CapSat 6

That’s what I’m hoping. The last time we saw the 500, it was during that period of terribly misleading box art. The box art build for the 500 was red, with steel wheels and dog dish wheelcovers (which, surprise-surprise- were not in the box)... It would be nice if they at least located the correct hood for another 500 issue, and maybe gave it the retro-phantom box treatment. Maybe something stock-car themed, or even include decals for the Propane X Charger 500 drag car. Round 2 is very good at this kind of thing, it could happen!

So...looks like I’m getting my answers here, and the more I think about it, the more it’s worthwhile to put the effort into the Revell kit. I still think if these parts were offered, there would still be a market for them, at least to restore original MPC annuals. I might try my hand at casting some of these things myself...

I checked out what I have... The Furious Charger was released around 2003. The Daytona I was referring to was released squarely in the Round 2 era- the bottom of the box says 2011, but then again, this box says it was molded in white, and red Daytona parts came in this box. This was put out along with other kits molded in color: a ‘72 GTO in orange, a 55 Nomad in gray, 57 Chevy and ‘66 Nova in blue.

I wonder. I think they still have it, or they can swap an insert for the 500 rear window - that last issue of the Daytona (red plastic) had the fastback rear window...

? For all of these kits’ faults, I still love them. I grew up with them. The Revell kit is vastly superior, but I still like the simplicity of these oldies, and, I think they can be made to look pretty nice with a little effort. Or- Monster Truck food ?

I wouldn’t be surprised if Revell does this eventually. To build a nice 500 now, you would need 3 kits (or two kits and a 500 grille)- both Revell Daytona and ‘69 Charger kits so that you can combine the front fenders and hood from the standard ‘69 with the Daytona body.

Absolutely correct- all the more reason just to build the Revell kit then. I still have all of these AMT’s & MPC’s, though... ?

And that would be a good way to go if you wanted to build the best General Lee that you could. I have done that, too. I’m just thinking there are a lot of orphans out there!

Picture 3 top to bottom: 1) General Lee body (just like every variant from 1979 to present, split rear valence), 2) valence cut from a junk MPC Promo Body.

Picture 2: left to right, then bottom: 1) Charger 500 (correct) hood, 2) Charger Daytona hood, 3) General Lee hood, 4 (below) Revell ‘69 Charger hood.

The old General Lee kit has been around forever (actually, since 1979, so...38 years? Practically forever!). For a long time, the body had the wrong rear window- instead of the standard Charger “tunnel back”, it had the Charger 500 and Daytona rear window. This dates back to when MPC retooled their 1970 Annual kit into a Charger Daytona NASCAR stocker. When MPC revised the tool in 1979, they changed the front fenders back to a non-Daytona, “stock” configuration for their General Lee, rightly seizing upon the popularity of the Dukes of Hazzard show. The changes were incomplete however- they kept the back window in it’s Daytona form, and they also kept the 1970 Charger/ 1969 Daytona hood, as well as some of the racing interior. They also revised the rear valence, so that there was a break in the middle, since they probably saw that the rear bumper would not fit into the gap in the body for it very well. The gap was to be covered by an oversized plastic license plate. It was a cheap fix, but it solved the problem. The grille inserts used in these kits were actually the ones last seen in the 1972 Charger Annual, which coincidentally fit where the ‘69 units would go. AMT Ertl later made some lemonade out of lemons around 1986- they retooled the kit and released a Charger 500, and later a Charger Daytona. They added the fully stock interior back in, along with some other body engraving and details that were lost when they converted the body to a racer back in 1970. The 1986-ish issue of the Charger 500 had a correct 1968-1969 looking hood (the vents were a different shape than the Daytona/ ‘70 hood). They still however kept the rear valence as it was from the Dukes days. Fast forward a few years, and the General Lee is reissued. It still has the 500/ Daytona rear window, the awful rear valence, and the ‘72 Charger grille inserts. Also, the front edge of the Daytona hood was modified to blend with the stock style fenders & grille, so the wrong hood is being reintroduced. Around 2002, the tool is revised for the Fast and Furious movie franchise. Many new parts are added in to make it looks sort of like the blown ‘70 in the movie, most of which were terrible, but lo and behold- the rear window has been revised back to the “tunnel back” type. It’s not a perfect job, but it will do in a pinch. The General Lee is reissued a few times after that. Any issue released after the Fast and Furious Charger has the correct rear window, so some good came out of the F&F revisions. Still - the hood is the wrong ‘70 type, the grille inserts are still the ‘72 units, and the rear valence is still a mess. What am I getting at here? Well- I’m wondering aloud if it would be worthwhile for somebody to cast up correct parts for all of the General Lees out there. I read several times that this might be the most common model car kit in history. I would be inclined to believe it. If the correct hood, grille inserts, and a rear valence were offered for a reasonable price, would there be interest (besides me?). I know this kit isn’t fantastic, and the superior Revell kit is widely available, but I’m thinking there are a ton of them out there that could use these parts. I even have parts that could be used as masters if a reputable caster would be interested. Picture 1: top to bottom: 1) ‘72 Charger grille inserts, 2) original annual inserts, 3) grilles cut out of a Revell grille (these look great, but I’m not sure I can get them to fit in an MPC/ AMT grille).

