tim boyd

Dennis...that's an awesome Model A collection. I really like the radically channeled roadster and the Tudor Phaeton conversion. Thanks for posting those! TIM Andy...thanks for posting! Any of the rest of you want to add to this thread with your Model A hot rods? TB

The body stretches over the completed chassis. It's pretty secure when finished. But you have to trim the rear of the chassis as shown in the instructions, PLUS additionally trim triangular sections of the outboard rear corners of the floor board (not shown in the instruction), for it to fit the Corvair body. I only had to trim the rear wheels wells ever so slightly from the inside (no radiusing of the wheel opening from the outside is required.) The front axle also should be moved forward slightly (as is the case with virtually all of the AMT A/FX style funny car kits). And, the instrument panel leaves a slight gap between its forward edges and the windshield/cowl of the body. Not too unsightly, particularly if you finish the IP in black. All in all, it's a fairly cool look when finished. TB

Lee, I can't speak directly for Revell here, but my take is that with the original 1960's era Revell '29A Roadster/Closed Cab Pickup, the '31 Tudor Sedan kit, and the '30 Woody kit (which between them can be built close to stock) and the 100% stock AMT '29 A Roadster, Revell has determined that the stock Model A builder is fairly well covered and a newly tooled kit of those subjects would not have the sales potential of a pure hot rod Model A kit. But the true hot rod builder of Model A's has never had a purpose-built kit of a Model A Roadster on '32 Ford rails, much less a channeled version to boot. The way the new Revell kit is designed, it could not also contain a stock version and deliver the pure hot rod version in the form that they have achieved. (Not a single part of the new kit, other than perhaps the door handles, is 100% stock). The success of the purpose-designed '32 Ford Street Rod series over the past nearly 20 years has, I suspect, has convinced Revell that the business potential of a pure hot rod Model A kit is far larger than a compromised kit that tries to serve both types of builders. Stated another way, it's not that they don't care or aren't aware, it's that they see the dedicated hot rod approach as a better long term business proposition. That's my best guess....and yes, I do understand your disappointment. On the other hand, if the ITC Model T kit sells well, it's not too hard to surmise that they might give a serious look at a Model A as a follow-up kit subject. TIM

...or the V8-60 from the Edelbrock Midget Racer kit...! Or even the Offy from the old AMT Watson Roadster Indy kit (one of Rodder's Journal Publisher Steve Coonan's friends when he lived in Huntington Beach, CA, built an Offy powered '29 A Roadster Pickup that is still going great to this day (Red, Highboy, steelies, wood rails above the shortened pickup bed...you have probably seen pictres of it if you read the rod magazines...) TB

Dennis is spot on, this kit is the only source I've found for Guide headlamps. Here's what these lamps from the latest issue of the Revell (originally Monogram) '30 Ford Phaeton/Touring kit (#85-4242) look like installed on a kitbashed Model A Chopped Five Window Coupe Hot Rod: I agree with Joe above, someone in the aftermarket should consider casting these lamps, because as Dennis says, these ARE the quintessential headlamps on many traditional hot rod builds these days....TIM UPDATE - so Norm has added these to his catalog (see posts below) - thanks for the update guys....TIM

Primo, Harry....TB

Thanks guys for all the positive feedback....Best Regards...TIM

I see your point on this (I had the same thought as well), but the kit's designer was ntent on replicating more of a "traditional look but with some modern gubbins underneath" type of rod you'd get from Roy Brizio or the SoCal shops. (In fact, the rear radius rods and coil overs are dupes of the 1/1 scale SoCal components). One that is designed to drive cross-country more than the local Rat Rod show. As I posted elswhere, I'd wager a bet or two that one of the aftermarket suppliers will be on the scene with a traditional/historically correct transverse leaf/Halibrand Quick Change rear end setup sooner than later. TIM

