What and when was your very first model?

[Uncle Mike]

I'm wondering if anyone else has moss growing on them...Man, I've been doing this a long time!

First modified model: Highway Pioneers (Revell 1/32) Center-Door Model T Sedan. I had built this sedan box-stock, 1953. I was 11, and my grandma bought me the kit. The finished car sat on a shelf in the dining room...about 4 months...

A 1954 issue of Hot Rod Magazine featured Jack Chrisman's '29 Model A Sedan, flathead powered...

I went 'ape', as we said in those days. The local Hobby Shop had the new 69-cent Hot Rod kits, Revell's '32 Roadster, 1/32 scale...I grabbed one, biked-it home, and started in with the hot needle over the gas stove burner...Chopped the 'T' top, so it looked like the chopped '29. Next thing was the 'T' hood, right off at the firewall. The front and rear axles were swapped for the Big-and-littles from the hot rod kit, and everything hand painted. The '32 Flathead V8 went in the engine compartment, and there was much filing of the rough edges the hot needle left. Mom had a metal fingernail file I used for the windshield and 'B' and 'C' pillars, nice chop job!

My buddies saw it and there were 4 of us furiously building model cars (all the Revell line, 1/32 scale!)

There were engines in all the cars in the line, '56 Chrysler New Yorker Hemi; Cad ElDorado; '56 Mercury Monterey; Oh, the engines! And the cars!

That was my first, that 'T' conversion into an 'A'! I still remember way later, when AMT came out with a believable 1/25 scale '32 Roadster...then the '39 Ford sedan, then the '40 Coupe. They were sooo big! Our skills improved overnight, or so it seemed.

Think back. What was your First?

[george 53]

Wow Mike, I still remember my 1st one pretty well.My Big Brudder got me Revells 56 Chrysler New Yorker for my 6th birthday,April 1st 1959.I played hell with the multi-piece body,and it was a glue-bomb, but he let me put it together all by myself, and I thought it came out swell! Afew years ago Revell re-released it as part of their SSP line-up, so I bought another one to see if I could do it any better,But no,it came out kinda the same.Not such a glue bomb this time(I now use liquid glue) but them ol multi -piece bodys still give me a hard time!!!Thanks fer postin this thread,I'm sure It'll bring alot of pleasent memorys for everyone!!!

[John Pol]

My very first one was the James bond car with injection seat the second was the 1/8th scale roadster.

John Pol

[Mike]

My first build was the Strohmobile when I was 6. I didn't build it, but my uncle Jim let me help him with it. In fact, my grandma had it (along with my old builds) packed up in her house and I got it back recently -

[CAL]

Early 70s (71-72) Porsche 917 in Gulf colors.

[Guest zebm1]

My 1st and 2nd models were AMTs Trophy Series 32 Ford Model B Roadster w/ tha Chrysler hemi and tha 32 Ford Coupe multi-carbs. I was in Wiesbaden, West Germany 1961. Tha roadster was brushed blue and tha coupe was red. We didn't get much choice over there, I'd been learning how to carve and tool leather at tha Rhein-Main AFB Hobby shed. Oh and we were racing go-karts too....I was all of 12 years old. Now I had been building model airplanes for a coupla years, I think my 1st was a 1/48th Stuka.

This is a 1/72nd scale model I built (of my Dad's last ride when we were in Germany) in 1988 of a RB57D "spyplane". IIRC it's an Italieri with Balsa wings and nascels (my work). Stretched tha wingspan out to 91 ft (in scale)...airbrushed and made tha decals by cobbleing bits and pieces....it has my Dad's planes tail number..... one of 10 airframes modified by Martin Aircraft.

My Dad passed on in 1999, but guess what? His plane is still flying as a "Weather Recon Bird" for NASA over at Cape Canaveral, Flawduh.....

Now an F Model......

and this has been verified, this is his areoplane, first put together in 1955. Flies to 78,000 feet ceiling, perhaps more now, wings are longer and it has larger airfans......

Gotta tell yall tho, when we moved to Tampatown in 1962 and I found out about tha LHS's...Man I was in HOG HEAVEN ....model cars galore, spray paint, AMT body putty......Auto World.... Even talked my Dad into buying me an AMT Model Racing Turnpike....1/25th scale.....what a monster-sized race track..... 63 T-Bird, 63 pontiac......