Please let me know when the Volare Super Coupe decals are ready for sale- love the vintage Pennsylvania plates, too!!!

I think this is the car I saw. Here is a link. Also, I did some mental math, I think I actually saw it about 15 years ago. http://xaxbinterceptor.tripod.com/id29.html

Dave, you would be surprised. A fella (a "quick" fella...ha ha!) near me brought a 1:1 GTHO to a cruise in Collegeville, PA several years ago. It wasn't done up Mad Max style, it was a nice stock GTHO. Unmistakably one of those cars. Black with a 351 and a shaker hood. I will have to find the pictures of that car I have and post them. I was taken aback at how small the car was- size-wise, it seemed to be just about as big as a Ford Maverick. Super, SUPER-cool car in real life!!! Don't get me wrong- I love me my Valiant Chargers, but - WOW. I think the films make these cars look bigger than they actually are. I think the styling does, too. The car I saw was in black, so darker colored cars tend to look smaller, too, but to me, seeing a real one up close, it was definitely smaller than I expected.

I haven't touched this one. It's more or less a filler until I build one of my kits. The more I look at it. the more I want to fix, so...I'll just hold onto my kits, than you very much.

I can’t say this is especially surprising. I have been going there since 1988, to the Mopars at Englishtown event. Over the years, the emphasis on that event shifted from the drags, to the swaps, back onto the drags a bit when everybody started complaining about the high fees the vendors had to pay, and over the past 10 years or so, competing events at that same facility. Lately, while they have the show/swap/race, there also would be dirt biking, carting, solo, and tough mudder events. I think they have been trying to utilize the property as best they can, but at least for now, it doesn’t seem like they’re going to turn it into more retail wasteland.

It’s true that almost any factory kit of a NASCAR car raced between about 1983-present are super common. The market was flooded, in no small part because NASCAR was hot there for awhile, and also, because in most cases- design a new decal sheet- and BAM! New variant for the same tooling. Even the chassis and engines were carryovers for many years. It doesn’t seem to be quite the same for the older body styles. The Polar Lights Talledegas, Cyclones and Chargers seem to sell for healthy amounts on the secondary market, and whenever Round 2 resurrects a ‘70’s NASCAR Car, they seem to do ok.

I think this is big news. To Mike's Decals points above- it's true- for years, NASCAR modelers have spent $$$ on resin bodies, decals, then donor kits, paints & maybe wheels or other detail parts to build that "special" model. It's not priced too badly, when it's considered that a resin body, donor kit, and decals would cost about the same or more, all said and done. I think this is a pretty good pick, too: a historically significant car, that lends itself to future decal variants (Petty/ STP, Waltrip/ Gatorade, Earnhardt- almost all of the big NASCAR drivers drove these cars at some point or another). Also- it's only ever been available in resin, never in true kit form. Also- judging by the pics, it looks pretty nice. Of course, we'll have to see the final product, but- from my first look, I'm not grossed out. If it looks this good out of an actual box, count me in for one. Parts count is 128 pieces- so there is hope that this is a full detail (meaning: engine detail) kit. This seems to be quite an effort. Let's hope for a Dodge Magnum!

Mr. Gurney’s attitude when pulled over by the brown Dodge patrol car was hilarious!

It seems that big and little Cragars and “Turbo” style mags seemed to be the most common to be used on vans back then. The MPC GTO kits have nice “Turbo” style mags. I would not be surprised if they show up at model swap meets reasonably from time to time, but to be honest, I haven’t really been looking for them lately.

No problem! The Vectors could serve as ‘70’s Van Wheels, but maybe better ones could be found in MPC’s recent ‘67 and ‘72 GTO’s- those turbo mags are maybe more suited to custom vans.

The same old MPC Goodyears and so-so Vector wheels that have been in every other Dukes issue, along with the nice new Torq Thrusts that were put in the recent ‘69 Cuda and ‘67 Charger kits.

Hmmm...that buildup actually looks dark blue, while the illustration on the box looks black. I ended up cracking and buying one of these. Yes, it has it’s shortcomings, but I still like this kit. I just wish they would find the correct hood and grille inserts one day.

May he rest in peace. First Brock Yates a few years ago (whom I had the pleasure of meeting- very nice guy- I was a little apprehensive about it, but it was like talking to a buddy in no time), and now, this. My Cannonball heroes are now gone. If you ever get the chance- the book by Brock Yates - “Cannonball!” Is a great read and tells the story about how Mr. Yates invited Mr. Gurney to drive with him in the race, Mr. Gurney initially declined, citing sponsor obligations and other concerns, but then at the last minute, joined in, did the race like the true pro that he was, and seemed to enjoy every minute of it. I just this week blew apart my old build of his Trans-Am AAR Cuda. I built it in around 1993 and I hope to freshen it up for the first Philly NNL, coming up in a few short months: