Better, Worse, Or Just Different?

[whodathunkit]

3 Wheeled Cars..
After seeing a few of these 3 wheeled car designs on various sites
like the the bacon stip 3 wheeled car seen on ABC Pinewood web site.
To the purple snake car seen in Maximum-Velocity news letter vol 5 issue 5 Nov 30, 2005.
And doing a search for this design on DT.. and haveing no luck..

This one is a bit of a "Rattle Snake" to keep the car on the track at the stoping pit.

I set the only wheel on the right side of the car up with a positive camber to steer the wheel to the rail.
While the 2 wheels on the left side run away from the rail with a negative camber.
The car did ride the rail but...
Like the problems Randy describes in the news letter about the purple snake car:
And how a glide or a crutch had to be used on the left side rear of the car,
to help it transition threw the curve section of the track.

The 3 wheeled car in this photo had the same problems with willying threw the curve section
and de-railing at the stoping section also..

The snake skin paint job: useing rattle can paints and screen door screen to paint the car with
was the best part of makeing this car look like a snake skin.



Whoda.

[Noskills]

Cool pattern Mark. What shade of green is that? Did you lay the black down first?
Seth

[Speedster]

I would have to say "Better" all the way around. The scouts are going to love that car when you show it off. There's going to be smiles all around. Also, your creative refinish job is going to bring lots of questions. You definitely have a winner. Good job.

[whodathunkit]

Seth,

Dupli Color spray paint.. Pacific green met was sprayed first.

Then I used gloss black and gloss navajo white along with the pacific green met
spraying the black threw a metal sreen door sreen held close to the car
with the paint cans held about 16 or so inches away..so the paint would not be sparyed on so heavy.

I had to play around with all three paints also.. just taping the triger useing short bursts of paint
while still holding the screen close to the car intell I got it to look.. well like a snake skin.

you'll just have to play around with screen streaching it to close up the openings for different looks.
And how far away you hold the paint cans while spaying the paint also.

Glad you and speedster like the looks of the paint job.

[Vitamin K]

Another major thumbs up on the paint job. I would love to see a step-by-step with photos on how you did that color and texture. May have to try to approximate that next time is car-building season.

[whodathunkit]

Thanks Vitamin K,
I"ll have to see what I can do to get some step by step photos posted on how I did this paint job useing a screen for the snake skin look.

Mark.

[pgosselin]

Whoda,

I like the paint job, too. I once saw a photo essay of the custom shop at the Jackson/Charvel guitar factory in the 1980s. They used a similar technique to create their snakeskin paint jobs, but they used a neoprene mat with larger gaps to create the scale pattern. Great minds think alike.

Why did you use one of the back wheels to steer it into the rail? I would have thought you would want to steer with the front wheel on the left side and keep the back wheels running straight, even if they aren't parallel.

Paul

[Noskills]

I saw a TV show on custom bikes where they stretched a fishnet stocking over the gas tank for the snake skin effect. I bet soft screening material wrapped and rubber banded to the car would work.
Seth

[whodathunkit]

Whoda,
Why did you use one of the back wheels to steer it into the rail? I would have thought you would want to steer with the front wheel on the left side and keep the back wheels running straight, even if they aren't parallel.

Paul

Paul, just wanted to try doing something different to see if it would ride the rail.
It worked but I found that the front wheel would tend to run with the hub rubbing the car body,
also as the wheel steering the car would push the nose over somewhat on the front end.
but with a little bit of toe out the wheel would stay to the axle head..helping hold the car to the rail.

However if the track were a straight drop track with (no curve)
and the car were set up to run straight.

This type of set up.. Well it just might hold it's own staying on the track.

I saw a TV show on custom bikes where they stretched a fishnet stocking over the gas tank for the snake skin effect. I bet soft screening material wrapped and rubber banded to the car would work.
Seth

Seth, I think your on to something.. Thats kinda how i got the idea to use a screen
because of the smaller scale of the openings in the screen.

[whodathunkit]

Another major thumbs up on the paint job. I would love to see a step-by-step with photos on how you did that color and texture. May have to try to approximate that next time is car-building season.

Here you go Vitamin K,
For this Demostration on how I used spray paint and a window screen for a snake skin paint effect.

Some of the spray paint types I like to use are Dupil-color or Ace premium enamels.

You could use any type or color of paint to your likeing for this..

1st prime the car

then move on to a base color like green..

Useing a screen door type screen or mesh stockin,or fish net,to get the effect of scales
Spray a little black paint.. and play around with moveing screen to get the different looks
your after as far as patterns go.



If youed like to lighten the look up.. use white or tan paints
dusting the paint by holding it away& spraying in short bursts .



For this grayed out snake skin look
I kept spraying whites and blacks and tosed in a little dusting of red paint.



Well thats how I got it look like a snake skin..
No two paint jobs are every alike or look the same..
so just play around and tinker with paints intell you get the effect or look your after.

Hope this helps you out Vitamin K.
Whoda.

[Vitamin K]

Sweet! Thanks for taking the time and trouble to put this tutorial together! Totally gonna try it for my next car.

[Noskills]

Mark do you think you could do an all black snake with two tones of black or perhaps flat and gloss black
Seth

[whodathunkit]

Sorry so long to reply back Seth,
There are so many shades of black.. 50 or more

Gloss and flat black paints with the same color tone or pigment shade together
will look more like an all gloss black car.. if a clear gloss finsh is sprayed on also.

So yes.. try useing different pigment tones or shades of black paint
in gloss or flat paints to get the effect of scales.

[Noskills]

Thanks Mark. Thus is on my to do list
Seth

[Noskills]

Whoa,

I summoned all my courage and went into the ladies section of Target and bought some fish net stockings. I laid down some silver and green and covered the test block in a section of the stocking (very nice cling). Then laid down some gloss black-pretty cool effect for my first try. Need to snap a photo when I get home. Made the scary trip to Target worth it.

Noskills