Anyone gone for the rat look?

[scull]

Hi Guys. My French-slammer lowered 1971 T2a is in need of a respray but I cant afford a proper job. Im thinking of going for a DIY rat look like many others but haven't got a clue how to start. Has anyone done it on here? I've been looking at ratted vans after doing a Google search 'ratted VW campers' and quite like what I see in a weird sort of way. I think I would be a lot more relaxed with a finish like this so I can stop shouting at the grandkids when there playing too close to my beloved bus . For me, its cool as f**k but can understand that its not for everybody. I'd like to give it a go though so any advice on the process or pics of your ratted vans would be gratefully received. Thanks in advance........

 

[Clem]

Is your bus currently in original paint? Rather than respray a bus in Matt black or red oxide to be ‘rat’ it’s possibly nicer to patch up the paint you have and have a scruffy bus that can take a knock without ‘trying too hard’ .

 

[AircooledKate]

Funny you say that, mine is original paint with a few dents etc here and there and yet I still hate anyone parking next to me. Have you some photos of yours? I'd agree with what Clem said above to be honest. I regularly get asked when I'm going to paint/restore mine - I won't be, I love that my paint is 53 years old, why would I want to cover that up?

 

[ozziedog]

My van doesn’t have the luxury of having any original paint now, as it was previously a panel but I let in some kosher sides with windows during its first resto along with a new roof panel and slider and doors so it really is like triggers broom. I ran it around with a cheapso respray for quite a while but painted the rim of the pop top and bumpers in a home brew leapard skin look, mainly to hide the rust holes in the nearside step. From there, I painted the pop top properly with white paint and got shot of the leopard stuff. I had various scratches and kids bike marks etc all around it including a shopping trolley incident or two so I drew scars over these then proceeded to deface and cartoonist the van all over as I’m doing some work here and there.
Heres a pic as I’m transitioning from oldy leopardy to newer scarred up etc.

 

[ozziedog]

So it’s only paint, but if it’s genuine stuff and original, maybe not. Go ahead and create your own look .

Ozziedog,,,,,,,,, It’ll change again next year I’m sure

 

[scull]

Thanks for your comments guys so far. Sadly mine is not the original paint, and from previous minor panel repairs it looks like mine has about 7 different top coat colours!! No guidance comments from actual ratters or photos ratted vans yet but I live in hope. By the way Ozziedog, love the leopard skin look and Im glad to receive your approval to create my own look. Trouble is, it will probably end up looking a right mess .

 

[ozziedog]

The leopard ski look is all gone now, I’m in the middle of trying to create a cartoon effect of my van in / on a cloud. It’s brilliant in my head but I can’t nail it down on the van quite yet,,,,almost but not quite. The leopard had to go when I’d seen two others very similar, one in leopard and one in a sort of Zebra thing but bumpers and roof trim just like mine. I’ve toyed with the idea of creating an urban camo type scape on the van but instead of using random shapes, just using recognisable VW shapes, like the Crescent rear vents and the beetle wing shape and the bonnet shape but only parts of them rather than the whole wing or vent, a part of a wide five wheel and the VW logo but only a shadow of it etc etc but definitely not the V off the front of a split as that’s been toasted to death.

Ozziedog,,,,,,,,,,there’s a million things not yet done.

 

[T2t25]

Kind of, I’m not into slammed stance etc as I go on long touring holidays etc and don’t want it scraping but each to their own. I used Rusty paint from rusty paint.com. Kept the original colour above and bumpers. Excuse the massive tyre on the roof rack… I was on the way back from Le Mans with a souvenir

 

[milfredo]

I wouldn't call mine 'ratlook' but it is tatty. Pretty solid but there are dodgy patches and lots of stone chips.

 

[scull]

Love the stance of your bus from the front as its about the same as my set up. Not weed-scraping but drivable and low enough to look cool. The ratty badge and bumper with the over-riders look great too. Looks like a wedding car for the day. Hope all went well. Cheers for posting the pic. Scull.

 

[scull]

View attachment 6773
Kind of, I’m not into slammed stance etc as I go on long touring holidays etc and don’t want it scraping but each to their own. I used Rusty paint from rusty paint.com. Kept the original colour above and bumpers. Excuse the massive tyre on the roof rack… I was on the way back from Le Mans with a souvenir

Thanks for posting. Van looks great and love the story regarding the fat tyre on the roof. Ive just brought some rusty paint myself. Gonna try it on my bumpers first but Im not very arty. Looking forward to seeing some more pics of ratted vans from over members.

 

[milfredo]

Love the stance of your bus from the front as its about the same as my set up. Not weed-scraping but drivable and low enough to look cool. The ratty badge and bumper with the over-riders look great too. Looks like a wedding car for the day. Hope all went well. Cheers for posting the pic. Scull.

I'm actually going to raise it a little as the roads are an abomination and my family is a lot larger and heavier. This perfect storm causes it to catch pretty badly on the ground. Also, it's pretty wallowy in dips as the suspension runs like stock so it uses all its travel pretty quickly.

Rusty paint is great

 

[ozziedog]

I'm actually going to raise it a little as the roads are an abomination and my family is a lot larger and heavier. This perfect storm causes it to catch pretty badly on the ground. Also, it's pretty wallowy in dips as the suspension runs like stock so it uses all its travel pretty quickly.

Rusty paint is great

Yup, join in the rides great. No more banging, no more scraping no more jolts on the steering wheel mid bend, it’s pretty good. I can’t understand why VW didn’t design them like this n

Ozziedog,,,,,,,,,Oh,,,, they did,,, did they