unclescott58 Posted January 15, 2018 Share Posted January 15, 2018 A couple of years ago I picked this up at our MCCM swap meet fairy cheap. For the most part it was unpainted and unbuilt. It had a broke/missing vent wing post. And was missing several minor parts, that with the help of people here at this site I was able to replace. Replacement decals came from Firebird Designs. So I was pretty confident I could build a fairly nice '69 SC/Rambler out of it. Boy was I wrong. First, in general, this kit is dog do do. Not the best quality fitting kit I've ever worked with. I've seen worst, so I could work around that. The only major fit problems I found was with the plastic axles that hold the wheels on. They were way too big. The front one went in the chassis and engine okay, but I had to ream on the holes in the wheels to get them to mount. Getting the rear axle into the cars regular axle/differential? Forget it. It was not going to happen. I found that one of extra plastic axles that comes with AMT's '29 Mod Rod A would work. Other than the wheel mounting holes were too big for that. Not a major problem there. I really don't care if my wheels and tires are stationary as they now are on this kit. There were other fix issues with other parts of kit. But, for the most part there were easily worked around. Then there were the decals. The only consolation there, is that other members in the MCCM told me the original decals that came with this kit were worst! Wow! The Firebird Designs decals weren't bad, except for the big red ones for the sides. They were a little too long. No big deal. But they're also slightly translucent. And they do not like Mico Sol setting solution. (I've seen this problem with other Firebird Designs decals I've used in the past.) In general, I am not pleased. I really wish Keith Marks made replacement decals for this kit. I've had good results with everything I've purchased from him. The one problem I expected, but didn't find. Was the mounting of the working trunk lid. In test fits, I wasn't sure that was going to work all that well. I figured at some point I'd have to glue the trunk lid shut. I'm pleased to say this did not happen. In the end the trunk sits in the kit just fine. And opens and closes as it should. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 15, 2018 Author Share Posted January 15, 2018 Wow! This is embarrassing. Pleanty of people are looking. But, no one is willing to comment? Come on guys. You won't hurt my feelings on this one. I do know how bad this one is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatz4u Posted January 15, 2018 Share Posted January 15, 2018 you're right it is a tough kit to build, be it can be rewarding too.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AC Norton Posted January 15, 2018 Share Posted January 15, 2018 1 hour ago, unclescott58 said: Wow! This is embarrassing. Pleanty of people are looking. But, no one is willing to comment? Come on guys. You won't hurt my feelings on this one. I do know how bad this one is. Scott, I personally have built this exact kit several times thru probably the 70s to late 90s era, and found that with a bit of correction and work, a very satisfying model ends up on your shelf. Sadly, all of mine have been sold off to collectors thru the years and I can't offer up any photos, but may be able to on the last one from around 1998 or so.....painting the red side panels is the way to go, as the kit supplied decals are tough to work with. Wish I could throw in some more on this note, but if your not happy, my suggestion is to try another one when it suits you, and maybe check info on other builds of this, as I have seen nice builds posted on our forum, as I recall. I know this really does not help today, but like the ol' saying.....try, try again.......best, the Ace... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobraman Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 It looks good. I built one not too long ago and I didn't find it to be very easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classicgas Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 (edited) Have this in the works myself. You could have done worse. Edited January 16, 2018 by Classicgas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vamach1 Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 That side decal is far too big - just paint it. I have found if a simple part does fit just find a replacement. No one is going to care if you use 100% kit parts. From what I can see there is a lot of chrome trim that needs to be painted or covered with bare foil. There are very few kits I would say are perfect - they all have some issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DumpyDan Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Looks great, I picked one of these up at NNL East 2 years ago for 20 buck unbuilt........still unbuilt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charger74 Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Very nice !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Looks like you were able to Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisBcritter Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 The kit has a lot of little issues, but it's a car I've loved ever since I checked one out in the showroom of Ferris Rambler in Glenview. Someday I'll tackle it again; my first got El Camino-ized and then parted out (kept the rear axle and seats). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Hamilton Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 6 hours ago, unclescott58 said: Wow! This is embarrassing. Pleanty of people are looking. But, no one is willing to comment? Come on guys. You won't hurt my feelings on this one. I do know how bad this one is. I plan to build a couple of those, and you are right about that kit. It needs a lot of work to get it to look right. I would have removed the door handles and trimmed the decals to make them fit better without resorting to the use of Solva Set. Did you paint the car? An unpainted model will affect the way decals lay on the car in that some residual mould release will stay on the car. There was a Rambler dealership 2 blocks from my elementary school, and they had a few S/C Ramblers from time to time, and I remember them quite well. I want to do both the "A" and "B" schemes, but the decal makers only did the "A" scheme. I have a Fred Cady sheet, and a JoHan sheet for the decals. It will be several years before I do it, as I have a couple of '66 Americans with the 6 Cylinders I want to do first as twins in the same color combination, (Yellow with a Black Interior) one being a Hardtop, and the other being a convertible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PARTSMARTY Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Looks cool !