OSLRod Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 In January I picked up AMT's '69 Camaro SS ragtop to find four things wrong: 1) the taillights are incorrect & too wide, 2) the hideaway doors didn't match right, 3) the rally wheel slots were too wide, & 4) the door panels seem to cave in at the dash; later that month I copped Revell's '69 SS Z/28 skill 1 snap kit to find TWO things wrong: 1) no Z/28 emblems, & 2) no backup lights under the rear bumper, but here's a good question: WHY DOES THE HOOD OPEN WITH NO ENGINE TO SHOW? That means that I'll have to put one in after I cut out the chassis-molded bottom even though I considered making it a ragtop since it's wider than AMT. Since then I've looked thru just about every magazine from Hot Rod to Super Chevy to even those that cater to strictly Camaros for some inspiration, and decided to leave well enough alone & build them as they are along with some mild aftermarket flavor. (BTW, there no skill 2 kits available.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willy Survive Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 Those Revell glue kits have actually been out closer to 20 years. Got one for Christmas from my Uncle Mike in December of 1990. And I have a Hot Rod Magazine Revell issue of a Yenko that is dated 1990 as well. If I'm not mistaken Revell also did do a ragtop. Pretty sure it was a 302 with the herringbone interior decals. Which were very nice if I remember correctly. Good luck man. Hope you find what you're looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willy Survive Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 Hahaha Steve. Yeah I thought it was strange he'd never seen one. I think the Herringbone ragtop I was thinkin' of was the Indy pace car. Man 20 years... That woulda put me in the 4th grade. What about you Steve? What grade were you in 20 years ago? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abell82 Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 You forgot the Hardtop Motor city Muscle as well. Here is one built up. Ahh what the heck, here is another: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george 53 Posted May 23, 2009 Share Posted May 23, 2009 Will, the convert is a Big Block, so are all the others EXCEPT the Z-28! That's the ONLY one that comes with the small block 302. But the Revell kit is LIGHT YEARS ahead of the AMT kit, and ALOT nicer than the original MPC tooling. Which wasn't too bad to begin with, and STILL nicer than the AMT version. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSLRod Posted May 24, 2009 Author Share Posted May 24, 2009 Will, the convert is a Big Block, so are all the others EXCEPT the Z-28! That's the ONLY one that comes with the small block 302. But the Revell kit is LIGHT YEARS ahead of the AMT kit, and ALOT nicer than the original MPC tooling. Which wasn't too bad to begin with, and STILL nicer than the AMT version. I've come to realize Revell's detailing with the '58, '63, & '64 Impalas to make the AMTs look sloppy and incorrect like the '64's unangled door pillars but I do like the Impala moldings, 409 & SS emblems of AMT's '63 however. Since my mind wandered from Camaros, another kit from both companies dawned on me: the Revell-preferred '64 GTO! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Zimmerman Posted May 24, 2009 Share Posted May 24, 2009 My only gripe with Revell's otherwise-fabulous '69 Camaro kits is that every version uses the same Walker chambered exhaust system. I would dearly love to see Revell do a "Special Edition" version with factory-correct exhaust parts, along with the steelies and doggies needed to build a COPO version.........I understand what you're saying,but that chambered exhaust system WAS a factory correct option,although not that common.......'Z' Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Anderson Posted May 24, 2009 Share Posted May 24, 2009 In January I picked up AMT's '69 Camaro SS ragtop to find four things wrong: 1) the taillights are incorrect & too wide, 2) the hideaway doors didn't match right, 3) the rally wheel slots were too wide, & 4) the door panels seem to cave in at the dash; later that month I copped Revell's '69 SS Z/28 skill 1 snap kit to find TWO things wrong: 1) no Z/28 emblems, & 2) no backup lights under the rear bumper, but here's a good question: WHY DOES THE HOOD OPEN WITH NO ENGINE TO SHOW? That means