Mark

The reason those bodies got hacked and later restored is that bodies are the most costly parts to tool (possibly excepting tires, but tires are used in many different kits). MPC in particular tried to get more use out of their kit bodies. Promo, annual kit, funny car or pro stock body, all in one model year. That's why you saw things like Dodge Coronet funny cars and '72 GTO pro stockers which you never saw in the real world.

The photoetch saw blades are a miracle in some cases. They don't give you additional access, but if you can get in where needed with one it will help save parts where in the past you might have had to sacrifice one part to save another. Before breaking out the Dremel, saw, or knife, first get the paint off of everything. That can help free up parts thought to be "welded" in with cement. Most paint removal methods we use now won't affect the clear parts.

Airbrushing, you'd have to blow the paint on in such a way that it would hit the surface virtually dry.

Pretty sure the one-off MPC/Ertl '70 was reworked from the '72 body, and later reworked back. A look at the inside of that '70 body would confirm or dispute this...if the inside is super smooth/shiny, the '70 would indeed be a conversion of the '72. The finish on the inside of that body goes back to when it was molded in clear for use in the Pearson/Vallo NASCAR GTO kit.

Hubley and Premier both made one around 1960. I have the Premier kit, as I remember (haven't looked at it recently) it is fairly decent. Hubley kit has a one-piece body but I'm not sure if there is a styrene-bodied kit with an interior. The promotional, if there was one, is probably acetate and any you find would be warped, with yellowed windows.

Managed Payments...as in eBay manages to grab some more money off of another part of the sale...

Strange, I have an original '67 or '68 hood on a '69 project body.....it fits perfectly.

The other hood is a Trans-Am piece, not custom. The MPC '67 and '68 Firebird kits included a base hood, no issue of the '69 ever did. If you could find a resin casting of the '67-'68 kit hood, it will fit the '69.

AMT '70 Impala Fire Chief issue has those wheels.

Most dealers hung on to those cars to create showroom traffic, when the car became "yesterday's news" they would drop the price to something reasonable. When it was generating foot traffic, they'd ask the long dollar because if they sold it at that time, they would no longer have it to draw people in. My older brother bought a new, two-year-old Ford Lightning pickup when the dealer didn't "need" it any more. He got it for less than the two or three year old used ones he had been looking at. The Buick in all likelihood would not have any kind of warranty...it was built by "old GM" which is no longer in business...

The "old" AMC straight six is in the Jo-Han Rambler American kits. The "new" (1964-up) six is available in both the MPC (hatchback) and AMT (wagon) Pacer kits. I had a 1:1 AMC Spirit GT with a 258, it ran great when I had to let it go because structural rust got the car's body. 215,000 miles, didn't burn oil, still ran great. The valve cover was off once (sludge, even with synthetic motor oil) but the cylinder head was never off. If the right one came along, I'd love to have another one of those cars.

Yes, the boxes do react to black light. I remember trying it many years ago. I used to call those kits the "head shop series". AMT was probably trying to bag a few "craft shop" sales in addition to the collectors who knew what was in the boxes. The same decal sheet was used in all six kits in the series. Seeing as how a couple of those cars are readily available in later issues, I wouldn't mind seeing them built and painted like the box art (except the colored tires of course)...

AMT (1965-67) and MPC (68-69) Barracuda annual kits all have a slant six for the stock version. No reissue of the '69 had it. A couple of the Revell 1962 Chrysler Corporation compact car kits (Plymouth Valiant, Dodge Lancer) also had a slant six. None of these are remotely as good as the AMT Deora or Lindberg (now AMT) '64 Dodge/Plymouth six though.

ChrisBcritter nailed it, the '63 hardtop and convertible annual kits had 327 V8 engines (but "6" crests on the front fenders as I recall). Chevy wasn't putting V8 engines in Novas for '63 but AMT probably did so to goose the sales on the kits.

AMT '62 Falcon and Comet kits had straight six display engines (the kits did not include provisions for putting the engine into the car). Jo-Han '70 Maverick and '71 Comet kits with the stock version (only one of each car) included sixes also. No early Mustang kit ever included a six, none from AMT or MPC anyway. A couple of Moebius Ford pickup kits ('69 and '70 base models) include the 240/300 six, a different engine family from the 144/170/200 in the AMT and Jo-Han car kits.

The '40 coupe is out right now...same content as the flat-box "original art" late Sixties issue, only in a regular box. The flat box used artwork from the late Sixties issue that came with a record, the regular box copies the revised version of the same issue that had a similar box, with a different decal sheet and no record.

I went into Ollie's yesterday to pick up a box of coffee K-cups, and noticed they were blowing out the remaining toys at 33% off their original prices. Toys include model kits. Only one automotive kit left by then, the Round 2 AMT White Road Boss, but I figured that for under $14, I'd grab one. I opened the box but didn't tear open any parts bags...if I decide later that I'm not going to do anything with it, I know I can at the very least get back what I paid for it. The kit includes the "Mercury" sleeper box that is sold separately, though the one in the White kit isn't plated like the separate one is.

I have seen several examples of the MPC '64 Corvette kit (MPC kit #1) that were shrinkwrapped, and have myself owned (since sold) two 1966 annual kits that were shrinkwrapped also.

Going off on a tangent, the Creepy T was based on the Vending Machine show rod. The MPC Paddy Wagon was inaccurate (Chevy engine instead of FE series Ford) but did look the part.

The running boards were revised to the stock appearance when the fender unit was used in the Carl Casper Paddy Wagon kit. The chassis, Chevy engine, and some other parts from the King T were used also. I believe the fenders and chassis were used again under a fictional show rod (Night Crawler?) with a "werewolf head" body before the fenders were reworked for the Evil T. The Night Crawler wasn't reissued by Ertl in the Nineties alongside the Creepy T and the third car (can't remember the name of it) that was based on the Stroker McGurk Phone Booth T.

MPC kits were shrinkwrapped from day one.

If you only want a couple of sets of tires, and they are ones included in kits, you'll be cheaper off just buying or trading for them. Look for started or even built kits. The plastic parts in any poorly built kit can be ruined with paint or cement, but tires usually escape serious damage. Paint slobbed onto tires can be cleaned off. The only real damage you can encounter will exist if they came attached to sprues, and were torn off or trimmed poorly.

Ford had a customized Bronco out on the show circuit around that time, with a similar paint scheme. AMT probably didn't want to tool a ton of custom parts for the 'Bird, so they went with the decal scheme.

One-shot special, probably to use articles already paid for.

One more thing. If you are making or modifying parts to use as masters for casting (as opposed to making copies of existing parts) then put the time in, and make that part the best that you are capable of. Any sandpaper scratches, assymetry, poor fit, or other flaws will be reproduced in the as-cast parts. You will then have to fix every part that comes out of the mold. Why not just fix one part as opposed to a couple dozen of them? Do NOT rely on primer to smooth over deep sanding scratches. The curing of the RTV mold material will shrink the primer and reveal sanding scratches.