'70 Grande

I'm goin' with "Model". Its a nice one, too!

Wow; a really cool build! I'd bet you'd have "white-knuckles" driving that little beast down the 1320!

I've always loved the 3-spoke chrome wheels found inside this kit! They are a little-bit "custom, racing, sports car, mag" all rolled into one! What are the (4) tires like inside this kit? They look to be pretty wide, and kinda low-profile!?!

Love this Retro-look back at a great, vintage kit! Thanks for posting it. Now, I'm the guy that actually "dislikes" the one-piece chassis, and I always replace/retro-fit them with a more detailed unit that has separate suspension pieces/exhausts/shocks etc. If I were to attempt a chassis-replacement on a 1965-69 Connie, what would be a good kit to get those chassis and suspension components from? AMT 1966 Ford Galaxie?

Beautiful build Jeff! Is this the Polar Lights kit? Did you build it with the 427 or 429 engine, (looks like the 429 decal is on your hood)? I had always heard that fitting the 429 engine into the engine bay on these Polar Lights kits was next-to-impossible! If that's a 429, how'd you do it? What other issues did you have building this kit? (I'm asking because I'm about to start one myself; the Wood's Bros. Mercury).

Roadhawg: That is a fantastic build! You captured the 1:1 car really well! Your paintwork and decals are outstanding! How did you get those decals made? They are "spot-on"! I'm looking forward to your future projects from this racing-series! Nice job!

Love this build! Great detailing and paintwork! I've been following this project as well; its a great tribute to the time when Nascar race cars weren't covered in sponsorship paint and hundreds of decals!

That paintwork is awesome! A assume you primered the entire body before applying the paint, right? Did you have any problems getting the acrylic craft paint to "stick and hold" to the primer?

Man, that's a cool build! I can imagine seeing it in 1:1 scale, with exhaust rumbling outta each of the usual lower-side panels and also coming outta the combined-exhaust stack in the roof... kinda like a vintage steam locomotive. LOL

About what year is that beast, anyway? Mid-to-late 1960's or is it 1970's vintage?

Rob: That is my theory, too, as these tires came out of my parts box, so I cannot confirm what kit(s) they originally came from, (AMT or MPC). I'm hoping the Avanti kit's tires match "Tire Size A" in my photo, as I've been looking for just one of these, "smaller & wider" Blue Streak tires for a long time now. I've got a project going that has 3 of the "A" tires, but needs a fourth to be completed!

Regarding this kit's tires, below I have posted a pic of the same Goodyear Blue Streak Stock car tires as found in previously-issued AMT and MPC kits. There has always been a mystery to me regarding these tires. My photo shows Tire A on the left, with a 1" outside tire diameter and a 11/32" tire tread width. Tire B on the right side of the photo has the exact same sidewall lettering and tread-pattern, but has a overall different size to it; a larger 1-1/16" outside tire diameter and a narrower 9/32" tread width. Why would the exact same tire have been issued in two distinctly different sizes? And, what are the overall dimensions of the Blue Streak tires found inside this Avanti kit? (In the previously-posted Avanti kit photos, the Blue Streak tires look even narrower than the "skinny" Blue Streak Tire B that I have)!

Stunning build! Beautiful paintwork and detailing! One of the finest-looking builds of this Mustang kit that I have ever seen! Great work!

Really nice paintwork and build-quality! Did you use the kit-supplied front tires, or are those front tires from another source? (They look slightly-larger in overall size to me, but maybe its just that the spoked-wheels are slightly smaller).

It would be interesting to see, if the, "molded in White or Clear plastic" question is one of those questions that we modelers could have some impact on answering for Round-2. I, personally, would prefer the body to be molded in White plastic. I suspect that Round-2 believes there might be more potential sales in a Clear-molded body, (the same reasoning that was used when this kit was originally issued by MPC in the mid-1970's). I'd like to see a poll of model builders to see what other builders think. Then, if possible, I'd like to see the results of that poll communicated to the product-people at Round-2. I believe, if Round-2 used the results of that poll in the reissue of this iconic kit, they'd get nothing but positive results from the marketplace. ("We listened to you, model builders, and are giving you the product that you've asked for!")... just my two cents!

Time to start saving my pennies then! I wonder what price this kit will retail for?

Michael, It sorta depends on which Nascar Polar Lights kit(s) you're looking at. In my opinion, the early-1970's Dodge Charger Nascar kit has a few, not-too-major racing chassis errors to it, but the Charger body is "way-off" in it's shape and accuracy in a lot of places. With some work, it can be built to look okay, but the body would take a lot of work to get it's shape correct, (I'm not sure I've ever seen one built-up that looks correct, even after major bodywork). The 1969-1970 Ford Torino Talladega/Mercury Cyclone Nascar kits have a somewhat better chassis, and offer two engines in each kit, but these kits have two major problems. The first problem also involves the kit's body; the front fenders on the bodies are molded "flat" across their tops, making the nose of the finished race car sit-up way too high. (In the kits that I have, those front fenders almost appear to be molded "going uphill" from the wheel arch forward to the front bumper, which is nothing like the down-slope on the actual 1:1 race cars)! The other problem is that both engines provided inside these kits are a bear to fit into the racing chassis! The 429 motor doesn't really fit the chassis correctly at all, and can lead to other building issues like hood fit, etc. The kit's 427 engine fits better, but it too, has some fit issues.

A couple of questions about this kit: Did this kit have separate pieces for it's rear suspension, (separate axle, leaf springs, shocks, etc.), or is the entire rear suspension molded directly into the main chassis piece? Does it use a steel-wire front axle that passes thru a hole in the engine block? Thanks!

Erik, I'm curious; just how long is that Avanti body in inches? Weren't these Avanti's about the same size when compared to a 1964 Ford Mustang?