Don Sikora II

Wow. Don't think I've ever seen one of those before.

From the sell sheet Casey posted, Snake's right the new Eliminator box is in the same style but completely different from the original Cougar annual box. I like these "continuation" boxes too, and I hope the concept continues.

Yes, the AMT '69 Cougar seems to follow that old joke about George Washington's axe. If nearly every part has been replaced a couple of times or otherwise revised, is it really the same model? Don't think the red CJ428 kit is that hard to find, or very expensive. I bought a second one in the last year for less than what the new kit will probably cost. Think I paid $12 for a sealed one at a swap meet. If you can't find it and want a big-block the easiest place might be one of the AMT reissues from about 10 years ago of the ex-MPC '73 Cougar kit. That kit has nearly the same engine as the CJ428 kit, but it might have been tooled a second time for one of the kits since there's some subtle differences between the two engines. The '69 kit also has a ram-air aircleaner that's not in the '73 Cougar.

A lot of the Boss 429 was recycled from the optional engine AMT included in some of its Pinto annual kits! The only Pinto I have with the Boss 429 is a '72, and most of it is the same as what was used in the Street Machines issue of the Cougar. Think the engine carried on until the '74 Pinto, so they might have just used that as is, but I'm not sure. Maybe Mark B. knows.

The '69 Eliminator kit with the yellow car on the box includes a newly tooled Boss 302 engine with a 4-speed transmission. It was a pretty extensive rework of the Street Machines series kit. In addition to the changes you mention, there were a lot of interior changes including new bucket seats, a new exhaust system, and other tweaks too. The CJ428 kit incorporates many of the changes done for the Eliminator kit, but instead of the Boss 302 it includes a 428 big block with an automatic transmission that supposedly was sourced from MPC's '73 Cougar kit. This kit also has different wheels, a different air cleaner, and a different shifter. The decal sheet is different as well. All AMT/Ertl/RC2 '69 Cougar reissues after these two kits include the Boss 302 engine and wheels from the Eliminator kit with the yellow car on the box, but some of them show a built CJ428 kit on the box (it's a blue model) with the big block and 5-spoke wheels. The kits I have like that (one version is in the gold checkerboard Wal-Mart box) include the parts from Boss 302 Eliminator kit but the decal sheet from the CJ428 kit, so it gets really confusing. The Wal-Mart ProShop pre-paint kit also has the Boss 302 parts but the CJ428 decal sheet. Will be interesting to see which parts are in the upcoming reissue. From the box, it looks like it should be the Boss 302-powered Eliminator.

Between the original annual and the Countdown Series kit, there was a funny car-only kit, #T342. The Street Machines kit was first released during the Matchbox/Lesney era. My kit is PK-4169. This issue of the kit includes a Boss 429 engine.

Pretty sure those tires were included in the Tuner issue of the 510. They were made for a lowrider kit originally, don't remember which one came first but they were in the Fox-body Mustang convertible, Chevy Citation, '92 Thunderbird, and '92 Cougar.

They're right, the Ohio George Ranchero has the old AMT "compact car tire" or a retooled version of it. I looked at my Ranchero and an original tire from a '65 Corvair annual. They aren't exactly the same even though they look very similar. The Ranchero tires are missing a rib that sits in the middle of the "hole" in the "old" tire that I assume was used to help center the wheels in the tire. The diameter of the hole that the wheel fits into in the Ranchero tire is slightly larger too....the battery in my digital caliper is dead so no measurements. More importantly, the wheels in the reissued Corvair kit actually date to the Ertl-era Prestige Series release of the kit. Ertl supplied the hollow Firestone Super Sports that are also in the new kit. The Prestige kit was the first to have the stock '69 hubcaps and it seems they were tooled to fit that Firestone tire. Makes sense since that's the tire Ertl decided to use in the kit. The slot mags were revised to fit that tire too. If you look at the back side of the wheel compared to an earlier issue of the kit you can see plastic was added so the wheel would sit properly in the wider Firestones. The stock hubcaps are too deep/wide for the Ranchero's compact car tire (they pass all the way though), and the diameter is smaller so it drops right through the tire too. Didn't check them, but it's very possible Ertl messed with the inner wheels to fit the Firestones too. Have no idea how the wheels fit those skinny Michelins. The stock hubcaps from the Prestige kit won't fit the tire from the '65 annual either. So, I guess it seems the new kit has the Firestones because that's the tire that fits the existing wheels.