In celebration of Revell's new Model A Roadster kit, and in response to several spontaneous threads of builders posting their own kitbashed Model A Hot Rods, I finally got busy yesterday and did some high-quality salon photography of my own fenderless Model A Hot Rod models. When I was done, there were 15 models and about 170 pictures. I've posted the album here. http://public.fotki.com/funman1712/from-the-pages-of-y/all-my-fenderless-m/ There's a quick portfolio overview of each model. Then follows a detailed photo set on each model. Overall, front/rear, engine, interior, and chassis shots of each. The first photo in each of the detailed sets tells a little about the model, including where and when (approximately) in appeared in print. It's easiest to look at these large size photos and the captions if you use the "Roll" feature (tab in upper left of screen). Here are a few teasers of the models posted there. I encourage any of you who want to, to add photos of your Model A Hot Rod builds to date to this thread. All I can say is that with the new Revell kit, I'm sure I'll be adding to my collection of Model A Hot Rods, and I bet many of you will be too. And this time, it's gonna be a WHOLE lot easier and quicker to get great results! Here's a few teaser shots, and thanks for looking...TIM Much more at the link...TB

Ahh....I see your modeling buddy is helping you out, Luc. Mine is sitting about 15" away from the keyboard, purring and sleeping while I type this. I do expect to see a later round of test shots at some point, but not sure if I will be using it for an advance online build or something else. Time will tell...but thanks for the encouragement! TIM

From what I've heard from Revell and those in the Trade, the 'cuda kit did sell very well, many (but not all - as you point out) distribution sources did run out of the kit, and there was a second production run of kits scheduled pretty quickly after the initial intro. With a kit like this '29A Roadster, it would be a really helpful sign if it not only sold well initially, but then remained a steady selling staple for years to come. That's what the Revell '32 Ford series has been - it seems to me that in almost every year since this series was first introduced in late 1996, at least one, and often, several of the kits were in Revell's yearly kit catalog. As many of you have pointed out, this new Revell l'29 A Roadster kit has great kitbashing potential. And the basic kit design lends itself to a number of follow-up kits (just as the '32 Ford series evolved over the years). Both of these would point to a long life for this kit, and, one hopes, its eventual derivatives. Having said all that, I'm not taking any chances, I've got several pre-orders in for this new kit. Like you, I can't wait! TIM

John...yeah...this one in particular was hard to keep under my breath due to the subject matter and how well it is executed. But the model companies expect that people they bring "under the fold" on future projects have to respect their secrecy. (This personal policy also comes from my 35 year career at Ford and having to keep future product news secret in the 1/1 scale car business too). Actually, I know what is a pretty small slice of firm future product plans from the big 3 domestics (Revell, Round 2, and Moebius). What little I do know makes my head spin. Really innovative stuff on the horizon, though that horizon can take up to five years or more as ideas are weighed against each other, prioritized for development vs. other future kits and hobby categories, then designed, tooled, and refined with several rounds of test shots. So I don't know when any of these will hit the market... I also hear a fairly steady stream of info from outsiders, that is, people who have contact with the model companies, but do not work for them. This info often comes years in advance of a kit actually hitting the market. I have learned over the years the "outsiders" who seem to have a good track record of separating future fact from future fiction. Thus...I had first heard rumors about the Revell '29A Roadster at least three, maybe four years ago, though Revell never said a word to me about it until they contracted me to an in-depth, structured review the first round test shots just about a year ago. Occasionally I have proposed my own ideas for new kits and on those, and I generally have at least a little idea of how they are coming about. But not always. Right now, I think the market is ripe for a new tool '70 GTO, with a 400 RA-IV (which would be the first time that's been done in 1/25th), in both regular and Judge forms, followed by one or more of the Stock/Super Stock racers that ran that body style. But on that one, I haven't heard even a faint whisper that anyone is working on that topic right now. Finally, I have been known to plant a rumor or two myself, either in the press or trade, or directly with the model companies themselves. I haven't done this in recent years, but I did so several times in the 1980's and 1990's. Just one example - I told the Domestics that I had heard a viable rumor that one of the Japanese kitmakers was going to do a series of early C3 Corvettes if the domestics didn't jump in that market soon. This was totally fabricated, but geared to get them to realize that there was a big gap in the Corvette kit lineup that was begging to be filled with some modern-era kits. Within 18 months, Revell's 1969 and 1969 new-tooled C3's appeared, and a little later, AMT/Ertl's 1970 1//2 and 1972 LT-1's came out. But honestly, I have not no idea if my "plant" had anything to do with that eventual result. Cheers...TIM

