Page 5 - Issue 36

ANGELA CRIPPS

Simply put, bug bodies
Simply put, bug bodies
Simply put, bug bodies
are inexpensive,
are inexpensive,
commonly found here in
the U.S., and usually in
rough shape. This means ROBB BLAIR ROBB BLAIR
you don’t have to feel
bad about chopping
them up and you can
get them for far less than say a Model A
body in worse shape. If you’ve followed Tommy’s Toolbox, in his latest
series (the fi nal product is featured in this issue) he used a Beetle body
to create a T-Bucket. In 2014 we chose a sweet VW creation as our
“Magazine Pick” at the 2014 RatCity Rukkus. On this very cover you
see Jac Lindell’s race-inspired speed-machine “Frankenbug,” and just
a couple years ago Build-Off Champion Chris Walker defended his title
with a Beetle-Chevy hybrid creation called “Bugly.” All of these are
extremely different, and also extremely cool uses of virtually the same
Beetle bodies.
On this cover we call Jac’s monstrosity a “Volksrat.” Like the term
rat rod, there are labels for everything. I have long called supped-up
VW’s “Volksrods,” probably ignorantly – but you see how these labels
are just kinda picked up and used wherever and however, depending
on the person’s perspective. I like the term Volksrat, because it
accurately describes (to me) a Volkswagen rat rod. VW-based rat rods
are still uncommon so it’s fun to differentiate them with a nickname.
Whether it’s an accepted term or if I’m using it correctly - I don’t know.
I’m sure there are plenty of Volkswagen purists who are horrifi ed by
these creations, but we’ve never really worried about upsetting purists
of any culture on these pages. Instead, it’s about exploring creativity
and ingenuity – the very essence of rat rod culture. Enjoy!
—Steve

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