'80s Monogram kits are pretty good kits

[Classicgas]

37 minutes ago, Dave Van said:

I'd take a few more Satellites......... 

If that's a model, wow!

[1972coronet]

Differences between the 1971 "Satellite" (really , a Road Runner sans the iconic bird , and with the upgraded interior) and the 1971 GTX :

- 'Air Grabber' bonnet 

- Six Barrel induction / air cleaner / Air Grabber bracing 

- GTX (and Satellite Sebring) rocker panel embellishment

- "Tuff-Grip" steering wheel 

- "GTX" emblems 

- GTX decals 

- Engine compartment accessories 

If the Fast & Furious version has the Road Runner ("Satellite") bonnet , I must wonder if the steering wheel from the "Satellite" will return as well . 

There's some rumblings about the inclusion of the 1972 Road Runner rear bumper / tail lamps  in the F&F release...

...now THAT would be great !  Hopefully a 1972 grille will be part of the package .

Edited March 4, 2020 by 1972coronet

[Dave Van]

16 minutes ago, Classicgas said:

If that's a model, wow!

Thanks Sir!!! That was my first model painted with Dupli-color automotive lacquer. 

[1972coronet]

1971 Plymouth Satellite interior trim : https://www.hamtramck-historical.com/dealerships/1971ColorAndTrimPlymouth-04.shtml

[larman]

While not stock, Monogram did their pro stock and then current funny car and sprint car series in the 80's as well. These were great models with equally nice box art. I have always liked Monogram models, especially from this era. I was a kid, just starting to build. I remember buying all the muscle  car kits when they were new. 

[Chuck Kourouklis]

6 hours ago, CapSat 6 said:

Who can forget the '70 Buick GSX? This was probably the last Monogram muscle car released as a 1/24 scale tool; by the time it was released, Revell and Monogram had merged...

Who can forget it indeed!  Of Monogram's long, storied line of 1/24 muscle covered in this thread, that Buick was arguably the finest and most accurate overall.  Stands tall in the entire field of bi-scale plastic GM A-body kits to this very day.

[Can-Con]

2 hours ago, Erik Smith said:

Mopar people...

I don’t think the 71 Satellite has ever been reissued...? What’s the difference between the satellite and the GTX? I would like to see the satellite again...

Actually, that IS the reissue box  from the only reissue in the mid '90s.  Identical to the original box except for that "Special Limited Edition" sticker.

[Can-Con]

The later kits were a lot better than the earlier ones from the early '80s. 

I never could "not see" the proportion issues with the '70 Chevelle and there's something just "off" about the '70 GTX.

Edited March 5, 2020 by Can-Con

[Faust]

I've got a '92 Mustang GT Convertible, too. I know that's not an '80s kit, but it looks really good. The definitely seemed to get better as they went. Seems to me their 4th Gen T/A and Formula were excellent as well. 

[Snake45]

1 hour ago, Can-Con said:

I never could "not see" the proportion issues with the '70 Chevelle and there's something just "off" about the '70 GTX.

The biggest problem with the Chevelle is the fender bulges. That, and the grille is wrong. 

What's wrong with the '70 GTX is the body is just too deep. It looks like it's been reverse-sectioned, with an inch or two added. I have a 1/25 diecast '70 GTX that was obviously reverse-engineered from the Monogram 1/24 kit. Its body is also too deep, but at least it's 1/25 and looks better on the shelf with my other 1/25 musclecars than the Monogram, which just looks huge. 

[Rbray47]

Being born in 79, my first building experiences were with most of the kits mentioned in this thread. 

I didnt mind back then about the molding colors, or the slightly larger 1/24 scaling. Actually I dont mind it now, in fact I prefer colored plastic. My eyes seem to pick up the details a little better (and feel less strained) when working with darker colors. I hate Revell's ultra bright white. 

I still buy original issues from ebay when I find them at a reasonable price.

[jeff9150]

To add to the list, I believe the 1/24 Monogram 69 Ford Torino Talladega may actually have come out after the 70 Buick GSX. Might this have been the last Monogram new-tool 1/24 muscle car kit? It was a nice one, and has been reissued a few times (in Revell boxes). In response to an earlier post, if I recall correctly, the Revell 1990 Mercury Cougar was 1/25 scale and molded in black.

