Daihatsu 1957 Midget

[Frank3k]

I love this little 3 wheeler. I'm using the Arii '57 Daihatsu Midget as a base kit:



It's listed as 1/32 but I'm declaring it to be 1/35 - it's still a very small vehicle. I've built this one before, about 9 1/2 years ago:

Asimoto Roboto Repair

It'll be in some sort of soft post apocalypse setting, although I haven't decided if I'm going to add a robot. Right now I'm detailing it, based in part on the very detailed pictures of a 1960s version.

Very garish green plastic:


I thought the back wall and roof were made of metal, but they're stretched canvas. So I made a frame from scratch:

[Story]

Will it have a methane-gas powered motor?

[then it could be the pig pooper]

Who runs Bartertown?

[Frank3k]

I was thinking biodiesel, but methane would work as another easy to make fuel. With a one cylinder engine, either would make for a noisy, stinky ride.

[apophenia]

... either would make for a noisy, stinky ride.

Only utility company-supplied methane has an odorant added. Captured 'biogas' - as in methane digester stoves - is odourless. So, not smelly ... just noisy (and more dangerous!).

Hmmm, ... maybe both the Daihatsu and its robot companion run on bagged methane? 

[Frank3k]

biogas can be stinky, though. This vehicle is so small that it could carry the driver, a biogas bag and little else. At least for trips beyond, say the next block. Are there other easy to produce (at least not requiring a large facility and infrastructure) fuels? Bio Diesel, biogas and biopropane are the only ones I can think of. Or coal...

[Old Wombat]

Alcohol! You can ferment anything plant-based to make it.

Mix it with plant oils to thicken it up a bit & add some cylinder lubrication plus more plant oils for general engine oil.

It'll need more frequent servicing than using mineral fuels & oils but should work OK.

[raafif]

Nice little model , would go well with my BMW Isetta & KR-200 Messerschmit models.

Alcohol!

Putting alcohol in anything other than Humans is a total waste !

[apophenia]

Needs must 

biogas can be stinky, though. This vehicle is so small that it could carry the driver, a biogas bag and little else...

The biogas bag could go on the roof - the Daihatsu's drag coefficient would be nothing to write home about anyhow 

... Are there other easy to produce (at least not requiring a large facility and infrastructure) fuels? Bio Diesel, biogas and biopropane are the only ones I can think of. Or coal...

Wood gas? Mind you, WW2 Holzgas gasifier generators were pretty bulky too 

[Frank3k]

Thanks for the fuel options! I like the oily alcohol idea - the fuel is relatively easy to make and it's "dual use" - either drink or drive.

One nice thing about this kit is that it builds nicely out of the box, with just some minor fixes and refinements. You can also go wild and detail it accurately. I decided to detail it, but with some whif additions.

The front wheel is in place, but the two rear wheels are tacked on. Our two 1/35 French buddies scale out about 5'8"/1.7m They still tower over the Midget:



Not visible(but still took quite a bit of time) is the completely reworked front wheel fork. I replaced the two arms with the rubber booted suspension from the DML Light Infantry Motorcycle. It fit well. I added brake and speed cables and of course, 90% of the work is hidden by the fender...

I have most of the default decals on (instrument panel and name badge). I started on the rubber seal for the windscreen (no glass in place). The roll frame/rear wall support is just tacked on. It's pretty sturdy, but I keep banging into it as I work in the "cockpit" so it'll stay off until the end.

The stick shift is a thin brass wire glued into the original part's shift ball.:



Most of the fiddly bits are done - I now have to decide if I want to add a roof, and a few other details before the weathering/rust (which will be extreme) starts.

I'll be using this very effective rusting technique again.

[Story]

Tamiya
She could ride in a trailer, just need a funnel to the fuel container.

[Story]

Not visible(but still took quite a bit of time) is the completely reworked front wheel fork. I replaced the two arms with the rubber booted suspension from the DML Light Infantry Motorcycle. It fit well. I added brake and speed cables and of course, 90% of the work is hidden by the fender...
 

