MINIONS' MOPAR GARAGE

[BUCKY]

I've had this kit hangin' about:


It's sort of a showcase/diorama type thing.

I started by sticking some of the plastic bits together:


These are the walls that came in the kit:


The kit had three welding bottles in it. The right two are original to the kit:

I had to make up the third one, as I have misplaced the original. I just happened to have a very large sprue from a past build, so I shaped the bottle from it. A smaller piece of sprue makes up the cap. I fashioned the gauge assembly from two different sizes of styrene tube, and a piece of brass wire. Just about ready to paint this one.



This is the bottle cart, or torch buggy, as we pipefitters always called it
:

This particular one didn't have a complete tray on the back. I made a tray from styrene strip. I drilled holes for the safety chains. The pins at the bottom are for the wheels. If I put the wheels on there, they don't touch anything! I'll chop the pins, drill a couple lower holes, and put an axle all the way across, as 99% of the carts I've ever used had on them!



Here are the welding machine and torch buggy, near completion:


I added safety chains and hooks to the welder and the torch buggy. I also added connectors made from styrene rod to the front of the welder, for the argon hose, and the electrode leads. Now, I need to paint the gauges and add the hoses and leads, and the torch to have these complete.



Here are a few completed pieces:


This is as far as I have this project for now. It's an on going thing that will have added tools and extra car parts to clutter things up!
Stay tuned, folks! 

Comments and questions are welcome.
Thanks for looking!!

[Mr. E]

Nice work Bucky, I like it!

[dge467]

I built one of those years ago, nice kit. Yours is looking good!

[BUCKY]

Thanks, dge467!

[tubbs]

that's a pretty rare kit isn't it. I have the Fumigi (?) garage stuff, but would love to get this one. very cool.

[BUCKY]

They pop up on eBay now and then. I got mine at Hobby Lobby a few years back.

[mopar]

Excellent details Bucky. Did you ever get to work on any MW Kellogg, Fluor or Chearne projects?

[BUCKY]

I never worked for those three. Foster-Wheeler, TVA, Day/Zimmerman, Hoyt/Brumm/Link, Kvearner-Songer, Nashville Machine Company......

[BUCKY]

So, I found my workbench in the hobby room, after an exhaustive search! LOL

On it were these racing fuel cans:


I "painted" them with Sharpies:

The Minions can't do good work without a bench grinder, and every good southern Minion makes
his own stand for that grinder:

An old big rig wheel...a piece of pipe...and a piece of I-beam.
I cut the pieces to end up with a stand about 3 feet high, in 1/25 scale:

Here it is, all put together, and "painted" with my trusty Sharpie:

This is a light mockup with the grinder. Still have some detail to do on the grinder:


More to come!
Feels good to be back working on something!!

[Mr. E]

Very creative Keith. Looks very familiar, although my grinder was yellow and the rim was an old 16.5 split rim off of my old B300 Maxi-Van. (I had replaced the 16.5 split rims with a set of 16's and Michelin's, the difference was amazing.)

[BUCKY]

This wheel came from an old AMT Peterbilt kit I had waaaay back in 1973. I have the wheels and tires, but the rest of that build is long gone!! (My younger sister fell on it while it was sitting in the floor!)

[BUCKY]

I got a few more things done:

[BUCKY]

Tool boxes up and running:

[BUCKY]

There is a push broom in this kit:


I didn't like how straight the handle was in the broom part.
So, I drilled a new hole, and repositioned the handle:

[BUCKY]

And the broom is done, dirty bristles, and all!