pack rat

Here's a pic I took years ago of a junk box Futura beside a resin prototype snap Batmobile (identical to the plastic version).

Tamiya AS-12 Bare Metal Silver is a near-identical subsitute...except for the price, of course

My number one rule with any Testors enamel....NEVER apply it out of the can, airbrush only. Even with a good base coat, I still had a few botched Testors paint jobs in my younger days, I think we all did.

Thanks for the compliment The paint on this one was really basic; old school Testors Lime Gold metalflake airbrushed over a Testors silver base on the truck and over the kit chrome on the bike.

So many cool trucks in this thread! One of my all-time favorite AMT kits is the '53 F-100, but I only have one sitting on the shelf; a custom hauler I painted to match a Revell Triumph show bike.

I believe the first appearance of that reissue was in the 1970 AMT catalogue. My reference is not 100% complete, so I stand to be corrected. Re Scalemates.....lots of useful information on that site, but take it with a grain of salt. Errors do exist. Still a cool kit, though. I paid pretty decent money for one at a swap meet a few years ago.

Decanted Testors White Lightning lacquer, thinned a little bit and brushed onto the chrome headlights.

AMT/Matchbox Scirocco.

I had lots of fun with this one too. Glad you found the part. Test shots are out there (as per standard practice the test shots contain parts for both versions). I can't post pics, but if you like the original annual issue of the wagon you'll like the full detail version (axle pins excepted). I hear you re the arthritis too...we're all getting up there.

Just wondering....did you test-fit one or more of the wheel mounts? When I got my first look at the kit I'll admit I was wondering how those pins would work; thinking I might have to glue the wheels in position, set it on a flat surface while the glue dried so the wheels weren't all wonky etc etc. We've all been there. I was actually impressed with the way they worked....perfect fit to the wheel back and the chassis opening; apply a touch of glue, snap it together, then set it down on the bench with all 4 wheels straight and square. Maybe not the preferred wheel mounting method for some, but there's no way I would call it fiddly.

Tim; your Scale Auto article on the Judson blowers might have influenced more than just a few vintage kit purchases. About five years ago I found a complete '64 convertible for sale and snapped it up partially based on your article (and those cool custom wheels). Just for kicks I sent detailed pics of the kit contents to John at Round2 along with pics of a hardtop I had converted to a 442 a few years earlier. He thought the pics were pretty cool at the time. This may or may not have had any influence on their decision to restore the kit.....but you never know. .

I'm not sure how well-defined the trim will be on production kits; the yellow car above was built from a test shot, and I know there were a couple of tweaks and corrections performed after that one was produced. NOTE-to those who notice the missing 442 emblem on the trunklid; that has been corrected.

Good plan. There's nothing worse than beating your head against the wall to the point that you never want to look at a kit again. I usually pick up a simple no-brainer project to play with until I feel like jumping back in. Thank You for the compliment re the 442.

The only way to foil that side trim without driving yourself crazy is to cut a long, straight piece of foil (about 1mm thick) a little longer than you need and apply it like a pinstripe. It's not as tough as it sounds. The most challenging part is peeling the strip from the backing without breaking or twisting it. I did the 442 test build this way; I would never attempt the old "apply then trim" method on it....my eyes would still be crossed too.

I finally restored a partially-complete, disassembled MPC '66 Vette I picked up about 25 years ago. My first dilemma; The body has "427" emblems engraved on it even though the kit was equipped with the same old 327 found in the '64 and '65 kits (MPC called it a 427 on the box). I didn't want to alter the body, so I dug an AMT big block from some unknown kit from the parts box. My next issue...MPC included hoods for both versions in the box but I only had the small block hood; I have a couple of AMT big block hoods but they aren't accurate. So...I can live with a '66 427 Vette with a small block hood; I'll disassemble and repaint if the proper hood ever falls on my lap (fat chance!) I substituted the chassis from one of the '67 reissues as the original '66 had the stock exhaust system engraved on it; MPC expected you to pretend it wasn't there if you used the side exhausts. The wheels are from the recent AMT '63...I applied a wash, dulled the shine down a bit and found some more accurate knock-offs in the parts box. The crowning touch is a set of goldline Firestone Supremes (a little experiment using clear acrylic paint on whitewalls). Paint is Testors lacquer Nassau Blue.

No Hi-Jacker logos,,,,but yup, they're white!

The hubcaps are from a '61 F-100 I built as a custom. They're not accurate for a '62 but they look OK to me.

Back in the late '60's I was a Mopar fan and had a nice 1/25 scale fleet of Chargers, Coronets, Barracudas etc. Unfortunately I couldn't build a Dart GTS or Swinger 340 back then as no one offered a kit. Finally in the 90's Revell released a '69 Dart GTS. I was looking at a built-up I picked up years ago thinking it would be fun to tear it apart and re-do it just as I would have back in '69 if MPC had released it. A pretty simple build, just like I did 'em back then; home-made shackles to raise the rear end and clear the (too wide) tires on Cragars, traction bars swiped from a vintage MPC Charger, an aftermarket air cleaner & headers on the 440 (a 383 is pretty close, so let's just call it that, OK?), an aftermarket steering wheel, and a cool 8-track player I found in my "gee gaw" stash. Paint is Testors Fiery Orange lacquer....gotta have some flake on that street machine. I had fun with this one; I can picture it on my display shelf back in '69...with a few more glue smudges on it and silver paint instead of the BMF (no way I was going that far into the past!). Yea, the hood inserts were ruined on removal...a little flat black paint, fixed!

Awhile back I picked up a really nasty-looking '62 Ford pickup from a buddy. I figured I could possibly use it for parts; and the price was right (basically free). I was looking at it a couple of months ago thinking it might be fun to see if I could make something decent out of it. After a bunch of body work (way too much) and a few bits from the parts stash it's not a showpiece, but it looks OK on the shelf. Paint is Tamiya TS-26 Pure White and TS-15 Blue (looks pretty close to the factory Corinthian White/Academy Blue).

Re the MPC '67; I have one on the bench right now as a parts donor for a '66 annual restoration. If you pick up one of the later issues be prepared for a few quality-related glitches; flash, sink marks, mold misalignment, chrome that is unevenly applied in some places or flakes off in other areas. Added bonus if you get one with the smoke-tinted windows. No, I'm not saying it's a "lousy kit, don't buy it", just putting out a cautionary note to those who may not be too familiar with this kit as it hasn't been on the shelves for quite a long time. It's from a time when MPC was cranking these oldies out for the Kmarts and Walmarts and quality suffered a bit.

POS or not, you made it look pretty good, Steve.

A cool little part I just found. I'm working on a 70's-style street machine/day 2 muscle car and I just found this period-perfect 8-track player in my parts stash. It's just over 1/4 inch wide (that's a #11 blade it's resting on). I'd like to know what kit(s) might have included this part if anyone out there has any ideas; I might have a couple more of these I don't know about.

I don't understand this so-called "disinformaton". Right from the start, the plan was to take a vintage kit, clone it and re-issue it in vintage-style packaging. That's exactly what they did, and when the kit was announced Round2 stated it was/is all-new tooling. Their choice of the Nova wagon wasn't just pulled out of a hat, and it was apparently a good one based on the kit's popularity.

I don't have a '64 Lemans convertible, but the GTO does have that chrome console piece; it is supposed to be mounted on top of the molded-in console.

Here's the engine/transmission before installation in the above kit with the correct 4-speed and air cleaner. I'm not sure if there is a decal for the air cleaner on production kits. There is also a 4-speed shift lever for the interior, and a little clutch pedal to be installed beside the molded-in brake pedal.