Mark

The blue one is the '82 annual, the yellow one is the '83. I don't think there are any differences in the parts, except the '83 has clear parts that are tinted dark enough to use as welding goggles. MPC did that with a lot of kits from late '82 (when the '83 annuals appeared) through '84 or '85. I remember most, if not all, of the early production '67 GTO reissue kits having those dark windows.

The 327 Chevy pack was pieced into the Revell '57 Chevy kit (the old opening-doors one, due to be reissued this year). If you have one, check out the tree with the unplated engine parts...you can see the "parts pack" style tree that surrounds the parts. Some parts inside the tree are deleted because they weren't needed on the Chevy, or were redundant to parts on the existing plated tree. I believe the switch was done around 1968, when other changes were made to the Chevy: different hood and trunk hinges, addition of the supercharger option (which was part of the parts pack), the drag front axle, and deletion of the roll bar and spare tire in favor of a molded plastic "tire cover". Prior to the reissues, the 427 Ford was probably the toughest engine to find, as it was the last one released (in 1965, one of the last few packs released). The 327 Chevy might be a tough one, but I'd say that the Buick and the funky turbine are tough too. People still pay a decent chunk of change for the Chrysler, even though it is available in the Miss Deal kit.

I was eleven when those kits appeared, and thought they were dumb even then. I didn't care for the Zingers, but in the case of those I could just ignore them and buy something else...

Because for '71, MPC was obsessed with those incredibly stupid "spoof" parts. I guess they thought that kids liked building Zingers, so they'd like to build regular car kits as Zingers also. Epic fail. About half of the '71 annual kits got them; they wasted a lot of plastic and took up space on the parts trees that could have been used for other optional parts. Most of the '71 kits that had them, kept them for '72 also (the Vega and Jeepster Commando lost them for '72). For '73 they were gone, replaced in part with another waste of plastic (those "belt badges"). Hopefully the tooling inserts for all of those things are lost, never to be found...

If you have warpage AND bad plating, why not contact Revell about getting a replacement kit? A small problem might have been passable when retail prices were in the $10-12 range, but when they are double that, I don't bother fixing stuff...I contact them and get good parts.

MPC also offered a '76 convertible. Both companies' Corvette kits had big-block engines through 1977, though they were gone after '74. For '78, MPC created an all-new 'Vette with a small-block engine, while AMT walked away from the business of doing annual kits altogether...

I've purchased a Dupli-Cutter from Micro-Mark...it is the NWSL item. This was a few years ago, but I'd bet that Micro-Mark still sells "name brand" items as opposed to knockoffs...

Check out the tool vendors at automotive flea markets: some of them will have some items that will be useful for modelers, though probably not the smaller files. IPMS shows usually have one or two decent tool vendors, as will model railroad shows. Going to the shows (as opposed to ordering online) gives you the opportunity to handle the stuff before buying, which is often important with tools (some "feel right", others don't, regardless of quality or price). The automotive flea markets will have other supplies like sandpaper and two-part catalyzed putty; the IPMS and train shows will often have sheet plastic, Bare-Metal Foil, and paint brands that the local hobby shop(s) may not stock. All of them will probably have vendors selling kits too. That said, I do buy from Micro-Mark often enough to keep the catalogs coming. I like their mold material (but not the resin), and some of the tools also...

The stripes aren't correct for a stock Dart anyway, so what's the difference?

Look at it this way...until it is finished, it still has potential!

The '53/'54 always had the "do it yourself" opening doors (also the sedan's trunk lid, and delivery rear door). Revell did the '55, '56, and '57 Chevies (including the '57 Nomad) with separate parts, but the '53/'54 kits were done later. Revell also did a Porsche 911 kit with the "do it yourself" doors. Later variations on that kit include the parts but don't mention the feature; it was tough for younger modelers to do.

To bring this back up to the top, I did get a copy of the new book for Christmas (as well as buying a copy, to give to someone else). It is NOT a rewrite or repackaging of any previous work. Since seeing the announcement of the new book, I had been looking for a copy to check out before buying one, as Patrick Foster's previous AMC book was, in my opinion, not very good. I haven't cared much for his Hemmings Classic Car columns either. But the new book is very good, and I would recommend it to anyone with an interest in AMC, or independent American automakers in general. Foster seems to have made a particular effort to not recycle anything from the first book, photos included. There are lots of interesting pictures, many of which I hadn't seen before (having once owned an AMC car, I have long been interested in them, and gravitate towards any reading material about them). The information is interesting too, and includes things I hadn't read about previously. This book only touches on AMC's racing activity, something I wish would have been explored more deeply. It does get more into styling and prototypes, something lacking in the first book and with AMC is always interesting. Of course, we'd probably have liked to see a chapter with brochures and promotional items, and maybe more dealership photos...but no such luck. Even so, this is easily Patrick Foster's best work, and I would recommend it highly.

