Who puts drivers & passengers in their cars & trucks?

Here's a JB Hunt K-Line semi that I put a driver in.  I think it makes a difference.

 

 

 

Art

I think passengers make a world of difference but agree it can be a pain to put them in all your vehicles.

-Greg

Gotta do it, particularly with convertibles.

 

 

Art,

 

After taking numerous pictures of my layout, and seeing others' pictures, all showing cars on the road (and lots of convertibles, to boot) without drivers, it struck me how silly this looks. As if it were a SciFi movie where the aliens sucked up all the drivers.

 

So I started adding drivers, and it makes for much better pictures.

 

Alex

Do you put your drivers in the front seat or the back seat?

My layout won't have anything frozen where it should be moving. So all cars will be either parked or sititng at grade crossings.

I model the WW2 era, so there aren't too many civilian autos on the layout.

You can't see them very well, but there are drivers in each of these, the rest of the autos on my layout will be parked:

Where do you find driver figures with the arms extended? I'd love to add more drivers but they don't look right if the hands aren't on the wheel, especially on a top-down convertible. 

I looked at my vehicles.  It will be a tweezer job to get upper bodies into some of

these Brooklins and Matchbox 1930's pickups.  I have a guy standing in the bed of a

1938 Stude pickup, but he is loading lumber.  I only have two open Fords, and both

are parked, one on a rack at a gas station. Don't have to worry about that one.

Sticking heads behind steering wheels will be one of the last detailing jobs.

I do in the "top-down" models. I do like have figures interacting with cars...pumping gas, working under the hood, opening a door, etc. That is one of the reasons I like the Franklin Mint 1:43s, since they have opening doors, hoods, and tail gates (on some wagons).

I put drivers at least in all my Streets vehicles, which are the only ones I have on the streets as if running.  Often I have other figures in cars parked at the curb, etc. 

 

It's not difficult to take Brooklin and other diecast models apart so you can put figures inside well.  

 

Chugman,

   Yea even on the farm equipment!  Got to have people and animals even on my child like Tin Plate layouts.

PCRR/Dave

Arttista makes figures with arms extended. http://www.arttista.com/

 

Here are a few cars with figures...

They look great, Doug - your settings as well as the figures.  Cutting up and reforming plastic figures is a lot of work and not always completely successful.

Believe it or not, I'm actually considering putting drivers in my Plasticville vehicles--once I get them painted.  Apart from the fire trucks, they're completely open underneath, so it's just a matter of making a simple interior for the figures that will rest on top of the axles.

Mine are all abandoned, think "rapture", or Zombie apocalypse.

Fred

Arttista makes figures with arms extended. http://www.arttista.com/

 

Thanks. I had a look; there are a few that look pretty good. Pricey, although if you're putting them in a Brooklin or similar car it's a relatively small addition. Also kind of sexist; I saw several men driving but no women. The female passengers are mostly leaning on the man's shoulder. 

Oh, you bet I do!

 

Looking great guys!  Some really nice jobs and scenes.

 

Art

  Nice job on the weathering.  The little deuce looks soooo much better de-hotrodded.  The authentic Tennessee plates didn't go unnoticed either.

 

Bruce

 

 

Thanks, one of them even has the right county code for where the layout takes place. All the plates on the autos are from that state and the surrounding ones, all are 1942 plates with the 43 tab as most states didn't have a plate for that year...

Thanks TrainsRMe

 

Sometimes you have to perform leg amputations to fit them into cars and even passenger train cars.

"Sometimes you have to perform leg amputations to fit them into cars and even passenger train cars."

 

You got this right!

I used to populate the automobiles when I was into G (1:22.5) scale.  The lack of drivers is really glaringly obvious at that size.

 

But in O scale, it's not so noticeable -- especially since my layout is on the basement floor.  I've put figures in a couple of convertibles, but I don't have very many of those.  The hard tops, no, I haven't put drivers in any of them.

 

 

I just make sure all of my convertibles are in a parking state. I suppose the way my layout is set up, you'd really have to look closely to notice no drivers in the hardtops.

Certainly, but why stop at 'in' them?  There's 'on' them, 'in' them, 'under' them, etc.   The old dog in the pickup truck comes to mind.  Mechanic wrenching away under the chassis.... all good stuff.    

 

I'm still looking for a nice black 1:43 jaguar and a seductive, reclined bikini figure so that I can get my "Whitesnake' on... 

All my (non-parked) cars have a driver, and sometimes a passenger, and always a 1956 New Jersey license plate

 

 

     Some of you have posted that you take the vehicle apart. What do you do drill the 2 rivets out of the bottom, take the vehicle apart, put people/animals in put them back together and drill & tap where the rivet was and put in A little screw & washer? Most of my vehicles don't have functioning doors to open to get the figures in. Choo Choo Kenny

All the time. You can have a nice Picture and the you see cars without people and well..... Only takes a little time.

This is why I like the Franklin Mint 1:43 models.  Almost all of them have functional doors, and I've been able to get seated figures into them without too much coercing.  I use these and convertibles strategically.  

 

Note that they also have opening hoods, which can make for a neat scene.  The models aren't cheap, but usually better than the Neo or Brooklyn variety...

 

 

Here's a scene with figures on and around some trucks at a farm. Sorry for the poor photo quality.

all die cast cars and trucks can come apart. If you are lucky its with screws, if you are not you need to drill out the rivets, and then use 5 min epoxy to put them back together (DO NOT USE CA!  You will fog the windshield and slide glass)

 

As for the figures, as others have said, sometimes amputations and/or fanny reductions are needed.  Again, secure them in place with 5 min epoxy.

Me too.

I have put a cop in this car waiting for miscreants to exit the tunnel.  He is in a Dimestore Dreams car, which made the installation simple, since there is no floor.  It has crossbars on which I perched, and didn't even have to glue, the figure.

Not fair to show real vehicles  Great work! Cars and trucks seem to look better with figures, maybe because your mind expects them?

 

Many don't like to have figures showing motion, only standing or sitting and surely there are those here who only want static vehicles, their layout will have no cars on the roadway.

 

Art,

We had a semi in the lot one Monday morning with a car next to it. About 7 a lovely young lady got out of it and drove away followed shortly by the semi. Not sure you want to model that scene 

  

Here's a JB Hunt K-Line semi that I put a driver in.  I think it makes a difference. 

 

Art

 

One of my convertibles has figures by Arttista sold as pairs, one couple snuggling up in the front seat, and one couple in the back seat being somewhat "naughty". Needless to say, that vehicle is parked.

I have most of my vehicles parked, I try to put at least a driver in the ones on the roads. And yes, I have had to alter the dimensions of the people most of the time.

 

Brian,

 

Love it, especially the folds on the sleeves and the snapped top.  Looks great!

 

Unfortunately, no convertibles in Hickory Creek, NY... Perpetually December and a white Christmas! HA!

Thanks Mario, one of my favorite models. The driver fit perfectly.

 

For some reason, we have a lot of convertibles on the layout. But they sure are very cool.