pack rat

This thread takes me back to when I first started doing some work for Round2. At the time I (repeatedly) suggested that a '73/'74 Rallye based on the Super Charger would make a cool reissue idea....however I didn't know then (or now) how do-able it is. I was told at one point that they had the Super Charger tool and were considering running some plastic through it to see what they had. This was quite a long time ago and I don't know what transpired after that. Some pics of a wagon I did using a Super Charger beater and some spare annual bits.

FWIW at least 10 years ago Round2 was well aware that the 66/67 Charger chassis originated in the '65 Coronet. When they were working on the '67 Charger reissue they found that the exhaust system had been shortened at some point before being eliminated entirely for the Street Machine . Speculation at the time was that the modification was made to accommodate the '66 Charger headers. I sent them a pic of some measurements at the time as they were exploring options on the reissue.

I'm don't know if anyone produces decals for the MPC dirt bikes, but I doubt it. I think your only choice is paint-detailing. It's not easy...I attempted it when I restored this one; not perfect but looks OK if you squint. This bike came from the annual '76 Dodge pickup. It's a slightly-modified early-70's Yamaha DT250 Enduro. I added head/taillights to bring it a little closer to stock. The parts-pack reissue doesn't have the Yamaha lettering on the gas tank or crankcase sides as on the original due to licensing issues. The minibike in the recent dodge pickup appears to be a replica of a Rupp Goat.

This is the old Testors Black Cherry lacquer #28113 (sorry for the bad pic). It was marketed as the Impala SS color.

I compared a Black Beauty test shot to an original annual a couple of years ago. Parts like the annual hood, rear bumper, glass etc would fit the BB like a glove. I'm sure that there was a vintage kit sitting nearby when the BB was developed; I believe a stock building version of the BB was considered but it was nixed at some point.

This old thread inspired me to see what I could do with an old can of Roth Orbitron Blue. It took me awhile to coax the paint into my airbrush jar with repeated shaking, and it was tough to apply as it laid down very thin. It took several coats to minimize high spots at panel lines/runs etc. Added bonus....those whitewalls are 60-year-old AMT stick-ons. Next up....Outlaw Green.

...and Jeff Beck

Bringing this old thread back is tempting me to start playing with these oldies again. I've successfully painted kits with all but the Outlaw Green and Orbitron Blue.

I surprised myself this year. When the new year rolled around I had been taking a break from building having had eye surgery. I was asked to build the Revell Z28 for someone else and decided to give it a go...might as well start with something simple, right? It turned out OK, so I gradually got back into it. All of the others are restored built-ups.

MPC kits were definitely superior to the AMT kits when it came to 2nd-gen Camaros. Compare this MPC '74 to the yellow AMT pictured above. The only visible change from box-stock is AMT '72 Nova wheels. The MPC kits all contained big block power long after they weren't available in Camaros but at least they looked the part.

Three rare ones that I've rebuilt/restored....none box-stock.

Convertible

The truck on the box is pretty close. The original truck was found rotting in a field years ago. If you look close you'll see a '66 grille; the re-creation is a '65. Hard to tell from the angle of the pic, but to me the original looks like a short box (highly unlikely). Bonus pic of the original trailer; the car could have originally been delivered with those hubcaps.

The board won't be the same without him. RIP

Looks like a re-touched photo of a '57 Bird.

It was originally in a '64 Corvette annual, later found in the Fireball 500 (should be easy to find one). I've never seen one with those squarish fenders though.

In the 1:1 world, any '57-66 windshield should fit. I have a '66 convertible on the bench right now. I just test-fitted a '60 convertible windshield. The side vent windows don't line up properly, but the windshield itself is just about perfect. There are lots of 59's out there...maybe that would be the easiest route. The 65 would definitely fit if you have one on hand.

The AMT Double Dragster Any of the early 60's Monogram Starbird-era kits ('58 T-Bird, Little T, '40 Ford pickup etc)

The clear bubble top pictured is from the original issue of the Monogram '55 Chev HT/conv

#4 is the custom hubcap from the early issues of the AMT '49 Ford. It appears that another piece is glued to the back of it.

This '57 Bird talk has me itching to start working on one. I pulled three oldies off of the shelf and starting comparing them. Here are some pics that show some of the changes from the original issue, to the circa 1968 re-box, and then the Judge. A lot of my Judge parts are loose as you can tell, but much of the Judge-exclusive chrome parts are still in place.

An MPC '65 Dodge Monaco I restored awhile back. This was a true glue bomb; everything was welded together. The windows were so heavily glued in place they couldn't be removed; I had to use a polishing kit to clean them up (I managed to cut out and replace the glue-blobbed vent windows). The brittle gold plastic just added to the fun; I had to repair a lot of broken chassis and engine bits along the way.

Not exactly a glue bomb, but sure wasn't mint. A Craftsman '64 Malibu..partially shaved and covered with sanding scratches under that thick Testors blue paint. I figured it was a good time to post this one with the Round2 reissue/recreation on the way.

I'll second that. I'll also add the somewhat obscure original AMT 1/43 scale mini-trophies. The verdoro green Vette may be my all-time favorite.

That Caddy is beautiful!