1/25 MPC Young American Dragster?

[Pete L.]

Fellas,

Anything new on the possible reissue of the old MPC "Young American" Fueler ?

[tim boyd]

... this reissue is on track for a November release. Sounds like they've really put alot of care and attention into the reissue and packaging of the model, even down to securing from Carl Casper a revised, higher quality preiod picture of the car in action for the new box top.

This is the model, of course, based on MPC's original circa 1970 tooling of the last Don Garlits front engine rail dragster. The "Young American" version was a spinoff kit added to the MPC line around 1973 IIRC. Since that release, the kit has never been available in this form - a gap of nearly 40 years!!! The frame and engine were reissued once more in the late 1970's as part of a not-too-well-done Fiat Altered kit. Since then, even the frame/engine have never been reissued.

Only a couple of months away, and counting.... TIM

[Modelmartin]

That is good news. I like those long, long wheelbase FEDs that ruled just before the mid-engined cars took over. I may have to fire up the "jaws of life" to get my wallet open to buy one!

[tim boyd]

Tim, was that the one with the real long frame?.

I always thought that Fiat dragster kit was kinda cool. I may have to get a couple of those CC kits and do one as my own version of a Fiat bodied car.

Yes, that's the one! TIM

[tim boyd]

That is good news. I like those long, long wheelbase FEDs that ruled just before the mid-engined cars took over. I may have to fire up the "jaws of life" to get my wallet open to buy one!

Andy...I keep forgetting that you are a rail dragster afficianado among your many automotive and modeling interests....needless to say we'd love to see your build/interpretation of this kit....TIM

[PatRedmond]

Here's the OLD box art for those of you that don't know it.

[tim boyd]

Thanks Pat! TIM

[cobraman]

I want one.

[Bernard Kron]

Terrific!!! The Garlits/Young American kits are among my grails but totally unobtainium on Flea-Bay, trading for nose-bleed prices. For those of you who know, could someone please confirm that, like the shorter wheelbase MPC Dragmaster kit, it featiures full round tubing in the frame? I'm nervous because the frame, which is a one piece affair, looks too similar to the Tommy Ivo/Digger 'Cuda/Two Much chassis which has half-round tubing designed to be covered up by the full length bodywork...

Edited August 27, 2012 by Bernard Kron

[Len Woodruff]

I am looking forward to this re-issue too!

[Frank]

Gotta get me one of those when they come out, love FEDs, not much into rear engins though.

[High octane]

I'll have to get me one as I love those FED's from the 60's. I used to be a young American once but I've aged a few years since then.

[tim boyd]

I'll have to get me one as I love those FED's from the 60's. I used to be a young American once but I've aged a few years since then.

Nick...you made me laugh out loud with that response. Same thing applies here, btw! TIM

[tim boyd]

. For those of you who know, could someone please confirm that, like the shorter wheelbase MPC Dragmaster kit, it featiures full round tubing in the frame?

Bernard, I just checked, it has a three part sliding mold (top/left/right) one-piece frame (other than the roll bar and the crossmember that locates the driveshaft, so yes, that means it does not have the round tubing on the inside edges of the frame. Having fought the AMT Garlits and MPC Ramchargers two piece frames for decades, it's an action I can live with.

Man, I can't wait for this one...sounds like many of you share the same view. TIM

[Bernard Kron]

Bernard, I just checked, it has a three part sliding mold (top/left/right) one-piece frame (other than the roll bar and the crossmember that locates the driveshaft, so yes, that means it does not have the round tubing on the inside edges of the frame. ...

Thanx for the info, Tim. That's a bummer in my view but...

I reviewed the instructions for the kit ( you can see the instructions on Bob Black's excellent Model Kit Instructions site here: http://public.fotki....oung-american-/) and it has an awful lot going for it - sort of half way between some of the pluses of the Garlits and Ramchargers kits and the minuses of the AMT Ivo based kits. It will definitely find a place in my stash even if I will land up remplacing the forward half of the frame if I don't run the car full bodied.

Edited August 27, 2012 by Bernard Kron

[Casey]

New box art?:

[gtx6970]

Is this one out already, ?