Edited June 8, 2008 by zebm1

[Jello]

We never forget out first one huh? The first kit I ever had was a MPC Military Jeep with a trailer around 1966 or so...later this kit became the AMT Hogan's Hero kit missing lots of parts from the original kit. Unless there was more than 1 Jeep kit.

Even remember my 2nd kit cause it was a whopper for a 6-7 year old kid, AMT Pete long nose semi truck..so many darn pieces and I just put it together without even painting it! I doubt it looked very good at the time! I still remember the box art showing a brown color truck. My dad got it at the Army PX store.

Next kit was the Revell '54 Chevy panel, one of the many I put together cause I really enjoyed that kit very much and still do.

~ Jeff

[Kenny]

My first was the AMT T194 1969 Torino Modified Stocker. Around 1973, my dad helped me build the kit. I still have the instruction sheet and some parts of it in my parts box.

[Modellpularn]

I started out building ships when I was about 6 years old. One of the first was an aircraft carrier. I didn't look very much at the instructions, just kind of slapped everything together.... I had the stuff laid out on a newspaper. When it came to putting the tiny planes on the carrier deck, I just squeezed a pool of glue onto the newspaper, and dipped the planes into it, and put them on the deck..... Too bad we didn't keep it

Might have been some more ships, but the next big one I recall was the Revell F-102A Delta Dagger. That first issue had a clever lever mechanism inside the fuselage. When you lifted the canopy, the landing gear came out! But I didn't understand how to make it work, or maybe I wasn't aware that it was supposed to work.... So I went and bought a second kit, think the first was a gift. I think I wanted to show or prove I could build it and make it work.... Didn't get that one right either, so a third kit was bought.... and finally got it working!!! Now I would really like to get my hands on that old kit. But they're not easy to find....

When I started to build cars, one of the first was Aurora's XKE Jaguar coupe. Think it turned out like a bit of glue blob. Discovered AMT's hot rods, but was puzzled by the 3in1 options.... like how are you supposed to get all that stuff onto the engine...??? But my skills improved, and got the Uncertain T, and built it very clean. At least I thought so. Hand brushed Humbrol red metallic on the body. Everything was painted before assembly. It looked a lot better than the one built and displayed at my LHS. It had been built, and then painted!!! Bugged me like crazy.... Some years later I got to build models for them, that were displayed. Oh boy was I proud, and got my revenge! Maybe that's the reason I started building and competing in contests, which I won many times.... I was the model building king at the time: mid 70's.

This '56 Nomad was built in 1975, and was my "killer entry" at the Hot Rod Show model contest that year. It won Best in Show. Painted with green Murano pearl over hot rod primer. Superdetailed engine and chassis, svivel seats.....

The grille has melted some. A friend helped me take pics some years later, and used 500 watts photo lamps, and 1000 watts did some damage......

Edited June 8, 2008 by Modellpularn

[abedooley]

My first kit was done at like age 9. I can't quite remember the maker, but it was a '79 Jeep CJ5 OR CJ7 or the Wrangler. I wanted it because it was the same Jeep my Dad had at the time. I painted it cherry red. I even put a silver base down before the cherry and painted the door handles silver with a toothpick. My grandpa was REALLY into model airplanes and boats so it didnt take long for me to pick up on the bug. I still think it looked good, but if I was to see it now I bet I'd say "who the he!! made that?". My second was the '90s Batmobile. My uncle bought it for me and I remember him and my dad getting into it because he tried to take over MY model. I still want to do my first kit again though because god only knows what happened to it.

ABE DOOLEY

[CB]

Wow.........that was a long time ago. Not exactly sure of the sequence, but I was probably around 11 or 12 years old, and was at a buddies house and he gave me a big brown grocery bag full of car model parts. I think that when my parents saw that I was into it--instead of getting me a model car kit, they gave me the Visible V8! and I was totally stoked--for awhile, but then I started cryin' to them that I wanted a new model (hmmmm....the pattern begins ) Mom & Dad told me "no new model until you finish your V8!" So I hurried up and threw it together. Shame, coz it had an electric motor in it that worked the pistons and maybe lit up the spark plugs(?) I just glued everthing to everthing to get 'er done. I think then I just stopped at the general store in town on my paper route and bought the first model car I saw? or the only one they had? Probably the beginning of my insanity---1962 Johan Rambler American. I do remember leaving the body unpainted, but put green skirts on it. I do remember it rolled really good! Not sure how things got me straightened out? but my next model was a sweet light blue 40 Ford turtleback. Loved that blue bomb, and it rolled good too! Me & my brothers had demo derbies with 'em, rolling them at each other, smashing 'em both to pieces. Ah..........great memories

[Semi Trailer Mechanic]

What's goin' on...

