Mark

The '67 Barracuda was AMT, as was the '67 Chevy pickup kit. For some never explained reason, both went to MPC for '68. The AMT-boxed MPC kits ('65 Coronet, Wild Dream/King T, Dream Rod, etc) had MPC tires, decals, and even box and instruction sheet artwork (except for AMT branding). The two '67 kits had AMT tires, box art, and decal sheets which would separate them from the 1965 offerings. The 1968 versions of both had all MPC parts and decal sheets.

The MPC Toronado chassis and engine look a lot like the Jo-Han pieces, except MPC's inner front fenders are all one piece while Jo-Han's are separate. MPC used a plain old wire axle in front while Jo-Han used a two-piece plastic axle setup with CV joint detail. The two halves of the axle overlapped inside the front differential, someone at Jo-Han did some brain work on that kit. I've got all of the stock Toronado kits (MPC and Jo-Han) but never tried parts from one on the other, but I'd bet they fit with little work.

The truck is the same one that has been issued in the last 20 years or so. AMT cab (converted from GMC trim to Chevrolet), MPC interior, then newly tooled grille/bumper, engine, and rear half of chassis. Ertl created the "new" kit by combining parts of the "old" AMT and MPC tools.

I have never had cable, but my mom did, so I'd see the changes in channels offered every year or so. Did you ever fill out their surveys and tell them which programs you watched most often? You can thank the idiots who actually filled those out and sent them in, as by doing that you're giving the cable company a blueprint for which channels to move over to the extra-cost packages next time around...

Speaking of Classic car kits, Jo-Han did a few of them, too: V16 Cadillacs and mid-Thirties Mercedes-Benz. Theirs are among the best ever made in 1/24-1/25 scale (theirs are 1/25) and are the most affordable Jo-Han kits right now.

Buyer beware. I'd wager the body might be damaged (busted windshield frame), but the rest of it is probably intact. I've gambled on kits with boxes like that, where I knew the contents didn't take up much of the space in the box. All of them were intact. I wouldn't gamble on a flat-box Jo-Han convertible kit though, unless it was dirt cheap...

If you like the occasional gamble, the opened kits are as good as any. Years ago, the hobby wholesaler in my area had Saturday sales between Thanksgiving and Christmas. They'd sell off the returns and other stuff sitting in the warehouse (including prior years' annual kits). The returns would often have both end panels torn off of the box lid (they'd get credit from the manufacturer) and sell off the kit to recover some of their shipping costs. I went as often as I could, and spent as much as I could...more often than not, the kits were complete. People likely bought kits and returned them intact if what they saw when they opened the box was more "work" than they expected, or wanted to bother with. There was the occasional returned unsuccessful build attempt, but those were pretty easy to spot.

Actually, that side view does look like the Blue Max kit body. One of those cars was shorter than stock. The Brutus car looks more like the MPC body.

Pretty sure there are at least two of them, one steel and the other(s) fiberglass.

The two brands offering different products makes sense..."brand separation". I think it's better than blurring the lines by having two brand names on similar items.

If everyone kept their area clean, the whole world would be clean...

I'm constantly picking up water bottles cast aside by joggers and bicycle riders. If those bottles (and iced tea cans) were deposit items also, people would hang on to them until they got home. I guess they don't pollute as much, that would explain why they aren't deposit items like soda and beer containers.

The Blue Max body might be based on one of the nostalgia circuit cars, that crowd seems to want to cut, stretch, and rework bodies way beyond what was done back in the day. Revell did the Hawaiian and Chi-Town Hustler kits with a common body, that one looks like a modern/nostalgia body also. They did do newly tooled chassis for each version, something I never expected this late in the game.

The sales on the Blue Max probably killed the idea of any more new bodies. Though one of the 1:1 Blue Max Mustangs was shorter than stock, that kit body looked a bit off which hurt it. I picked a few of those up at closeout to get the newer chassis and tires. Yes, a new second-gen Barracuda body would have been nice (some of the Challenger funnies used 'Cuda bodies), as well as a '71-'72 Satellite, a second-gen Camaro, and maybe a couple of others. Revell would have been wise to retool that front axle too (it often sags over time) and those terrible Super Trick wheels, especially the fronts.

They are by far the best looking funny car body from that period. I only have one Revell 1/16 drag car kit, guess which one it is...

I read somewhere that, of the 1/16 scale funnies, the Grand Am was far and away the best seller. I've thought about why Revell never did that car in 1/25 scale...maybe they thought it would steal sales from the big one. The reason there weren't more 1:1 Grand Am funny cars was that Mickey Thompson had the body designed and wouldn't let the maker sell them to anyone else. There were one or two other teams that had one, but those were obtained from Thompson, probably as used cars.

Atlantis will do well with the 1/16 (and 1/25) drag cars if they offer cars Revell never did. Back in the day, Revell only offered kits of cars they sponsored. I believe there were only two of those '57 Chevy bodied funny cars. A guy named Bruce Moreland had the other one, his was identical to McEwen's except it was black.

There is now a universal excuse for high prices, poor service, and out-of-stock items. "Well, you know, Covid..."

Don't think of this as a kit that will be built, as that is highly unlikely. Instead, think of it as a collectible item associated with 1969 Dodge Chargers. The buyer probably already has one or more 1:1 cars, a bunch of factory accessories (either on the car, in original boxes, or both), every dealer brochure and book you can imagine, and promos in every color. An unassembled kit would fit right into the collection.

Just check the assembly for correct positioning of each part, and overall straightness, each time a part is added. That shouldn't be tough, as the kit manufacturers often put unusually shaped tabs and slots on unique parts, and those should fit only one way. Short of building a jig (which can't really be done unless you have a properly assembled chassis to begin with), what else can be done?

Make sure each individual piece is perfectly straight before assembly. Don't count on the assembly process to help straighten anything. Check for straightness before adding parts to the assembly so far.

They are pretty much the same as a typical Monogram 1/24 scale car kit from that era...just bigger. The first-generation S-10 pickup kit is a bit simpler than the Monogram (now Revell) 1/25 scale version.

A kit that was manufactured during the Seventies? Revell QC was at a low point towards the end of its original ownership then, and the company that bought the company afterwards didn't improve things.

The Don Mills treadplate is the way to go, period.

Did you remove all of the rust treatment prior to applying the paint? Red and brown pigments are the strongest, even the most minute trace of red will turn white into pink.