Wanted Tips on Completely Disassembling a Panther!

[scoobydie]

Best way to take the main body apart is to release the large rear tab first and the front 2 should need little
or no pushing.
The dash and roll cage are molded on and don`t come off to without breaking.
I`ve ripped a Stinger dash off before and had to glue it back on, no retaining tabs as far as I could see.

[The Baron]

Yep, the rollbars are glued in place, you may be able to prise them apart and regule if you go slow and steady.

[momaw nadon]

I have had some success in removing the dash and rollbars. They take a little finess with a x-acto blade. It's hard to explain in words, so I'll see if I can get some time and show you in some pictures. I just won't be able to do it until Monday or Tuesday. If you can't wait, here is a ruff discription on how to work it:

Dash is the easiest of the two. Only had one break on me, so be very careful while doing this. For breaking and cutting into yourself . You need a straight edge blade, for a lack of knowing what it's called. One that looks like a square if looking from the top. The dash is held in place over a long flat peg that runs the length of it. Work on the top and bottom by pushing the blade under the edge of the dash. You need to make sure it's square with that peg or you will cut into it. Don't push too hard, as you can cut into the dash. Make sure you work top and bottom at the same time. It will help in not breaking the peg or very little that it won't matter much. That should make short work of the dash. Also make sure you don't put too much stress on the body, as you can break or crack it while doing these removals.

Rollbars are the harder of the two. This removal is nearly impossible to keep the pegs. I have done a few that I was able to safe all, but it was on one that was already coming off with age. Same warnings apply here. Using the same straight edge blade (Wider the better here), start on the back of the rollbar under the body top rail. Push the blade into the gap of the rollbar and top rail. Try and keep the blade square with the top rail. Sometimes if you start from the center and slide the blade sideways, not really cuting anything, as the tip of the blabe will be out the back if working from front or vice versa. Just roll the knife a in hand a little (this will use the knife as a pry) and if lucky the rollbar will pop. Nine out of ten times only one side will do this. The other you will most likely have to cut. Now the front can be very tricky. This will take great patients, as the plastic here is very thin. You need to work from the inside, but be very careful not to cut through, as it's easy to do here. Sometimes a thinner narrow blade works better here. This step will almost always leave stress marks, so if you don't want them I would suggest leaving the rollbar on. Anyway, to carry on, push the kinfe as flat as you can with the hood under the lip not too far or not too hard. A little at a time works the best and work across the length before starting another pass. Sometimes you can get lucky here and not have to work the full length of the lip. This is the hardest to tell someone how to do it, so hopefully I can get you the pictures to go with it.

Anyway, doing these removals will require you to reglue them back into place when you reinstall them. I hope that helps you out and will post pictures soon.

momaw nadon

[The Baron]

That sounds pretty concise, momaw nadon. Do you mean a Stanley knife (they may be called something else in the US)?

[momaw nadon]

No, those would be utility knives. This is the wide X-acto blade I'm talking about:



This is a number 18. They also have a narrower one too, but I don't know the number. They might call them something else were you are from .

Also a side note make sure its a quality brand blade. I have some non-X-acto brand blades but they are thinner and break while trying these removals. Not fun jabbing yourself with a broken X-acto blade. Really not fun jabbing yourself with any blade .

momaw nadon

[The Baron]

A-ha, I didn't think it was a Stanley form your description, just checking as it's what I use. I've not seen anything like the X-Acto in the UK, are they available from regular arts and crafts shops in the US?

[momaw nadon]

I can't really say I would like to use a utlitiy knife in my hobby. They are just not suited for everything you need.

X-acto is a hobby knife, but are the best you can get of the ones that are out there. They are little more than a special purpose razor blade really. You can change the blade to suit your use. They can be found anywhere really in the US. Most stores that have a hardware or hobby section have them. If you can't find them in stores where you are, you might try on-line. If not, let me know and I'll see what I can do for you.

momaw nadon

[Squad Leader]

thanks for all the advice, think im gonna leave the roll cage and work around the dashboard as knowing my luck i'll make a hash up of it