From what I recall mine was the AMT 1/25 Kenworth K123 COE "Interstate" I must have been 7 or 8. It was brush painted red and I got impatient w/ it because there were so many parts. Shortly after that my folks started getting me the Monogram Snap-Tite 1/32 truck and the funny car kits(those were a blast). Dad started building WWII air craft and I started to do the same. At about the age of 11 I had too much energy to be couped up building models so I was always on the ole B.M.X.'s just beating the hell out of those bikes HA HAAA cracking forks always fixin' flats from thorns LOL. At 14 we'd moved from Lima,Ohio to Delaware,Ohio. I was the FNG and didn't know the area or anyone. There was a Hart's dept. store walking distance from home so I'd got back into building again doing muscle cars for a short time. Then my social life took off then I was NEVER around. A few years later my senior year in high school and the first few months of college I'd started getting back into building truck models. I wanted to do more but time grew scarce. Taking two sessions a day at Northwestern Diesel Tech in Lima,Oh. then going to Stahler Trucking in Wapakanetta,Oh. working in their shop (interning for experience and reference). After graduating I hit the ground running working two jobs off and on for nearly 10 years. During that time period I wanted nothing more than to just find the AMT R-model Mack and Fruehauf dump trailer. NO LUCK WHAT-SO-EVER for several years trying to find those. Back in Feb. 2001 I was injured on the job that put me out of commission for nearly a year. (an 11R24.5 drive tire KABOOOOOM) Imagine working between 17 and 20 hour days Monday thru Friday and then instanly doing nothing! The internet was my only source of entertainment next to T.V. thru the day. So this one day I accidently stumbled on to the little website you guys/gals might have heard of it before EBAY. Shortly later I found Tim Ahlborn's truck model web site. That's were I found the old truck/trailer kits and have been building since!

[samdiego]

One of the Palmer kits with the separate body sides. I think it was a Ford. Just before my 5th birthday, my dad stashed it on top of the fridge, presumably to test my climbing skills. My dad built models, the neighbors built models, it was 1965 and the hobby was booming. From my point of view, it was everywhere. The comic book and Boy's Life ads, the coverage in the 1:1 car mags and the amount of space they commanded in nearly every department store or five and dime or whatever they were called. It was great and I was able to barter about two kits a month from the parents. An average pace that I maintain to this day. An idyllic childhood in the countrysides of central Ohio that in retrospect seems hugely centered around the car.

I still have thousands of HotWheels, another addiction that I haven't given up.

Edited June 8, 2008 by samdiego

[lordairgtar]

I was in second or third grade. My gramps got me a 62 Mercury kit that I built and went into the basement and found a can of red enamel Rust-O-Leum paint and brush painted it. My mom says I slept with that car for months until it broke from too much play.

http://www.conceptcarz.com/view/photo/9869...erey_Photo.aspx

This pic is a real one, not the model :lol: really would like another one to do right.

Edited June 8, 2008 by lordairgtar

[Andy Wyatt]

My very first model was an LTD...not sure what year, I vaguely remember it coming in a sort of plain white box. I was around six or seven so that would be around '69 or '70. Didn't build many cars as a kid...I rememebr buiulding the Dick Trickle Mustang stocker and a large scale Dragon trike and a few other cars...mostly planes and armor. Also had the visible V-8 that my dad and I did together. Also built a lot of the Aurora dinosaurs and monsters and some bird kits.

[HotRodaSaurus]

Well I reckon my first kit built was the Airfix B 17 Flying Fortress. I got my dad to buy it because of the great box art. This was around 1967, the box was an action packed adventure just on the lid.

Almost everything operated on this model but I was a bit disapointed the bomb bay did not opperate.

After quite a few Airfix mainly military, and other types of kit I discovered Monogram.

