tim boyd

I didn't mention it in the review, but I have done so previously elsewhere, so I'll keep this brief for those who have not read it earlier... I have a real personal connection to the 1/1 scale Deora. One day, probably around September of 1966, when I was coming home from Junior High, I saw in the distance this very strange, low and sleek silhouette sitting on a lowboy trailer behind a pickup two vehicle alongside Bob Kirkham's Shell Station at Maple and Miller Road in Ann Arbor. Needless to say, I HAD to investigate. After I had eyeballed it, (although at the time I didn't know it, it was the Deora, in primer and about 80% completed, and trust me, it was absolutely stunning compared to the cars and trucks that were on the road in late 1966)...I went inside the station and asked what it was. I don't recall much of the conversation, but the upshot was that it was a concept vehicle, on the way to California (for exactly what, I do not recall). This was just months after the nearby M-14 freeway bypass was opened around the northwest side of Ann Arbor, and it was the exact route that a driver coming from the Alexander Brothers' shop in western Detroit, would be taking if driving to California (the Shell station was nearby the M-14 freeway interchange, and an obvious choice to fill up the gas tanks for the long drive ahead). I later learned the whole story when the car was revealed, as well as when I purchased several back issues of Car Model magazine, which of course ran the contest that resulted in the "Deora" nomenclature used upon final completion of the car. Still...what were the chances that a young model car builder would actually see this car, months before its full reveal to the public? Amazing.... TIM

Steve....your comment about the pretzel vendor grease sure made me smile. As a entrant/participant of countless MPC Customizing Contest from 1969-69, I can sure identify with your comments there. I too have built two of these in the past. The first was when the kit first came out...it was for my brother Jon....Testors Candy Blue over Silver...and like many of my AMT Trophy Series builds back then (some fit and finish issues, combined with my age 12-13 capabilities), it came out about 90% correct. The remnants of that effort are around here somewhere. The second was under contract for AMT in the mid 1970's, when I built the "Vantasy" version (not the box art model, which was an AMT art department quickie IIRC), but the fully built out display model they used in their annual sales conference with AMT Sales Reps and Execs. I've also built the engine two more times, once as the power for my '41 Plymouth convertible street rod (see the Nov./Dec. 1979 issue of the other model car mag), and again (IIRC) for the "Straight Six" article I did for the other guys around 2005 or so. Needless to say, this new version is calling out for a third (and final) box stock build.... Best Regards...TIM

Thanks guys for the feedback on the review, and needless to say, I share your sentiments on the results of this Round 2 kit reissue. Cheers...TIM

Here's the link to a full kit review....TIM http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/109803-full-review-round-2s-reissue-of-the-amt-dodge-deora-kit/

http://public.fotki.com/funman1712/first-look-at-all-n/whats-new-amt-deora/whats-new-amt-deora/ Click on the above link for 32 images and captions exploring this new Round 2 reissue, including those killer new pad-printed Firestone Wide Oval tires, compared with the original AMT 1967 kit issue. Make sure to use the "roll" feature to read the captions that go with each image. Thanks for looking...best Regards...TIM (P.S. - technically this is a truck kit, but do to the design and execution, I think of the Deora as a car, and I think many of you do as well. So I posted it here instead of the truck kits review section....TB)

Gregg...have never seen it at the Barnes and Noble in Northville, MI, nor the one in Dearborn, MI. Seems strange, as these are key auto enthusiast areas due to the domestic car manufacturers located nearby. Either they are selling out really quickly, or they are most stocking it for some reason Cheers...TIM

Tommy - That's a really interesting subject....my Dad bought new Dodge wagons every seven years and the 1965 Custom 880 wagon he ordered, was I think, his most favorite car of all the ones he owned. It looked just like your pictures, except it was painted the light metallic blue with the light/dmedium blue vinyl interior. The 1965 Custom 880 It was a really striking car when first introduced; it was unique in that it had chrome trim around the wood instead of the "faux light colored framing wood" look of the Ford Country Squire and Mercury Colony Park. Within a couple of years, the Custom 880 wagon approach to "woodie wagons" was widely copied in the industry. Good luck with your project and be sure to post your work in progress photos in the "on the bench" section at the top of the "Model Cars" category at this site. Thanks...TIM

