tim boyd

Model Car Building definitely went through a dark period on the 1970's....more or less between the time that Car Model and Model Car Science stopped publishing in the early 1970's, to the end of the decade when Scale Auto Enthusiast began publication... But there was a cadre of model car buiders who kept the flame alive....primarily by their near ruthless competition in the MPC National Model Car Championship each year. Since there were no mags back then, this story has largely gone untold. Bruce Owen was the most successful builder of this era, but there were a number of others who were also multiple repeat winners at the regional and national level.... This picture taken at the Goodguys Columbus show last weekend shows (from the right) Tom Woodruff, Chuck Helppie, Bob Shelton, and Tom Dillion. Tom must have been the most successful builder ever in terms of number of Best of Shows at the Ohio locations of the MPC Champsionship, and he was a multiple year top-5 nationwide winner in the MPC series. Chuck Helppie won Best in the Nation in 1977, Third Nationwide in 1976, and Quality Workmanship Nationwide in 1979. Tom Dillion was just becoming a promiment competitor when the MPC series wound down, but he won a much of awards in the late 1970's and went on to more prominence in Scale Auto Enthusiast (Builder of the Year) and the GSL Contest in the 1980's. I don't recall that Bob was a prominent MPC winner but he has played a huge role in our hobby by being co-author (with Bill Coulter) of the hobby's most accepted kit value guide these days. This picture is of Al Cozby, who entered a Candy Blue Chopped Merc in the 1976 MPC Series that won Best of Show at one of the Ohio shows and was a national finalist in the MPC Series. There's so much more to be told about this era of model car building. Maybe one of these years....TIM PS////here is the link to my 2009 Goodguys Columbus Photo Album....TB 2009 Goodguys Columbus - complete photo coverage

Harold....not too far off on that guess. My Dad factory ordered a 1965 Dodge Custom 880 wagon (the panelled, uper series variant of the Polora wagon in the photos), in light metallic blue, and I've always thought about doing a conversion based on the MPC Custom 880 convertible kit. Of course, mne would have to be a Phantom two-door wagon.... TIM

Harold....not too far off on that guess. My Dad factory ordered a 1965 Dodge Custom 880 wagon (the panelled, uper series variant of the Polora wagon in the photos), in light metallic blue, and I've always thought about doing a conversion based on the MPC Custom 880 convertible kit. Of course, mne would have to be a Phantom two-door wagon.... TIM

Here Model Car Publishing Magnate Bob Shelton models one of the event t-shirts.....267 other photos at the link of more models, modelers, and way cool 1/1 scales cars, bugs, dune buggies, rods, rat rods, customs, tasty street machines, wagons....well....you get the picture. Thanks for looking...TIM Link to 268 Photos of 2009 Goodguys Columbus and Rolling Scupture Ann Arbor

Chuck...I've been called many things in the past but never the Gray Baskerville of car modeling...(grin), seriously, that is a very fine compliment. Thank you,. Chris...love your rods, especially that '29 RPU with the track roadster nose....I built a similar rod about ten years ago and it is still one of my favorites... Best regards.....TIM

Chuck....I have purchased the Replias and Miniatures chassis you describe above and it is every bit as nice as you say. Plus it features a cleanup of the frame "sweep" that requires filing & sanding on the strock Revell kit part if you want an accurate appearance. I'd love to see someone build that '29 Pickup on '32 Rails you describe. Revell didn't include the buggy spring setup in their '32 kits because they have decided (and personally I agree with them 100%) that they want to keep the "modern/contemporary" 5.0L engine and chassis setup as part of the basic kits. And that's also part of the reason you'll never see a replica stock version of any of these kits. They were designed from the ground up to be the first truly accurate street rod type '32 kits, and there would be way too many new parts required for a stock version to be affordable. Plus, in the big picture, Revell tells me very few people are asking for one. In thier view, if there was a demand for this type of conversion, our prolific model car aftermarket would have probably already addressed it. As for the automatic behind the flathead, it's a C4 and that is a fairly common conversion/pairing in the 1/1 scale street rod world these days, and that's why the Revell team designed it that way. You are probably aware of this, but for others reading this post, Norm Veber offers a number of more period-authentic transmission choices that are inexpensive, cast as one piece (no fixing those pesky seams), and IIRC they are really inexpensive. Chuck you covered alot of ground in your post, hope this answers at least some of your questions. Best regards...TIM

Dave,,,,the color it shows up above is just about 100% accurate (at least as it appears on my monitor). Today we have superb digital cameras with instant feedback on your shots....when I photographed the original 13 years ago it was on 35mm film and a good guess as to exposure....wow how times change. TIM

Larry I don't have any specific insider info here, but I think I can safely speculate that if these '32 derivatives continue to sell well it is a natural assumption that other bodystyles might eventually appear. So we kinda have our own destiny in our hands here. If you want more bodystyles, buy this one when it hits the shelves. Of course, given how nice this kit is, I kinda think we'll all be buying it on its own merits vs. buying to make sure other derivatives come in the future. The Revell team put alot of thought into this kit and it shows in the final result IMHO. This is the most fun I've had with a box stock build in many a year. All the best Larry....TIM

Ed....I don't build stock pre-war Fords but from what I know, I would imagine that between this Revell kit, the Tudor Revell kit, the original AMT 1932 Fords, and (according to one of the other posters on this board whose judgment I respect) the AMT-Ertl 1934 Ford Coupe (stock) from the mid 1990's, you could put together an original 1932 Ford that would make Olaf Wahl (sp?), the late Bill Harrison, and others of their stature very envious, or at the least, very interested. This is a project begging someone to do it....maybe you? Best regards...TIM

