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Revell Attempt I Record Car, great for early dragster parts and trailer


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In 1963 I attended the custom car show in Montreal where there was a 'Revell-Testors' make & take. I chose the Revell Attempt 1 because it had a trailer and a parachute. I was also given some Testors paint, glue and brushes to use to build the model.I sat there for an hour, my Father standing there wondering what was happening (he wasn't a car guy but he enjoyed watching me build). After an hour they told me my time was up but that I could take everything home with me. I was in awe! Part of the 'Revell-Testors' display included built models from the Revell catalog and a display of Testors paints. I didn't finish the model at the show but I did finish it when I got home. Over the years the model was severely damaged (maybe too much glue) :( When the kit was re-issued, I bought a new one with the intention of re-building my old one. It is in the stash pile :) The old kit has disappeared but I still have the trailer :) 

Yes, the parts in this kit are excellent for building a mid-60s rail or hot rod or Bonneville car :) 

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I did one a few years back. Here's a great site for Dragmaster lore. It hasn't been active in a while but it's full og good info to build a digger from this kit: http://1962dragmaster.blogspot.com/ . I pinched the Dragmaster logo on the site to make my own for my build.

If you do a proper V8 powered quarter miler, as opposed to an LSR car like the Attempt 1, you'll need to use a somewhat wider front axle. IIRC I used a Tony Nancy Double Dragster setup. Natutally mine had to be Pontiac powered, although to build a replica the ultimate subject would be Pete Robinson's '62 Nationals winning ultra-light Chevy Small Block powered machine. It went through tech inspection at just over 800 lbs.!

Pete Robinson's giant killer:

 

sneaky-pete-robinson-taking-trophy-for-1

Pete15-Moon-B.jpg

My meager Attempt (ha ha):

 

Edited by Bernard Kron
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Like most of the Revell kits of that era, it's very well detailed with a lot of tiny parts - tough for a kid to build, but fun and challenging for an adult. I believe only the first issue has the trailer and parachute.

Attempt 1 RF 2

The chassis is almost identical to the Mooneyes dragster chassis. If you want to build a more correct Attempt 1, you'll need to add an extra hoop to the roll cage. Like a lot of kits, the body isn't split in a prototypically correct manner (for practical reasons I assume), but it can be made so with a little work.

Attempt 1 body off side

Attempt 1 body off LF

A few years ago, I got to handle the carved body buck for the Revell kit. It's now at the Model Car Builders Museum in Salt Lake City. I'll dig some photos of that out when I can.

 

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In 1963 I attended the custom car show in Montreal where there was a 'Revell-Testors' make & take. I chose the Revell Attempt 1 because it had a trailer and a parachute. I was also given some Testors paint, glue and brushes to use to build the model.I sat there for an hour, my Father standing there wondering what was happening (he wasn't a car guy but he enjoyed watching me build). After an hour they told me my time was up but that I could take everything home with me. I was in awe! Part of the 'Revell-Testors' display included built models from the Revell catalog and a display of Testors paints. I didn't finish the model at the show but I did finish it when I got home. Over the years the model was severely damaged (maybe too much glue) :( When the kit was re-issued, I bought a new one with the intention of re-building my old one. It is in the stash pile :) The old kit has disappeared but I still have the trailer :) 

Yes, the parts in this kit are excellent for building a mid-60s rail or hot rod or Bonneville car :) 

That's a great story Howard.  I wish Revell would re-issue with the trailer.

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Like most of the Revell kits of that era, it's very well detailed with a lot of tiny parts - tough for a kid to build, but fun and challenging for an adult. I believe only the first issue has the trailer and parachute.

Attempt 1 RF 2

The chassis is almost identical to the Mooneyes dragster chassis. If you want to build a more correct Attempt 1, you'll need to add an extra hoop to the roll cage. Like a lot of kits, the body isn't split in a prototypically correct manner (for practical reasons I assume), but it can be made so with a little work.

Attempt 1 body off side

Attempt 1 body off LF

A few years ago, I got to handle the carved body buck for the Revell kit. It's now at the Model Car Builders Museum in Salt Lake City. I'll dig some photos of that out when I can.

 

This build is awesome. I built one when I was a kid and would like to build something similar to this level someday. I even went as far to get an unbuilt original issue so I would have the trailer and the issue of Hot Rod that featured this car. I wonder if the real car exists somewhere.

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Sidebar...many years ago I read a book about Mickey and his early runs at Bonneville. He had trouble with the front suspension bending or breaking when he hit a small crease in the salt. Apparently at 200MPH when the tire comes off the ground a half inch or so, it takes almost 300 feet before the suspension can work and stabilize the car and when it lands, ouch :( . Mickey decided to try a block of wood firmly attached in place of the shocks so there would be no give. The next run the car stayed planted on the salt when he hit the crease and there was no damage. From there he worked on a new front suspension. Another home grown genius :) 

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This build is awesome. I built one when I was a kid and would like to build something similar to this level someday.

Thanks for the kind words, Craig. There are a few things I think I could do a little better now, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The kit is mostly accurate out of the box, but responds well to a little extra detailing, and there's good amount of reference material out there to help.

As promised, here are a few shots of the Revell Attempt 1 buck. It gives me an appreciation of what goes into creating a model kit, especially back then.

595 Attempt 1 pattern

It's hard to get a sense of scale in these photos, but as I remember it the buck is about 16" long.

579 Attempt 1 pattern

607 Attempt 1 pattern bottom

I didn't realize it at first, but it's in two pieces:

606 Attempt 1 pattern open

 

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Thanks for the kind words, Craig. There are a few things I think I could do a little better now, but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The kit is mostly accurate out of the box, but responds well to a little extra detailing, and there's good amount of reference material out there to help.

As promised, here are a few shots of the Revell Attempt 1 buck. It gives me an appreciation of what goes into creating a model kit, especially back then.

595 Attempt 1 pattern

It's hard to get a sense of scale in these photos, but as I remember it the buck is about 16" long.

579 Attempt 1 pattern

607 Attempt 1 pattern bottom

I didn't realize it at first, but it's in two pieces:

606 Attempt 1 pattern open

 

I think Tom West owns this buck

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