Following up on our Scratch Build special (this one) – today I’ve been lucky enough to get the input from two highly talented customisers who each share their method for creating side mirrors in 1:64 scale for your next custom Hot Wheels creation.

How to Custom Build 1/64 Scale Wing Mirrors 

If you have ever tried to make wing mirrors (side mirrors, rear view mirrors, call them what you will) to add to your custom Hot Wheels creation then you will know how intricate and annoyingly delicate it is. I have personally tried a few times when I am working with epoxy putty and well, put it this way – have you ever seen any of my customs with wing mirrors? Exactly.

So when I started seeing a variety of shaped and sized mirrors appearing on the already awesome work of @ndrew_77 aka Andrew Montana Werke I just knew I was going to annoy him with questions and see if he was willing to share his secrets with us…

Turns out Andrew is a gen-U-ine top bloke and what we around these parts call a ‘bloody champion mate’ and as such was more than willing to share everything that he has figured out and learnt about scratch building wing mirrors in 1:64 scale. (like I said, Legend!)

How To Make Side Mirrors for Hot Wheels with @ndrew_77

*Note that Andrew was kind enough to provide me with the basic steps and I have turned this into a more detailed guide for you to enjoy. I have maintained the first person narrative to make following the guide easier but it is important to note (for Andrew’s sake more than mine LOL) that these are my words and are not direct quotes from one @ndrew_77

Scratch Building Wing Mirrors – What You’ll Need

Before we begin you are going to need a few basic household items, well they are certainly household items for any normal Hot Wheels collector and/or customizer that’s for sure 😉 These items include

• Paperclip (or wheel axles)
• Hotwheels card
• Superglue
• Patience (I added this one because well, you so need it!)
• Patience (you can always do with more trust me)

Step 1 – Cut the paper clip or axle to make 2 beams.
How long these beams are depend on the car and type of mirror you are creating and as such will vary every time.

*Note that for this example and guide I am making wing mirrors for the Pagani Huayra and as such the supporting ‘beams’ need to be bent. The beams for the Ferrari 599XX (for example) are long and straight and so would obviously necessitate leaving these beams straight. Just saying :p

Step 2 – Take the two beams you made and glue them onto the car

[Alex here] I’ve said this before and I will say it again – Use Superglue carefully and cautiously for it will bite you right in the ass the moment you stop giving it the respect it deserves.
Read: Superglue dries leaving a white residue and can also stain/fade/discolor or generally fuck up the paint on your Custom Hot Wheels creation so be aware of this and use only what you need and nothing more! – A good tip is to use an axle rod to apply the superglue as this guarantees only miniscule amounts are applied each time.

Step 3 – Draw the template of the mirror on the Hotwheels card
Again the shape and size will be dependent on the car and type of mirror you are creating)

Step 4 – Cut it out.

[Alex…again] I personally recommend scissors for any fine cutting work as it is a lot easier to get smooth turns and defined corners when you can manoeuvre the scissors AND the card at the same time. Scalpels and blades are great for straight lines but the second you need to turn a corner or stop on a dime you will find yourself struggling*

*I know! Think of the blade as a modern American Muscle car and the scissors as any JDM [Import] performance car. The blade is much more hardcore and aggressive sure but the moment you need to stop quickly or turn a corner smoothly you’re screwed. The JDM scissors on the other hand can not only handle the straight lines AND keep up, they can turn the smoothest and sharpest of corners with ease (yo)

Step 5 – Glue your Mirror onto the end of the Support Beam
(OK fine so it’s technically a tiny piece of cardboard but stay with me here)

Step 6 – Paint and Detail!

 

Step 6 and a half: Add some decent lighting and photography….

Before we join Pisut Masanong for the next method of scratch building side mirrors I wanted to share some of the amazing customs that Andrew has created [with his awesome wing mirrors] and give you a better idea of the different types of mirrors you can create.

Thank  you again for sharing your techniques with us today Andrew, you are welcome back to the MCH community anytime.