[jeff9150]

I hope this isn't too far off of the original poster's intended topic, but it seems like a good discussion of 80's Monogram 1/24 kits in general. As such, here is the aforementioned 1969 Talladega. Sadly, although I thoroughly enjoyed Monogram's kits of this era (and still do), this was not their finest hour box art wise!

[CapSat 6]

14 hours ago, Can-Con said:

The later kits were a lot better than the earlier ones from the early '80s. 

I never could "not see" the proportion issues with the '70 Chevelle and there's something just "off" about the '70 GTX.

True- most of the Monogram  early '80's muscle car kits had slight-to-moderate body proportion issues and hiccups with the details. Still, they were great attempts, considering the state of the hobby back then. They were fairly easy to build, had some nice details, and mostly looked right when built.  

The Challenger T/A's body is definitely wonky in several areas. The Hemi Cuda, Chevelle & GTX (for which the body issues are magnified in the Superbird re-do) also. I'd say the Hemi Cuda is about the worst of them, body-wise (I had a '74 'Cuda for years and know the body lines very well) The roof is too flat and the sides/tail panel are too flat & narrow, for starters. The Satellite/ '71 GTX is good-to-great, but not perfect (I owned two of these cars). The '71 Plymouth front bumper & grille are too flat, but I think this is a tricky area on that car to capture.

The Super Bee, '69 GTO and Boss 429 Mustang look pretty good to my eyes, but I could be wrong about them.

The later Buick GSX and Talledega look very good also, and by that time, the overall detail was amped up a bit in those kits, so they are the two best in my opinion.

[CapSat 6]

16 hours ago, 1972coronet said:

Differences between the 1971 "Satellite" (really , a Road Runner sans the iconic bird , and with the upgraded interior) and the 1971 GTX :

- 'Air Grabber' bonnet 

- Six Barrel induction / air cleaner / Air Grabber bracing 

- GTX (and Satellite Sebring) rocker panel embellishment

- "Tuff-Grip" steering wheel 

- "GTX" emblems 

- GTX decals 

- Engine compartment accessories 

If the Fast & Furious version has the Road Runner ("Satellite") bonnet , I must wonder if the steering wheel from the "Satellite" will return as well . 

There's some rumblings about the inclusion of the 1972 Road Runner rear bumper / tail lamps  in the F&F release...

...now THAT would be great !  Hopefully a 1972 grille will be part of the package .

Now that we're getting Dom's GTX, it's got me wondering what we'll get in the box.

I think the most likely scenario is: just a repop of the GTX kit, with the old Satellite hood, 4bbl intake, carb and air cleaner (the intake and cleaner were not stock, but would fit the aftermarket vibe of the movie car somewhat) and new custom wheels and tires. Maybe a big old "noss" bottle (haha!) for the console, and a few other new bits.

I wonder what interior bits we'll get? They might tool up a few aftermarket pieces for the interior, then again, maybe they won't. I think Dom's GTX had an aftermarket wheel, so the non-Tuff wheel from the Satellite would not be correct anyway (but it might be in the same tool as that hood, so...we might get it after all). 

The 2nd F&F '70 Charger kit (remember, Revell did 2 of them) seemed to ignore some features of the movie car for simplicity's sake. The first Revell '70 Charger kit (the diecast) seemed to have a few more details accurate to the movie car that the 2nd version did not have (as the 2nd version shared tooling with the stock '70 Charger).   

A '72 Rear bumper would be nice, and that's what would match the Movie Mutt  , but that's a maybe in my mind.

If we get the '72 Rear bumper, a '72 Road Runner front bumper & grille would be nice, but it would not match the Movie Mutt, as that car used a '71/ base '72 grille (which were the same).

If Revell did give us a '72 Rear Bumper, they would be part of the way towards a future '72 Road Runner. They could offer it as a 440 6BBL (of which a few were actually made early in '72), which would be a very cool rare musclecar near-ringer. That would seems to fit their pre-German M.O. of adding new parts to older releases to liven them up (as in: Ford Thunderbolt, 429-to-302-to Mach 1 '70 Mustang, '70 GTX to Road Runner, etc.).

