Luc Janssens Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 I cringe though when I see a newer car (2000's and up) with a vinyl roof! Obviously the car didn't come that way as I haven't seen that option for years. It's a "day two" add on that more than likely is driven by an older person (not making fun, just an observance), and they may think that "dresses up" the car when it just looks like a major afterthought to me. In the mid '90 I past by a Cadillac dealership in Palm Springs, and liked the Eldo's with vinyl top he had on the lot. Wouldn't mind having this one, to drive across the US..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Myers Posted November 26, 2016 Share Posted November 26, 2016 They actually COULD do it with the '65 Chevelle wagon. Or '65 El Camino. Why not all of them ? http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/78729-amt-cal-drag-combo/?page=3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thament Posted January 16, 2017 Share Posted January 16, 2017 Those white tops were for visibility, makes it a little easier to spot a dark blue car ripping along a black runway at pretty high speeds and through a tiny cockpit window.And the boys at Beale were very proud of all their equipment and since they had the time it was always kept up to the highest standards of good looks, finding one that wasn't spotless and up to the best shine possible was grounds for spending time doing a lot of cleaning on things you really wouldn't want to clean if you had your choice.Any chance you have any photos other than the ones posted.. I am doing a frame off restoration of a 68 with big block and wanted to replicate the u2 chase car theme. I have only seen the one picture and even lockheed public affirs folks don't have any pics of the u8 el camino. I was stationed at lean ab and saw them all the time but back then you didn't take a camera on the flight line. Thanks I advance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
horsepower Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Any chance you have any photos other than the ones posted.. I am doing a frame off restoration of a 68 with big block and wanted to replicate the u2 chase car theme. I have only seen the one picture and even lockheed public affirs folks don't have any pics of the u8 el camino. I was stationed at lean ab and saw them all the time but back then you didn't take a camera on the flight line. Thanks I advance No, didn't get any pictures, I just managed to see a couple while I was "visiting" at the base. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 There is one thing I'm a little bit unhappy with in this kit. The main part of kit molded in white plastic. That is good. But, the soap box car and its stand are molded in black plastic. Why? I know it came from a different mold that the main body of the kit. That still does explain why it's molded in black? Still, I am happy to see the soap box derby car back. Tamiya primer should take care of the black plastic.Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
echoxrayniner Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 One thing I found a bit odd was that there's just stripes and sponsorship decals, figured with the updated decal sheet we'd get (ala '70 Chevelle re-release treatment) some dials and a 396 emblem for the aircleaner for some extra detail, but nope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Any chance you have any photos other than the ones posted.. I am doing a frame off restoration of a 68 with big block and wanted to replicate the u2 chase car theme. I have only seen the one picture and even lockheed public affirs folks don't have any pics of the u8 el camino. I was stationed at lean ab and saw them all the time but back then you didn't take a camera on the flight line. Thanks I advance The only other pic I've seen, besides the one I posted, is a B&W in the Squadron/Signal book U-2 In Action. IIRC, it's from fairly close, pretty much just the front fender and door area of the left side. I might have scanned it on my home computer--I'll try to remember to look for it tonight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disabled modeler Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Id be happy with just the little derby car but the kit looks pretty cool...I already have the last reissue of the Elcamino kit...strange it being molded in black and the other in white plastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stavanzer Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Thament, try googling articles about the Mustangs, that replaced the Elcos as chase cars. I've seen photos, in the Mustang stories of the El Caminos, they replaced.Not Great pics, but there. Sadly for us modelers, the U-2/TR-1 program was (and still is) very secretive, so photographs are very hard to come by. If you are planning to do up a 1-1 scale El Camino as a U-2 Chase car, I'd also write the USAF Museum at Wright-Patterson, and contact the base historian at Beale AFB. The might help you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casey Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 There is one thing I'm a little bit unhappy with in this kit. The main part of kit molded in white plastic. That is good. But, the soap box car and its stand are molded in black plastic. Why? Tradition? They're going to offer it as a stand-alone parts pack item? The kit was molded in white and black originally, so maybe Round2 is just being consistent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keyser Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 Any chance you have any photos other than the ones posted.. I am doing a frame off restoration of a 68 with big block and wanted to replicate