Chuck Kourouklis

HA! I saw that too. I mean, nobody wants a kit that stinks. Maybe they've taken it too literally?

Sorry, Alan, guess it's all a little arcane, innit? It's about recalling and settling an old debt. "People obviously can't build a model, so they complain about them online instead." It's about that particular notion. It's about how STUPID phrases like "go build something" are. O b v I o u s l y, you BUILD a kit on your bench, as I did with these Chargers. You get on an online forum to TALK about kits. And anyone who can't let a peaceful and friendly discussion thread go without suggesting there's too much talking and not enough building should watch for falling pianos. It may take a while, but if you stick to this whole notion that people point out problems in a kit only because they have no building skills, somebody's eventually gonna make you look pretty dumb. And people are sticking to these little notions. Despite ALL REALITY to the contrary, they cling to these justifications they've made up out of thin air for personal attacks. And there was a thinly veiled one I never fully addressed in my other thread that this one had a nice little answer for. But the good news is, I've gotten tired of harping on all that. It's like religion or politics, NO higher brain functions, just straight-from-the-amygdala fight or flight any time anyone has the nerve to delve into a plastic model kit in a forum about plastic model kits. There's just no point. I've addressed it less and less over the years, and this was my last loose end. I've made a pretty final statement on the whole thing that follows me around from post to post No guarantees I might not yet serve up what somebody's asking for, occasionally, but by and large, any attempt to reason with these folks has become Einstein's definition of insanity.

Yeah, but have you seen the knockoffs? way too big...

SO, now that publication has been over and done with for a while, and I’ve been reminded of some older discussion threads, a half-decade postscript for this one: As I’ve mentioned before, I do a number of reviews from kits at personal expense. Every so often, and not so long ago, my favorite pusher would get early Revell releases as an RPP partner – once in a blue moon, early enough I’d find myself in a position to give everyone else here a decent preview ahead of time. I can think of two occasions, this thread and one other. And I gotta say, there wasn’t a lot of controversy in either, not near so much as some long-timers here might fairly expect. But in that other one, there WAS this gratuitous, kinda chickenscat drive-by business about “East Coast gets it done” ‘cause someone hammered that subject together in a week. Strongly implying, y'know, the West... doesn't? Now WHAT does the OP's coastal address have to do with anything? Was that thread just going on a little too peacefully, too much civility and all? Might it have been in service to this pathetic little fever dream about people critiquing model kits only ‘cause they can’t build ‘em, much less correct ‘em? Yeeeeeaaaaah… ABOUT THAT... These have kinda followed the proverbial long arc from print to buttoning up this thread, now. Didn't start that geographic bs, but I'm gonna FINISH it by letting "The West" speak for itself. ?

HHHHHHA

Your quip about gaining capital to finish the conversion was not only funny, but something that halfway occurred to me as the one factor to make this whole exercise excusable. If Columbia Pictures TV - pimping that '80s version of the band - fronted a few promotional dollars for the kit, maybe it helped Monogram deliver a complete '89 for that short-lived "Performance Series". A 2-in-1 parts donor for more legitimate Monogram Fox-body kits pre- and post-'87. Not such a discredit to manure after all, I guess!

GREAT POINT. I got the '83 a few years back, recall it being a bit pricey. Really like that one best of the Monogram Fox-bodies.

HAH! Now THAT'S very interesting, Mr Faust! To call the kit out plainly for what it is would be a discredit to perfectly serviceable manure all over the world - but as a meta-statement on an '80s conceptual retread of a corporate band? An '83 GLX convertible festooned with body panels and wheels slapped on in a half-a$$ update is all too perfect, isn't it? If you're into clearcoating, Mr Color 46 won't yellow on you, but yes; definitely let the only committed aspect of this kit shine through.

Yup. Giving it the front fascia it should have had all along made the deal sweet enough for me. Though I gotta say, I think Gabriel's the first one I've seen mentioning the triangular-rather-than-trapezoidal rear DLO window. That's bugged me since it first showed up 40 years ago on the Boss Nine, and my next swing at a kit from this tooling is gonna fix it.

