Chuck Kourouklis

Welp, I'm back from that wretched hive of online auctioning scum and villainy, and what I wanna know is this: since when did the lousy Badman start trading so high-falutin' within a mere seven years of the last pressing? I just snared a clean and complete PC83 variation for about half the typical buy-it-now asking on the TD kit! A starting bid on one of those is now in pretty extravagant territory.

Don't think it's the Boxer, but a Daytona hardtop, Bill. A 1/12 365GT4 BB? Oh yes, that'd be one MFH to rule them all...

That's not a bad question, Kurt. If it isn't MFH playing games,. maybe it's the vendor. MFH evidently has a few more releases lined up before the expiration - one of which appears to be the 1/12 365 GTB I'd prefer over the spyder.

Yeah, Iike the snapper well enough, but I've never much cared for its daylight openings on the sides. Had to pile my appreciation on with everyone else's. VERY sharp, Steve!

Am I wrong, or did I see some rumbling about the Monogram 1/8 small block kit on the Atlantis Facebook page? Guess so... EDIT: woops, here too. Shoulda known...

Just HAD to mention the detail-up kit, 'n I just HAD to fatten my private warehouse...

Well the old practice with annuals was to make detail changes to the tooling all the time. As for something this major though, yeah, I'm not sure. From the beltline down, the corrected body seemed very similar to the chopped one, but without the two shells at hand to compare, I can only speculate.

Yup. Thanks, Rob!

Well I think it's been long verified that a '69 has been planned from the start. Whether we actually see that from the new company may be in some question at this point. The AAR 'Cuda from the '13 tooling, scheduled for upcoming release, might be cause for optimism. I don't know if I'd necessarily preclude scanning because of the Hobbico circumstances - there was marketing language about the '14 Corvette that might have been mistaken for LIDAR being used in its development - but I wouldn't be surprised if things really did play out the way James figures. What's important is if the model is executed well enough you could confuse it for coming from scans. Still waiting on mine, but I'm really liking what I see so far.

I may be mistaken - and it would be interesting to hear if I were - but I think after the rollout fiasco, R/M made hella sure everyone had matching glass for their body corrections at least.

Like the 'Shima Spec Nur I got well enough but yes, Tamiya x 4 absolutely.

I'll just blather the tired old trope of I've-got-plenty-to-build-in-the-meantime - but yeah, I'm with Dave on this one.

Glad I have one on the way! That sucker's pretty, innit? A bit like a Porsche 962 with some 917-style softening of the edges, if you squint.

I'm kinda miffed they let that go, myself. Gonna take come filler and rescribing to get that all the way fixed. Still 'n all, I'll take it.

One of the biggest fumbles ever from Revell/Monogram. For my money, also one of their greatest recoveries. I asked for a couple of the corrected bodies and they sent two entire kits. R/M could be really good like that from time to time, and I hope the new company takes such things into account as it works out its new normal. That first body was rough, but it does make you appreciate the correction all the more. The recent '70 Chargers are also pretty nice, based on the corrected '69 patterns but all-new in tooling.

Well then why not here too:

I think we've had a preview of sorts - There's a lot of resolution lost when you blow this up from the flyer, but if that's representative, it's win enough imho.

Imho, as fine an Impala model as ever there was.

Christmas, 1973. That's when I got my first copy of that very kit. In an Entex box, I think. Sheesh, I think that might have been my very first car model kit. I was more into Aurora Prehistoric Scenes at that point.

Ah, Rusty, I am so sorry to have misled you. The last time I checked, online auction sites were lousy with Pocher Aventadors dropping into the 500s, but apparently not any more. You could still say they're not quite so pricey as a subscription model, but that argument has gotten a lot less substantial lately.