   

[Luc Janssens]

I grew up building Monogram models much more than Amt and Mpc, mostly due to the fact that they built up well and they always had clear headlamps, I never could understand the toy like cheapo molded-in chrome units in the Amt/Mpc kits, but at that age I didn't know about the Promo heritage most of these releases carried.

 

 

When John Greczula at Round2, had a new grille for the Amt '61 Ranchero tooled with clear headlamps, I thought they were gonna update more kits the same way, but alas the money guy decided otherwise

 

Edited March 5, 2020 by Luc Janssens

[Mike999]

13 hours ago, jeff9150 said:

In response to an earlier post, if I recall correctly, the Revell 1990 Mercury Cougar was 1/25 scale and molded in black.

Revell also did a '92 Cougar with a half-padded roof, molded in white.  That was a nice example of a "mainstreamer" car right out of the box.  Just the kind of "sporty" car Grandpa might have bought when he retired and moved to Florida.  Because he thought it would impress the gold-diggers in the karaoke bars. ?  The '92 was also released as a Low-Rider, with gold mini-wheels.  

One weak point in that Revell '69 Talledega kit:  the thin "A" pillars.  If you're buying one at a swap meet, open it up and make sure they're not broken. Especially if it's the "Highway Scenes" version.  That came with a cardboard gas station and the box was really stuffed.  One nice thing about the "Highway Scenes" kit was the decal sheet with vintage gas/oil signs, Desert water bags and a bunch of tourist stickers.  The kind that are really useful in the windows of a station wagon or woody.

[Snake45]

29 minutes ago, Mike999 said:

One weak point in that Revell '69 Talledega kit:  the thin "A" pillars.  If you're buying one at a swap meet, open it up and make sure they're not broken. 

True Dat. I bought this kit when it was brand new, first issued, at the LHS and both A-pillars were broken (and are to this day). But they're broken cleanly, and should be easy to fix. 

I doubt I'll ever build it, but sooner or later, I'll run into somebody looking for one. 

[wku88]

Don't forget the "New Monkees" Mustang GT convertible and the ZR1 Corvette variants.

Edited March 5, 2020 by wku88

[Geno]

Here are a few of my Monogram builds from this era. They build up really well with minimal work. A lot of models have issues to some degree solely due to the scaling down factor. I don't get too critical unless it's something really obvious. I take it for what it is and have fun. Some of it I fix, some it's just too labor intensive and isn't worth it. If it is a good representation of the real car that's all I'm looking for. The worst offender out of these was the '66 Chevelle conversion, It was a bear but worth it in the end lol. I mostly build 1/24 to add models we wouldn't otherwise see in my 1/24 diecast collection. They fit in really well. I have several more on the build list from this time frame as well. Just have fun with them guys. ? 

 

Edited March 5, 2020 by Geno

[CapSat 6]

51 minutes ago, Geno said:

Here are a few of my Monogram builds from this era. They build up really well with minimal work. A lot of models have issues to some degree solely due to the scaling down factor. I don't get too critical unless it's something really obvious. I take it for what it is and have fun. Some of it I fix, some it's just too labor intensive and isn't worth it. If it is a good representation of the real car that's all I'm looking for. The worst offender out of these was the '66 Chevelle conversion, It was a bear but worth it in the end lol. I mostly build 1/24 to add models we wouldn't otherwise see in my 1/24 diecast collection. They fit in really well. I have several more on the build list from this time frame as well. Just have fun with them guys. ? 

 

These are real beauties, gene! They really highlight the potential of these kits!

[Luc Janssens]

On 3/4/2020 at 12:06 AM, JollySipper said:

I'm currently working the '87 Thunderbird

 

The funny thing is, that back then when it was announced in the '86 Catalog they showed a black '86.

[stavanzer]

Fine Work, Geno!  I really like the '66 Chevelle.

[JollySipper]

17 minutes ago, Luc Janssens said:

The funny thing is, that back then when it was announced in the '86 Catalog they showed a black '86.

A pre-facelift T- Bird? That's something I wish there was a kit of, I had a real one in my teens.......... there was a promo made, but I'm not sure who made them.

[Geno]

31 minutes ago, CapSat 6 said:

These are real beauties, gene! They really highlight the potential of these kits!

Thanks Bill, I appreciate that. Most of my builds are kitbashed to some degree to improve upon the original lol. Just havin' fun. ?