Well technically, Hakan, if the chief comparison is the Trumpeter kit, Meng does clear that low bar. Trumpeter's body may have the edge, but most everything under that skin is such a wreck as to put it at a net disadvantage - particularly the engine. Bring in Fujimi and some GMP diecasts and yep, the accuracy claim gets more problematic.

I'm seeing about the same slight proportional funk carry straight down from the 1/12. Still looks intriguing enough to me to get one - good guts for a Fujimi if the body doesn't present quite right. Lines thither and yon are a bit crazy in the 1/12, but I gotta say I'm a little taken with how clever the design and engineering is, otherwise. Some parts warpage here and there on mine, but the fit is really good when you straighten that out. And hey, Meng's own literature goes on about the importance of a complete engine and poseable steering, so it looks like Tim B and I will be happy... ?

As brilliant as your reviews always are, Adam, I gotta engage in some light record-sorting on this one. It's entirely correct for you to catch the odor of whiffed opportunity here - but the whole endeavor is an order of magnitude more cynical even than it first appears. It wasn't just the Monkees concept that was "phoned in". The whole kit was "phoned in". Monogram updated the body and the wheels and absolutely NOTHING ELSE to the '87+/ "AeroFox" standards this kit is supposed to represent. Everything in the box is redolent of "just swirl up the plastic and they'll never notice the rest". You could judge for yourself the merits of some odd proportioning here and there, and of pressing 16" wheels into service where 15s would have been correct; but there's no disputing the untouched interior and carbureted engine were obsolete and bitterly inaccurate for this body style. At least Monogram warned the cognoscenti with those model pictures on the side panel. That's why the 1992 convertible is different - 16" wheels were correct by then, properly updated to the five-spoke design, and there was at least a good faith attempt to get the interior and the fuel injected 302 up to post '87 spec. None of which should be such bad news, in the end - if you're looking for a "loser kit" standard-bearer, this may just be the most comprehensively overqualified offering ever from Monogram. ?

"nitpicking trolls", pfffft... Those A-pillars will need a few file swipes, not that I'm not delighted with this - it's far and away the best of their '70s subjects. Salvinos can send a card to thank you for my rush-to-Ebay purchase.

Didn't even bother with it till now. "Joe Massa-Puzj" - tried saying that name aloud... and yup, you're right. ?

Sweet. LOVE me a new flat-back 'Stang. With the Revell AG/Carrera Slots angle, I wouldn't be surprised if we got a C8.R first this time, if ANYTHING for the new 'Vette in plastic. S550 got short shrift for years, and seeing how difficult GM apparently was about the C7, looks like the most deserving Corvette in history will now follow suit.

Kinda. Ain't too sure about them dirty bits, m'self.

Ah. That where the Zonda mighta gone? Been wondering about that one...

Welp, it's intriguing - but it seems to be doubling down on that smashed-in transition between the door and the front fender from the full-detail Huracans. Fender flares 'n all, I know. Still looks like a missed opportunity to smooth that area some.

Awesome! I'll just hafta whet the ol' appetite with the ragtop in the meantime.

Not gonna lie, that caught my eye immediately too, especially after such a nice job on the Nova. Still, gonna tip to the other side of "to buy or not to buy". Wouldn't mind more '64-'65 A-bodies at all.

Yup. Or, putting straight pin segments into those holes so you have something more substantial to seat the vinyl tubing on? HATED those as a kid. Gave me FITS. These days I'd use the kit tubing as boots and find actual wire close as possible to 1/16.

Pretty happy about the street SLC, VERY happy about the street M1. Cruiser, Rover and 190 look tasty too

I'd bet Tamiya will follow with a non-ZG version soon thereafter. Got the full line of Tamiya Zs, and this'll be a nifty fill for the gap left up front. Then there's that new Z too...

Understand perfectly why the Hirohata is so iconic and trendsetting. But Sam's apparent personal tastes - especially as compared to his brother's - were way more my speed. I'd take his basic green Merc over just about anything other than the Polynesian, and that Buick above shows the same simple elegance.

Figures I built the Hase kit already - still pretty exciting to me. ? Not for nothin', this bein' a car website 'n all, but I'm digging that new 1/48 Phantom too...