Mugford Rats

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Mugford Rats

Ben Mugford uses Rusty Paint and a known expertise in all things rat to create unique and bespoke ru

31/05/2021

Breakfast with a view

28/05/2021

13/05/2021

Mugford rats is back with a bang, and possibly my favourite project so far.
Last weekend I travelled down to Devon and painted this MK1 LT with very subtle faux patina.
Less is more people.

09/05/2021

30/03/2021

arch flare kit fitted. 👌

26/03/2021

New hoodie and sticker design incoming....

25/03/2021

Still in love with my vintage toolbox from

"Put s**t back"
Irs been my travelling toolbox for a good few years now.
Never leave the house in a T3 without it.

01/03/2021

Got carpet for days mate.
I think I over ordered

Anyone ever done an exterior carpet wrap before? 🤣🤣

Address

Newgale

SA62 6

Website

http://www.mugfordrats.wordpress.com/

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The Mugford Rats Story

I was one of the kids who had his provisional licence six months before I turned seventeen. My parents took me to a local garage in HarbertonFord, near Totnes in Devon where there was an antique gold 1303 VW Beetle with teddy bear hubcaps. I’m sure it cost about £800. I didn’t look back. I became ‘Benny with the beetle’, we bombed around the single track lanes of South Devon and parked overnight in beach car parks. There were always too many people in the back, which meant there was plenty of help when we needed to get out and push.

Since then I’ve owned Golfs, Polos, Passats, and my trusty T25 Campervan, and become more and more involved with the VAG and custom cars scene. I began to buy projects to work on, to learn about engines and how vehicles work. In 2012 I went back to college to study Motor Vehicle Maintenance. I was one of the oldest in the class, people would think I was a lecturer! This meant I was no longer tinkering, now I had a good base knowledge and could confidently and safely work on vehicles.

I’ve always been heavily into home built projects. I don’t think you have to be an expert or have loads of money to create a vehicle that works for you and looks amazing. And every budget build I see has something about it which is unique. I think there’s definitely a place for the high end show vehicles, they really look amazing, but the cost of them means they’re only achievable to those who can afford it, and often being able to hand a cheque over to a business asking for ‘interior number five’ can take away your creativity. When my wife and I first upholstered our rock and roll bed, there was no blank cheque, but we could get some really cool curtains. And we knew no one else had upholstery like that! Being restricted means you have to be inventive.

And this was what lead me to looking at the Rat Look Scene. There didn’t seem to be any middle ground between a standard, used vehicle, and ultra gloss, high end spray jobs which HAD to be done professionally and always cost a lot of money. It priced a lot of people out of the market, but when I looked more closely I saw people becoming creative with this restriction. My own paint job was fast showing signs of wear and tear, and I thought, no, I’m not going to spend money on another, I can’t afford a wrap, and I’d like to do this myself. I’ll have to do something different.

So that’s what I did. After a LOT of research I invested in the rusty paint, put my van in the garage and started the long process of completely changing the look of my van. It took around a month, with long nights and sore sanding hands, But I’ve ended up with a vehicle which is now instantly recognisable as mine, has featured in calendar shoots and in online vehicles with thousands and thousands of views. Plus, we have a lot of fun in it.

Rat look is not for everyone, and really lends itself well to the older style vehicles, but it’s a scene which is getting bigger as people look at new and interesting ways to preserve their vehicles and create a vehicle that’s easily recognisable as their own. And the great thing about it is there’s a lot of variations in it. No two rat look vehicles look the same. There are different colours of rust that can be used, and the effect is different contrasting with different colours of paint. There are examples of fully rusted vehicles, and those which have just very light and gentle patina. Depending on the time spent priming and sanding different effects can be achieved with multiple layers of paint and colour coming through. You can fully rust the vehicle, and then apply colour on top and sand through, or add rusty effect and blend. Stencils can be used to create effects and branding, and the result is a durable paint job which protects bodywork, which doesn’t need intensive polishing before shows, and you’re not going to have a heart attack if it gets bashed when you’re loading a bike into the back or trying to park on a narrow road on the moors. It creates anti-show vehicles, designed for sleeping in, piling in, living in.

With every client I work with I like to find out as much about them and how they use their car or van as possible. We get together loads of images they like, discuss the different effects, how heavy or light they want it, etc. We often work with what’s needed too, at which areas of the vehicle are starting to show signs of rusting and how we can use the rusty paint to insulate those areas. This helps create a natural rust look, and also preserves the life of the bodywork.

If you’ve got some good ideas for how you can use your vehicle more, and what I can do to help you create a new, interesting, long lasting effect for your project, please get in touch.

I am a registered Rusty Paint Supplier, so I can advise you on its use and help you get started on your own project, or if you like, send it over to me and we can discuss what you’d like. I try to keep my prices affordable, so it’s a service affordable to most, so you may be surprised at what we can do.