Sandor Piszar’s Batmobile part 1
Sandor Piszar brings us his Batmobile project. What you see here is the conversion of the Futura into a Batmobile.
One of the coolest cars ever used for TV or the movies has got to be the classic Batmobile from the sixties. I had wanted to build one for years and was considering the Caped Custom. But I decided that it would be more challenging and fun to convert a Lincoln Futura into the Batmobile, just the way George Barris did.
There are many details that differ between the Futura and the Batmobile and I thought it would be interesting to build a diorama contrasting these differences. I plan on building a diorama called “Before and After” that will showcase the Futura in a 1955 Auto Show-like setting on one side and the Batmobile in one of Gotham City’s back alleys on the other side. Phase 1 of this project involved building the Batmobile, Phase 2 will be a buildup of the Futura, and Phase 3 will be the construction of the diorama.
Building the Batmobile is the most challenging phase which is why I tackled that first. To change the Futura into the Batmobile requires:
- cutting out the wheel openings
- adding wheel arches and a raised step around the car
- adding the “nose” and hood bulge to the front end
- adding hoods to the headlight openings
- extending the tail fins forward into the doors
- adding fluted “Batwings” to the rear of the tail fins
- adding the turbine exhaust and Bat chutes in back
- cutting the canopy
- constructing the “arch” between the seats
- adding all the proper Bat Equipment, such as deck lid rocket tubes, arch antennas and beacon, Batphone, turbine thrust lever, Emergency Batturn Lever, seatbelts, and Bat emblems on the doors and wheels
I began by carefully cutting out the wheel well openings. It is critical to not cut too high into the fender or not high enough, or the car will just not look right. There are numerous websites that provide excellent views of the Batmobile, so research before you begin hacking!
Next I used sheet styrene to add the wheel arches, hood bulge and nose, hooded headlights, and Batfin extensions. For the raised step around the body I used the chrome trim that comes with the Futura and simply integrated it into the bodywork. .
I adding fluted “Batwings” to the rear of the tail fins After adding these mods I used putty to fill all of the seams
When sanding, I strongly urge using the wet sanding method. It provides a smooth finish and makes the work much easier. I would periodically do a light test spray of paint to check for visible seams and high spots and would go back and start sanding again.
I didn’t want the red highlighting stripes to be tape, but I didn’t want to hassle with painting them all by hand afterward either. So, after the bodywork modifications and sanding were complete I sprayed the entire body red.
I then added a thin strip of masking tape wherever red highlights needed to be, then sprayed the final coats of gloss black over the red basecoat. After the paint was thoroughly dry, I peeled the masking tape away to reveal the red stripes. It worked almost perfectly, requiring very little touch up work afterward.
After painting, I added the rest of the exterior mods such as arch, rocket tubes, canopy, front and rear grills, headlight covers, and Bat chutes. The final step involved adding the Bat emblems on the doors and wheels, the license plate, as well as the tiny “Barris Kustom” fender badges.
Some of the features of the car include:
- Futura body modified the way Barris did the original Batmobile
- Fully detailed cockpit including seatbelts, carpeting, Batphone, fire extinguisher, turbine thrust lever and Emergency Batturn lever
- Metal trim for the front and rear grills, headlight covers, internal turbine exhaust outlet, rocket tubes and interior trim
I had a good time building the Batmobile but it was often tedious work and I’m glad I’m done!
Sandor Piszar
Go to Part 2