that I'll have to put one in after I cut out the chassis-molded bottom even though I considered making it a ragtop since it's wider than AMT. Since then I've looked thru just about every magazine from Hot Rod to Super Chevy to even those that cater to strictly Camaros for some inspiration, and decided to leave well enough alone & build them as they are along with some mild aftermarket flavor. (BTW, there no skill 2 kits available.) Back in the day, AMT Corporation got the deal to produce promo's of the '69 Camaro HT and Cvt for Chevrolet, while MPC had to be content with the Pontiac Firebird. Somewhere along the way, MPC sloppily retooled a '69 Firebird into the Camaro, in both HT and convertible form, but it was nowhere near accurate, as you correctly observed. In contrast, the AMT Annual series '69 Camaro's were as correctly done as any annual series 3in1 kit was ever done, but along the way, through bankruptcies, buyouts and mergers, apparently the old AMT tooling has been lost, or at least is unidentifiable today. When AMT/Ertl bought out MPC in late 1986, they simply put the bastardized MPC'69 Camaro back into production. Revell's 1990-vintage tooling for the '69 Camaro is very nicely done, in contrast, although it suffers from not having correct tires, but that is a problem with just about everyone at some time or another. Art Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
george 53 Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 Not to TRY to disagree with you Art, But I had a 69 MPC Camaro annual,in 69, and it was NOT some re hashed body. It was a VERY nice kit! It was, to me at the time a VERY WELL molded kit too.Better than the AMT kit, in my opinion. That junk AMT put out AFTER they aquired MPC is a JOKE! I still say the ORIGINAL 69 Camaro annual by MPC was a VERY NICE kit,that I wouldn't mind havein again. BUT you can throw the re-issued kit away, as IT IS a peice of junk! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygre Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 later that month I copped Revell's '69 SS Z/28 skill 1 snap kit to find TWO things wrong: 1) no Z/28 emblems, & 2) no backup lights under the rear bumper, but here's a good question: WHY DOES THE HOOD OPEN WITH NO ENGINE TO SHOW? Revell's snap '69 Camaros are unassembled promotional models. The hoods and grilles are done separately so that different variants of the car can be marketed both as assembled promos and unassembled kits. The "Hot Wheels Z28 RS" kit actually has a non-RS grille and an SS hood with separate chrome "louvers". The "Z28 SS" kit has the cowl induction hood and Rally Sport grille (the one with the hideaway headlights) - and BOTH kits have the Rally Sport-trimmed taillights! Like I said in my review in the magazine, for a non-RS car you'll need to swipe the standard taillights from any Revell '69 Camaro kit. A little creative parts-swapping between the two snap kits, plus some promo wheels from Modelhaus and tires from the spares box, will give you several different '69 Camaro variants, promo-style. Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygre Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Not to TRY to disagree with you Art, But I had a 69 MPC Camaro annual,in 69, and it was NOT some re hashed body. It was a VERY nice kit! It was, to me at the time a VERY WELL molded kit too.Better than the AMT kit, in my opinion. That junk AMT put out AFTER they aquired MPC is a JOKE! I still say the ORIGINAL 69 Camaro annual by MPC was a VERY NICE kit,that I wouldn't mind havein again. BUT you can throw the re-issued kit away, as IT IS a peice of junk! A little history on the "AMT" '69 Camaro kits: The original MPC '69 Camaro tooling was hacked up into the Jeg's Camaro racer kit that was available sometime in the mid-70s. In 1983-84, MPC decided to "restore" the kit into a stock '69 and was issued as an "SS 350". The result was a new body with several serious proportion errors draped over the existing '69 Firebird running gear - including both Pontiac engines and not a Bow-Tie mill to be found in the box! Adding insult to injury was the deeply-smoke-tinted window unit that was so dark you couldn't see squat through it! In late 1985 MPC was acquired from General Mills by Ertl. In 1988, this kit was re-tooled to have a new convertible body and a big-block Chevy engine and issued two ways - by itself, and as part of a three-car