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 16, 2018 Author Share Posted January 16, 2018 6 hours ago, Ron Hamilton said: I plan to build a couple of those, and you are right about that kit. It needs a lot of work to get it to look right. I would have removed the door handles and trimmed the decals to make them fit better without resorting to the use of Solva Set. Did you paint the car? An unpainted model will affect the way decals lay on the car in that some residual mould release will stay on the car. There was a Rambler dealership 2 blocks from my elementary school, and they had a few S/C Ramblers from time to time, and I remember them quite well. I want to do both the "A" and "B" schemes, but the decal makers only did the "A" scheme. I have a Fred Cady sheet, and a JoHan sheet for the decals. It will be several years before I do it, as I have a couple of '66 Americans with the 6 Cylinders I want to do first as twins in the same color combination, (Yellow with a Black Interior) one being a Hardtop, and the other being a convertible. Did I paint the car? Of course I did. Tamiya TS26 Pure White. Other than some pre decorated and snap kits, I always paint my models. Actually I would have been pretty happy with this kit if it wasn't for the decals. If I ever find alternate decals, I will strip the Firebird Designs decals and replace them. If it wasn't for the red side decals I would have been much happier with this kit. The kit was acceptable, despite the other problems with the kit. I was just disappointed after all work I put into the kit, and the decals kind of ruined the end results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slotto Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 I think you did a great job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slusher Posted January 16, 2018 Share Posted January 16, 2018 Very nice! A kit I have always wanted to build... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 16, 2018 Author Share Posted January 16, 2018 By the way, thanks for all the comments. You guys are okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim N Posted January 17, 2018 Share Posted January 17, 2018 There are models that just kick our butts sometimes. Your model looks quite good in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted January 17, 2018 Share Posted January 17, 2018 Hey! It's a 50 year old Johan kit. The later kits included the plastic axles, I guess Johan cut corners on the metal ones. They also had plastic push pins in place of the chassis screws! The kit never was a 1969 Scrambler. The body is a 1966 Rambler American that was never updated. It has trim differences and never had the side lights. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monty Posted January 17, 2018 Share Posted January 17, 2018 You're correct in saying that this kit can offer a challenge or two in the quest to attain an accurate replica of an SC/Rambler, but occasionally modelers have to adopt the Marine attitude of Adapt, Improvise and Overcome. About a year or two ago, board member Brian Fowler (Monoped) built one of the best SC/Ramblers I've ever seen. I keep hoping he'll see this thread and post his build just to show what can be done with that kit. Unfortunately, due to the Photobucket fiasco, the pictures no longer show up here, but you can tell he did his due diligence as far as research was concerned. Google images can be invaluable for details like engine, headrest and wheel colors. Nailing things like these will go a long way toward making any model look more realistic, which to me is the goal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Hamilton Posted January 17, 2018 Share Posted January 17, 2018 On 1/16/2018 at 7:05 AM, unclescott58 said: Did I paint the car? Of course I did. Tamiya TS26 Pure White. Other than some pre decorated and snap kits, I always paint my models. Actually I would have been pretty happy with this kit if it wasn't for the decals. If I ever find alternate decals, I will strip the Firebird Designs decals and replace them. If it wasn't for the red side decals I would have been much happier with this kit. The kit was acceptable, despite the other problems with the kit. I was just disappointed after all work I put into the kit, and the decals kind of ruined the end results. The only reason I asked about paint is that 90% of these kits I have seen were moulded In white, and in a lot of cases decals will pull up from the edges. I am sorry to hear that the Firebird decals did not work for you. I do not think that it was your fault, as the ones I used on my '60 Country Squire pulled away at the edges, but I was able to fix them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Hamilton Posted January 17, 2018 Share Posted January 17, 2018 2 minutes ago, Monty said: You're correct in saying that this kit can offer a challenge or two in the quest to attain an accurate replica of an SC/Rambler, but occasionally modelers have to adopt the Marine attitude of Adapt, Improvise and Overcome. About a year or two ago, board member Brian Fowler (Monoped) built one of the best SC/Ramblers I've ever seen. I keep hoping he'll see this thread and post his build just to show what can be done with that kit. Unfortunately, due to the Photobucket fiasco, the pictures no longer show up here, but you can tell he did his due diligence as far as research was concerned. Google images can be invaluable for details like engine, headrest and wheel colors. Nailing things like these will go a long way toward making any model look more realistic, which to me is the goal. I saw Brain's build, and I concur with Monty's statement about it. One of my S/C Ramblers came with a set of Photoetch emblems and side marker lights. I happen to like the '64 thru '69 Rambler American, as I have several of the kits, and only built one, and have 3 under construction. The S/C Rambler kit is one of those kits that will take a lot of work to get absolutely right , as the raw material is not a true '69 as Tom stated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Most Posted January 18, 2018 Share Posted January 18, 2018 Yeah- this kit is garbage. But you wrung a pretty nice model out of it. I had one I had grand plans for- Fred Cady decals, some nice aftermarket red line tires, the works. I ended up starting to make it into a drag car because I realized I'd never be happy with the results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 18, 2018 Author Share Posted January 18, 2018 (edited) 18 hours ago, Chuck Most said: Yeah- this kit is garbage. But you wrung a pretty nice model out of it. I had one I had grand plans for- Fred Cady decals, some nice aftermarket red line tires, the works. I ended up starting to make it into a drag car because I realized I'd never be happy with the results. Fred Cady made decals for this kit? Were they any good? And can one still get them? Edited January 18, 2018 by unclescott58 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 18, 2018 Share Posted January 18, 2018 10 hours ago, unclescott58 said: Fred Candy made decals for this kit? Were they any good? And can one still get them? Fred Cady's been OOB for a while, so the only place to get them is by trading or eBay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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