Here's the first in the next generation of the Funnybug saga. This an original 1971 issue, 1/20th scale IMC "Bugs Buggy" kit. But I actually think it was only released one time anyway. I believe this is another example of life imitating art as unless I'm mistaken, the model came before the full size show car.

       The kit is molded in thick orange. It's simplistic in design, however, having owned many dune buggies and Volkswagen's in real life, that's pretty accurate. 

The front seats of the real car are as tall as what you see in the picture, but, they lacked realism, so I scratch built these seats from sheet plastic and covered the frames in small cut wooden dowels. Similar to something George Barris did with the "Surf Woody"

This particular kit was missing the exhaust, and the roll bar was broken, so I scratch built an extractor exhaust using aluminum stock, as well as the roll bar. The surfboard is from the Revell Surfite reissue kit.

Overall, a nice display piece. The obscure scale isn't to disconcerting when the kit sets next to other 1/25th scale kits, as dune buggies were shortened Volkswagen's anyway.

The orange trim around the wheels is the color of the plastic the kit is molded in. I simply sanded the edges as the wheels were held to the chrome tree on the outer edge. After years of manufacturing kits, the manufacturers continue to do that. ~ I wish they'd stop that. The purple and pink metallic paints are Testors enamels.

Here's a picture of the "real" Bugs Buggy Show Rod from a 1973 magazine

the tour:

< last   next >

or..