tim boyd

Here are a few comparo shots, using a model I built back in 1965 from the same basic AMT kit. 55 years, in some ways it seems like they've gone by in a flash! Cheers....TIM

Well Bob, you completely NAILED this one! Even down to the purple Meep=Meep "Voice of the Road Runner" horn. Big congrats....TIM

Completely agree about those carbs.....when you really research these old mega=carb engines, sometimes the owners would fess up that they ended up disconnecting most of them from the carb linkage and ran the car on just two of 'em. Of course, with drag cars like the original Garlits rail (before he added the blowers), he was rebuilding the engines all the time anyway.....but as we all know, if they did it on the drag strip, doing it on the street is mega cool (can you say "Pro Street") even if the actual usability was severely compromised. Of course, us modelers don't have to worry about that! TIM

Interesting observations here. If I had to hazard a guess (and I guess I will do just that) it may have been Monogram's major chain store clients that dictated this layout. rather than Monogram's art department. In the packaged goods industry generally, and more specifically for model car box art, there was often an attempt to depict model cars that were "jumping off the box top" within the typical department store narrow aisleways. MPC's commercial art department began this approach in the late 1960's, but it spread throughout the industry at various stages in the years to come. And the direction to do so often came from the company's higher-ups rather than the Art Department personnel themselves. In talking to the industry's executive teams about the days (years, decades) prior to WalMart dropping all model kits, it is still surprising to me to learn just how much of what we were given as model car builders was dictated by the major retailers rather than the model companies alone. Even when I went to interview with Monogram's President Tom Gannon in 1978, he had little interest in my model car building achievements; it was my school record and work experience that had prompted him to take the time for the interview. When it was all said and done, he told me to go work for K-Mart (the WalMart of the hobby industry back then) for three years and then I'd have a job waiting at Monogram. Another words, learning the retail industry was far more important to him and Monogram than what skills I could bring to Monogram as a accomplished model builder at the national level back then. (FWIW, I had little interest in learning the retail big box store business, so I passed, and went to work for Ford 35 years instead. Ironically, Monogram's Bob Johnson ended up doing much of what I would have advocated had I ended up working there, and he did a great job of it too. So in the end, everything kinda worked out for the best fore everybody....) TIM

Heh Alan...that dude is ready for some serious land speed action.....between yours and mine, we now have both bookends of how mid 1930's Ford Three Window Coupes can be used as Bonneville-style competition machines...and thanks for adding your images to this thread, for sure! Take care, mate. TIM

So....there's been this 1956 Dodge Royal Blue Metallic painted AMT '25 Tall T Coupe sitting in a display case in my work room where all (well, at least some) of my half-completed, stalled projects reside. It kept staring at me, month after month. Alongside was an old flame decal set from the 1980's. (That color, btw, is the exact same color that was used for Norm Grabowski's famous 1/1 scale T-Bucket, and the body was originally painted that color for a very work-intensive, but little known article that I did for Model Cars Magazine on historically correct paint colors for "Traditional Hot Rod" model car projects.) And then there was this crazy blown early Hemi engine from the AMT Boss Nova kit, that actually traced itself back to a kit premium in the 1961 and 1962 AMT Buick Special wagon kits. It was originally assembled about 15 years ago or so for my "Hot Rod V-8s" article series in the other model car mag. And a set of paint-detailed wheels and tires from the Revell 1932 Roadster kit that replicated that rather unusual (I'm tempering my words here...ask me what I really think....no....maybe better that you don't) TV program tie-in promotion from a few years back. They were originally intended for a mag article on how to adapt different bodies to the Revell Model A Roadster/Coupe kit frames. Finally, there was me, pretty much waxed out from several very intense and recently completed modeling projects. Time for a break.... Being build alongside two other more involved Model T hot rod projects now underway, just got this one finished today. The only change from the above was an updated, more realistic appearing set of flame decals from the most recent reissue of the Monogram "Little T" based T-bucket tool. A few minor clean-ups yet to come, and showing no added detail other than spark plug wiring, this is just a fun realization of what was once a "mind-model", and is now a "reality" model. Thanks for looking! And maybe consider digging back into one of your own stillborn modeling projects or two? TIM

They are working on it and making good progress from what I understand. Will be a while before you see a kit, however.....TIM

An early 1980's kitbash of the original AMT 1928 Model A Tudor....

