Moebius Models '59 Dodge & Chrysler Turbine Car.

[John Goschke]

Same basic chassis across Chrysler, Desoto, Dodge, and Plymouth brands. Different wheelbase lengths....

Chrysler

• Windsor - 122"

• Saratoga, New Yorker, 300E - 126"

Desoto

• Firesweep - 122"

• Firedome, Fireflite, Adventurer - 126"

Dodge

• All models - 122"

Plymouth

• All models except wagons - 118"

• Wagons - 122"

So you'd have to shorten the AMT '57 Chrysler 300C chassis or lengthen the '58 Belvedere chassis. Pick your poison.

[Greg Pugh]

Of course! I JUST bought an original Johan '59 Dodge about two weeks ago! Just my luck!

[Casey]

Of course! I JUST bought an original Johan '59 Dodge about two weeks ago! Just my luck!

Well, IMC was planning to (and in all fairness, almost didi) release a few ex-JOHAN kits but it didn't work out, and it sounds like Moebius isn't quite out of the woods yet themselves with these two kits (and whichever additional JOHAN tooling they are pursuing), so you should be happy you have one in hand.

Nothing's ever easy when it comes to JOHAN.

[Junkman]

Wasn't it Otis Spaulding who owns/owned the remaining Jo-Han assets?

I wonder how there can be an issue with legal ownership.

Apart from that, the '59 Dodge, and all other forward look Mopars, while we are at it, would deserve new tooling.

It's soon 2015 and we are still tinkering around with tat, that has been obsolete for half a century,

while at the same time we moan about da yoofs not getting into the hobby.

Also, how about a 1960 onwards unibody? Wouldn't the 300F and G a logical progression for Moebius?

They would yield the first useable unibody chassis in model kit history. Can you imagine how many I'd buy to

pimp my old Jo-Hans?

Edited November 5, 2014 by Junkman

[Greg Pugh]

That's a good point. Thanks Casey!

[Art Anderson]

what I don't get is that I thought Johan molds were of some way different than every other molding system and therefore required a whole specialized (and completely outdated, the equivalent of the VHS) set of doodads to use. does this mean Moebius has that system? or maybe were able to make some sort of adaptation? or could it be that these particular molds were of a more modern design and therefore compatible with more modern systems?

glad to see em back, especially that turbine car. I think I'm going to put a hemi in it.

jb

I think that's what millwrights are for?

Art

[jbwelda]

>I think that's what millwrights are for?

do you mean to retool the kits from scratch? I would think if there were already molds available one would use them and if it required some adaptation, they would attempt to adapt. making new tools must be expensive, so it seems to me if they were to tool up new tools they would not do straight reissue sort of tools, they would improve the old ones either with more detail or corrections to errors in the original. kind of like the Sizzler/Slingster deal.

or do you mean the millwrights would do the adapting of the old molds to new technology?

jb

[Aaronw]

Wasn't it Otis Spaulding who owns/owned the remaining Jo-Han assets?

I wonder how there can be an issue with legal ownership.

Lindberg ended up with the AMT '34 Ford truck, supposedly over a debt AMT had with one of their contracted injection companies. It isn't out of the question that there is some free range Johan tooling out there with a vague paper trail.

With all the stories that have been tossed around regarding Johan then and now who knows.

I normally wouldn't be too disappointed in a curbside kit of something weird like the turbine car, but this kit loses a lot of its appeal without the turbine engine. That is kind of what makes it special.

Edited November 5, 2014 by Aaronw

[Motor City]

>I think that's what millwrights are for?

do you mean to retool the kits from scratch? I would think if there were already molds available one would use them and if it required some adaptation, they would attempt to adapt. making new tools must be expensive, so it seems to me if they were to tool up new tools they would not do straight reissue sort of tools, they would improve the old ones either with more detail or corrections to errors in the original. kind of like the Sizzler/Slingster deal.

or do you mean the millwrights would do the adapting of the old molds to new technology?

jb

Millwrights unpack, set up, and move heavy equipment (machine tools, computer hardware, etc.). A tooling department would be involved in modifying old tooling, such as adapting the Jo-Han tooling to more modern injection molding equipment.

[Swifster]

As mentioned, Dodge used the 'smaller' Chrysler wheelbase. They also used their own engines at the time. They did use the 361, but they also used their own 383. Chryslers used their own 383 for a couple years before the Dodge engine became the 'corporate' big block. Not much interchanged between the Dodges and Plymouths.

