tomsheehy

As G stated, no, they would not update older cars unless a particular car needed a repaint from an accident, then an older car might get newer graphics. But it would not be a fleet-wide changeover. Our only hope is that they are secretly working on a 74 Dodge Monaco. Then all then all the decals would be correct.

Grabbed one today. Very disappointed. It is a straight reissue, with no "fixes" to the shortcomings of previous issues. The only change is the decals, which are a plus with some minuses. As Ryan mentioned above, it is now confirmed that the agencies are Troy, MI, Las Vegas PD, Chicago PD, CHP and NYSP. The pluses are the Troy and CHP, they are accurate and period correct for 1970, however CHP never used the 70 Ford. Las Vegas is not bad, but incorrect for 1970. The gold door star is sort of correct (it should be metallic gold), but the word "POLICE" was not adopted until 1974. In 1970, they had "To Protect and Serve" on the door with the star. The NYSP markings are correct, but again, incorrect for 1970. The blue/yellow cars hit the road in 1974, plus no Fords for NYSP in 1970. The markings should be black/white for this year. The Chicago markings are not that good. Again, this style marking was not used until 1974 when they switched to all white cars, and the red lettering is way too dark (doesn't show correct in the scan) (BTW, my scan cut off the bottom stripe, it is there) So if this was a 1974 Ford, we'd be OK. I'm very surprised Round 2 did not do their homework on the accuracy of the decals. It just adds to the shortcomings of an already tired reissued, in my opinion. The information is out there on who used this year Ford, and what the correct markings should have been for that year. LVPD 1973 Satellite, correct color/markings for 1970 Ford LVMPD 1974 Dodge for reference, now tan/white cars...

I had 3 at one time back a few years ago. All are now in hands of new owners, but I am working on another that should be done in a couple of months... Oh yeah, they were all police cars that I restored. 76 Plymouth Gran Fury... 66 Plymouth Fury I 73 Dodge Polara

Tom, fantastic job. I've been meaning to build this exact car for some time. My Dad had one, almost exactly like this with the six...same color but black interior. Great job...thanks for sharing and passing on your tips! Tom Sheehy

The beacon used by the Mass SP in 1957 was a Federal model 17, blue to the front and red to the rear. It was a split dome. Research this page and it show a 1965 Ford with this configuration. The 1957 was the same way...go about half way down the page to see the description... http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeopzls/policecars/id11.html

You are correct Steve, the correct period Motorola would be the Twin-V. The name referred to the fact that it could run on 6 or 12 volt. The predessor, the Research Line, was also still in service during this time period. The Motorola T-Power (also a 'twin power') came out around 1958 or 9. It began the transition to solid state components. The Motrac/Motran line came out around 1960-1, and were the first full solid state radios made by Motorola. There is a terrific website that has a ton of 2 way radio history, including info on the above: http://www.wb6nvh.com/Moto42/M42Page2.htm The above link is to the Motorolas referenced above. Go to the main page for all the other stuff. Other than Motorola, GE and RCA were also big around this time. The GE Progress Line and RCA Carfone would be time correct for the 57s.

The Napa, CA car above is a beautiful car, and accurate, too. It was restored and owned by a Napa officer. It is the Custom 300 trim level and is a 4 door, but that was correct for this agency. Also has the correct spotlights. A couple more... NYPD...

The 57 Custom 2 door was widely used by many state police agencies across the country, as well as some major cities, including NYC. During the 50s, most state agencies actually did use the 2 door sedan for most duties. Dave, I have an extensive collection of accurate police historical information regarding this time period; as to who used the 57, accurate markings for that time and equipment. I'd be happy to devote some time to insure this replica is authentic. If Revell took the extra step to find the radio and gumball light, that's a good thing. Let's hope they don't stop there, there are many options for the cop car goodies, even back then. EDIT: Just did a quick count...At least 25 states used the 57 Custom in the 2 door version for State Police/Highway Patrol duties, and a few more used the 4 door version. At least 8 to 10 of them have the decals readily available from the aftermarket or other kits. Another 6 to 8 have been done but are OOP and hard to come by. Virginia SP: