fomocomav

The Classics do have engines and brass parts, in most cases. I've had 2 Model T delivery vans, and one had brass plated parts, and one had brass colored plastic. They are very nice kits. I've had the Life-Like reissue of the Lanchester, and it didn't have a motor. But the Renault and both Fords did. Check the contents before you buy if you NEED a motor. If you are just looking for nice models of vehicles that you won't find anywhere else, then these are great! No one will ever do a Lanchester or the Stevens-Duryea in 1/25. And their 1930 Packard Sport coupe is really nice, too! (with a motor!)

That's not a Chevette clone. I guess I remembered it wrong. Thanks for the help!

That's the one(J2000)!!! Do you remember who made it?

I'm pretty sure that there was a model kit in 1/24 or 1/25 made of the Pontiac version of the Chevette. And I'm pretty sure it was by USAirfix. However, I cannot find any evidence of it (no pictures turning up on the 'Net.) Does anyone remember which company made this? Maybe have a picture they could share? Thanks!

Thanks for the info, Matt Bacon. I'll just have to put that project on the back burner, as I don't need to be buying 2 MORE kits to make the first one do what I want.

I want to upgrade my Sunny/Academy Ferrari 250LM, and was wondering if anyone had any ideas on which Ferrari 250 kit (SWB or GTO) I should use for the motor and chassis, I would be grateful!

Thanks for posting this! You aren't going to do anything crazy like sand off the emblems, are you? If you are, I have a body and hood from the police kit that I could trade you!

Casey, I think this is the scheme they were going for. I have no idea if your Maverick picture is the same color as this Comet picture, but I definitely like the yellow yours is showing better than the gold.

If I were into Pro Stock, Sandy Elliot's Comet has an awesome scheme!

Robberbaron, the Maverick in the white box also has the plastic "sprue-style" axles, you just can't see the hole from the angle. Only the earliest issues have metal axles. These kits never used pins that I am aware of. As to parts sharing, if you have the Stock option kits, you will find that the stock parts are the same except for the bodies, hoods, and bumpers/grille. Basically, the same as the real cars.

I can't speak to the scoop orientation, but the auction linked above (on the previous page) to this kit shows these wheels in this kit. I wish they had kept the front spoiler in the kits I have a project that needs one.

How is this chassis any worse than the old AMT chassis? The details that are present are very good. And really, the OTAKI Maverick had a much worse chassis (which is what you get when you motorize something). I had that kit once, and it wasn't worth having.

One thing that needs to be remembered about these old Jo-Han kits, if they are open when you go to buy them, BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR DECEPTION/LACK OF KNOWLEDGE by the seller. GMCMAN52 mentions above that he has decals that don't look like they belong to his kit. They don't. But where did they come into the picture? A mistake at the factory? An unknowing seller? Or worse, a seller trying to deceive buyers? I've had Jo-Han kits with different color plastic sprues in the same box. How do I know it was a factory job? Because I bought it sealed and opened it myself. Anyone with as much experience as I have with Jo-Han will know that is a possibility, and not unheard of. Someone new to these kits will think I'm making it up. I personally wouldn't do this, but some people might try to mix kits to match colors to sell for a better price. Look for flash! If it is on some parts, but not others, be wary.

Here is the 1971 original issue Mercury Comet. I didn't even know it existed until about 2 years ago, and even then, it was very hard to find. Mine wasn't complete, but it had what I needed. And I think it has some of the best box art! This issue, unlike the Maverick, could be built stock or Pro Stock. The Comet had a separate issue for the drag kit.

1972coronet is right, there are a few kits that were available that used named drivers. None of those are in my collection, as they are always too expensive. Also, I only need ones that can be built stock. I know the Pro Stock kits seem pretty far from stock, but the article Juha Airio did showed they could be made close to stock relatively easily. The Schartman kit referenced above has "Comet" parts in it, such as the roll bar and the spoilers, which were not available originally in a Maverick, but came on the Comet drag racer. The wheels are also different from the common Maverick ones.

Also to consider, the Testors release of the Comet. The Comet is almost a direct re-pop of the Jo-Han kit, except for the two side windows, which are now on their own sprue, instead of sharing one with the windshield. The decals look nicely done, but I think the dragon is more suited to a '70s van. The best thing about the Testors release is that it is white plastic, so no bleed-through! Notice that the old Jo-Han kits' decals do not match the box art. No one has seen the Rapid Randy decals in a kit. Billy Gooche's daughter has done a set of them, and also has the Mr. Gasket original set. I don't know if Rapid Randy was a real car, or if the Mr. Gasket wore those decals, but the Mr. Gasket set would be the one I would go with, if I were building a Pro Stock.

Thanks! If I could do better as a photographer, I could REALLY make this stand out.