Welp, in case anyone wants to hear from a guy who's got both... Funny, my Pocher Aventador came out okay: Paint quality fluctuates a bit from one kit to the next, so that's where your mileage is most likely to vary; the white ones seemed to have more problems with the factory paint, whereas this arancia just needed a little extra clearcoat to level everything out and shine it up. Engineering and fit were pretty comprehensively developed for around 700 parts total, otherwise. The single issue, pretty much on its lonesome, is that the damped door hinges may stand a bit proud and push the leading edge of the doors to a slightly wider gap than you'll see in all the other body panels, and that could be down to paint/powdercoat interference at the bosses where they screw into the body shell. It was otherwise very agreeable to build. Something I really appreciated about this kit was its refinement of the whole Pocher "Prestige" concept that started with the diecast Ferraris, and the way it combined that improvement in concept with the architectural emphasis of the "Classics" line. Not only did the Aventador strike a better balance than the Ferraris for stressed and cosmetic parts and the materials used for them, it recalled the Classics' emphasis on the model building up in a fashion similar to the 1:1, with greater overall component accuracy than the Classics kits enjoyed. The Huracan only escalates this. Individual buttons for the console now. A U-jointed shaft driving rack and pinion for the steering, rather than the Aventador's dogleg. Could the detail hounds really up the stakes with aftermarket bits? Of course. But simple paint finishing hardly leaves you with an embarrassment in a current Pocher 1/8 model. DeAgostini models go for a comparable result, but they take a different route. (the comparison is kinda apples to half-apples since the Countach is still in progress) Where Pocher's m o might be characterized as classic kit design orthodoxy on steroids, the partswork subscription kits make it more of a stated objective to democratize the building process for non-modelers. As such, all parts are more comprehensively pre-finished where visible (in Kyosho's Countach, nearly enough to build without refinishing; in Altaya's GT500, less so), and perhaps not so representative where hidden. I've found the paint quality a little rough on the Countach diecast pieces, more so than the Aventador's for sure. The E-type Jag and the Shelby GT500 seem a bit smoother, but there may be stripe registration problems on the Shelby. Here you'll see more emphasis on little gizmos like working lights and engine sounds. The suspension will operate: but perhaps it's a bit less demure about its fasteners than Pocher's kits are. That peg poking out is there to raise the headlights. More direct engine comparisons: ANY kit will depend on what the builder does with it, but Pocher clearly leans a little harder on a modeler's interpretation. DeAgostini/Modelspace does offer a support forum, but I've found one caveat there: if modelers are known to get defensive about kit criticism in a more general forum like this one, it's taken to a sharper extreme in a sponsored forum like Modelspace. One of their featured kits frankly has a design problem, and because the more senior members and mods there are uptight about acknowledging that, they also miss the fact the manufacturer actually provides a part used later in the assembly sequence that will solve the problem if it's "borrowed" earlier to help other components line up the way they should. Instead, they've adopted the line that some people just don't have the mechanical inclination that others do, an approach that not only gets me sniffing for any odd limb in the water, but also runs counter to the apparent objective of making these kits accessible to anybody who wants to give one a try. I have a comprehensive answer, one that may actually help DeAgostini sell kits rather than drive people from the forum or leave them posting videos about how they gave up and canceled subscriptions in frustration - but I think I'll need to film a video of my own for it. One other consideration: Pocher's a $7-800 hit up front (cheaper depending on where you look). DeAgostini runs more 12-14 all in, but you take $60-70 bites over a couple years, and you get those funky little magazines with each installment.

Awww MAN, Bill. Just HADTA post this, didn'cha? See, my thing is, I went for their open-top P4 when I'd really rather have had the closed version, and beautiful as this is, I'd really rather have the hardtop. But I'd much rather have this than not at all. There's been some stuff about Ferrari licensing expiring with MFH in the past, and yet they kept producing Ferraris up till now...

I'm up for ANY Buick suggested in this thread. '67 GS the most, though.

It think it's a pretty canny thing, Round 2 cutting this loose with all the cute box art - right as Revell's '68 is around the corner for cross-pollination...

Wouldn't be surprised if it did, Tim. LANDMARK comparison article. So much so I felt obliged to refer back to it for the review of AMT's new-tool '57 back in '98.