Indy Pace Car set. The retooled body was as bad as the original coupe, and the big block motor bears only a passing resemblance to the real thing. Not MPC's finest, for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Zimmerman Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 IMHO,I think Art is right on this one. My best friend graduated from high school in 69,and flew out to Denver to visit his sister. When he came back,he brought me the MPC 69 Camaro; this would be June 1969. I remember being very dissappointed at the incorrect body proportions.....this would be the same body issued in the last AMT 69 Camaro kit,a few years back (Fast & Furious #38032) . The R/M 'Rampage' kit was even worse,proportionally,than the MPC kit........Steve Zimmerman aka the'Z'man........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larrygre Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 IMHO,I think Art is right on this one. My best friend graduated from high school in 69,and flew out to Denver to visit his sister. When he came back,he brought me the MPC 69 Camaro; this would be June 1969. I remember being very dissappointed at the incorrect body proportions.....this would be the same body issued in the last AMT 69 Camaro kit,a few years back (Fast & Furious #38032) . The R/M 'Rampage' kit was even worse,proportionally,than the MPC kit........Steve Zimmerman aka the'Z'man........ Steve, actually it isn't. The body in the original '69 annual kit was quite different from the body in the 1984 "SS 350" and recent "Fast & Furious" releases. For one thing, the front end was way too narrow - if you compare the original body to the "reissue" you will see a noticeable discrepancy in width. Also, MPC's original kit featured the standard grille with exposed headlights that will not fit the "reissue". Neither the MPC original, nor any of the "reissues", is anything to write home about. As for the Monogram '69 Z-28 in all its incarnations including the "Rampage" version, that was one of the worst proportioned of all of Monogram's 1970s-era models - and that includes the hideous "pagoda roof" '56 and '57 Chevies. Yet it stayed in the Monogram catalog for years because it was a perennial best seller in mass market outlets (Wally World especially). It is to Bob Johnson's (product line manager for Revell at the time) credit that he bucked the number crunchers and got the 1/25 '69 Camaros in the mix circa 1990. And that is a direct result of the 1/12 scale '69 Z28 kit. The masters for that kit were also used to create the smaller version. Perhaps Revell will see fit to issue one or more "special edition" versions of the Camaro kit with (and yes, Revell, these are direct suggestions): 1. Z/28 - stock non-chambered exhaust system, stock exhaust manifolds, the more normally issued single four-barrel intake setup, and a flat non-Cowl Induction hood. 2. COPO 9560/9561 and/or ZL-1 (from Yenko kit) - stock non-chambered exhaust system, stock exhaust manifolds, steelie wheels with dog dish caps, and Bow Tie logos for the grille and rear deck. 3. SS396 (from Yenko and Convertible kits) - stock non-chambered exhaust system, stock exhaust manifolds, SS hood with separate chromed louvers (as in the snap kit/promo), and a choice of both standard and RS grilles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc @ MPC Motorsports Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 Back in the day, AMT Corporation got the deal to produce promo's of the '69 Camaro HT and Cvt for Chevrolet, while MPC had to be content with the Pontiac Firebird. Somewhere along the way, MPC sloppily retooled a '69 Firebird into the Camaro, in both HT and convertible form, but it was nowhere near accurate, as you correctly observed. In contrast, the AMT Annual series '69 Camaro's were as correctly done as any annual series 3in1 kit was ever done, but along the way, through bankruptcies, buyouts and mergers, apparently the old AMT tooling has been lost, or at least is unidentifiable today. When AMT/Ertl bought out MPC in late 1986, they simply put the bastardized MPC'69 Camaro back into production. Revell's 1990-vintage tooling for the '69 Camaro is very nicely done, in contrast, although it suffers from not having correct tires, but that is a problem with just about everyone at some time or another. Art The "original" AMT 1969 Camaro annual became the "Super Hugger" Camaro funny car in 1970 