Mark

If all of the versions aren't planned at one time, then adding a new version leads to things like: parts not being included that some buyers would have wanted, and parts being included that aren't needed.

The packaging of utility vehicles versus sedans makes the utility an easy choice for most people. Most of us need the bigger cargo space every so often. You buy a TV set or a lawnmower now, hardly anyone delivers those things. You need enough space to carry something that big, a sedan trunk or rear seat ain't gonna cut it.

The only one that is really different is the '74. Changes from '74 to '75 on the 1:1 cars include a slightly taller grille and header panel (to accommodate the V8 option), different hood, and relocation of the fuel filler higher up on the quarter panel. The annual kits (AMT and MPC) have the differently shaped hood opening and relocated fuel filler.

The Revell '62 Dodge was a four-door. Their Plymouth was a two-door; in fact, that was the only one of the Revell Mopars that duplicated one also offered by Jo-Han. All the others differed from Jo-Han or AMT offerings in either body style or trim level.

AMT '59 Edsel.

You answered your own question. When different parts are in the same location on a particular parts tree in two versions of a kit, that means that to include both parts the manufacturer would have to run one set of parts, switch out the tooling insert, then run the same set of parts again. It has been done in the past, but it costs a lot to do that. The wedge engine parts are in the quasi-stock sedan kit in order to differentiate it from the two "factory" drag offerings. Chrysler was concentrating on the Hemi in racing from '65 forward, development stopped on the wedge during '64. The A990 Dodges were built with both four-speed and automatic transmissions. Some probably got switched from one to the other (maybe even back and forth) by the teams that got the cars, depending on whether or not their driver was good with a stick. Moebius is still relatively new to car kits, so they've probably still got some growing pains in this area. With more experience in car kits, there would probably be a lot fewer Plymouth specific parts included in the Dodge kits, and that might have left room for other parts to be included. I might have liked to see both automatic and stick transmissions, an 8-3/4" rear axle in addition to the Dana 60, and maybe an optional A-100 front axle setup. But for being relatively new to doing car kits, they're doing some pretty specialized subject matter and executing it quite well.

The '60 Corvair kit was a four-door because that's the only body style that was available when the kit was released. The '61 promo was also a four-door, but the kit was altered to an incorrect convertible with a separate glue-on hardtop roof which was also incorrect. The annual kits were usually the same body style as that year's promotional model. The manufacturers seldom asked for four-door cars, and the kit manufacturers quickly learned that the four-door didn't sell in kit form. SMP did a '61 Impala four-door hardtop promo but didn’t bother to offer it as a kit. Jo-Han did some four-door kits in the early Sixties but gradually stopped offering them as kits. Bottom line: kids didn't want models of four-door cars, so the kit manufacturers soon learned that and avoided issuing any. Unless it's a police car, or a well-known movie or TV car, don't count on ever seeing it as a kit from a mainstream company.

The two trees pictured at the top are from the '67 GT350 kit...not related to the '68 kit at all.

Barris' shop probably painted other competition cars. Dean Jeffries painted and lettered a bunch of Indy cars in the Fifties and Sixties. The Alexander Brothers painted a bunch of drag cars including those of the Ramchargers and Golden Commandos. (They didn't do the Ramchargers lettering though, they had another guy do that.) And Ed Roth lettered a bunch of drag cars including the Stone, Woods, & Cook Willys as depicted in the first Revell kit.

Are those Corvette units downdrafts? The earliest kit AMT put Webers in was the '65 GTO (possibly the '64 LeMans convertible and GTO hardtop the year prior), and those kits used them horizontally as side-drafts. Either way, those are way bigger than the Datsun setup. If I remember right, the MPC Datsun pickup kits (those with the stock engine) have a pair of side-draft Webers that should work.

Everybody likes to bag on George now, but before he got into the TV and movie stuff big time the brothers turned out a bunch of legendary customs.