[Motor City]

Wasn't it Otis Spaulding who owns/owned the remaining Jo-Han assets?

I wonder how there can be an issue with legal ownership.

Apart from that, the '59 Dodge, and all other forward look Mopars, while we are at it, would deserve new tooling.

It's soon 2015 and we are still tinkering around with tat, that has been obsolete for half a century,

while at the same time we moan about da yoofs not getting into the hobby.

Also, how about a 1960 onwards unibody? Wouldn't the 300F and G a logical progression for Moebius?

They would yield the first useable unibody chassis in model kit history. Can you imagine how many I'd buy to

pimp my old Jo-Hans?

Okey Spalding was at the recent Macomb Community College Show in Warren, Michigan. He had a nice finished '59 Rambler wagon on display, a variety of parts, the '55 Pontiac Star Chief hardtop, and possibly other cars. He didn't have anything I was interested in. Some of you may want to contact him for '66 Cadillac taillights. I asked about updating his website and he mentioned that it had expired and that he was working on a new one. I didn't ask him any other questions as I didn't know where to begin!

[CRinWI]

For all those who really want the full Turbine kit, they really aren't all that rare. There's rarely a day when there isn't a dozen of them on ebay (13 today; I just counted) and I just walked past a couple of them last weekend at a swap meet. On a good day, you can pick one up for $30 or less. That's only a 50% premium over an average Hobby Lobby kit; and probably only about 20% over what Moebius is likely to charge. Why would you wait?

Edited December 10, 2014 by CRinWI

[gtx6970]

IMO, I cant see the Turbine kit being all that good of a seller myself. They are not teribilly hard to find in the secondary market and for about the same prices as most newer kits will be at .

The 1959 Dodge on the other hand will be a very welcome newcomer

[StevenGuthmiller]

I had heard a long time ago that the main problem with the Johan kits was that the molds would only work in the antiquated machines which Johan was using all the way back in the 50s. You can about imagine what kind of shape they're in. Evidently Mobius has overcome that hurdle some how. That being said, the Turbine car is still pretty easy to find, & I already have a Dodge! Steve

['70 Grande]

So... I understand that the good people at Moebius have probably been pretty busy recently, but has anyone heard anything new regarding the potential reissue of these two old Johan kits by Moebius?

[gtx6970]

Waiting patiently for the 1959 Dodge ...hopefully it has the interior.

But if it doesn't I will still buy a few

[bonehead23]

I have several old JoHan promos; '57 Olds, "58 and '59 Caddys,'56 Pontiac and some others. All have opened hoods and donor chassis. The '58 Caddy uses a '65 Pontiac chassis, the '59 uses an Impala chassis, the '56 Pontiac has a '56 Chevy chassis and interior...so unless you are superbly blessed with talent like Mark G. and insist on every single part, like the cigarette lighter,glove box and seat releases etc, be absolutely prototype and functional, you can "fudge" a bit and simply find a chassis that fits, and appropriate engine parts....now I don't mean to insult the builders who consider authenticity the thing.. .Around here, any of my friends who see those old promos with "extra detail"...they are amazed...so just do it. I would like a Dodge myself and there's dozens of Mopars out there whose chassis would work. It's only plastic, and man has the power to force it into submission.

Edited June 14, 2015 by bonehead23

[Sledsel]

I'll take both!!! The turbine can be a curbside, I want to build this!!!!

[horsepower]

I'll take both!!! The turbine can be a curbside, I want to build this!!!!

That's what I was thinking of, but you could say it was a homolagted body by Chrysler, and put the Hemi into it.

That version must be really trick, it has rear axle type hubs in the front, an experimental front wheel drive?

[Sledsel]

No, it is rear wheel drive. Just the wheels the builder used probably.

[jbwelda]

Are you serious, a Hemi into that turbine car?

Someone up there is getting ready to send a lightning bolt your way.

jb

[Mr mopar]

Very cool car!

[bonehead23]

No, it is rear wheel drive. Just the wheels the builder used probably.

This was amazing...thanks for posting the video...somehow i missed them all. fascinating story. All of them!

[horsepower]

Are you serious, a Hemi into that turbine car?

Someone up there is getting ready to send a lightning bolt your way.

jb

The model year it would have been, Chrysler was using the Hemi in NASCAR and you have to admit it's a lot sleeker than the body styles Petty was running then, just a"phantom" race car.

[horsepower]

No, it is rear wheel drive. Just the wheels the builder used probably.

Actually I knew that, I was just being a little facetious.