I'll need a couple to build and a few more if for nuttin else but a parts kits

New box art?:

[jaydar]

For those of you who know, could someone please confirm that, like the shorter wheelbase MPC Dragmaster kit, it featiures full round tubing in the frame?

Perhaps Evergreen makes a half round you could use to finish the other half. Chances are it would require sanding to finish the radius.

Joe.

Edited November 4, 2012 by jaydar

[Len Woodruff]

Perhaps Evergreen makes a half round you could use to finish the other half. Chances are it would require sanding to finish the radius.

Joe.

I thought that could be a solution.

[Chuck Most]

I've tried using half-round rod to round out these D-shaped frame rails- sometimes it works okay, and sometimes it doesn't work so well. The 'half-round' molded frame rails in some of the old AMT dragster kit frames sometimes aren't really half round. It is worth a try, though.

[horsepower]

Any plans to possibly release it in the future as a 2-in-1 version with the Fiat altered body? I kinda want to replicate a car that used to run at our local strip in the 1960 - '61 years. It was from the Klamath Falls Oregon area, & was named the "Zombie"

For those that are into drag racing, a real piece of history is about to go by the way, the Redding, California strip that is the oldest continuously operating NHRA drag strip in the U.S. is going to die, it is being taken over by the City of Redding to use as a taxi-way (its original use from the mid '40s when it was a U.S. Army Air Force field, until 1953 when it was "loaned" to the Shasta Roadsters to use as a Drag Strip) this is being done to keep a flight school that is for training Chinese pilots for airline service in the area. It is a mixed bag of feelings, I can remember a lot of Sundays their both as a young boy, & in my high school years, but it is needed to keep a rather large company from locating to a different location with a loss of income for the local airport services.

[Greg Myers]

http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=46372

[1320wayne]

I can remember when this reissue was announced right at about two years ago and it's finally here. Got mine in the mail yesterday and even though it's not the most technically appealing kit available, for us drag lovers, this one was very much anticipated.

It comes in a nice heavy duty box with the original box art, IIRC. Never having seen the original kit come out of the box I can't comment on what has been changed from the original, other than maybe the very nice, soft, hollow, tampo printed Goodyear slicks. Nice one piece chassis with some ever-so slight warping issues to straighten. Very nice chrome, as most of the engine and chassis pieces are just that. Very nicely reproduced decals.

This also comes with the scaled down model box along with a foldout handout with images of the real car on the front and back along with real car stats. and accomplishments inside.

As I stated already this kit comes with the nice rear slicks along with rubber tires for the front along with a rubber blower belt and what appears to be a smaller than usual rubber piece for the racing seat. There is also one clear piece for the drivers compartment visor, however, on the real car the visor was hammered aluminum.

One other point of interest for anyone looking to build this kit. For replica sake, the front wheels were anodized red, not chrome. The right front did retain the chrome reflector ring but the wheel and spokes were red.

I, personally, am hoping that now that this kit is out and available that Slixx decals will finally be producing some of the long standing decals that have been on their list, for this style of car, for years now. One can hope.

Edited November 26, 2012 by 1320wayne

[Dragline]

Good to see this one back in circulation. To bad about the one piece chassis though. I'll take multi piece round assemblies over these any day. If you can't make those square i guess it's time to hand in your glue.

But this is welcomed. It looks like most of the pieces from the Ramchargers dragster anyway.

Bob

[tim boyd]

Wayne...thanks for the review, like you I've been waiting many years (decades, almost four of them!) for this reissue.

John G. at Round 2 said that they were able to get some fresh photography for the box art; without pulling out my old empty box, it does look like a slightly different picture on the box top in Wayne's post.

I ordered mine from Round 2 yesterday, hopefully it will be arriving sometime late this week.

****************

For anyonewho is not familiar with this kit, the original replicated what was in effect Don Garlits' last evolution of his Front Engine dragster series, and MPC introduced it in 1970 IIRC. It was reissued only once in this form, around 1973, wearing the "Young American" livery reproduced with this new Round 2 kit offering. The engine and frame were reused once more for a Fiat-bodied competition coupe from MPC in the mid 1970's. Since then, it's been on hiatus, all these years.

Just in case anyone is wondering, the kit shares nothing with the earlier MPC "Ramchargers" kit, other than the tall drag slicks.

Best regards....TIM