Rodney....personally I really like it when builders post their own projects with similar themes within the threads I post....so no worries in the least! Cheers....TIM

This model is one of only a very few "curbside" (no engine or underbody detail, and interior view blanked off with heavily tinted windows) projects in my collection. The front hood is a '40 Ford, the bodyside and trunk area is from the otherwise discredited AMT 1934 Ford Three Window Coupe kit of the mid 1970's, and the roof and window openings are from the chopped top option in AMT's original 1960's 1936 Ford kit. Mucho bodywork and refinement ensued in mating these disparate components into a single whole. The front suspension is from the Revell 1932 Ford Street Rod kits while the headers are from the Revell Orange Crate. The Moon discs and tires are parts box refugees. The paint is old Pactra Flats red and beige with an overcoat of ancient (dating from the early 1960's) Pactra Pearlustre Gold, with Testors Gloss Enamel clear. The "Woodruff, Helppie, and Boyd" decals honor two lifelong buddies, Chuck Helppie and Tom Woodruff (who also frequently posts on this forum as "misterNNL"). The original body work dates from 1979-80; most of the rest of the work took place during the early to mid 2000's. Thanks for checking it out....TIM

16 images of what's new in the AMT Surfer Van kit at this link.....including several images of the decal sheet....thanks for looking....TIM

Fans of 1926/27 Turtledecks and all late Model T hot rods, should check out the links Rodney posted above. Outstanding creativity and execution. You do indeed rock, Rodney! TIM

Vince....as promised, here's an image showing a test fit of the grille to the body fenders and hood... Five new additional views of the test fit, from various angles, are now added at the end of my now 44 image kit preview at this link. Thanks for looking! TIM

Vince.....just did a mockup and I don't see any evident fit issues. The angle of the photo of that beautiful buildup on page 11 combined with the reflections off the plated parts imply a fit question that does not appear in my example.... Thx for asking I'll try to get some more photos posted tomorrow. TIM

The Kart can actually be built as either a single or dual engine format.....TIM

Thanks everyone for your feedback. Lee...cool to see your build of the same subject. Interesting there were so many comments on the color. Code F8 was actually introduced as a new midyear color for Dodge in 1968 1/2 (although with a different order code .as Mother Mopar's new paint coding format was launched for the 1969 model year). The color was clearly inspired by Pontiac's Verdero Green introduced a year earlier on the new Firebird, but F8 was a considerably darker value derived from the same paint family. It was a very popular color for Chrysler Corp, though it was relatively short lived after being discontinued for 1971. My Dad bought a 1969 Chrysler Town&Country wagon in F8 (it was called Dark Jade Metallic on Chryslers),. It was sharp, no doubt. But even better after I bought Rocket 5 spoke (aka poor man's Cragar S/Ss) mags and turned the tires round black sidewall out a few years later..... (sneers welcome & expected, but it was actually very sharp). Someday I want to build the 1968 Dart GTS kit, painted in Dodge 1968-only Bright Blue Metallic.....TIM

In case you missed it elsewhere in this folio....... http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/157861-first-detailed-look-inside-the-box-of-round-2s-new-craftsman-plus-1963-nova-wagon-kit/

36 photos and captions at this link.... including some comparo shots with the previous "Boss Wagon" kit body. It turns out that not just the body is from all new tooling. Make sure to read the captions for each photo so you can get the full details. Will attempt to answer any follow-up questions you have. Thanks for looking...TIM

Round 2 apparently saw your request, Mike, to see a picture, and posted this at their blog around 9am or so this morning....TIM

I was told the dual Judsons are included. Don't know about the tonneau cover. TIM

I haven't seen any. Round 2 has been pretty good lately about posting these types of images - ergo the Chevy II wagon and Jenkins kit images seen recently - so I wouldn't be surprised to see them do the same when the time comes with this one....TIM

This didn't sound right to me, so I went and checked my kit, and what do you know, Mark is exactly correct on this. As a matter of fact, when has Mark ever been incorrect on something like this? Not that I can recall....silly me (smile) to have doubted him! Best...TIM

Given the new Round 2 images of a built-up model of the new 1963 Chevy II wagon kit, several of you have asked if I have heard any updates from them on the new 1964 Cutlass convertible kit they announced a few months back. So I asked, and this is what I was told, and given permission to pass along to you.... they are expecting to see the latest pre-production sample of the Olds F-85 convertible any day now. On the last test shots, one of the original 1964 annual kit tool parts didn’t quite meet their expectations when fit into the newly tooled body. Round 2 chose to improve/refine the appearance and it of course delayed things. It’s not going to make it for the end of the year at this point, but "hopefully very early in the new year". Like many of you, I can't wait for this one! Cheers....TIM

My answer varies over time, but right now I'm thinking a '31 A Roadster Pickup on '32 Rails with 351 Cleveland (yes, Cleveland) V8 power....probably with bigs'n'littles with dirt tracker type rears, smaller and narrow fronts, and 1970's aluminum slot or salt flats style wheels. My long time buddy Roy Brizio would be the builder....TIM

Thanks Jack.....that does sound familiar. I vaguely recall looking at the mags of the era (Rod and Custom, primarily) and seeing ads for one that looked really similar to the AMT.....If I get time I'll try to find my old MCM article and see if I mentioned this there....TIM