tim boyd

OK you guys shamed me enough that I finally undertook a journey to the deep, dark cauldrons that hold my box art collection. Surprise....(to me, at least)....both the AMT 1964 Vette annual kits had the trailer.... #6924-200 Sting Ray Sports Hardtop Advanced Customizing Kit and #6914-200 Sting Ray Convertible Advanced Customizing Kit. Both show the trailer on the side panel. The same illustration is used for both kits, other than that the top portion of the body (above the beltline) is personalized to each kit's content, along with the difference in the side pipes leading to the sidemount mulfflers (2 per side in the hardtop,, 4 per side with the convertible). The colors are the same on both illustrations and even the AA/P 24" roundel livery is the same for both kits. Interestingly, the Vette box art illustrations omit the unique center mounted license plate with rectangular light below that is in the kits and shown in the instructions....parts that are found in the Vette kits but apparently not in the reissued versions, at least the Fireball and Piranha Combo kits I just looked at. As to the fenders and the vertical stops at the front of the trailer on my build pictured above, I have no idea where they came from. But they are not in the Vette kit(s) contents, nor the above referenced reissues. Also, just compared an original 1964 Vette kit and Fireball 500 parts tree that has the basic trailer part (not the trees with leaf springs and other parts). These Vette and Fireball parts are clearly from the same tool origin. Each tree includes the main trailer and two fairly large wheel chucks. The parts feed/trees are also identical, other than that the the forward edge of the Fireball tree (by the trailer hitch) was reconfigured slightly and there was no longer a feed point at the very tip of the forward trailer hitch. Awaiting Chris' photos which will hopefully confirm what I've relayed above....or not! Still much to learn here... Best....TIM

Yes, of course. Post corrected....TB

My understanding is that the date on the back of the decal sheets is the month and the year that the decal sheets were actually printed. TB

Really excellent attention to detail, and excellent photography too! Congrats....TIM

Thanks Michael for the feedback on your frames. Of my five '30A Coupe reissue kits bought so far, two '32 Highboy frames were badly warped and unusable, two were slightly warped and the model I built used one of them; took a number of "retwisting" exercises to fix it. And one was perfect as molded. Sounds pretty similar to your experience. Most others I've heard from say their frames, if warped, were relatively minor and resolved fixed during assembly. I sure hope that's the case for most and that you and I were "outliers" in our experiences. ***** I can assure all reading that this thread that the '30A kit WAS designed from the very start to use the Nailhead V8. I've built several of them that way with no issues, including the first-round test shot, the original kit release, and the just-reissued version. The parts to use the '32 Deuce grill shell are in the new kit, just not called out in the instructions. And FWIW I've never encountered any issues with the firewall / transmission fit. I wonder if possibly you ended up using the wrong firewall for the version you were building? There is an in-depth kit review of the latest release that is due for release at the FineScale site on Tuesday that will include the needed info to address the questions above, and also cites some other issues to be aware of concerning the latest kit release. But I don't know if it will be behind their firewall (i.e. requiring a mag subscription or not) to view or not. TIM

Thanks Tim for the added insight on the Cobra and Piranha Combo sets.....TIM

Without having access to verify this from my box art stash, my best recollection is that the trailer first came as a bonus in the AMT 1964 Corvette Roadster annual kit. I built a "restored" version from a glue bomb original about 10 years ago or so. I'm sure Mark will jump in here with additional details and/or a correction, but the only reissue application I am aware of was the Firebird 500 kit. The original version had a single axle and was a "tail sitter" (as the aircraft modelers say) because the axle was located too far forward to balance the load on a trailer hitch. The far more common AMT trailer that has been reissued numerous times as a companion kit and as the Blueprinter box version was derived from tooling first seen in AMT's very early 1960's pickup annual kits. It was updated with dual rear axles early on and should be easy to locate and buy on the kit resale market. It is entirely different (a different tool) than the trailer shown in Kit's markup and my build below... Here's a photo of my kitbashed and restored "glue bomb" version.... While here is a photo of a heavily kitbashed version of the far more common AMT Trailer seen in many combo kits and the Ertl Blueprinter box....in this case it was extended in length and a third axle added....but still clearly an entirely different design and execution that the one above.....TIM

Oh Yes!!!!! TB

Great Idea Phil and a very resourceful start to your project....best wishes bringing this one together and home....TIM

Don't have the time to research this just now, but my thought all along was that the original AMT annual kit had the top engine option at the start of the model year, the non-442 330 four barrel. When I built up my new Round 2 kit example last year, I recall thinking that the carb looked somewhat small, but I also recall that some 1960''s four barrel carbs were not that physically large, at least compared to those seen from later in the decade and into the 1970's. I'd immediately recognize a Carter Thermoquad or the Holley 4150, but honestly I'm pretty much clueless on recognizing GM four barrel carbs from the early 1960's. Thus, the question: Could the original AMT annual kit engine have been an attempt to replicate the four barrel non-442 carb, and if so, was the later 442 carb demonstrably visually different than the non-442 carb? I have the reference materials in my files that could help resolve this, but not easily at hand. Pretty sure some of you on this board can answer this question right off the top of your head.... Just wondering....TIM

