AMT (Round2) 1961 Chevrolet Impala

[moparfarmer]

The only fault I find with this kit and lots of other new ones (all manufacturers) they all have separate vent glass..In the manufacturers quest to make kits with more parts(to make them look like,"Look at all the parts, it must be a real detailed kit")...I don't like that idea..I really like the simplicity or the Monogram Muscle of the early 90s..They were detailed and could be made into some nice looking replicas...Enough of my rant...

[Rob Hall]

I was, as always futilely, hoping in vain, that the endless and tedious procession of reissues of the same kit over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again, would be for once, just once, I mean once, interrupted, to reissue something nobody has been able to get for less than insane money in 55 years.

Yeah, and let alone the 4 door version.

For God's sake, one can snatch one of the last umpteen reissues of the Lindberg kit off eBay for the next 55 years. There was no need whatsoever to reissue it.

Melodrama much?  As I said in a previous post, the 4dr version was only available as a promo, and the original '61 kit tooling was modified to make the '62, which was modified to make the '63, etc....as with any annual only the last modified version exists.  Since Round 2 has the perfectly usable Lindberg '61 tooling readily available, it would make no sense in spending money to retool a very basic old kit.  It the '61 annual tooling still existed, it would have been out before now. Your expectations are unrealistic.

Edited June 18, 2016 by Rob Hall

[gtx6970]

I have the current Lindberg kit as well as a few of the original 61 annuals ( both convertibles )

I'll snap off a few comparison pics of the 2 side by side later this weekend . But I'll be honest,,,, even though I am always on the hunt for old annuals. The Lindberg kit is nice enough I don't look for the original issue 61 hardtop

[Mark]

The original annual kit was SMP, not AMT.  The two companies were joined at the hip (AMT was part owner and had invested some of the startup funds), but they were separate companies, at least on paper.  AMT bought the remaining interest in SMP in 1961.  The buyout must have been pretty late in the '61 model year; some '62 kits did slip out in SMP boxes (mostly Valiants, with a handful of Imperial convertibles and possibly some Impala convertibles).  All of the '62 Impala annual kits have "SMP" lettering on the little chrome license plates, and I think the Impala bodies have an SMP logo somewhere on the underside.

It's worth noting that the '61 four-door hardtop wasn't issued as a kit even though the cost of the tool would have been paid for by that point, by Chevrolet.  I would assume that someone at SMP knew what they were doing back then, when they passed on the idea of offering it as a kit.  Even at that early stage, the model kit manufacturers were figuring out that the four-door cars weren't high on anyone's want list, even one as nicely styled as that Chevy was.

If you do manage to luck into a four-door promo (I did!), the body is not molded in acetate and shouldn't be warped unless it was improperly stored.  The hood on the four-door hardtop promo body is molded as a separate piece too.  I'm rounding up stock '61 kit engine and underhood parts, mine will be "the kit that might have been".  A buddy of mine printed a few "phantom" boxes a few years back; one of them was for the '61 four-door hardtop, as a Craftsman Series kit.

[Bob Ellis]

I got the 4dr body an glass off ebay. and the hood pops out. the annual convertible kit finishes it

 

[Rob Hall]

Modelhaus makes a decent resin version of the '61 4dr ht promo, I've got one in my stash, along w/ semi-decent R&R one (and an R&R wagon). 

[louie]

I never had the lindberg version, but now I'm going to have the AMT one or two.  Also, Exotics Builder, nice build, you sold me on this kit.     Thanks.   Jeff 

[Exotics_Builder]

I never had the lindberg version, but now I'm going to have the AMT one or two.  Also, Exotics Builder, nice build, you sold me on this kit.     Thanks.   Jeff 

To be clear, the kit I built (Lindberg) had the inline dual quads and I replaced them with the AMT 62 Impala Short Ram option.  The Cragar wheels were from the 66 Nova kit and I used American Satco blackwalls.  It would be interesting to see what Round2 has included in this kit that differs from the original Lindberg.

 

[Southern Fried]

My "beef" with the Lindberg '61 (also the '53 Ford) was spotty, thin chrome plating.

[Bob Ellis]

The original SMP Impala detail doesn't cut the mustard with today's modeler's expectations.

[SfanGoch]

But Bob, Junkman said,

The old AMT original would be a genuine piece of American history and culture.

The Lindberg is just another one of those naff reissues without any soul.

  

Just to set the paternity of the Lindberg kit straight for Junkman, it isn't a reissue of any previous AMT/SMP kit. It was a completely original tooling when first released in 1995  It has nothing in common with the original SMP kit (Hardtop, not Bubbletop) other than subject matter. Lindberg fixed the cowl shape early in the first production run and it is an excellent kit

[RDean58]

It's not just the shallow interior that stops me from building this kit. It is the "squashed" look of the engine, and the shorter height of the body as well.  Lindberg compromised the whole kit by making it's height shorter than other kits. You can really tell the difference when you compare the Lindberg 409 to either a Revell or AMT 409. I have three of these (2 hardtops and a convertible) in various stages of assembly and just can't bring myself to complete them.

Revell 1965 396, Revell 1966 396, Revell 1960 409, Lindberg 1961 409

[AC Norton]

It's not just the shallow interior that stops me from building this kit. It is the "squashed" look of the engine, and the shorter height of the body as well.  Lindberg compromised the whole kit by making it's height shorter than other kits. You can really tell the difference when you compare the Lindberg 409 to either a Revell or AMT 409. I have three of these (2 hardtops and a convertible) in various stages of assembly and just can't bring myself to complete them.