As pointed out above, back in the day hot rodders (and A/SR drag car builders too) often based their cycle fenders on cut down spare tire enclosures, with the '36 Ford passenger car unit being a frequent choice. So, when I built my 1/25th '32 A/SR, I based the front cyle fenders on the spare tire cover in the AMT '36 Ford kit. Plenty enough styrene in one tire cover to do both fenders. Here's the result.... However, as also mentioned above, the easy way to do this in scale now is to use the units in the Revell Rat Roaster kit. They're well done and highly recommended. TIM

After all the complaints about "delays" in delivering some of their most recent products, I suspect that the Moebius team may be a little more close to the vest on announcing future new-tool kits and subsequent derivatives. These complaints, I suspect, are doubly vexing to the Moebius team, as the kits that were in fact "delayed" were due to Moebius taking the extra effort with their team and their suppliers to make last-minute refinements that have measurably improved those kits when they finally hit the market. Not criticizing anyone here, and not suggesting that I have inside info about this either, only pointing out some of the unintended consequences of comments made, mostly in good faith, on this and other model car forums. TIM .

Just paid for and picked up the reissue Deora kit at the Model Cave in Ypsilanti, Michigan. (thanks John and Melissa!) I'm very impressed after a quick look-thru. I'll try to shoot and writeup and in-depth review in the next couple of days. Until then, I can only say that I am totally blown away by the new tires. They appear to be the Goodyear F60-15 tires, but with gold "Firestrone" lettering and a very narrow white oultline along the outside edge of the sidewall. I did not unpack them yet, but from what I could see through the clear plastic envelope, they look KILLER!!!! Best regards...TIM

Just to second Doug's comment directly above, I finally got the kit today and the incorrect "hump" has been removed from the side stripe. Also the black inserts in the R/T Door "gills" have been added (they were not in the original kit). Beyond that, it looks like the hood blackout decal may have been fixed as well (the cutout for the standard R/T hood vent was too large, this leaving an incorrect border of body color around the insert unless this area was resprayed in flat black). I'll have to confirm that later. Well done, John, Tom and team! TIM

It's hit several online suppliers like www.spotlighthobbies.com, and I got a call today from my favorite local hobby store...the Model Cave in Ypsilanti, MI, that their shipment came in today (they also do mailorder). If you order today, you can probably have the kit by early next week....hope that helps. TIM

I agree with you guys on the MPC Supra. It was an outstanding kit, surely among the best of its era. Here's a link to 17 recent photos of a model I did in the early 1980's for another magazine that cleaned up all the Supra's overdone "gingerbread" styling cues, exposing the outstanding "bones" of the car and at the same time, showcasing the excellence of the MPC kit. MPC Supra kitbash Cheers...TIM

Wow...this is a huge shock. Reiterating what Danno says above, Gary was a HUGE supporter of the model car hobby. I first met Gary when he was a member of the Danville Dukes, a loose association of fun-loving street rodders who lived in and nearby Danville, CA, a suburb along the East Bay of the San Francisco area. I was introduced to Gary by Bill Burnham, a fellow Street Rodder magazine columnist and Danville Dukes member, shortly after I relocated to the San Francisco area in April of 1982. I'll never forget one Saturday a couple of years later when Gary called me at home, pitching his idea for a model car event at his car show series, which was soon to go national. He asked me to take the lead in organizing the model car series. I was hugely flattered, but immediately knew I could not take on the responsibility given my existing commitments to my full time employer and the magazine column I was already producing. I had to decline the offer, which was not easy to do. I can't recall exactly what happened next, but I know that Pryor Passorino played a big role in defining the model car show element of the Goodguys shows and leading their implementation in the early years, and to this day Tom Dillion and the local model car club members near Columbus basically run the model car even there every year. As Danno mentions, Gary had a huge interest in and respect for model car builders, particularly those of us who have enjoyed the hobby as adult builders. Gary also had a "joy for life" as I call it, that was hugely infectious and perhaps the single most important ingredient in the growth and success of the GoodGuys organization. Godspeed, Gary, and thanks. TIM