Look closely at the illustration of the stock car...it has the Cragar wheels on it. When built according to the original annual kit's instructions, that's how it came out. The only choices were the stock wheel covers or the mags. The inner wheels had some "open wheel" detail (no lug detail as in more recent issues), but no outer halves were ever included to take advantage of that. IMO, Round 2 made the best compromise here. Another set of tires would have added to the price, and those building an all-out NASCAR version would probably not have been happy with whatever tires would have been included. The stock version is here, the original custom parts are back, and the NASCAR version is closer to being accurate than ever, certainly more so than in many annual kits.

The "Revell" (ex-Monogram) Bel Air hardtop is 1/24 scale, so few (if any) parts will fit the 1/25 scale Revell sedan or delivery kits. Best bet is to use the engine/transmission/rear axle from one of the AMT '51 Chevy kits. The Revell '53/'54 frame and front suspension are actually fairly accurate, the inner front fenders are another story though.

Put them into new kits, but leave the old ones alone. It's unlikely that a manufacturer could recoup the cost of the modification through additional kit sales, and raising the price will result in lower sales. In most cases, I think the manufacturers strike a pretty good balance between price, detail level in all-new kits, and improvements/alterations to existing ones. You can quibble with certain things, but overall they do a pretty good job. A parts pack with a tree of plated headlamp buckets and a clear tree of lenses would be nice to see for those who do want to make the alteration themselves. While we're at it, how about plated trees of door handles, windshield wipers, interior door and window crank handles...

I'm referring to the "high rise" option in the kits, not the 1:1 cars...

'70 had leaf springs, '71 and '72 had coils! The '70 Bonneville had a similar setup to the '70 Impala, with rear leaf springs. The front axle is on the plated tree in the Model King reissue Bonneville convertible...

Falcon dog dish caps are different from the big Ford units.

MPC produced the Stutz Bearcat because it was featured in a short-lived TV show. The first issue box art includes still photographs from the TV show. I've never heard of MPC or anyone else doing a Mercer kit, except the large scale motorized ITC kit from the early Sixties. AMT didn't release the Beverly Hillbillies truck originally, it was MPC. The reissue is branded AMT because RC2 was not using the MPC brand on its kits. Had Ertl reissued it when they were doing Buyer's Choice kits, they probably would have used original style box art with the MPC brand.

The Ranchero kit chassis is "shallower" than it should be, probably to make it easier to mold. The driveshaft tunnel in particular is "flatter" than it ought to be, because it has to clear that interior/window mounting boss that is molded into the underside of the cargo area floor. Other than that and the rounded inner fenders, it isn't bad. As I remember, it checked out pretty well against a '62 sedan delivery my older brother owned some years ago (he'd just bought it when I saw the '77 reissue Ranchero kit, and grabbed one). I started cutting all of that stuff out of a kit chassis, and once the holes are filled back in (deeper driveline tunnel, higher kick-up) I can then get rid of the molded-in rear axle and spring detail. I cut the rounded inner fenders and suspension detail from a '60 Comet underbody and built a more correct engine compartment for that one (yet another unfinished project that is staring me in the face!). But the Fairlane conversion looks intriguing. The kick-up gradually drops back down behind the rear wheels to create a deeper trunk floor in the 1:1 car. That can be fixed, though. I'd probably approach it by removing the interior mounting boss from the inside of the Ranchero body (and trimming the rear mounting posts), then shorten the Fairlane underbody and fit it in. I'd then cut the Fairlane piece at the highest point of the kick-up, and rebuild from there back with sheet plastic tacked to the bottom of the bed floor. I've got a set of Ford parts books that cover 1960-64 that include pretty decent line drawings of the underbody stampings...between those and the original Ranchero piece as reference, I think it is possible to come up with a much-improved Ranchero. The transmission tunnel will be larger than stock, but unless you are going 100% stock that is actually a plus...