The tab in the window is probably for support, but it's possible there is a molding issue and the tab is acting as a "runner" to help the plastic fill the entire body. When I come across something like that I use a thin photo-etch saw and carefully cut it out.

Airfix Corporation of America was located in Philadelphia. It seems to have operated in the 1963-1965 time frame. This legal case gives a bit of company background. These are three Airfix Corporation of America boxes from my collection, Renault Dauphine (top), Fokker Triplane, and F104G Straighter. All say "Made and Litho in USA" so I assume they were actually made in the States and not from bag shots. These are different boxes than the later "Airfix by Craft Master" style. The plans were marked Airfix Corporation of America and Philadelphia. This plan fit my scanner. The address for replacement parts was MPC on Groesbeck Hwy. The Dauphine plan has MPC's address on Hubbard Avenue. Not proof these kits were molded by MPC, but it seems pretty plausible to me.

I've also read that one of MPC's earliest "projects" was molding kits for the Airfix Corporation of America in 1963. It's plausible since MPC's name and address are listed for replacement parts on the instruction sheets.

I would say Monogram was quite a bit better, in particular the Tuned Port Injection unit was really nice....MPC never quite caught the look of that set up. Monogram's series of C4 glue kits started with a '85 Coupe that was one of the brand's best efforts to that point. I'd say the kit still holds up pretty well 30 years later.

The Model King Cougar was actually the old MPC Cougar funny car kit, and MPC made three different versions of it back in the Sixties. MPC didn't make a street Cougar until '69. AMT made the '67 and '68 Cougar annual kits, and this '69 Eliminator kit is a much-modified descendant of AMT's '69 Cougar XR-7 annual.

No idea, but I sure wish somebody would do a 1/24-scale MK6 or MK7 Golf GTI! Would really like a 991-generation 911 too....especially the GT3.

I'd say the best one is the 1/24-scale Monogram kit. They did an '86/87 convertible. Monogram never did the base 1988 wheels though. MPC/Ertl had a '88 convertible kit that's 1/25 scale, but it isn't as well detailed as Monogram's.

Thanks Casey. They are both cool, but I'm really digging the Little Red Wagon poster.

Thanks Mark. About a month ago I bought a batch of wheels that had a few more of the AWB Chevelle's front wheels....need to dig through them to see if I have any of the rears. From your description, I'm getting close to piecing together an Edsel.

Mark, did the Chevelle, F-85, and Edsel all use the same wheels? Long ago, you identified some front wheels I found and said they were from the AWB Chevelle. What wheels were used on the rear?

I've never seen Rapid Randy decals either. I have a very early kit with the price extension on the box (GC-2900:200). It's molded in white plastic, has metal axles...and a Tinker's Toy decal sheet.

Frank and Scott, you're welcome. The lights are powered by two AAA batteries, and as said above the batteries are stored in the trunk.

The hardtop annual, 6724-200. Should be complete. Hosted on Fotki Hosted on Fotki Hosted on Fotki Hosted on Fotki Hosted on Fotki Hosted on Fotki

I'm pretty sure Starter made a 1/43-scale kit in resin. They were based in France and are long out of business though. Not sure if anybody has done one in 1/24.

The Street Shaker (T408) has the roll bar, but not the head light covers, steel wheels, or tow hook. The roll bar wasn't in the "Countdown" issue (2203) and I don't think it's been seen since. At least some of the made-in-China kits from the RC2 era included the disc brake hub. Would be neat to see all that other stuff too. I wouldn't mind seeing the annual's battery box and switch, along with the clear headlights and taillight backing piece either. I can live without the light bulbs and battery contacts and stuff, but it would be nice to get any of the molded-plastic parts from the working head- and tail-light setup that may still be in the mold.

I recommend Hobby Link Japan too. If you shop there, it's worth understanding how their "Private Warehouse" shipping option works. I use it to help save on shipping costs.

Haven't been there in a year or so, but America's Best Train, Toy and Hobby is worth checking out. It's just off Irving Park Road east of Rohlwing in Itasca. It's mostly a train shop, but it's a big store that's absolutely packed and there's a pretty good selection of kits. They aren't displayed very neatly though, and IIRC are more than one deep on the shelves, so plan on doing some digging.