The four from the AMT Pinto should drop in. Both AMT and MPC put V6 engines in their annual kits, as '74 was the first year for those (and the lone year Ford didn't offer a V8 in a Mustang). AMT put a V8 in as the optional engine, MPC would do likewise starting with their '76 kit. But for a four, you'll have to go to the Pinto kits.

Are you arriving on the 24th? Thanksgiving Day is Thursday the 28th, with the day after that kicking off the Christmas shopping season. It's unlikely you'll find any shows taking place that weekend. From late October through mid December (excepting Thanksgiving weekend) some areas will have model/toy train related shows on the weekends. September and October (in my area, anyway) tend to have model and toy shows (revolving mainly around comic books and collector figures), then the train guys take over for the rest of the year. In my area, one guy is trying to establish a model car event, but held this year's one in August. The first one (last year) was in September. I think we might try to persuade him to go back to late September or early October. It's one thing to try to establish a date that doesn't conflict with anything else, but then again if nobody else is doing anything on that date, there might be a reason for that...

The thrill show cars didn’t have roll bars, they were pretty much stock. Some of the earliest ones (late Forties) had the gas tank moved inside the trunk if they were used to do jumps, but that's about it.

Are you building drag cars (modern, or vintage), street rods, pro touring, or ? The best reference material will usually be books on actual chassis building. You'll see designs that work, which will show you how to design and build in scale, something that would be workable as a real car. Depending on the subject matter, you don't necessarily need the most up-to-date books or catalogs. Example: traditional hot rod chassis haven't changed much over the years. Catalogs from suppliers of suspension parts often have detailed photos of what they are selling. Some have critical chassis dimensions for more popular cars. Vintage drag racing chassis could be designed with information from old rule books found online, with details taken from old magazine articles. Dimensions for things like roll bars, tubular suspension parts, and chassis tubing can easily be converted to scale for when you start looking for scratch building materials.

The people at the banks don't pay attention, and haven't for years. At work, whenever I had to rewrite a payroll check, I stopped payment on the "old" one. No exceptions. At one place, I got a call from an out-of-state bank. An ex-employee had apparently "found" a previously "lost" check, and cashed it. The bank (a different bank from the one the check was written from) cashed it. The guy apparently had had an account there but closed it prior to cashing the check. So the bank should have referred him to the bank with the account the check was written on. I told the person from the bank that cashed the bad check that payment had been stopped on that one. He still asked, "what do you recommend we do with this check"...my answer was "put some ketchup on it, and hold your nose..." He didn't like that. Hey, I did my job, your people failed to do theirs...

The Nova has far fewer important mechanical parts with wires connected to them.

I had one of those, it was molded in white.

I'm not aware of a Monogram (1/24 scale) '34 molded in black.

Monogram and Revell were competing companies when that kit was done.

The GMC straight six could be a decent seller for a 3D printer, especially if it had the GMC script valve cover.

That said, hopefully one or more of the 3D print guys will get going on a GMC straight six. The V6 has been done, as has the V12 version of that, so why not the inline six?

I might be incorrect on this, but I'm pretty sure the Fisher head in the '51 Chevy kit is actually a replica of a GMC setup, and there was no similar style head for Chevy inline sixes. The Wayne, Fisher, and Horning Chevy heads all look more similar externally to a regular Chevy six head, at least the ones I turned up. If you test fit the '51 kit parts, it appears the valve cover is cheated a bit on the underside to fit the shorter Chevy block. AMT probably did that so they wouldn't have to include two complete engines in the kit. The valve cover is about the right length to fit a 1/24 scale Chevy engine block (Monogram '53 Chevy hardtop, or '53 Corvette) though. Some work will be needed on the 1/24 scale Chevy block and oil pan to make them more closely resemble GMC pieces.

It might be a generic or composite design, to avoid licensing issues.

Not surprising, really...the Jeep was created in anticipation of something like it being needed for the war. From all accounts I have read, it did everything expected of it, and then some. The kids at home wanted models representing the planes, ships, tanks, and wheeled vehicles that they were hearing and reading about...and there were more Jeeps than anything else. More soldiers came into contact with them than any other vehicle, so they were the most talked about and written about.