The Fairlane/Cyclone piece appears to be the way to go. However, I wouldn't make the cut where you have it indicated. The AMT Ranchero has the underside "shapes and locations" generally correct; I'd use that as a guide. I think you'll end up making the cut in the tunnel area, more forward of the proposed location. The stock Ranchero gas tank is smaller, and offset to the driver's side, leaving space for the muffler between it and the passenger side leaf spring. The AMT Ranchero chassis never had a gas tank, either as a separate part or molded as part of the chassis. If one had been molded into the stock chassis, the second muffler added for the V8 engine issues wouldn't have fit where it is. You will probably have to tweak the engine compartment walls, or make new ones. The Fairlane's hood opening is wider, and the engine compartment side panels flare out to meet the sides of the opening. They will need to meet the sides of the Ranchero hood opening in exactly the same way. For a pro street conversion, where you aren't concerned with stock appearance, take a look at the pro street '66 Nova underbody. I've got one of those fitted into a '62 Falcon body, and will even use the interior with some tweaks. The engine compartment pieces aren't stock, so they aren't too "Chevy looking", but you can change things around a bit and smooth them up even more. The stock Nova underbody has too many Chevy/GM characteristics to make using it for a replica stock Falcon worth the effort. The Fairlane setup looks like the way to go, even with the amount of work needed. When we make the Falcon/Mustang comparison, we're correct in saying that some of the suspension parts are similar. I don't think that the underbody sheet metal is shared, though. Someone who owns a Falcon or Ranchero can confirm this...do any Mustang underbody patch panels fit a Falcon or Ranchero?

The '65 Chevelle wagon and El Camino don't share any parts (except for a small tree with parts for a supercharger setup, that floats between the two kits). Everything is similar, but again, not the same. Same goes for the '64 kits that they are based on. In fact, the '64 bumpers for the two kits have the "1964" in the license plate areas in different fonts. And the chassis aren't exactly the same: the wagon piece has the little spare tire well at the back. The Nova wagon parts are different from those in the hardtop and convertible kits (the latter two did share a lot of parts). The front bumper/grille units are way different: if you put a hardtop/convertible hood on a wagon, there will be a noticeable gap between the hood and the upper grille trim (which is attached to the hood on the 1:1 car). The parts do interchange, but you have to use the both the hood and bumper/grille unit from the wagon, or hardtop/convertible. The '60 Chevy hardtop/convertible, wagon, and El Camino were all different (though again parts did interchange). The Junior Craftsman wagon used the rear bumper from the hardtop/convertible, reworked to move the license plate below the bumper. Probably just a case of "just patch it together; it'll be good enough".

The '61 Ranchero kit never shared any parts with the Falcon, except for tires. Bumpers and some other parts interchange, but are not the same.

For tools, don't overlook IPMS or railroad show/sales. The railroad show vendors have it all over the usual hobby shop selection. A few weeks ago, I bought a couple of nice panel scribing tools and some Dremel burrs. As a bonus, I also found a cleanly built, unpainted SMP '59 Impala convertible for $10! The IPMS shows are good too: lots of different tools and paints that the local shops don't often carry. If you have a plastics supplier in your area (check the phone book), if they have a retail store it will often include a scrap pile, where they sell leftovers and cutoffs from jobs. I've found styrene sheet in thicknesses ranging from .040" to about 1/8", in pieces bigger than will ever be needed for any one project. Price was $1.50 per pound; buy five pounds, get five more free. Ten pounds of sheet plastic is a bunch! I've never bought a full sheet, but I understand even those don't cost a whole lot. Maybe buy one of each available thickness, and split with friends or club members (or sell some at a show to recoup your cost).

It has both cabriolet and panel delivery versions in one box, but only one car/truck can be built from it, leaving a ton of spare parts! The panel could be built as a "paddy wagon" with a divider between the passenger area and the prisoner/cargo area. That piece, and the Gangbuster related stuff, didn't make it into the panel when it was reissued as a stand-alone kit in 1966. A couple years ago, I bought a resin panel delivery conversion with a busted body (mainly to get the rear doors, which are often missing from built panel trucks, and are not in the Vampire Van). The conversion included that paddy wagon divider. I had a Gangbusters issue many years ago, but had forgotten about that part. It's not in the panel delivery kit that I have now.