tim boyd

The original issue stock AMT-Ertl Duster 340 kit had both a four barrel and a non-stock (for a factory Duster340) Six Barrel option. But if you want to do the Revell '70 'cuda as an AAR, you need the AMT-Ertl Duster 340 (for the 340 six barrel setup) AND the AMT-Ertl Duster Street Machine (for the non A/C fan belt in that kit). This will result in a very accurate engine. Don't have my photo research library and kit references in front of me right now, but if you need a new air clearer decal specific to the AAR, I would think one would be in the old (2nd try) Revell 1/24th scale 'Cuda AAR kit. For non- AAR '70 'cudas, the 340 Four Barrel Air Cleaner Decal WAS a generic "340 Four Barrel" graphic for both the 'cuda and Challenger that year but I can't recall for sure what was used on the six barrel. A quick google image search should tell all....TIM

Sam - can we see more, please? Looks really righteous so far...TIM

Casey....fun....I'd long forgotten about that post. As for the crystal ball being clear...well...sometimes yes, sometimes no. BTW....yes I had made this '70 'cuda proposal to Revell, actually several times ...but at the time I wrote this post, it was not really under serious consideration from what I was able to tell. That had to wait for at least another 2 to 3 years.....during that period, others were proposing the same idea, as well. TIM

Most excellent....particularly with the matching van (which is uber-cool as well) and the interior detail! TIM

Another source is the MPC "Mummy Machine" kit (itself a reissue of the Carl Casper "Phone Booth T"), which has been reissued several times, most recently in the early 2000's by AMT-Ertl. The same wheels are in the MPC "Paul Revere and the Raiders Coach", which was also reissued under the AMT-Ertl label in the early 2000's. These are the very best I've found for the "shallow and deep" Cragar S/S wheels used on funny cars (such as the original Nelson Carter Super Chief Charger from the cover of Car Craft magazine) and other period drag racers from the late 1960's/early 1970's with narrow tires up front and wide slicks out back. Several photos of these wheels on completed models.... ...and the first usage on this model circa December 1969-January 1970 (the chassis - with a different body - won "Best Detail" at the 1970 Detroit Cobo Autorama MPC Model Car Contest, billed at the time by Car Model Magazine as "The World's Largest Model Car Contest".....but I digress....sorry. Hope this helps...TIM

Me too! TIM

Gorgeous! TIM

No slip....sorry....TB

Dave...thanks for the excellent explanation of the model development process. This post should become a "must read" for anyone who wishes to critique a newly-developed model kit. For the rest of us: Dave's explanation is a good summary of the issues faced by most model car kit development organizations, at least the ones I have dealt with. It also helps to remember that these companies are all businesses - they have to generate a financial return on the investment they make in these kits, otherwise they will no longer be in business. Sometimes, that is the most difficult issue faced by model company development personnel - who in many cases, are also model builders themselves. Most that I have dealt with over the years are much like Dave is - a highly enthusiastic ambassador for our wants, who is dedicated to trying to do the right thing for us. Many times, the most difficult decisions they face are over when to stop refining/correcting and "push the button and publish". The economics involved are also a huge issue to manage. As is the issue of asking the dedicated artisans in China (and they are artisans), to recreate a miniature replica of an artifact that they have never seen in real life. You can always keep correcting and refining, but if the kit never comes out at all, then nobody wins. So big thanks again, Dave, for taking the time to educate this audience on some of the challenges involved in producing model kits. TIM

Steve and Jesse: While I don't know the particulars in this case, I do know that Moebius is generally tooling 3-5 kit versions of each new tool, right out of the box (that is, the tooling for all versions of a specific kit tool - like the '65 Satellite - is done up front, at one time). So you can pretty well surmise that there will eventually be other versions of the '65 Satellite, probably spread a year or so apart for each version. If the Satellite is done similarly to the way they are approaching the different versions of the '67-'72 Ford Bumpside, the '61 Pontiac Ventura and Catalina, and at least one other kit yet to be mentioned in this level of detail, I suspect that there will be much to love, eventually, about various future versions of this Satellite kit. TIM

