Mark

I don't know where that online store got that description...the kit builds only one way, as the U.N.C.L.E. version with all of the spy gear. As I understand it, the "stock" version had a shorter body (less overhang behind the rear wheels). It's an interesting kit, I picked one up with the thought of building it without the spy stuff.

I like the decals...

A few years ago, one guy was in the "15 items or less" line with a cart full of one-gallon jugs of water. His logic was, "it's only one item, she only has to scan one of them and count the ones in the cart". I always thought it was the number of individual items, but hey, maybe that's just me. I look for the shortest line anyway, regardless of whether it's fifteen items, seven items, whatever. Another time, I had two or three items that I was carrying. In one line was an unattended cart with a couple of items in it. The person in front of it was paying the cashier; that other cart wasn't hers. I yanked the cart out of the way, and set my stuff on the conveyor. Right then, this guy walks up with an armload of stuff yelling that he was in line ahead of me. My reply was, "you weren't in line, you left a cart in the line and went off to do your shopping..." Usually, I'm the one in line behind someone with three maxed-out credit cards that can't pay for all of the stuff they want, or are trying to use a benefits card to buy stuff that isn't allowed.

They're very well done, but the market was very small. How many people were interested in doing (and had the ability to do) the assembly of the model, the assembly and painting of the figures, and the assembly and finishing of the wood shadow box? That said, I've got one of them (the Auto Crossing with the Winton). The original idea was to keep the car and set aside the rest, but the thing is so interesting that I'm leaving it alone until I decide to either build it or sell it to someone else who might build it. A guy I know got one of the Model T kits in a peculiar way: he first found the car by itself, then years later found another kit that someone had swiped the car from!

The rear bumper in my kit has no guards.

I never figured that Revell would tool another engine for the gasser version, but I was thinking they'd go a bit wilder with the engine setup, like injectors. I was disappointed that the headers are one-piece units, though they do look pretty good. The Edelbrock script valve covers are also new, and unlike anything in any other kit with a Y-block. Too, I'd have thought they would have tooled another hood, even for this kit, which out of the box is more a modern "street freak" interpretation of a gasser than it is a drag car. The wheels/tires are so-so; the "street freak" gassers often use "piecrust" slicks (they weren't called that back then), sometimes with wide whitewalls. Mine's going to get all the cliches: Mickey Thompson/Rader wheels and slicks from the Thunderbolt kit, a teardrop blister on the hood, and big Metalflake paint. It shouldn't be too tough to tie the headers in to the stock dual exhaust system. By adding some material to the sides of the kit firewall (to fill the space between the firewall and the forward edge of the doors), it looks like a tilt front end might be within reach. One other thing: there's nothing to tie the gasser front axle to the stock steering box.

I remember picking up a couple of promos, in boxes, for $2 apiece. Still have them. Got a couple of the kits (store returns, damaged) for a buck apiece, and parted them out. The engine is pretty similar to the one in the MPC Duster and Dart Sport kits, only with a Torqueflite instead of a four-speed...

MPC '72 Chevelle. I believe the very last issue of that kit had the dual turbocharger setup in it.

Most times, I see officers paying just like everyone else. I'm not sure what the rules are around here, or how rigid the enforcement is. At the McDonald's up the street from me, I did see a handwritten sign taped up at the drive-through: "no free meals for cops!". Maybe the manager got a ticket, or one of her relatives got arrested...

The steering box is molded as part of the underbody, in both the 1/24 and 1/16 scale kits.

There's usually a cop at every Timmie's at any given time. I've never heard or read about any of them ever getting robbed...

If it's Lindberg and it's a 2015 manufacture kit, then it's Round 2. They're doing some stuff here, and some in China. Where probably depends on a number of factors: where the tool is now, how many they expect to sell, among other things.

Casinos are a gamble only for the schmucks who walk through the front door...for the people who run them or regulate them, they're a sure thing.