Rommels Rod was my first hotrod type kit, a bit of a transition between military and cars. I had built cars before but only Airfix European saloons and a couple of Pyro kits, AMT Revell, Aurora were all a bit hard to find and Airfix did a few MPC kits. I do remember Monogram's 1/8 Jaguar and also the big Tamiya Lola T70 , but these were beyond pocket money prices.

After I built Rommel's Rod it was hot rods all the way, Li'l Coffin, Paddy Wagon and others. The only military kit I built after that was a Tamiya 1/35 Kubelwagen. Painted metalic pink(silver, white and red paint mix!!!) with a plastic lory engine from a 1/43 die cast stuck in the front weired or warped! my mind that is.

Still got the AMT roadster built in the 1970s to what is now called Rat Rod style. It was meant to represent Joe Nitti's car from a picture in Hot Rod but I added flames and lakes pipes from the Coffin.

Thanks, great memories, John

[Harry P.]

It's amazing to me how many of you guys can remember the very first model you built. That's like asking me what day of the week it was that I ate my very first hot dog!!!

Time after time I'll see posts concerning a particular kit and suddenly I'll remember building that long-forgotten kit many years ago. I've probably forgotten more models that I've built over the years than many of you have in your whole collection!

As to what my first one was...there's no way I could ever remember that.

[conor1148]

do you mean first model of any kind or the first one we had to paint?

the first kit i can remember getting was a tank, i think it was an American WWII tank.

the first kit i ever had to paint was a blue angels f-14 hornet, it came out so horribly (i was very young) that i only keep it as a reminder to pay attention to what im doing.

i mostly made tanks, airplanes, and military pieces like that until a few months back when i got a viper gts (i think) and never finished it because many pieces were damaged so then i got a 70s boss mustang and im taking my time in building it

[evilone]

mine was a 70 daytona charger built 11yrs ago

paint drips,brush strokes,glue bubbles and all it was sweet when i was 8yrs old

sadly it was a victim of a 3.5 earth quake it never had a chance 15 ft in the air on a ledge and it fell SPLAT

[We Haul]

My first was a 1/25 AMT '33 Willys delivery van Gasser. It was painted metallic blue with a tan interior. I built it when I was about six.

Edited June 10, 2008 by We Haul

[7000in5th]

This has been posted so many times I am sure almost everyone has seen it, but I am proud that I still have it so here it goes again. It is an Ace 1949 Ford balsa block kit built as a custom. It required a lot of sanding and sanding sealer. I did it in about 49 or 50 when I was 10 or 11:

[samdiego]

Are you kidding me?! I've run across a few references to the wooden kits over the years, but that is the first one I've seen. Especially in the raw form. My Dad used to say that they were "a block of wood with a picture of a car". I thought he was kidding or at least exaggerating. I musta heard that a hundered times. I'm kinda glad I missed that point in the hobby's history. Thanks for bringing that out again. Is the unbuilt one something that you've had forever or a more recent find? I can't say that I could have done as well at that age. Well styled.

Edited June 10, 2008 by samdiego

[Seattle Mike]

My first kit was one of Hawk's 1/32 Mercedes 190 SL kits. I was 5 years old, and had to have my mom read the instructions. I seem to recall that I had a miserable time with the multi piece bodies. As if that wasn't tough enough, the second model was one of the Monogram 2 1/2 Ton army trucks. I don't remember how that one turned out. Sadly, by the time I was able to read the instruction sheets by my self the model companies went to the numbered sheets and got rid of the words! To think, that was only 48 years ago - seems like only yesterday!

[Peter Lombardo]

I remember it like it was yesterday….My first model car build was in 1959, I was 10 years old. It was an AMT 1958 Mercury Convertible. I “Brush†painted it, in two tones, black and yellow. The car was lowered in the rear, ( do any of you remember the wedge shaped 3 hole blocks for changing the ride height, both front and rear?) had fender skirts and twin antennas on the rear fenders. It also had the obligatory full moon hub caps.

This car, and all of my early builds along with my extensive collection of baseball cards from the 50’s and 60’s, got cleaned out by my mother when I went off to the Navy for 4 years. Who knew that they would be worth something today?….certainly not my mother. Now my wife can’t understand why I want to hang on to everything I get my hands on….once bitten, twice shy.

[Paul Payne]

AMT's 3 in 1 boat kit, back in 1959 when I was 6. got the reissue, some day I will build it with cigar wrapper planking over the hull, maybe an Offenhauser engine built to look like a Miller marine unit.