I understand that one of the most respected aftermarket resin casters is looking into rebopping the parts that would allow you to make the Little T from the latest T kit release....TIM

Dave's right. The Flex with the AWD V6 EcoBoost is a total hot rod! TIM

Check out your current issue of Model Cars, October 2014, bottom of page 31, for a source and website addy.....TIM

Bill...I'm with you on this subject....the car I pictured earlier was built from the original 1968 issue of this MPC kit....TIM

Nicely done Bernard!!! TIM

The kit was first released in late 1982 or early 1983, as a US Revell kit. At the time, it was very contemporary/correct, except for the fact that even at that point, almost all of the major new car carriers used racks on top of and behind the cab, as well as the trailer. They also used more "industrial" Class 7 tractors, not the high dollar Class 8 Peterbilts that the trailer was posed with (and that Revell also introduced at the same time). Nevertheless, it was (and still is) an excellent and highly detailed kit, and it's great to have it back for those that didn't buy it the first or second time around back then. It would be great for a diorama with restored old cars in transit...TIM

Here are some photos of the R&M Triumph in painted/assembled form.... Built as the Restored Stock 1962 Triumph Bonneville 650 3 in 1 version... Here's the kit built as the 3 in 1 Custom version (note the apehangers, cafe racer seat, and different tailamps)...this one was built from a glue bomb AMT kit with the R&M kit parts where the originals could not be saved.... More photos of both at the link I also built the R&M Triumph in the 3 in 1 Bonneville Streamliner version (this was a how-to feature in Model Cars magazine about 7 or so years ago...) TIM

The story I heard, and related in my book (Collecting Model Cars and Truck Kits) is that the 1911 Chevy was tooled in an aluminum mold specifically for a dealer sales incentive promotion for Chevy's Golden Anniversary. These were plaques with assembled promo-type models of the '62 Impala hardtop and the 1911 (some say it's a 1912) Chevy Touring, and painted in a low-gloss gold color. Tooling in Aluminum is much cheaper than the steel used for most model car tooling. But it has a very low volume useful life, and according to the version relayed to me. that was the reason the project was stopped (after the instruction sheet was completed, but before box art was developed). This information is probably 30+ years old by now, so we should not assume it is any more factually correct than the info relayed by Art above. For those interested, the story of the kit is detailed in a sidebar on p 97 of my book, along with a Black and White photo showing the kit contents and the instruction sheet. TIM

excellent choice of topic and a very, very clean build.....congrats....TIM

Don...that is gorgeous! Thanks for posting...TB

John...I think you are thinking of the Brookfield Guild models. They were paired with a dropped Chevy Suburban (early 1990's), a Ford Super Duty DRW, and a Ford Super Duty SuperCab. The Harleys are pretty nice models - worth it if you can get the combo at a decent price. As for Maisto, they literally made a hundred or more different Harley 1/24th die casts ( I have most or all of them); they are moderately detailed and priced well, but they have not been manufactured new (that I can determine) for probably 3 or 4 years now. The Franklin Mint 1/24th Harleys were probably the best of the bunch (as you would expect), and priced accordingly. They were available as a set, and also in a separate color scheme for one of their bikes, as part of a Harley shop diorama....TIM

Scott went to a good deal of depth on this book project, from what I understand. I am personally really looking forward to reading it...>TIM

Some additional high resolution shots from my NNL Nationals coverage a few weeks ago... This looks to me to be a pretty engaging kit topic. TIM

I believe I understood that all the parts for all the Bumpside versions (both those announced and other future variations) are being tooled before the first version of the kit will be released. This is consistent with how several model companies (Revell and Moebius included) are doing new product development today, and is one reason why kits now take what seems like "so long" to get to market the first time. TIM

Here are a couple of pictures of the MPC '60 Corvette, as first issued in 1968 and reissued a few years back by AMT-Ertl (prior to Round 2). It's built box stock, other than paint detailing and flocked carpet, as well as a tire and wheel swap, and was finished about 14 years ago or so. Four of this car, plus several other C1-C3 Corvettes, at at the link... Best regards...TIM