with a stock wheelbase body and radiused rear wheelwells. It was later revised to the "Super Hugger II" kit with the extended front wheelbase. This was the kit that Model King reissued in 2007. I have several of the AMT '69 annual kits and the body proportions are VERY close to the Revell Camaro. Below is a side profile of an AMT '69 Camaro annual that I replaced the rear quarters on. The MPC '69 Camaro annual, while a decent kit in its own right, is nowhere as accurate as the AMT annual or the MPC '68 Camaro annual that preceded it. The MPC '69 Camaro and Firebird bodies from the annual kits suffer the same proportion problems as the current "AMT" issues. The MPC '69 Camaro annual became the MPC Jegs USAC stock car in the early 1970's, then was retooled back to stock body in the early 1980's with the '69 Firebird chassis and engine package. In the mid-1980's, the body was modified to the convertible and a big block Chevy engine replaced the Pontiac V8. RC2 modified the convertible tooling to create the "Fast and Furious" Yenko Camaro with a new standard grille, misproportioned hardtop and molded in front and rear spoilers. Any of the MPC-derived '69 Camaro kits can be made into a convincing replica with a little work. Here's one I did about six years ago. Someday, I'll do a photoshoot comparison of the AMT and MPC '69 annuals along side the current Revell body. Marc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abell82 Posted June 5, 2009 Share Posted June 5, 2009 I'd still rather have a Monogram, then any of the MPC/AMT versions, other then an original AMT annual. Has anyone tried to fit the exhaust from the new Nova to the Revell 69 Camaro? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSLRod Posted July 10, 2009 Author Share Posted July 10, 2009 I finally found a skill 2 Camaro: a Rally Sport Z/28; now my nephew can take the snaptite off my hands! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Hall Posted July 10, 2009 Share Posted July 10, 2009 (edited) I think I have at least one of every variation of the Revell '69--a couple issues of the Z-28, the SS convertible, the Pace Car convertible, a couple releases of the BM, the Yenko, etc. Great kit, with plenty of aftermarket hoods, etc available over the years. Also have the large scale Z-28. I have the snap kits also, nice to see. Has Revell done retro promos with this tooling? Haven't seen any, but then again, I haven't bought a new promo in years. As far as MPCs, I have only the molded in black '80s issue coupe and the molded in orange '80s issue convertible. The infamous ones with Pontiac engines. The black one is what was retooled I think into AMT's recent awful Fast and the Furious Yenko with a very strange roofline. I have the original issue AMT '69 Camaro ht, it's quite nice. Have to build it someday. I've always steered clear of the Monogram 1:24th '69 Camaros, they seem wierdly proportioned, just like their 1:32nd one. I'd love to see Revell extend their '69 tooling with a '67 or '68. Edited July 10, 2009 by Rob Hall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OSLRod Posted July 14, 2009 Author Share Posted July 14, 2009 I think I have at least one of every variation of the Revell '69--a couple issues of the Z-28, the SS convertible, the Pace Car convertible, a couple releases of the BM, the Yenko, etc. Great kit, with plenty of aftermarket hoods, etc available over the years. Also have the large scale Z-28. I have the snap kits also, nice to see. Has Revell done retro promos with this tooling? Haven't seen any, but then again, I haven't bought a new promo in years. As far as MPCs, I have only the molded in black '80s issue coupe and the molded in orange '80s issue convertible. The infamous ones with Pontiac engines. The black one is what was retooled I think into AMT's recent awful Fast and the Furious Yenko with a very strange roofline. I have the original issue AMT '69 Camaro ht, it's quite nice. Have to build it someday. I've always steered clear of the Monogram 1:24th '69 Camaros, they seem wierdly proportioned, just like their 1:32nd one. I'd love to see Revell extend their '69 tooling with a '67 or '68. The MPC cowl induction hood is the doctor my '76 Nova ordered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camaroman Posted August 12, 2009 Share Posted August 12, 2009 (edited) "I'd love to see Revell extend their '69 tooling with a '67 or '68." I agree, Revell pleeeasssse do it!!! Edited August 12, 2009 by camaroman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