Great story, Dennis....and now I better understand why your hot rod model projects and comments on other builds are so spot-on. Both the 1/1 and 1/25th versions totally rock. TIM

Guys...not that he would ever admit it here, but Fred has a very good excuse for not getting some models done...as in he just completed a totally killer, all new 351 Windsor powered 1/1 scale '32 all-steel Highboy Roadster....TIM

Greg...I don't know anything directly from Moebius about this kit. Only broadly that more versions of the basic kit tool are planned, of which this is apparently one of them. I believe I read on another board that the Missile kit is planned for sale early next year. Best regards...TIM

****The MPC Ventura kit in 1975 had a Pontiac engine, but the real 1/1 1975 Ventura (according to several reliable sources) had the Buick 350 small block engine, a much different engine and one that appears much different as well. There was a reason for the MPC kit engine choice, but I will disclose that at a future point in time. It would be interesting to see how that MPC tool Pontiac engine changed (or not) during the evolution of that kit tool. TIM

Bob...I agree about the kit...I have a couple of original ''66 Imperial annual kits I bought over 35 years ago....I think the '64-'66 Imperial was a classic and among the three, the '66 had its own distinctive flavor, captured well in the kit. and of course, there are also the way-cool car/pickup conversion parts in the '66 annual kit as well....TIM

Interesting question, and yes, this is a subject Revell, I suspect, might possibly have some interest in. As for me personally, I like all of your suggestions, particularly the beam axle and Quick Change. One suggestion I'd add for sure - lose the SBC. I mean, could we come up with any more generic of an engine choice??? So many other cool engine choices out there....preferably Ford engines (S.C.o.T Flathead V8, Ardun Ford V8, Y-Block Ford, Y-Block Lincoln, MEL, FE, 335 series Cleveland (a bucks-up choice for hot rods back then), a 385 series 429 Cobra Jet, etc, etc,, even a 289 or 302 Windsor with tri-power or dual quad cross-ram and Shelby Cobra valve covers/tri-y headers), but anything other than an SBC would be a close second choice. ....TIM

Marty....cool build. I've never seen the "Hero" derivative of the '66 Imperial annual kit built up. It's much closer to stock than I realized (I thought that the showroom stock grille had been altered, for instance). Hmmmm...... Best regards TIM

Bill....pretty much the same problem here....what color do I paint it? Yours are both excellent choices. TIM

Bill and Bill...exact same problem here. I'll try the refresh approach....TIM

Snake....last I heard, there is one mold (or enough of it left to make a kit reissue possible) that is actually in Round 2's tentative 2016 release plan. It's a kit that was only ever released once and then was only in production for less than a year. It's one we've heard that was retooled to a much different product, or. alternatively, permanently scrapped. Obviously, I am not authorized to reveal the subject, but assuming the plan to make it production ready plays out as envisioned, it's gong to blow away a lot of people. And if so, like the T500 California Hauler and several others mentioned above, it will once again reinforce the phrase "never say never" when it comes to the Round 2 tooling bank and the team that is harvesting these model tools and making them usable again.... TIM

Fred...looks like a great project underway here. I vote for the S&M Keystones and the big'n'little Goodyear RWL's....this is exactly how a bucks-up new 'cuda owner would have set up his car in "day two" form in the early 1970's.....and from my point of view, nothing looks better than an early 1970's Mopar B or E body with mags on Goodyear RWL Polyglas GT tires (F's or G's on the front, G's or H's on the back) which is of course very close to what the Round 2 AMT Goodyyear RWL parts pack tires represent. Cheers! TIM