The Wacky Races, pt. 2 - The Projects

On to the "good" stuff. . . 

 

The driving force behind this hobby detour was reading the six issue mini-series, Wacky Raceland, as well as the background info, which was fascinating. The corporate collaborative effort aside, the success of this particular undertaking is due to the creative rendezvous of individuals invested in the project and at the top of their game! In a word . . . BRILLIANT!!

 

What followed is still a bit of a head-scratcher to me: the racer that appealed to me the most, while being realistically achievable, was the post-apocalyptic Compact Pussycat (#5) belonging to Penelope Pitstop!

By way of introductory background, Penelope Pitstop was quite literally the 11^th driver in WR, added by Joseph Barbera as an afterthought in order to have the fairer sex represented on the grid. In WR, Penelope Pitstop drives the Compact Pussycat – a mostly pink, stereo-typically feminine car that is essentially a beauty parlor on wheels. Consistent with this theme, she is described by the race announcer as the "Glamour Gal of the Gas Pedal". The Wacky Raceland version – of both car and driver – is, not surprisingly, quite different. . .

 

As of this writing, the Compact Pussycat is over halfway done, but the serious mods are about to slow things down dramatically. . .  If I can get through this next phase, it should be a largely unchallenged dash to the finish line. . .

This should hardly come as a surprise to anyone who knows me, but there are an additional two projects sharing space on an increasingly crowded bench: the Creepy Coupe (#2), my absolute favourite of all the Wacky Racers; and the Arkansas Chugga-Bug (#8).

The Creepy Coupe was driven by the Gruesome Twosome: Big "Tiny" Gruesome, and Little "Bela" Gruesome. "Tiny" was the oversized lurching 'monster'; "Bela" was the diminutive, purple-skinned vampire behind the wheel. Joining them was their faithful companion dragon, as well as a host of ghosts, witches, etc., all of whom resided in the belfry of the Coupe.

A brief modelling sidebar, if I may. . .  MPC released 4 Wacky Racers in 1969. These were of the no-glue, no-paint model "toy" snap-kit ilk. I don't know if MPC intended to continue the series, but Aurora had also developed prototypes of 6 prospective WR releases as "simple" model kits (for a nice histo-  rical overview of the WR kits, click here). Earlier this year, Round 2/MPC announced the re-release of 3 of the four Wacky Races model kits. There has not been much information regarding the re-releases. . . in fact, the only concrete information is that the three are now available for pre-order!

Back to the projects. . . My goal for these two projects is to create non-cartoon versions of the respective Wacky Racers. To this end, I am creating my version of the Creepy Coupe using George Barris's Munster Koach kit (AMT) as the conversion base; while the Arkansas Chugga-Bug will be based on the Beverly Hillbillies' truck kit (orig. MPC/AMT-Ertl).

 

More to follow. . .

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Wacky Races - Introduction

It is hard to believe that I have gone nearly three months (!) without a posting. . . 2020 cannot end too soon! However, I am dreading a contrived cliffhanger finale with the last frame announcing "To be continued. . . "

During this posting hiatus, I have embarked on a rather interesting detour! While figures will be a part of some--not all!--of the projects, this is mainly a scale-modelling undertaking. 

I can't speak for the readership as a whole, but the Sixties as a pre-teen was all about the week- ends, Saturdays in particular. This was the swan-song of the Golden Age of American Animation! Creativity and technology were in synchronous bliss, and we were treated to the likes of Jonny Quest, Scooby-Doo, Space Ghost, and. . . the Wacky Races!

Wacky Races (WR) is a 1968 television cartoon series produced by Hanna-Barbera Produc- tions. The series features 11 different drivers in unique character-derived cars racing in various road rallies throughout North America, with all of them hoping to win the title of the "World's Wackiest Racer”. 

While Wacky Races has had numerous successful spin-offs/reboots, 2016 saw DC Comics reboot select Hanna-Barbera classics with darker and edgier iterations. This collaboration resulted in a six issue mini-series, Wacky Raceland, which can essentially be described as "Mad Max meets WR". There are at least two projects that will fall under the Wacky Raceland umbrella.

[to be continued] 

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody

I have been selectively building-up my Harry Potter collection of figures, focusing on Eaglemoss's above-average 1/16th scale (~120mm) Wizarding World Figurine Collection, which covers both the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts franchises.

