Mark
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Posts posted by Mark
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The Monogram 1/24 scale '56 Thunderbird engine could be reworked into a 1/25 scale Lincoln engine. The two are similar in block shape and port spacing, different in size. You would have to make exhaust manifolds, valve covers, and other parts, and come up with a transmission.
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It was '66, AMT started re-boxing Trophy Series kits then. Many of the re-boxings brought some fresh parts into the kits.
The Toronado was a big deal (as it should have been), people were looking for things from it to use on other cars. The Deora, for example, has a cut-down Toronado steering wheel. I have seen another street rod or two from that era with Toronado steering wheels.
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AMT Cobra is out right now. Older issues aren't hard to find, nor expensive. I picked up a Modern Classics early Seventies issue a couple of months ago for seven bucks, complete and unbuilt.
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AMT '40 Ford coupe and sedan delivery. They're meant to represent Olds Toronado wheel covers.
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$2.00 retail price kits were $1.44 at K-Mart every day. When they went to $2.25 in the early Seventies, K-Mart went to $1.66.
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The weird styling is there to make these things stick out. Same goes for the Amazon trucks, Cybertruck, Rivian, Hummer, and Priuses until recently. You could say "virtue signaling", or you could say that the mere sight of one is free advertising. It worked for the Gremlin and Pacer, and the Jeep before that, so why not?
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There are places for EVs to get into now, and become mainstream later. The Amazon delivery trucks, for example. At the end of the shift, there's a bunch of them in one place, where the charging facility is ready to get them charged up for the next day's work.
It would have made more sense to sell EVs to the public as a second car or a commuter. Short range, charge it at home overnight. Heck, I'd have bought a Miata type two-seat roadster as a second car for commuting and short weekend drives. But then again, the dealers would kill something like that with markups and other nonsense like they do with anything else that has more appeal than the average car.
Get people used to the idea of it as a second car, some will take the leap to the idea that they could get away with one as primary transportation. The charging stations would pop up to service the "second cars", and gradually there would be enough of them to take care of additional cars coming in each year.
Nope...someone had to put their thumb on the scale, forcing manufacturers to build and sell cars without enough places to charge them.
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No criticism here, the '36 is another Trophy Series kit from AMT when they were "on the way up". The separate roof deal didn't hurt the kit; Monogram's '36 is designed pretty much the same way.
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On 11/21/2025 at 3:40 PM, ChrisBcritter said:
Regarding the '72 Torino, what is the connection (if any) between this kit and the Jo-Han kit? Did AMT/MPC copy it or did they get the Jo-Han molds?
The old CAR MODEL magazine did mention a connection as I recall; that Jo-Han allowed MPC to use information they had already gathered, and to possibly use the wooden "masters" Jo-Han had created for the body and related parts. MPC's body was strictly NASCAR trim as they weren't concerned with doing a promo as Jo-Han had done.
There were some loose ties between these companies in that period. AMT was in the closing stages of selling Jo-Han kits in AMT packaging. The last of these were in '74, and included the pro stock Maverick, Dodge Challenger funny car, and the '72 Torino NASCAR kit. MPC cribbed the design of their 1/16 scale '63 Corvette kit off of Monogram's 1/8 scale '65 (again, supposedly with permission). A couple of MPC's 1/25 scale snap kits ('40 Ford coupe, '50 Mercury, Willys panel) are simplified versions of AMT kits. If you have the MPC snap Mercury, look at the chassis. You can see the seam in the engine's oil pan, and trunk mat detail on the top of the chassis even though the snap Merc doesn't have the opening trunk that AMT's kit does.
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The Dick Tracy '36 roof is indeed different from all other 5W coupe issues. The rear edge of the hood differs between them also (as well as both being different from 5W/roadster issues also). I don't think the hood top piece was ever retooled, just modified at the rear edge. I'm pretty sure the 5W roofs are both "off", they should extend further back towards the trunk opening than a 3W roof.
Built as the roadster, the kit was never 100% right. It should have shorter doors, closer to those of the 5W coupe.
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The five window coupe kits' hood top panel is different from all of the other kits. I believe Round 2 put it back to "normal" when they tooled their roof pieces and/or restored the old parts. I think the chopped 3W roof is retooled but the stock 3W roof and roadster cowl are the original parts.
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You've really got to watch for warpage with this kit, especially with that roof-to-lower body deal. Forget about putting the roof on in final assembly; cut the steering column off right where it passes through the floor so you can put the steering wheel in.
One of my brothers built a 1:1 '36 five-window coupe that was pieced together the same way! Lower body from one car, roof from another (lower body had sat upside down on dirt for many years). That was done before he bought the body. On top of that, he swapped out the cowl, replaced both doors, and found a deck lid (he didn't get one with the body). Five cars to get one body, and that's not counting the hood, fenders, or frame.
Someone mentioned the 5W coupe kit...don't hold your breath waiting for it unless Round 2 tools another body. They had to recut the door line on the existing body to restore the 3W coupe.
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Definitely a late Fifties gasser. With some of these kits, the instructions still show the interior as a location for the Moon gas tank. That was banned in 1960 after a couple of clutch explosions that turned really bad.
