keith @keefr22  for tagging me in that is a lovely model.

Chris 

[JeroenS]

5 minutes ago, bigbadbadge said:

Hi Jerons 

Wow  that looks lovely and would love to have that as a real car in my Garage😉 . You have done a wonderful job on this . It is a lovely kit, I built the later Sedan model with the Euro bumpers for a friend's Wedding present , his Fiance at the time asked if I would build a replica of his Beetle and it was the best kit to use. 

Really impressed with your model.

 

Thanks Keith @keefr22  for tagging me in that is a lovely model.

Chris 

Thanks Chris, I appreciate your comments as I know you're a VW fan!

[bigbadbadge]

13 minutes ago, JeroenS said:

Thanks Chris, I appreciate your comments as I know you're a VW fan!

No worries Jeron, I do like your VW builds and Fleet.

Great job 

Chris

[Quiet Mike]

Love it! Fond memories of my first motor, sadly long gone now ...

[Anteater]

Genuinely very impressive. I love the last shot of the Beetle with the T1 van. 

[JeroenS]

6 minutes ago, Anteater said:

Genuinely very impressive. I love the last shot of the Beetle with the T1 van. 

Thanks, I don't think you could get 2 more iconic vehicles in one shot!

[Spiny]

Excellent build and a great job on the paint there. You should do more shiny cars...

 

Tamiya polish is good, but not cheap, especially the finish. For those of you where budget is a bit of a consideration (judging by the rate of stash accumulation this definitely does not include @Andy J ), you could also look at Novus polishes (particularly the 1 & 2) which cost a similar amount but come with much more in a bottle.

 

13 hours ago, keefr22 said:

I'm very impressed by how Revell have given seatbelts in the front of the car too - never seen any other manufacturer do that before!

 

While I haven't seen another manufacturer do it, Revell have done the same in the Trabant which seems to work pretty well.

[keefr22]

16 minutes ago, Spiny said:

For those of you where budget is a bit of a consideration (judging by the rate of stash accumulation this definitely does not include @Andy J ), you could also look at Novus polishes (particularly the 1 & 2) which cost a similar amount but come with much more in a bottle.

 

Same goes for Meguiars Ultimate Compound and Meguiars Scratch X 2.0. I bought both of them when Tamiya compound was unavailable in the UK and they seem to me to work just as well, and the bottles should last for dozens of models. I have gone back to the tamiya stuff since I've replenished the stocks, mainly because it's just a bit easier to squeeze small amounts out of the tubes. 

[Andy J]

1 hour ago, Spiny said:

Excellent build and a great job on the paint there. You should do more shiny cars...

 

Tamiya polish is good, but not cheap, especially the finish. For those of you where budget is a bit of a consideration (judging by the rate of stash accumulation this definitely does not include @Andy J ), you could also look at Novus polishes (particularly the 1 & 2) which cost a similar amount but come with much more in a bottle.

 

 

While I haven't seen another manufacturer do it, Revell have done the same in the Trabant which seems to work pretty well.

In fairness i don't think £22 for all three compounds inc delivery is to harsh 🤔

[keefr22]

13 hours ago, Andy J said:

In fairness i don't think £22 for all three compounds inc delivery is to harsh 🤔

 

Where did you find them for that price Andy, I paid a tenner a tube  + postage from Hiroboy.

 

Keith

[Andy J]

16 minutes ago, keefr22 said:

 

Where did you find them for that price Andy, I paid a tenner a tube  + postage from Hiroboy.

 

Keith

Hiya Keith found them on ebay mate just search Tamiya polishing compound and up they pop. UK seller expected 13th-15th June from Manchester 🙂👍

[keefr22]

2 hours ago, Andy J said:

Hiya Keith found them on ebay mate just search Tamiya polishing compound and up they pop. UK seller expected 13th-15th June from Manchester 🙂👍

 

Cool! I bought two tubes of each from Hiroboy when they came back in stock as there were none on ebay or Amazon at the time. I should be good for them for a while!

 

Keith

[desert falcon]

Not sure I can add anything which hasn’t already been said Jeroen, it is indeed an impressive paintwork and a very fine car 👍

 

It’s clear that the Van Dordt Senior Management is travelling in style 😎