Revell 1965 396, Revell 1966 396, Revell 1960 409, Lindberg 1961 409

I'm with you on your statement.....I never really liked the actual cars regardless, but I looked thru a friends Lindberg 61 Chev last weekend, and frankly, I think the kit stinks all way round. I know saying this will irk many here , however I'll never have one in my stack of Chevs.....the Ace.....

[charlie8575]

But Bob, Junkman said,

  

Just to set the paternity of the Lindberg kit straight for Junkman, it isn't a reissue of any previous AMT/SMP kit. It was a completely original tooling when first released in 1995  It has nothing in common with the original SMP kit (Hardtop, not Bubbletop) other than subject matter. Lindberg fixed the cowl shape early in the first production run and it is an excellent kit

Agreed. Now that I have a second kit to replace a very badly-buggered engine (because I didn't think ahead on a couple of things,) I would like to finish mine up this summer. This is a fantastic product and I highly endorse it.

Charlie Larkin

[MrObsessive]

OK, I have this kit and while it's certainly miles ahead of the annual that came out in '61, there are some body details that bug me still to this day, and I doubt they get corrected.

We all know about the incorrect cowl shape, and the too shallow interior, and possible too shallow body (that's subjective), but the thing that sticks out to me is the misshapen C pillar. It's not the correct shape as the trailing edge of it is too "bowed" out and not like the 1:1. With my kit, I ended up sanding that to the correct shape it bugged me so much. I haven't built it fully yet, and Moebius's '61 Pontiac to my eyes has THE MOST ACCURATE 1961 B body bubbletop roofline. Heck, I ever get around to doing a WIP of it, I may swap roofs altogether like my '59 Impala. Not a big deal to most, but I hate incorrect rooflines as that changes the whole character of the car IMO.

At least Lindberg got the C pillar "kickup" correct.............something that AMT never fixed on their '62 Bel AIr.  

[W-409]

It's not just the shallow interior that stops me from building this kit. It is the "squashed" look of the engine, and the shorter height of the body as well.  Lindberg compromised the whole kit by making it's height shorter than other kits. You can really tell the difference when you compare the Lindberg 409 to either a Revell or AMT 409. I have three of these (2 hardtops and a convertible) in various stages of assembly and just can't bring myself to complete them.

That's one thing that's wrong with this kit. I think the interior is pretty good as it can't be seen that well when the build is finished overall, but as building engines is one of the funniest parts in model building, I had to swap an engine from AMT '62 Bel Air on my build.

But otherwise this kit builds up into a good looking model. I'm glad to see this one reissued.

[mredjr]

This is a very nice kit it is a shame that they didn't fix the rear glass when they did the windshield. It sill builds in to a beautiful car if you look at a 3/4 front view.

[Paul Bringhurst]

Does anyone know when AMT first released their 1961 Chevrolet Impala SS Hardtop?

[Mark]

On 2/24/2020 at 11:33 PM, Paul Bringhurst said:

Does anyone know when AMT first released their 1961 Chevrolet Impala SS Hardtop?

The first AMT issue is the one being discussed here, the one with the blue car on the box.  It was originally a Lindberg kit that first appeared in the mid-Nineties.

The original SMP kit was an annual, issued concurrently with the debut of the actual car.  It would have first appeared in late 1960.  These kits were never reissued because portions of them were incorporated into the following year's promotional models and kits.

[Bob Ellis]

On 6/18/2016 at 3:16 AM, Junkman said:

I was, as always futilely, hoping in vain, that the endless and tedious procession of reissues of the same kit over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again, would be for once, just once, I mean once, interrupted, to reissue something nobody has been able to get for less than insane money in 55 years.

Yeah, and let alone the 4 door version.

For God's sake, one can snatch one of the last umpteen reissues of the Lindberg kit off eBay for the next 55 years. There was no need whatsoever to reissue it.

Why don't  they :Wow me!", like the 59 Imperial ,64 comet 62 buick

Edited March 10, 2020 by Bob Ellis
spelling

[Tom Geiger]

Hmmm, ancient thread back from the deep.. I read much of it including...

Mention of the original 4 door hardtop promo.. never a kit but it’s just wonderful! And I do remember seeing it in resin.

And someone mentioned wanting the old original kit with the custom parts!

[Luc Janssens]

12 hours ago, Bob Ellis said:

Why don't  they :Wow me!", like the 59 Imperial ,64 comet 62 buick

IIRC these were done under Ertl management and two with the help of Dave Burket.

[Bob Ellis]

8 hours ago, Luc Janssens said:

IIRC these were done under Ertl management and two with the help of Dave Burket.

I wish they still produced for Model King. Golden times

[Luc Janssens]

1 hour ago, Bob Ellis said:

I wish they still produced for Model King. Golden times

I think he has a successful partnership with Moebius now, where his talent and experience benefits both actors.

[Dave Darby]

21 hours ago, Tom Geiger said:

Hmmm, ancient thread back from the deep.. I read much of it including...

Mention of the original 4 door hardtop promo.. never a kit but it’s just wonderful! And I do remember seeing it in resin.

And someone mentioned wanting the old original kit with the custom parts!

I'm in! I had a convertible like that one. Sold it under financial duress.