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It's gambling only for you, not for anyone in control of any of it. Years ago, one mobster said he'd bet on anything except the weather...because he couldn't get the "fix" in on it.
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On 11/19/2025 at 9:44 AM, bobss396 said:
I probably have every iteration from the OG 1961 release.
None are even close to a true gasser class form. BUT... bash it with the '37 Chevy and you will be 99% there.
I've got some resin chopped tops for them and some MCG PE grilles.
The drag version out of the box most certainly does build a late Fifties gasser. After about 1960, nobody really serious ran a Thirties Ford anyway; those guys were all scouring the countryside and junkyards looking for Willys coupes.
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Train show yesterday! Decent size train shows always have a decent tool vendor or two, and this one was no exception. Found some decent quality tweezers, some polishing sticks, and polishing cloths.
Also got two kits. I snoozed on the Sox & Martin 'Cuda when it was available, found this one. It's autographed by Ronnie Sox's wife, not sure if that does anything for value but I got the kit for $40, less than I have seen other ones go for since it was discontinued. Revell will probably issue the kit again in this version, but likely without the Sox & Martin tie-in. I'll leave it alone for now, maybe I'll find another one at some point. I can always keep the shrinkwrap intact on the lid if I open the kit.
On the way out, I tripped over a '61 Chevy pickup. From the looks of things, it was started but never finished (grille, taillights, hubcaps, and hood trim are all unused and intact). No junk glued into the interior or bed. No trailer or optional parts, no big deal. This one was priced at $50, but I got it for $40.
Also snagged a parts bag with a couple of interior buckets in it, for three bucks. One interior was a '65 Barracuda piece, which I just so happened to need one of.
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That particular one was in several 1960 AMT annual kits.
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The optional parts got switched around a bit in the first couple of annual kits. The "for 1968" annual kit is really a '67, with no 100% stock building version. Reissues from the last forty years or so all have undersize stock tires, and a mix of optional parts from the annual kits.
All of them have a shallow interior bucket. Place the interior and chassis into the body, then look through the hole in the chassis where the end of the transaxle goes, and you can see that. But overall, they are pretty decent kits.
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Paint can be removed from metal with common household paint remover. I would remove all separate parts first, so paint remover does not get trapped behind or between parts.
I wouldn't cut any panels open. Actually, I wouldn't remove the paint before at least checking into the value of the item. It is only original once, and the paint on that one looks good for its age. Checking into it, you might find that color combination to be rare or unusual which would warrant leaving it as-is.
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I'd bet that issue of the Revell kit is molded in white, and that information is included on one of the box side panels.
The original HOT ROD magazine branded issue of this kit is molded in yellow.
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There are two Revell kits, if you count the snapper.
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Tom Daniel is still very much alive. It was Harry Bradley who passed. Tom's son is doing some of the box art for the Atlantis reissues, perhaps TD is overseeing the business end of any agreements he presently has.
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3 hours ago, Rob Hall said:
I don't remember the Camaro in 1/25th (I remember a 1/16th Berlinetta), and the El Hefe custom truck is a new one to me (I wasn't paying close attention to Revell as a kid in the late 70s).
That truck was issued alongside the Captain Hook wrecker back in the day. I don't remember what it was called, but I do recall the box art showing it from the rear which ignores that unique grille. It looks interesting but I'll pass, having a Captain Hook in paint right now, and a Sneaky Pete (different kit altogether, but in the same "big rig" territory) in prep for paint.
Mojave Mule is neat, but either TD will get it shelved, or Revell will bring him back into the fold. Or, maybe that one was done under a different contract which would give Revell the right to issue it without his name on it.
The early Eighties Revell Camaros weren't as good as AMT's or MPC's. The engine is a lump with characteristics of Chevy and Pontiac V8s. The 1:1 Trans Am was supposed to get the 301 Turbo V8 (the '80-'81 Birds had it only to get it ready for the '82) but GM cheaped out and forced Pontiac to use the Chevy (or, "GM Corporate") engine. All three (AMT, MPC, Revell) kits had the Cease-Fire (er, "Cross-Fire") injected engine with a manual transmission. Again, GM cheaped out and didn't do emissions testing on that setup, requiring the automatic with that engine.
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I also collect model kit catalogs from the Sixties and Seventies. AMT, MPC, and some Revell. Looking through any of those, they are HEAVY on reissues. AMT, for example, reissued pretty much every available 1965 car kit tool in 1969. And many of the Trophy Series kits got reboxed every couple of years, sometimes with more than one version in any given catalog.
Seventies Revell catalogs all have their old opening-doors Tri-Five Chevy kits in different packaging every year or two. So constant reissues are nothing new.
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Was there ever a 50s Lincoln Y block ever made
in General Automotive Talk (Trucks and Cars)
Posted
It's a shame that the T-bucket kit engine is as far off as it is. Even the valve covers, nice looking as they are, aren't quite right (the ones in the Customizing Boat kit are closer, though a bit small as I remember).
As far off as that T-bucket engine is, Aurora cribbed it for their '22 T. They put Corvette valve covers on it, and called it a Chevy engine!