Lottery: a tax on the inability to comprehend odds. Over the years, a lot of the people I have worked with who were (self-described) "poor" or "broke" usually blew a ton of money on the lottery, or were frequent visitors to the casinos. A few others I worked with cashed their paychecks at the bar or got smoked up over the weekend, and would be trying to borrow money on the following Monday. When the boss wasn't in a mood to give them an advance (he usually did, he was a soft touch) they'd make the stupid mistake of approaching me. The gamblers in particular would be the first ones griping about someone else having a newer car than they had. Priorities, folks, priorities....

If you don't like the fact that the store wants you to get a card or supply an e-mail address to get a discount, get another e-mail address and use it as the garbage collector. I have all the krap sent to an AOL account (that's about all they are good for anyway), and my normal mailbox stays clutter-free.

Early General Lee kits also have the gutted interior bucket from the first NASCAR Daytona kit (the #71 Isaac/K&K Insurance one). The #22 Brooks kit used the two-piece generic chassis with no interior bucket. Someone with cheap builtups might just have a 500, in which case you'd be golden. I bought an unbuilt 500 a couple of years ago for cheap, because the windows were missing.

Having had a peek at the shelf stickers at HL a couple of weeks ago (before they were put up), the Stooges' T was not among the kits that they will be carrying after the reset that is taking place now.

If you are considering getting another one, think about making that one the "primary" one. Build that one using the lessons learned from the first one. The parts will probably be identical in the amount and type of work needed. You already have extensive experience with the problems that will be encountered in building another one.

What you want is a General Lee kit body made after the 500 was first issued (late Eighties), but before Round 2 took over. Earlier MPC General Lee kits were minimally converted from the early Seventies Daytona NASCAR body. For the stock 500 and Daytona, Ertl added stock details to the body (windshield wipers, "Hemi" emblems on the doors). Round 2 General Lee kit bodies have the recessed rear window that was tooled for the Fast & Furious version. As for the hood, you'll have to compare the hood you have to the one you get with the body. I've heard that the hoods included in the 500, stock Daytona, and General Lee vary even between different issues of the same version. The hood might be problematic.

Not to stray too far here, but the Datsun pickup gasser kits use the stock Datsun frame, stock front suspension included. The first issue Revell '57 Chevy ('63-'67) didn't have the straight axle. Around 1968, Revell made a number of changes to that kit, one of which was to add that axle. The MPC '57 Chevy shown above is a very nice build. I've been wanting to whip one of those together, also one of the '53 Ford flipnose pickups. I've got a pickup in primer, should get that one done.

The Revell Nomad (the everything-opening, nothing-fitting one) has a parallel-leaf setup, as do more recent issues of the opening-doors hardtop and also the 1/25 scale '53-'54 Chevies (sedan delivery and two-door sedan). Those setups are all pretty similar, but not really that good. The axle is on the heavy side, springs are molded as a unit with the axle...looks more like a trailer axle IMHO. The MPC '57 (and '53 Ford pickup; same chassis in both!) has what looks like a stretched Willys frame. The axle is on the weak side, a bit thin, and again has the springs molded as a unit.

The front and rear wheels were different sizes. The first issue 'Bolts were molded in burgundy (Tasca Ford) and also red-orange (Gas Ronda/Russ Davis Ford). Both were issued around the same time.

Prior to 1967, NHRA Gas Class rules required at least part of an automotive frame. Fully fabricated frames weren't allowed. Someone building a 1:1 Chevy for Gas back then would have kept the stock frame. If they wanted to get rid of the stock front suspension (not all of them did), they'd often cut the frame roughly even with the firewall and replace the forward section with rectangular tubing. The new rails would be parallel all the way forward. Crossmembers would be dictated by the design of the replacement suspension. A single cross-spring would require one to locate the spring, while a parallel-leaf setup wouldn't need one like that. Do an online search, find the setup you'd like to use, and use pictures of cars with that setup as a guide in setting up your car.

The Revell Ford Thunderbolt has wheels like that. Right off the top of my head, I can't think of any other kits with them.

The 1/16 NASCAR T-Bird and Pontiac Grand Prix kits were tooled by ERTL after they acquired AMT. They are among ERTL's earliest efforts, but even so, they are quite toylike. I've got one of the Grand Prix, was thinking about doing some fixes using a Monogram 1/24 GP to check proportions and measurements. I doubt I'll ever get to it though.