Lexan Baja Bug bodies, Mr Lexan, Bolink and Parma comparison
Posted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 2:21 pm
Mr Lexan hooked me up with a sweet new Baja Bug body. I love r/c baja bugs, Sand Scorchers, Monster Beetles, RC10 Scorchers, whatever, I've always liked the classic baja bug body on an r/c car. So, I've owned quite a few over the years. I've still got 2 old Bolink bodies that I used on cars in the past, currently I have 2 Parma bodies, one NIB and the other mounted to my LXT. And, I just got Mr Lex's new body, so I thought it would be nice to do a little comparison for those in the market for a lexan baja bug body.
After I got Mr Lexan's body I noticed many similarities to the old Bolink bodies. So, I compared those two first. It appears that Mr Lexan's body is in fact pulled from the old Bolink mold. It even has a BL # on the back. They are identical down to the marks for the Sand Scorcher mounts on the roof and hood and both bodies have a small indent in the rear window trim on the upper right side of the window. These have to be from the same mold, correct me if I'm wrong Jay. Now, having said that, Mr Lexan's body is a little nicer than Bolink's old body. Mr Lexan's lines are more crisp. For instance the markings for the license plate are not as bubble-like as on the Bolink, they have sharp edges. You will notice this all over the body, it just appears more crisp. It's just a better pull. So, the Mr Lexan repro body beats the original Bolink imho.
Now, on to the Parma. This is where the real differences are, quality aside, I'm talking about details and parts of the body. Mr Lexan's body has license plates molded front and rear, the Parma body does not. The Parma body has windshield wipers molded in, Mr Lexan's does not. Parma's body has the nose seam like on the original Tamiya body molded in, Mr Lexan's does not. On the door handle, the Parma body has the little indentation behind the handle on the door, where Mr Lexan's has just the handle. On the hood, the sunken in sections (sorry, don't know the correct term here) on the Parma are not as crisply defined. On Mr Lexan's, they are very crisply recessed, like they were punched in, there is actual a tiny "wall" between the surfaces, the Parma looks more molded in place, there is no perpendicular "wall". I guess the best way to describe it is that the Mr Lexan body looks more like a metal hood that has been punched into shape, and the Parma body looks more like a fiberglass hood that has been molded into shape. I prefer the crisp punch-like hood on Mr Lexan's myself, but that's just a matter of personal taste. Both bodies have a very faint double-punch or shadow outline for the sunroof lines. One last detail, Mr Lexan's body has a bit more detail on the line under the windows. The Parma body just steps in at this section, where the Mr Lexan body actually comes out, like the rain gutters above the windows.
Which is better between the Mr Lexan bug and the Parma? I honestly can't pick one over the other. They are both very nice bodies. I'd probably say buy Mr Lexan's body because I'm all for supporting friends and fellow forum members. Plus, if you have any problems (you won't) you know how to get ahold of the guy who made it and shipped it.
I took some pics so you can decide for yourself. For the comparison shots, the blue/white body is the Parma, the Red body is the Bolink and the clear body is the Mr Lexan. Keep in mind that the Mr Lexan is a slightly crisper/nicer Bolink body, I used the painted Bolink body over my clear Mr Lexan body for these photos just because we all know it can be very difficult to capture any detail on a clear body in photos. Please keep in mind while looking at these pics that these painted bodies have been trimmed down considerably, the Parma's fenders are cut down for tire clearance and the front of the Bolink has been cut off just below where the license plate starts.
After I got Mr Lexan's body I noticed many similarities to the old Bolink bodies. So, I compared those two first. It appears that Mr Lexan's body is in fact pulled from the old Bolink mold. It even has a BL # on the back. They are identical down to the marks for the Sand Scorcher mounts on the roof and hood and both bodies have a small indent in the rear window trim on the upper right side of the window. These have to be from the same mold, correct me if I'm wrong Jay. Now, having said that, Mr Lexan's body is a little nicer than Bolink's old body. Mr Lexan's lines are more crisp. For instance the markings for the license plate are not as bubble-like as on the Bolink, they have sharp edges. You will notice this all over the body, it just appears more crisp. It's just a better pull. So, the Mr Lexan repro body beats the original Bolink imho.
Now, on to the Parma. This is where the real differences are, quality aside, I'm talking about details and parts of the body. Mr Lexan's body has license plates molded front and rear, the Parma body does not. The Parma body has windshield wipers molded in, Mr Lexan's does not. Parma's body has the nose seam like on the original Tamiya body molded in, Mr Lexan's does not. On the door handle, the Parma body has the little indentation behind the handle on the door, where Mr Lexan's has just the handle. On the hood, the sunken in sections (sorry, don't know the correct term here) on the Parma are not as crisply defined. On Mr Lexan's, they are very crisply recessed, like they were punched in, there is actual a tiny "wall" between the surfaces, the Parma looks more molded in place, there is no perpendicular "wall". I guess the best way to describe it is that the Mr Lexan body looks more like a metal hood that has been punched into shape, and the Parma body looks more like a fiberglass hood that has been molded into shape. I prefer the crisp punch-like hood on Mr Lexan's myself, but that's just a matter of personal taste. Both bodies have a very faint double-punch or shadow outline for the sunroof lines. One last detail, Mr Lexan's body has a bit more detail on the line under the windows. The Parma body just steps in at this section, where the Mr Lexan body actually comes out, like the rain gutters above the windows.
Which is better between the Mr Lexan bug and the Parma? I honestly can't pick one over the other. They are both very nice bodies. I'd probably say buy Mr Lexan's body because I'm all for supporting friends and fellow forum members. Plus, if you have any problems (you won't) you know how to get ahold of the guy who made it and shipped it.
I took some pics so you can decide for yourself. For the comparison shots, the blue/white body is the Parma, the Red body is the Bolink and the clear body is the Mr Lexan. Keep in mind that the Mr Lexan is a slightly crisper/nicer Bolink body, I used the painted Bolink body over my clear Mr Lexan body for these photos just because we all know it can be very difficult to capture any detail on a clear body in photos. Please keep in mind while looking at these pics that these painted bodies have been trimmed down considerably, the Parma's fenders are cut down for tire clearance and the front of the Bolink has been cut off just below where the license plate starts.
