pack rat

Yes, that helps...'61 Buick it is.

The upholstery pattern isn't very clear in your pic, but it looks like both parts are from an AMT '61 Buick

Looks like a '58-'60 T-bird hood. If it's molded in red, I would guess it's from the Monogram "Special Interest Series" '58 from the mid-70's

Sealed?? What fun is that?...rip it open, Tom!

Correct. Stevens is a distributor that gets their info from Round2 just like everyone else...nothing more.

Here you go. I believe the kit will be identical to the previously-released VP Challenger, including the separate vinyl-textured roof.

I would NOT spend big money on that kit right now (not that anyone would spend $120.00 on one!). If that tooling still exists in half-decent condition, I'm sure we'll see it....eventually.

More like this, Chuck. I think your pic is of a newer model. This one is described as a '69

Pretty sure it depicts a late-60's Rupp Roadster

Something I learned awhile ago, Dave....no matter what you know about what is going on behind the scenes, lots of guys "out there" know more than you.

Thanks for posting the pic, Casey. It's always cool to see the box art for the first time....and that the kit is still in one piece.

McCormick's stocks Alclad

Nobody lied, but a whole lotta people assumed

Exactly right. Round2 has assigned a different "HL"-prefix number to the upcoming release. The box art kit was built using one of the few remaining old Lindberg issues they had on hand.

I'm 99.9% sure this one won't be in a "faux-66" box. As far as I know they're creating new art for this one with a turquoise built-up on the box....but that could change.

I would guess the kit contents will be identical to the previous issues with a different box....I built-up on the box painted Artesian Turquoise would look nice

I think the "Parts Pack" label was what killed the bikes back in '97. IIRC the engine parts packs were on the hobby shop shelves when the bikes were announced, and my LHS STILL has a few of those left.

Having worked with Round2 for the last few years, I have to say you are absolutely bang-on, Tim....especially on the first point. I also agree re the guesswork and rampant speculation that results when people on message boards start trying to fill in the blanks when little tidbits of information are released. The various rumors that were generated when plans for a '71 Demon were announced are a prime example.

I started doing box-art/display kits for Round2 through a friend-of-a-friend and a dusty old model. Way back when the AMT Po Shop '64 Ford was released my local LHS proprietor asked me to build one for him for display in his store. Fast forward a few years....a friend of his (John Greczula from Round2) was visiting his house and spotted the old Galaxie sitting in a display cabinet. At the time ihobby 2008 was coming up and John needed someone to assemble a couple of test shots for the show. I was offered the task, I figured "this might be fun", and that led to 60/70-something kits since then. Yes it's fun, but there are some challenges. Time is a big factor (usually 7-10 days in my spare time), and sometimes you're working with test shots that aren't quite production-ready. The highlight for me was the snap '66 Batmobile....I had to mate a resin prototype body with an early test shot....and it had to be painted AND pinstriped (somehow). I got it done, though. I have to give credit to the other guys who have done work for Round2....I've done a bunch of stuff for them but I'm not the only one, and their work is amazing. As to "where are they now?"....the kits usually end up in the Auto World store in Indiana if they survive the beating from being shipped to shows etc (I know of at least one that was basically trashed).

Good point. I forget the exact words used, but the conversation implied that the search was over, and they couldn't re-issue what they didn't have....in other words, "lost" as in "gone".

Don't worry....the guy in charge knows his stuff. Re the '63 Ford pickup....possibly the most-desired, most-missed old AMT tool; unfortunately I believe they have stated that its officially "lost".

Exactly. Some people seem to think that we on this forum and others like it make up the vast majority of the model car market, and as long as the companies cater to us things will be fine. Not necessarily so. For an entry-level snap kit it looks fine to me.

The test shot had the same panel lines between the rear window and trunklid that the updated MPC body has. There were no hood pins or wheel opening moldings (as clearly seen in the pic I posted). But...it's a test shot. Although it looked almost complete I have no idea what, if any changes have been made.

Highly unlikely. The tool was still a "work in progress" when they sent me a test shot. The body and clear parts section of the tooling weren't polished yet, meaning the body required extensive sanding/prep before it was painted, and glass and taillight lenses from the glue kit were substituted as the snap parts were unusable at that stage. I'm no expert on diecast General Lees, but this kit doesn't resemble any 1/25-1/24 diecast General I've ever seen. I can't explain the flag on the Wonderfest display kit either....pretty small pic but it looks like my build with the flag added after the fact.