The colors are darker on the older box lid than on the Seville lid. Since I have multiple Comets, I checked, and this is consistent with the others I have. The Comet tail lights have Comet 72 on them, and the original kit tail lights have Comet 71. There was no noticeable change between the years that would show up in the kits. These were "Simple Machines," and the only thing I can think of on the 1:1 cars would be the interior pattern. One unit, 3 point seat belts didn't show up until 1974, IIRC. I don't have every year Comet dealer brochure to check this, but they would be consistent with the Maverick

The off-white parts are the Maverick, the turquoise are the Comet. The Maverick has no scripts anywhere on the body, and the Comet only has "Mercury" on the trunk lid. Both cars had the appropriate scripts on the front fenders when first released. The differences between the kits are, the Maverick could have a BOSS 429 or a SOHC 427, and the Comet could have a BOSS 429 only. The roll cages are different, and the seats are different. The seats remind me of the kind used in poor builds of kit cars, and I have never cared for them. The Comet has a stock steering wheel with a trim ring that shouldn't be there (wasn't on the 1:1 car), and the Maverick has a competition chrome 3-spoke steering wheel (missing from this kit). The tires included are Good Year on one side, and Firestone 500 on the other. On the windows, the Maverick only has Mav on its top runner, and the Comet has Mav and C3100 on it. Both kits have rearview mirrors, which is an oddity for model cars of this vintage. The interior door panels have a very little bit of detail on them, and it is accurate for a 1971-72 vehicle, except for the missing medallion in the Comet.

Here are the instructions and decal sheets. The smaller Maverick sheet is the older one. On the Comet picture, the sheet to the left and the decals to the left are for the original issue stock/Pro Stock kit. The decal sheet for the Comet doesn't appear to have changed for the two white box issues I'm showing. The instruction sheets DO vary, one saying Pro Stock, the other Pro Street. I don't know what the difference is. The pictorial assembly parts are the same, despite the title differences.

Here are the Comet boxes. These two are also representing two different periods of ownership, before and during Seville. I was told that Seville did the different lid with the red/magenta car on it only, but here is proof that they had two different box styles. I don't have the red/magenta car box, so I can't include it. The Seville markings are also above the Jo-Han logos and on the bottom of the teaser side panel. As with the Maverick above, the parts content is the exact same between the two kits. The car represented in this kit is a 1972 per Jo-Han, but could represent a 1971 as well.

This is a quick review of what is the same and different between these two kits. This review is of the more common Pro Stock cars. The parts allow for the making of a 1971-72 Maverick Grabber Pro Stock car. The grille has the two sport lamps in it, but no center medallion. The sport lamps in the grille mean Grabber Option for 1971-72. I have no idea if the decals are intended to replicate a then-existing car. If you notice on the box lids, there are 2 different versions represented, the Jo-Han-owned version, and the Seville-owned version. You can see the differences above the Jo-Han logo on the top of the lids, and also under the "features" panel picture. On the long side opposite the features is the "teaser"? panel, explaining a bit about Pro Stock. The one with the UPC logo is obviously newer, and probably came out in 1992-3.

The reason the axle is molded in is because they took the promo chassis and just cut out the engine plate. They put the same chassis in their Comets. After they were done with the promos, and started issuing Pro Stock kits, they got rid of the exhaust that was molded in as well. Drag cars don't need stock exhausts. This is too bad, as getting a nice stock chassis with the exhaust still in it is a pain. Anyone who says to use the '67 Mustang chassis forgets to tell you the gas tank is the wrong size between the two, and quite noticeable.

69NovaYenkoI just noticed on the instruction sheet that it claims it to be a 1970 (only on the Blue Box instructions, above the coupon for replacement parts). I never had to look for what year it was, because I knew it would work for my purposes, having owned 5 1:1 Mavericks (and one Comet). And yes, the V8 they include is either a 427 SOHC or a BOSS 429, depending on which valve cover you use, in the "Yellow" box, newer Pro Stock only kits. The engine in the first issue (Blue Box) only has 429 valve covers, with big old hideous F O R D block letters on them. If you look at the grilles on the box covers, they are incorrect for ANY year Maverick, This is on BOTH Yellow and Blue boxes. And the pictures do not represent the grilles present in the kits. The Blue one has a Maverick medallion in the center of the grille, and the Yellow box has the sport lamps in the grille. The one with the medallion was the base model grille through 1972. The sport lamps grille was the upper-level model/Grabber till 1972, then the the only grille available from 1973-1975. This is US models information only. I am not as up on the Brazilian and Mexican Mavericks.

It CAN represent a 1969 1/2 to 1972. The base model with the emblem in the center, and the Grabber with the two sport lamps. Interior patterns changed, but not enough to notice, especially since you will have to source your own stock interior. If you have the original kit that had stock as an option, the I6 is usable in all 3 years, and can represent the 170ci (in 1969.5) and the 200ci. The 302ci wasn't available till 1971, but the V8 in the kit represents something bigger. The instruction sheet I have for one of the Stock option kits is dated Dec 10 1969. Jo-Han meant for it to represent the 1969.5 (early 1970) car. I know this because there is a trim ring on the stock steering wheel that is NOT on the 1:1 regular 1970 model year Mavericks, only the early '70 cars.