Now the best way for all of you to show your appreciation to Andrew is to make sure you follow him on Instagram @ndrew_77  – as you can see from his work above he is someone you should be following regardless so yeah, get on it 😀

Scratch Building Wing Mirrors – Method 2

I’m a huge fan of Pisut Masanong’s (aka @Masanong on Instagram) work, not just in the field of custom Hot Wheels but also his nail art – Yes nail art! Pisut has the most extraordinary talent for hand painting details that I would struggle to get onto my High Quality Hot Wheels Decals – and here he is hand painting this stuff directly onto tiny nails or even tinier 1:64 scale doors! But wait there’s more…

Not only is Pisut a master of the brush he is also a master of the flush

– with some of the most Hellasweet custom creations I have ever seen appearing in his portfolio of custom work. (don’t worry, I’ll be sure to share a few sneaky pics of his amazing work after the guide) I’m going off track here but the point is that while following Pisut and gathering intel from Andrew about scratch building wing/side mirrors my good friend Pisut went and posted his own quick guide to making wing mirrors – so I totally bugged him to let me have it!

How To Make Side Mirrors with @Masanong

Pisut shared this awesome guide through one of the Hot Wheels Facebook pages – a Malaysian based group, and as such the guide was written in Malay (correct me if I am wrong Pisut). Pisut was able to provide me with the basic information like what he was using specifically but when it comes to the steps and actual process I have basically had to make it based on the images provided – images that I must say made that process rather easy to be honest. I think you will agree that the images provided by @Masanong below provide more than enough information to guide you through the steps without me needing to say much – not that that’s going to stop me LMAO!!

Scratch Building Wing Mirrors – Step 1

It looks like Pisut is using Brass axle rods as the stems for his mirrors but much like the method shared by Andrew above, you could just as easily use axles or lengths of paperclip. That being said the brass is probably a better option because it is a lot more malleable and a softer metal to work with.

You will also need some of those decorative rhinestones/gems call them what you will. They are available at most good art and craft stores….and I can almost guarantee that my 6 year old daughter has a gazillion of them somewhere…..brb LOL.

• Cut your brass rod to the required length (again this will vary depending on the application but I am sure you can figure it out all by yourself 😉
• Superglue the rod to the centre of the rounded section of the rhinestone/stick on gem thingy (image does a better job than I just did :p )

Scratch Building Wing Mirrors – Step 2

Now we get to the delicate and I assume tricky part. I can only assume as I have not had the chance to try this – or purchase the required items for that matter – which are:

• Monomer Acrylic Liquid 
• Acrylic Powder

Again the images describe the process brilliantly but I’ll narrate it anyway 😉

• Dip the brush into the Acrylic Liquid until it is thoroughly saturated in the liquid
  There needs to be enough liquid for it to drip down and give the powder something to solidify to (I assume? – when I test this I will update the post with the facts 😉 )
• Hold the brush over the powder so that the liquid forms at the tip of the brush and slowly bring it into contact with the powder. As the liquid turns black and the powder is drawn up into the liquid you may want to gently turn the brush from side to side to help the process…. but then again you might NOT want to do that (again I’m just speaking out my arse here)

Scratch Building Wing Mirrors – Step 3

Now that you’ve created your creepy alien egg looking thing you need to transfer it onto the back of your wing mirror so as to cover the ugly join of the gemstone and the axle rod and in so doing create a perfect wing mirror shape. At this point you obviously don’t need to copy the example shown below as you may want to create a different type of mirror – again this comes down to the application and design you are going for.

To transfer the acrylic liquid/powder mix to the mirror you simply brush the mix on. I can only assume from the images below that it is fairly easy to work with and transfers from the brush to the mirror without issue. I can only hope that making it look as good as the example shown below is also as straight forward – but based on the level of experience and expertise that Pisut consistently demonstrates I have a horrible feeling this is not going to be the case 😉

The Final Step is to apply the wing mirror to the Hot Wheels casting
Pisut shares a technique that is definitely effective and also quite neat if I’m honest. Superglueing your newly created wing mirror to the casting is an easy and effective way of doing it but also leaves your mirrors susceptible to breaking off easily. By drilling a hole you are creating a much more secure bond between mirror and car AND displaying that extra level of creativity that we customisers love.

Thanks to Pisut for sharing his most awesome technique with us and of course for allowing me to share it with you here on the blog. I would encourage (and strongly recommend) that you follow Pisut on Instagram @Masanong so you can see more of his amazing work – work that as promised I will share below.

Like I said, King of the Brush and King of the Flush 😉

If you liked what you read and saw then be sure to share it – there’s buttons floating somewhere around here 😉 Also make sure you follow @ndrew_77 and @Masanong on Instagram…

And remember kids,

Objects in Mirror are Actually Behind You

 

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