Chris..the tool has both '39 Ford teardrops and '48 Chev rectangular tailamps. I presume both will be available in this kit, but we'll have to see the final release to be sure. The tailamps are on one of the chrome trees (which, btw, is just packed with parts), and it is left up to the customer to add the red lense effect with Testors Stoplamp Red enamel or lacquer. (Personally, I actually prefer this with small lamps like these, because if you do separate clear red lamps, the parts thickness buildup leaves an unrealistic appearance on the finished model - though I realize you and others may see this differently.) Thanks for the question....Cheers....TIM AMEN buddy! Triple AMEN!!! TB

Dennis...I'm not an expert on GM transmissions, but I can tell you it's an automatic, and it does not appear to be a 1950's Hydramatic. So therefore I presume it is probably a 1960's Turbo 400, or maybe a more recent GM AOD. It looks to be a cinch to swap in some other trannys, although original Hydros, which are really large, might need a bit of tweaking to surrounding surfaces. One other thing to note - the tranny has a separate and very nicely engraved pan on the bottom. TIM

Greg...interesting....I can't even begin to determine how many projects this Nailhead will show up in...but an Ivo T conversion sure became a whole lot easier, and I'd use just the approach you suggest. TIM '

Harold...no the trunk doesn't open, but for those who want to cut it open and hinge it, the fuel cell and battery are there - as well as the trunk bulkhead. Also correct for "Diorama" type scenes that show the chassis under construction, et al. Best Regards...TIM

OK Greg....you got me there. I was more answering another post question, but you're right, I should have checked your links before reposting the same info myself. D'oh! TIM

Ron....presumably both the '32 Highboy Frame and the "Z'ed" Model A Frame should fit the Revell '31 A Sedan, but there will be some kitbashing involved. For the Highboy, there would have to be some modifications to the '31 Sedan floorboard in the rear seat are, and for the Model A Frame, the entire floorboard would have to be modified to allow the Channeled body configuration. None of this should be a job-stopper for a moderately experienced modeler, and I could foresee some really killer models result, based on your idea....TIM

Richard...yes you could do this conversion with the new Revell Model A Roadster, using the Z'ed Model A Chassis parts. You could also do this one with the Revell (formerly Monogram) '25 T showrod/Fad T kit that was just reissued a few months back, if you preferred a 1/24th scale version.... Either way, it would be a winner. TIM .

What John said! TIM

Might be,,,,,might be! TIM

Bernard...you are correct. In my view, the Rat Roaster was a rather odd car to base a model on....it was just a strange duck in many ways. It did have some pretty good kitbashing material, though. This new '29A kit is right in almost every design area the Rat Roaster was wrong. I also think it is considerably beyond the Slingster in execution and detail. But that's must my view. I think you and all the other traditional hot rod roadsters will very quickly form your own conclusions when you get the kit in hand. Cheers...TIM

Roger asked: Will it have a stock/ stock-ish firewall and rear inner fender wells also? The firewalls are different to support the Highboy and Lowboy configurations. The outer portions of the firewalls appear stock, with slight recesses along the valve covers and a deeper recess for the distributor. Most 1/1 scale builds have these same recesses due to the length of the Nailhead vs. while retaining the stock '32 Ford wheelbase. Cheers...TIM

The Nailhead should be swappable into the Deuce frame without much drama. I've always really liked the AMT Double Kit Nailhead, but this new engine is in a whole 'nother league in terms of detail and accuracy....TIM

No fenders or tops this time. They invested their effort in two completely separate chassis/frames and two overall configurations (highboy/lowboy) instead. There weren't any '29 A kits already out there with either of these features. Obviously, doing only one chassis configuration with a stock model A frame (to allow the fenders) and with a top would have been a WHOLE lot easier for them....but a whole lot less impactful for the hobby, at least in my view. TIM