So flip it on it's back and show us what thou hath wrought.

[Frank3k]

I think that pig would collapse the Midget's suspension...

Here's the front end suspension. Doesn't look like much:



I also opened up the engine compartment and added the heavily chopped and modified engine from an old Tamiya Kettenkrad.

[Dr. YoKai]

 How about a Yo Labs Anti-gravity pig? Guaranteed to improve gas mileage 36.2%
 DSCF0850 by VileDr.Yo, on Flickr

(This our neighbor from up the street, Pumpkin. This region of Virginia evidently allows anything qualified as 'livestock' to roam freely. She drives
  the dogs crazy, but is otherwise pretty relaxed...)

I vaguely remember the Kettenkrad engine-reviewers were pretty excited about it back in the 70s. The suspension looks pretty darn good-I wish my surgeries came out so smoothly.

[Buzzbomb]

Sometimes simple is good.

Nice build Frank

[apophenia]

Yep, this is turning out really well 

Looking forward to seeing your version of Araki's rust effects in progress once more 

[Frank3k]

Thanks guys. This isn't quite putting lipstick on a pig - since it's a nice kit to start - but I've modified quite a bit so far. Today I did the canvas roof and rear wall.

I like the look of the original vehicle:


But the kit's roof and back wall look very much like metal and not canvas. I tried tape on the original part, but it didn't look good. I had some 0.005" (.13mm) Evergreen styrene sheet and it was easy to manually bend into the shape of the cover. I trimmed it to size, then put it on a soft surface (my chair's armrest) and ran a pencil over it on both sides to imitate creases. I repeated the same for the back wall, tracing the kit part, then using a pencil for tracing.

This is what it look like just resting on the Midget:



I didn't illuminate this picture well, so the colors are washed out. The belts are made from Tamiya tape (still needs some paint) and the buckle is from a Trumpeter generic rifle sling PE sheet. The bit of belt in the middle of the buckle is just a sliver of tape glued in place:



The creases aren't obvious in those pictures - I'll try a better shot tomorrow.

[Old Wombat]

Nice!

[Buzzbomb]

Getting those pop studs on really makes that tilt work. Really like it

[Frank3k]

I'm in the final stages of this build - rusting and some extra weathering. I'm also trying out some cargo. The tailgate is a thin sheet of styrene. The chains are an old PE chain (in 1/350) that I made 20 years ago or so:



The cargo area isn't very rusty, because there'll be cargo taking up most of the space:



The French mechanic is unsure if the Midget can take the weight. The cargo is from Value Gear. I hadn't removed the windshield wiper mask and added the wiper:



The Value Gear bits are just great:

[finsrin]

This be great      Wear-n-tear and rustifying are right on.   So real looking Midget and cargo 

[Kerick]

Cargo needs to be piled about twelve feet higher!
Looks great!

[Dr. YoKai]

Masking the windshield like that is pretty ingenious. Looks like another beautiful build.

[Frank3k]

Thanks, Craig! I taped the windshield first, put the wiper at one extreme, marked the ends, moved it a bit, marked again and repeated until I reached the other end. I removed the tape, drew the path of the wiper, cut it out of the tape and reapplied it to the windshield.

[Frank3k]

I'm calling this one done, mainly because I ran out of motivation.

The base is a runway section from the Academy 1/35 RQ-7B UAV kit. I chipped the edges of some of the slabs and added cracks and some grass. The straps are blue tape with PE ends.



The fuel tank covers the gap under the cargo. The rusting on the tailgate doesn't look great, but I'm done messing with it.





The figure is from the recent set, Ukrainian Tank Crew at Rest The plastic water bottle is from Meng.





Didn't do a great job on the face, but it'll do:

[finsrin]

Brushed on real rust did you ?   Tarmac with its touches works perfect 
So nice in its so used way.