the u2 chase car theme. I have only seen the one picture and even lockheed public affirs folks don't have any pics of the u8 el camino. I was stationed at lean ab and saw them all the time but back then you didn't take a camera on the flight line. Thanks I advance Found the same pic as everyone has seen, but found some more recent ideas for the chase car, pretty much all of which can be built easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim boyd Posted January 18, 2017 Share Posted January 18, 2017 (edited) Scott: Casey nailed it. I was told by John G. that they molded the soap box derby car in black, because that's how it was molded in the original kit. Echo/N.J.: I'm told that the print file for the decal sheet has already been updated with the 396 air cleaner decals, so that the next time the kit is run down the production line, the decal will be included. I believe the latter point, and possibly the first one as well, are mentioned in my on-line preview of the kit.... TIM Edited January 18, 2017 by tim boyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 19, 2017 Share Posted January 19, 2017 Tradition? They're going to offer it as a stand-alone parts pack item? The kit was molded in white and black originally, so maybe Round2 is just being consistent. I didn't know the original came that way too. I guess that might be okay for nostalgic reasons. But, I'm still not a big fan of it. Even if I now understand it. Its not a big problem. Just time get out the Tamiya primer. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Ellis Posted January 21, 2017 Share Posted January 21, 2017 The box is nice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted January 21, 2017 Share Posted January 21, 2017 The box is niceWhat's in the box is nice too. (Even the black plastic parts.)Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie8575 Posted January 22, 2017 Share Posted January 22, 2017 Does anyone have a picture of the roof with the offending sink-marks?Charlie Larkin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim boyd Posted January 22, 2017 Share Posted January 22, 2017 (edited) Charlie, I presume you are referring to the sink marks in the original (c.1998) release of the kit....Check out my online review of this new kit which includes photos of the original kit issue with the sink marks on both the left and right c-pillars. compared to the new Derby Cars release where thje sink marks are NOT there, thank goodness! The sink marks on the original kit release can be seen on the C-pillars of the partially painted body on images #18-21. That body had the sink marks filled with Eurosoft Body Filler, which is a pale pink, so you can see the fixed areas in a very pale pink color - you have to look closely at the full picture - you won;t see it in the thumbnails Hope that helps....TIM Edited January 22, 2017 by tim boyd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete L. Posted January 23, 2017 Share Posted January 23, 2017 Tim, Once again, thanks for the great extensive review. I never had this kit and I'm surprised that it includes all of the details that it does, hadn't it been for your review I'd still be under the impression that the kit was nothing more than a spinoff of the Chevell kits of the era ! The separate chassis and build up interior are a pleasant surprise and will surely be appreciated by first time buyers/builders like myself !Thanks again, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
my80malibu Posted January 30, 2017 Share Posted January 30, 2017 The US Air Force used some SS396 El Caminos in support of the U-2 program at Beale AFT (IIRC). I've collected a couple poor photos of them but can't really tell if they're '68s or '69s. I'm gonna do a model of one of them someday using this kit. One thing I've never been able to determine is if they were in "off the rack" dark metallic blue, or were painted the standard USAF "fleet" blue like the sedans, pickups, buses, etc of the day.About 1981 while I was in High School an older Classmate had a beautiful 68/69 El Camino that he had painted a nice dark blue metallic, with Crager 5 spoke S/S wheels, truly a nice car. After Graduation He inlisted in the Army, and while at basic training His father sold the car. Needless to say Bob was not a Happy Guy when He got back in to town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Ellis Posted February 13, 2017 Share Posted February 13, 2017 I used this kit to build a 1972 Elcamino ( front clip from a AMT 1972 Chevelle kit) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclescott58 Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 Wow! The above El Camino looks great Bob. Great job.Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samdiego Posted April 11, 2017 Share Posted April 11, 2017 (edited) It's a pretty good kit, definitely better than the Promo. The body to chassis assembly is nerve wracking. I might suggest leaving the accessories off of the drive until after and leaving the motor loose. The brake booster and master cylinder also. That's where the interference was. Yes, I'll get to the side mirrors. Edited April 11, 2017 by samdiego Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted April 11, 2017 Share Posted April 11, 2017 Nice clean build! What paint is that blue? It looks good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samdiego Posted April 11, 2017 Share Posted April 11, 2017 That's Nassau Blue Model Master Laquer. A factory color Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tim boyd Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Sam....that looks really sharp! Thanks for posting.....TIM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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