This week I received issue #20 of the series: Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody. Comprised of 3 pieces (+ display plinth), it is cast in PUR (note: the figure is still marketed as being cast in metallic resin, but there is thankfully(!) no evidence whatsoever of any metallic filler in this offering! [nb: as of issue #32, the figures are marketed as being cast in polyresin.]). The same cannot be said of their continued use of reinforcing rods: while they forwent the use of rods in the legs, the staff was cast around a steel rod, resulting in a subpar casting of a defining aspect of the figure/ subject. Casting quality as a whole is marginally above average, but Eaglemoss' customers would certainly benefit from figures that were pressure-cast.

The details are overall "soft", again highlighting a less-than-refined casting technique. Thus, there is quite a bit of remedial work to be done--or not!--on this figure. Most of it is corrective--whether casting or sculptural in nature. Nothing is overly complex; and it will certainly put your 'brand' on the finished piece. Having said that, it may be more work than you are willing to invest on such a project.

If you've been reading this b/log for any time, you know that I thoroughly enjoy the challenge of making a piece "my own"-- particularly if the improvements will dramatically improve the character of the sub- ject. Eaglemoss has provided an eminently workable 'base' figure upon which to create a representa- tion-in-miniature of the greatest Auror of modern--if not all--time. . .

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (5): The Speargun

As work continues slowly--but surely!--on the DPU, I resumed working on the speargun.And it is now completely assembled. . . BUT, not before deciding to remove Bond's right hand! This was yet another bad call on the part of the sculptor/s and/or the design team. . . 

By removing Bond's hand, I can now proceed without worrying about the relatively fragile weapon; and its positioning is limited only by the anatomical limitations of the wrist joint--and the aesthe- tic considerations of the vignette. 

But first I will have to drill out the distal portion of the right forearm, and sculpt the wrist stump. . .

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (4): Finishing the DPU, pt. 3

The head lamp turned out to be a little more involved than anticipated. . . 

After several unsuccessful attempts to position and integrate the lamp--close, but no cigar!--I decided to design a lamp-mount using telescoping aluminum tubing. BINGO!!! The fit is perfect, and there is now a metal infrastructure to support the yet-to-be reworked bow cone. 

Movin' right along. . . 

24.06.2020:
The bow cone is all-but-done. A definite improvement over the initial attempt, which was decid- edly better than the stock offering. . .

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (4): Intermezzo (3)

While I await the arrival of the raw materials to effect my redesign of the DPU, I continued re- working Bond's fins--now completely roughed-in; and detailing the Voit mask, which is molded  
en suite with the 'groundwork'. . . 

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (4): Finishing the DPU, pt. 2: Intermezzo (2)

I was pondering the work done over the last ten days or so, trying to decide what was still nag- ging at me. . . It occurred to me that in spite of the dimensional and visual improvements effected to date, I was not "raising the bar" as far as the structural details were concerned. In short, I was playing by Andrea's rules. So I decided that the next steps would be to create two independent subunits: the lamp housing and the prop shroud. These items would be pure model scratch- building exercises.

The tubing is on order and I hope to have the headlamp finalized by the end of the weekend. The shroud may take a bit longer. . .   

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (4): Finishing the DPU, pt. 2

This is either the first enhancement of Phase 2. . . or the final step of Phase 1. . . Regardless, the air/propulsion canisters of the DPU-mounted spearguns have been replaced with 14ga steel tubing--and in spite of the undersized "scooter", it is now looking like what it is supposed to re- present! The stock canisters were dramatically underscaled (no surprise there), but the design and casting resulted in unacceptable irregularities.

14.06.2020 - INTERMEZZO 
With the work on the stern half of the scooter effectively done, it was time to reassess the overall lines of the DPU--and it was found lacking. A major reason for this is the dramatically undersized head lamp. I am now in the process of reworking the bow cone of the DPU, including the upgrade of the head lamp. I have also removed the "soft-cast" explosive speartips on either side of the lamp: they will not be replaced.

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (4): Finishing the DPU, pt. 1

The bands securing the DPU to the backboard attaching it to the air tanks have been sized and permanently mounted. The bands were made from sheet aluminum, and attached with AMMO's Ultra Glue.

05.06.2020:
The shroud is every bit as challenging as I thought it might be. I intended to make the mounting brackets from sized sheet aluminum, but the rigidity of the Al, even after annealing, was a major deal-breaker. I have already hammered and sized a length of tin solder that will hopefully facilitate the mounting of the shroud. FOLLOW-UP: The shroud has been 'assembled', fitted, and perma- nently attached! There is still a fair amount of finishing, fine detailing, etc. to be done, but now the work can proceed in situ.