93Z34 Posted September 18, 2009 Share Posted September 18, 2009 Revell also released an Indy Pace Car version of this kit complete with orange decals and houndstooth decals for the seats as well as a Baldwin Motion version in the "Skip's Drive In Series". When this kit was originally released, for whatever reason, it didn't get much exposure in SAE or any other mag for that matter. It was one of the most underrated and ignored kits that had been released in a long time, yet was by far one of the best toolings Revell ever did, even including today's releases. I have almost a dozen of this kit in it's different versions and when I need a break from my Mopars I dig one of these out and putter with it. It's a very accurate kit that goes together beautifully and has a ton of detail already molded into the kit. You can never get too many of these kits, that's for sure. God Will,, it's been a while hasn't it. Just seems strange to run across someone who hasn't seen at least one. , , here's some, probably not all though ,, I think there's at least another , a green one in a "Skip's Fiesta" box that I couldn't find a pic of [i think anyway LOL] ,, Any others? BTW ,, these are ALL skill level 2 kits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casey Posted May 31, 2012 Share Posted May 31, 2012 (edited) On 6/5/2009 at 11:40 AM, Abell82 said: Has anyone tried to fit the exhaust from the new Nova to the Revell 69 Camaro? Yes, it fits quite well. Edited January 5, 2019 by Casey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikemodeler Posted June 1, 2012 Share Posted June 1, 2012 That would be a great resin item for someone to offer in place of that incorrect chambered exhaust Revell keeps putting in those Camaro kits! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chester50 Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 On 6/5/2009 at 11:11 AM, Marc @ MPC Motorsports said: The "original" AMT 1969 Camaro annual became the "Super Hugger" Camaro funny car in 1970 with a stock wheelbase body and radiused rear wheelwells. It was later revised to the "Super Hugger II" kit with the extended front wheelbase. This was the kit that Model King reissued in 2007. I have several of the AMT '69 annual kits and the body proportions are VERY close to the Revell Camaro. Below is a side profile of an AMT '69 Camaro annual that I replaced the rear quarters on. The MPC '69 Camaro annual, while a decent kit in its own right, is nowhere as accurate as the AMT annual or the MPC '68 Camaro annual that preceded it. The MPC '69 Camaro and Firebird bodies from the annual kits suffer the same proportion problems as the current "AMT" issues. The MPC '69 Camaro annual became the MPC Jegs USAC stock car in the early 1970's, then was retooled back to stock body in the early 1980's with the '69 Firebird chassis and engine package. In the mid-1980's, the body was modified to the convertible and a big block Chevy engine replaced the Pontiac V8. RC2 modified the convertible tooling to create the "Fast and Furious" Yenko Camaro with a new standard grille, misproportioned hardtop and molded in front and rear spoilers. Any of the MPC-derived '69 Camaro kits can be made into a convincing replica with a little work. Here's one I did about six years ago. Someday, I'll do a photoshoot comparison of the AMT and MPC '69 annuals along side the current Revell body. Marc Marc are you using the sleeves on the rears? I'm assuming the wheels are 19 on front and 23 on the rear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted January 23, 2018 Share Posted January 23, 2018 You can see a comparo of the AMT/Ex-MPC and Revell '69 Camaro bodies, here, along with some discussion of WHY the MPC is so hosed: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casey Posted July 1, 2019 Share Posted July 1, 2019 On 6/5/2009 at 11:40 AM, Abell82 said: Has anyone tried to fit the exhaust from the new Nova to the Revell 69 Camaro? To be clear, the below exhaust system is sourced from the Revell Special Edition 1/25 '69 Chevy Nova SS kit: And before anyone asks, the Revell 1/25 '68 Pontiac Firebird exhaust system in place on the Revell 1/25 '69 Camaro's floorpan: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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