Thanks, Craig, for the heads-up, and thanks James for showing us this project. That is one of the most well-done '34 Ford chops I have ever seen. Leaning the A-pillar posts as you did is really hard to do, but in many ways delivers the very best overall result on mid-1930 Ford Coupe bodies, and you flat out nailed it. Also, very impressed with the choice of the Columbia two-speed rear/'40 Ford crossmember, and the way you handled the tail end of the body in the back. Great work! TIM a

The frame parts tree and parts feed points are located differently on the second release '29A Roadster and '30A Coupe kits. The revised parts feed locations are one of the contributing factors, I believe, to the chance that the frames sometimes show this twisting effect, while none of the original Roadster and Coupe kits (and I bought a ton of them!) showed any twisting. Very interested in hearing what you find out....TIM

Oh YEEAAAHHHH!!!! TB

Thanks Mike. Revell Parts Pack "Custom Triumph", built straight from the box with only paint detailing and basic wiring added about 15 years ago; decanted and airbrushed 40+ year old Pactra Candy Wild Cherry over gold paint.... Best....TIM

Street rod version, kit number was 31883 (sorry 'bout that, should have brought the kit into my studio instead of trusting my memory). No mention of the trailer in the kit instructions. Wonder who that was about the Raysons? Hope you are doing well....TIM

Brian, that's just how mine look too. Only difference is the degree of twisting at the rear attachment point. Are yours usable with some tweaking, or not? Thx...TB

Thanks, guys, for the feedback. I am certainly relieved to hear it is not a widespread problem, as among my 5 kits, only one had the '32 Highboy frame molded/formed correctly. Two others were warped but usable with some "persuasion". The last two were so badly twisted as to be not usable. The frames sprue was among the retooled parts and has different styrene feed points than the original release, which appears to be a contributing factor to the warpage I saw if the parts were removed from the mold before they had fully cooled, or more likely, if they were packaged to tightly together with the rest of the sprues in the clear parts bags. Also appreciate the quick responses....TIM

It may have been #31833, a reissue in 2002. But don't quote me on it. Had box art similar to the original release, but with the updated box number. Story goes that it was to be a utility trailer for a follow-up kit reissue, but development was stopped when it was only partly finished. The sprue was welded off for the initial release but was opened in error for that one reissue only. In that form, it was still incomplete; not usable as a a complete assembly unless the builder was to do additional mods/kitbashing. Round 2 management is reportedly aware of all this; one could speculate these parts, or perhaps even a completed execution, might surface it a future reissue of the kit. However, one also speculates that Round 2 also has other, higher priority subjects for time and tooling expenditures. Here's an image of the basic trailer parts, kitbashed to a completed form as a pseudo-motorcycle trailer ... Best....TIM

Thanks again Bill for the added detail. Very helpful. And, certainly reassuring for me to learn that I didn't "imagine" those traditional hot rods with Lincoln V8's and ram's horn manifold. TB

Thanks Roger. Clearly I have been mistaken on this subject. I do recall having seen a few traditional style hot rods with Lincoln Y=Blocks and the ram's horn exhaust manifolds. Based on yours and Bill's feedback, those must have undergone modifications to be used in that way. Thanks again, guys. Always, always more to learn in this hobby. TIM

OK Bill...thanks for that info. Appreciate the follow-up. TIM

I'm pretty sure I remember hearing quite a while ago that Round 2 had looked at reissuing this kit, and I do believe it would sell reasonably well for them. The fact that it has not reappeared to me suggests that there must be some major issue in the way. But do treat all of this post as unverified speculation, nothing more...TIM

My brother sent me a link to this, and in spite of my usual aversion to spend time watching time-sucking you-tube videos, I did watch this one. As a reader of Car and Driver since the very early 1970's, I enjoyed seeing the visuals of Brock Yates' old columns, which at the time strongly resonated with my profound disgust for the then- nationwide 55 mph speed limit. And hearing Brock's wife comment on his life and their life together was fascinating. Yet this really video felt as though it was two separate topics - Brock and his "Cannonball Baker" events - and secondly, the Countach. Possibly even a third - the related Burt Reynolds/Hal Needham movies. The attempt to group all these into one single film was to me a bit contrived. On the plus side, as several of you above commented, it did make me want to go pull out one of the Fujimi Enthusiast Models and refresh my memory for a potential future build project! If any of the two...err...three topics listed above interest you, probably worth the time involved to check out the video....TIM

In reviewing these comments and suggestions, it strikes me that there is virtually no consensus on just a few key topics that the kit manufacturers could commit to scale styrene. But then again, participants in this forum are a very small, while very sophisticated and well educated, faction of the model car kit hobby. In that view, the wide variety of kit ideas and subjects voiced here makes sense, I guess. TIM

My understanding is that the Ram's horn manifolds were also found on the Lincoln Y-blocks, as the Lincoln Y-Block and Super Duty Ford Truck Y Blocks were largely the same. If they were not used on Lincoln Y-Blocks, please someone present a definitive source proving that point. Thanks....TIM