06.06.2020:
The propeller. It is somewhat understandable why Andrea chose to dispense with the DPU's pro- peller, especially given the kit's scale and the technology of the times. Nonetheless, an empty/ prop-less shroud is unequivocally unacceptable! 2-bladed props less than 4mm in diameter are hardly common fare, so I've embarked on yet another sub-project to fulfill my vision of THE pro- ject. So far, so good. FOLLOW-UP: The prop is DONE!!! Classic sculpting exercise driven by good visualization and excellent references (i.e., movie stills). The prop was sculpted from a solid block of resin supported by an 18ga dispensing tip that will double as its mounting peg.

09.06.2020:   
Phase 1 of the DPU is officially DONE! Phase 2 will be the detailing and cleaning of what was provided--strictly enhancements. 

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (3)

• Reworked and re-finished the attachment points between the two figures.
• Began reconstruction of speargun: ~70% done.
• Continued fine-tuning the SPECTRE diver's tanks. Just about there. . . 
• Began finishing the propeller shroud [NB: This is the final version of the shroud--the MS one was too big; the brass tube was too small. . . the resin version was/IS just right. 

31.05.2020:
With the shroud essentially finalized, it was time to turn my attention to the DPU. As I stated at the outset, the DPU will be enhanced, not rebuilt or replaced. And 'enhancement' might just do the trick! For starters, I have begun to increase the apparent circumference of the DPU. Once that is completed to my satisfaction, I will start tweaking the lines of the DPU itself, followed by the detailing of the shell of the DPU.

01.06.2020:
Phase 1A of the DPU is well underway!

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Prepwork (2)

To date. . .

• Permanently attached Bond's right leg.
• Fitted SPECTRE diver to display groundwork. The provided groundwork is rather mini- mal: I will enhance it for the final presentation.
• Work on the fins continues. I am about 40% 65% into the process. . . 
• Modeled and fitted SPECTRE diver's left wrist-stump. 
• Filled-in the manifest musculature on the wetsuits. This is one of many instances where it is apparent that the designer/sculptor is/were not SCUBA enthusiasts. Both Bond and the SPECTRE diver appear to be wearing dive skins--not 1/4" wetsuits--given the evinced musculature. This is simply unacceptable--afaic.
• Roughed-in the propeller shroud of the DPU.

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

THUNDERBALL!!! – Ouverture redux

I have contracted a rather severe case of “Bond-4”, and I’m afraid the only known cure is to im- merse myself in projects based on the fourth installment of the Bond franchise—and one of my two favourite Bond movies—Thunderball.

Fortunately, I had begun Andrea’s homage to Thunderball, Underwater Struggle (SG-S17), a little over 2½ years ago, so I had a significant head-start on the proceedings. . .

As I noted in my introduction to the project, the vignette is based on the movie poster of Thun- derball. However ‘classic’ it might be—and it is that!—the focal point of the work takes gratui- tous liberties with the cinematic canon. As such, it might have been the creative inspiration for the vignette, but it should have never been the sole reference for the same--especially as the colour scheme from the movie has been conflated with the design of the poster! It would have also helped if the designer and/or sculptor had been SCUBA enthusiasts. . .

More to follow. . . 

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

Gaslight Man-Bat: Prepwork (3) - The Street Lamp

A significant amount of time has been spent on the primary element of the groundwork of this project. . . 

Starting off with a single-luminaire street lamp from MiniArt's Street Lamps & Clocks set (35560), this rapidly evolved into a sub-project unto itself, with the modification of various elements to ac- commodate the requirements of the project. These include the replacement of the molded ladder supports with aluminum tubing.

Most of the work will be focused on converting the electrical street lamp to an open flame, unmantled gas lamp. The omission of the gas mantle is as much a work-return consideration, as it is a historical consideration: widespread use of mantles in the US was not seen until the turn-of-the-century.   

More to follow. . . 

FOLLOW-UP. . . The lamp sub-assemblies--save for the luminaire 23.05.2020--DONE!--have been completed and they have been set aside to 'set'. The gas jet has been fitted: it will be permanently attached once the luminaire bracket is permanently attached.

UPDATE - 01.08.2020. . . I recently stumbled across a 1/35 scale, resin, single-luminaire antique street lamp from the Italian firm, Royal Model. They offer a wide range of superb diorama acces-sories, and this is no exception! It was precisely what I was looking for from the outset, and though it is somewhat more simplistic, I believe it will be far more effective--and truer to the vision.

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003