Wednesday, May 2, 2012

VAMP (Multi-Purpose Assault Vehicle)

This is a custom that I have wanted to do since I was 10 years old.  Growing up, I had both the VAMP and the VAMP Mk II, and it always kind of bothered me that they were not uniform in color.  From a marketing standpoint it probably made sense for Hasbro to make them different colors because they hoped that the new color would appeal to kids and also because most parents would likely be reluctant to buy duplicate vehicle that differ only in the mounted weapon system (I know that would have been the case with my mother).  So when a fellow collector gave me a second 25th Anniversary VAMP, I knew exactly what I was going to do with it!  


 The missile housing and mount came from a vintage Tiger Sting.  I repainted them to match the metallic colors of the cannon on the original VAMP.  I also drilled two small holes in the rear of the housing so that the cables from the cannon could be connected to it.  This gives the appearance that the driver can control the missile launcher, just as the driver in the original vehicle could control the cannon.  To mount the missile launcher, I had to Dremel the mounting hole a bit.  I ended up having to bore into the vehicle's rear deck a bit, but I got a good mounting hole, where the launcher mount fits snugly and can still swivel.  So while this wasn't the most challenging thing I've done in a while, it was pretty satisfying.


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