Yearrrgh

This started out to be a stock entry, but as usual, I couldn't leave it alone, and this is the result. The AMT clear display trailer and the T'rantula Dragster are basically stock. I added MRC Cragar wheels and tires to the trailer, and the dragster has no mod's other than eliminating the headlights, and adding a milled distrib. with plug lines and boots. The Vandal tow van got a little more customized.

The van sat too high to suit me, so I notched the frame rails and sunk the front and rear end down into it. The front springs were also cut down to drop this thing in the weeds. I added the same MRC Cragar wheels to the van, and some nice rubber tires from American Satco all around. The motor got some detail treatment. I added a milled aluminum distrib. with plug lines and boots, milled oil filter, coil, steering column, and blower scoop. I also added some photoetched pulley faces, as well as a full set of gauge's inside to monitor it all.

The tiny 1/24 set of keys is sitting on the seat. My favorite photoetched part is the steering wheel center, which is done in a spiderweb pattern and has a rubber o-ring rim. The van carries the trailer ramps, the pit bike, and an extra set of slicks, and a few other odds & ends in the back. The slicks are tied down with scale straps that have etched latches. Theres some stereo and DVD decals in there which were done by Dave Mikrut. The plastic spider pin was mounted to the exhaust stacks to appear to be climbing up to its web.

Paint and decals were the big push on this whole build for me. A custom mix of House of Kolors Kandy Lime Gold, Kandy Oriental Blue, and Kandy Organic Green, airbrushed over basecoats of microflake Orion Silver and Lapis Blue created the paint scheme. The van and dragster have a taped-off spiderweb pattern on them.

The van interior was done in the Lapis Blue basecoat only. The fade-away paint scheme is carried over the entire group, including the bottom of the trailer. The decal work was handled by Dan Warford of Slippery Arts. He modified the artwork he had done on my "Uncertain T'rantula" to create the team logos, as well as replicating the T'rantula caricature from the original TD boxart and much more. Those little spiders are all over these builds! This build was done step by step on the Showrod Rally, and took a total of 7 weeks of nightly work to complete.

It was a labor of love for me, and it's one of my favorite build-ups I own. I had not built the Vandal in over 30 years!