Dave...no stupid questions here. Yes the kit includes all the full fendered parts found in every one of the other versions in this kit series, with the exception of the Highboy Roadster kit. Here's a photo of the box art that shows both versions....TIM

Finally finished the preview build of the Revell-Monogram '32 Ford Five Window Coupe kit. During the final ssembly added a few personal touches.... * Taller rear tires from the Revell-Monogram '32 Ford Goodguys Highboy Roadster * Engine spark plug wiring added * Moon tank gas cap added (radiator cap from extra Revell-Monogram '32 Ford kit) This kit was a blast to put together. Larry Greenberg uses the phrase "highly recommended" on his top kit reviews; I think that is a pretty good descriptor for my reaction to this kit. Here's a picture of the completed car next to my preview build of the original kit in this series, the '32 Ford Three Window, from August of 1996.... Let me know if you have any questions.... Oh yeah, 27 more pictures of the completed mild kitbash at the link.... Revell '32 Ford Five Window Coupe kit - first kitbash

Real Time Build of new Revell '32 Ford Five Window Coupe kit... Closeups of the decal sheet, new hairpin radius rods, new steering box and linkage, and open steel rim wheels at the link.... Thanks for looking...TIM

Dave,,,here you go....I can sort of answer your question in reverse....recently I used the Revell stock '48 Ford wheels in these big'n'bigger former Goodyear Blues STreaks and they fit fine...so presumably these would fit the whitewalls in the ProModeler '48 Ford....but I have not tried it myself. Both the front side and rear side of the rims for the larger tires have a deeper offset...More pix at the link...TIM

Larry, near as I can tell it represents an approximation of that engine, except for the spacing of the tubes on the exhaust headers which is clearly different. Hope all is well.....TIM

Brett....as far as I know the other dash is the same as the one in the '32 sedan kit....I will take a look at them and let you know later....TIM

Hey,,,..thanks Steve...really appreciate that. Hey what's with the early 1960's Altered Coupe on your signature in the upper LH corner of your post....I have always wanted to build one of these after seeing one in a 1963 copy of Car Craft magazine that my elementary school teacher confiscated from one of the misbehaving kits in class and gave to me (smile).....TIM

Cool Gregg..the channelled body looks tough along wtih the sectioned grille shell....nice color too......TIM

Shane...the kit has two firewalls....the same recessed unit that has been with the kit since it was first issued, and a second firewall that appears the same from the outside but has engraving on the inside - tuck'n'roll - to match the new interior. I have mocked up the final assembly and I don't think a stock firewall would have cleared that big 1950's V8. I painted the firewall with Alclad chrome and it will have a somewhat late 1950's early 1960's polished aluminum firewall style vibe with somewhat vague reflections of the V8..... TIM

Ken, the tailamps are molded in chrome....I think it would have been difficult to get the scale fidelity with seperate lenses....just a touch of Testors Stollight Red Metallic yielded the look shown here. By the way these are smaller than the '50 Pointiacs in the AMT '34 Ford Five Window Coupe street rod kit, and more accurate in size to my eye...TIM

Finished the body part of the build this morning. Note the nicely done internal flanging on the decklid opening which will allow easy hinging of the lid for those who love to kitbash (my contact at Revell tells me one of our favorite aftermarket resin casters is preparing a new product offering with trunk compartment upholstery/panels). The proportions and body engraving all appear spot-on to my eyes. Note the '50 Pontiac tailamp lenses which are the most accurate versions of these popular hot rodding choice yet. Paint is Testors AMC Big Bad Blue with an overcoat of Tamiya Pearl Clear and then several coats of Tamiya Clear, rubbed out. Entering the final assembly stage now....hopefully the model will be completed within the next week. Seven more new pics at the link below. Thanks for looking....TIM Real Time Build - Revell '32 Ford Five Window Coupe

Here's what the Chopper looks like.... Box stock build with paint detailing only....TIM

Bernard....hope you are right about this and I see signs of the same thing. Meanwhile....that's a really sharp '37 Chevy in your post....details???? TIM

I've just finished the interior and the new optional engine in this kit. The interior goes together like a breeze....here it is build with the new '40 Ford Insturment Panel, the white faces guauges (one of three decal choices that go behind a clear styrene face), the new Piston-topped shifter, and the firewall with matching tuck'n'roll pleating (not visible here but shown in other pictures at the link). Speaking of the link below, it has four more interior pictures including a closeup of the floor board with the three pedals for the manual transmission in the new engine option. As for the engine, here is a shot of the completed 1950's style Hemispherical V8 engine option. I am highly impressed with the delicacy of some of the engine parts - look at the really thin (and realistically accurate) header flanges, and the smaller-than-typical but much more accurate treatment of the fan belt. The water pump to cylinder head coolant (two seperate pieces in this kit vs. one piece in previous kits' treatment of this type of engine) is beautifully handled. A total of nine pictures of the engine are at the link including a photo of the engine partially assembled and closelups of some of the individual engine components. Remember there are two other engine options in the kit too (5.0L Ford V8 with four barrel and Ford Motorsport valve covers, and the same engine with an SEFI intake and billet style valve covers). Real time build of Revell '32 Ford Five WIndow Coupe Stay tuned....next update probably in about one week (the body is in the paint booth now) and thanks for looking. TIM

Dave....see me response to your post in the other chain of notes on this subject. Short answer here is "yes" they have the right amount of pedals for both transmisisions. Although I see the angle I photographed does not show the answer (my other post suggeested it might show it). Best regards...TIM

Dave...they've got you covered. Still have the two pedals from previous versions and they have now engraved a "spoon" type pedal to the right of those....and they've amended the instructions to show the use of only one of the two pedals when you build the 5.0L with comes an automatic tranny....you might be able to see the engraved gas pedal on the interiors parts post I did on Sunday night....TIM