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MYSTERY BOX by Ali Kidder-Mostrom
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hat inspires you? My team “Just Another Pop Culture Reference” is just what it sounds like. But, let’s be honest there is just SO MUCH to choose from when it comes to the world of pop culture. Sometimes, it helps to have a bit of guidance, some selfimposed limitations, to help inspire creative design. The goal is to create one car per month, each with a random paint color and pop culture theme selected by roll of the dice. Also, there will be a unique challenge for each car (basically the reason I
turned to the box) just to keep things interesting. This could be a technique to use or race to prep for or, well, the sky’s the limit! GaslandsTV just added racing to their repertoire and I promised to send a car into that fray. So, this month’s challenge is building a Gaslands-style car that can also kick-butt on the race track. Also, from a comment on the first Mystery Box video, for an extra challenge I’m highlight drilling, tapping and weighting techniques a bit more this time around. If you have a challenge you think I should do for a future mystery box, just reach out to Diecast Racing Report or drop a comment on the Mystery Box videos on our YouTube channel. Challenge: Build a car to race at Gaslands TV Die Rolls: Theme: TV (6) Color: Blue (12)
Build/Design Notes: Spring has sprung and this month I dug it the box of brown paper bags to pull out a yellow Maisto VW Beetle… not what I was expecting, but not a bad place to start. The form of this car is a little different than your more common Hot Wheels or Matchbox cars, but it still drills 8 | Diecast Racing Report
apart the same. Unless you want to take a soldering iron to it, there are two basic ways to open up a car. Drill with the 5/64 bit first and then finish with the larger 9/64. Or use the 9/64 bit and wait to use the 5/64 bit when the car is apart and you’re drilling out the post for tapping. I prefer the latter, but using the smaller bit first can lead to a nifty trick where the rivet edge comes off in a nice clean ring. A key difference you’ll find in alternate brand cars like Maisto or Greenlight is extra brackets for windshields and such. Removing them is basically the same as drilling posts – all you need is a drill and some care, so you don’t crack the windsheild in the process. I didn’t keep mine in the end, but better safe than sorry. The wheels that came on this car just won’t do for racing, so I turned to my wheel farm and found a great set of blue Trap5 wheels, from the Hot Wheels La Fasta. If I’ve learned one thing in my time modding, it is – do all your drilling and tapping before investing more time in the car. So, after stripping the paint, that is exactly what I did. We purchased our tap and associated 2/56 screws from Brightvision Wheels, in case you’re curious.
