Replica Kubelwagen - putting your money where your mouth is
Posted: Wed May 02, 2007 9:27 pm
It was at a braai in Bloemfontein one cold Saturday winter's evening a few years ago that a very good mate, Danie, and I started discussing - over a few glasses of eish - the possibility of building a replica Kubelwagen. OK... it's all being done before, I hear you say, but it was at a time that Danie just completed an Eagle kit car with a fully functioning hidraulic roof and he felt like a new challenge. Elsewhere in Bloemfontein some members of a Second World War memorabilia club were converting two perfect 181 Things to 'Kubelwagens' - a sin in my eyes - and so we started throwing a few ideas around.
Building a replica Kubelwagen shouldn't be too difficult, we reckoned, as it has mainly angular, straight lines and the mechanics are all basically Beetle. If one doesn't try to build it a perfect replica, and if your main idea is to make it a FUN vehicle, it should be well within the ability of anyone with basic mechanical skills.
A few days later, Danie phoned me and invited me over to his place - for some more 'eish'. He showed me a cardboard model of his planned Kubel project that he built at a scale of more or less 1:8. Taking an unassembled Tamiya Kubel plastic kit with a scale of 1:35, Danie carefully measured all the dimensions and built the cardboard model. And that was the last I heard of the replica Kubel.. Danie got an Aqua buggy soon after that, and it changed into his new project (read: bottomless hole for money and time) but he has since completely rebuilt an sold it. Anyway, I moved from Bloem to Gauteng and we basically forgot about the whole Kubel clone idea.
Till yesterday - when I received these 2 pics via MMS on my phone, clearly showing that Danie is indeed building his Kubel! Apparently, while being bored at home while on leave, his fingers started itching, and I think you would agree it is looking GOOD so far. Will keep the Forum updated from time to time, but expect a wicked FUN 'Kubel' with more than a healthy dose of tricks up the sleeve of the designer/builder/owner/driver in the near future
Heil Danie! *Nazi Stormtrooper/Surf's Up salute* You are walking the talk, and have put your money where your mouth is!
Building a replica Kubelwagen shouldn't be too difficult, we reckoned, as it has mainly angular, straight lines and the mechanics are all basically Beetle. If one doesn't try to build it a perfect replica, and if your main idea is to make it a FUN vehicle, it should be well within the ability of anyone with basic mechanical skills.
A few days later, Danie phoned me and invited me over to his place - for some more 'eish'. He showed me a cardboard model of his planned Kubel project that he built at a scale of more or less 1:8. Taking an unassembled Tamiya Kubel plastic kit with a scale of 1:35, Danie carefully measured all the dimensions and built the cardboard model. And that was the last I heard of the replica Kubel.. Danie got an Aqua buggy soon after that, and it changed into his new project (read: bottomless hole for money and time) but he has since completely rebuilt an sold it. Anyway, I moved from Bloem to Gauteng and we basically forgot about the whole Kubel clone idea.
Till yesterday - when I received these 2 pics via MMS on my phone, clearly showing that Danie is indeed building his Kubel! Apparently, while being bored at home while on leave, his fingers started itching, and I think you would agree it is looking GOOD so far. Will keep the Forum updated from time to time, but expect a wicked FUN 'Kubel' with more than a healthy dose of tricks up the sleeve of the designer/builder/owner/driver in the near future
Heil Danie! *Nazi Stormtrooper/Surf's Up salute* You are walking the talk, and have put your money where your mouth is!
