1/25 Revell Kenworth W900 Snap Kit

[Guest Johnny]

I was just wondering if it would build into a decent truck being a snap kit!

[Aaronw]

I don't know about the KW (yet), but the similar Peterbilt snap kit is very nice and not what you would expect from a snap kit and the price.

[steve_b]

I have 4 being delivered tomorrow (Wed), I'll post pics by the weekend, along with first build

[steve_b]

Not as impressed as I am with other newer Revell releases, but here are some preliminary pics of what's in the box.

Overall, it's as nice as the Peterbilt 359 and is very similar in design. Flashing is nil, some mold lines, and even some things

that we hated about the 359 (including those horrible wheels/tires) , and no visor again, aftermarket or scratchbuild shouldn't be a problem

Revell did some nice work on the box art, it's actually a photo with some really decent editing.

Detailing is well defined, revets are very faint and seem to be a little wide spaced, power connector on side is a nice touch.

Chrome is clean and thin with no seen flaws. Clear is thin and very clean. Another winner from revell IF it builds as clean as it looks

Decals are typical Revell quality, clean and well defined, with 2 choices of designs, one being box are lightning bolts and other being

a plain white striping.

Edited January 6, 2010 by steve_b

[rollinoldskoo]

i'm so glad this kit is back out..... first ever 25th scale kit i built back in 1991

[macs_rock]

I've got it, so far so good. It's also my first build, so if I post pics don't expect perfection.

[Chuck Most]

I wasn't aware that this was a snap kit, but that Pete kit is a snapper as well, and I think it's better than the old AMT Full glue kit!

[Guest Johnny]

The molded in sleep is what put me off. I wanted to replicat a truck I drove at the sod farm. It was a day cab.

[Nick Winter]

I wasn't aware that this was a snap kit, but that Pete kit is a snapper as well, and I think it's better than the old AMT Full glue kit!

Chuck it's not a snapper, I just got mine today in the mail, Snowman's truck here we come, now I just need a refer.

[whale392]

I built (and quickly destroyed as I was young) this kit when it was first released in silver plastic. It is a snapper, or more of a very heavily pinned 'glue' kit. The rear wheels/tire assembly snaps together as a unit and does not look the most realistic. To me, it seems the air ride suspension is fairly well represented but placed a little too far forward on the chassis (I may be wrong.....truck guys help me out here). The chassis itself seems to be fairly spartan on detail, but that can be fixed with some parts-box raids. The fuel tanks almost seem too small in diameter, but again that might just be me. The kit does build up fairly well (and quickly mocks up thanks to the 'heavy pins' style of build, and the decals are nice. I will be building this one in short order, and may rob some wheels from the White-Freightliner build I also have going.

[Ben]

Even though this is a snap together kit, it is the most detailed and accurate W900 "A" model Aerodyne cab/sleeper unit, available in kit form. If you were to combine this kit with a Revell Kenworth W900 kit you could easilly build a very accurate and detailed Aerodyne.

The only flaws in this kit (in my opinion)are the tires as they usually warped, the rear wheels are too shallow and the chassis is to simplified.

The Caterpillar 3406 has a lot of potential and is only found in these two kits (KW and Pete 359) from Revell (Monogram)

This kit was issued molded in silver, then again in orange and now in white.

[whale392]

Thanks for the extra info Ben. I always thought (once I realized what I had destroyed) that the engine was very good for the time, and the kit was quite nice. I can't see me throwing down $65.00 for the other Revell W900, but it it nice to know that it will work.

[whale392]

Well, I have gotton into this kit a little more........started cutting and test-fitting. I found that the tires in my kits weren't warped (suprise!), and that they were fairly easy to assemble. They still look a little on the narrow side when compared to the AMT versions. In my highway travels, I have come across some Aerodynes that were of a little later buld and the tanks in this kit do mimic the real units fairly well. I am combining two of these kits to form a long-sleeper version; and while the air-ride suspension is simplified, I will cut it from the scrap chassis, detail it as best I can, and drop it onto my White-Freightliner cabover build. I will post pics if anyone is interested, but it will be a few days to a week before I can get anything posted, as I am going into my work week and will be pre-occupied with that and sleep. So far, this kit builds up as I remember it (only now without all the crunching and snapping of 8 year old hands ham-fisting it together!).

[whale392]

I was talking to one of the guys here in the hanger who worked on semis before becoming an aircraft mechanic; he stated that the Caterpillar in this kit (3406) is the best he has seen in scale and very accurate to the full size version. He was giving me some detail paint pointers on this......so maybe we have a jewel sitting in this kit! I am not really happy with the fact that the cab snaps onto its platform, as the holes in the body are very noticable and a little tricky to fill given their proximity to rivet detail. Also, the marker lights that are molded to the headlight bezels should be removed and moved back to the flat of the headlight shroud on the fenders for a more accurate appearance.

Talking to the trucker who delivered our engine two days ago; he shed some light on the year group of this cab. He stated that it was somewhere between a later 78 to middle 80s cab......and he was impressed enough to go out and buy the kit for himself (being he drives a 2007 W900!).

[Wagoneer81]

I built one box stock several weeks ago. It's as good a kit as the Revell 359 and WELL worth the money, I know I'll be building several more of it and the Pete both... My tires were slightly warped but some medium CA cured that problem. Considering I only spent about 12 hours on it not including the one repaint when the first paint job didn't turn out, (my fault got in a hurry...), it built up into a very good looking truck. It's on display at the LHS right now and I didn't take pictures of it beforehand but I will be sure to get some and post them for all to see!

Chris

Edited March 21, 2010 by Wagoneer81

[macs_rock]

I have this kit, I'm still working on it. Any way to get the interior to fit into the body? The driver's side won't go all the way in. The body won't fit on the chassis either. But as for the kit, these are probably user errors.

[whale392]

Mine slid right in; then I hacked it and stretched it and made it cry for it's mommy!

On a serious note, stick the forward tabs on the interior in first, then slide the 'bunkbed' tab up into the sleeper. As for the cab to chassis; same thing...start at the front and work to the rear. I hacked my tabs off, glued them into the holes in the body, filled and sanded the holes smooth, and applied some thin square stock to the inside of the cab to fit my stretch onto the cab-plate and to visually enhance the kit by eliminating the snap-kit holes.

[Wagoneer81]

Here, I went to the hobbyshop yesterday and took a few pictures. I built this one box stock. The only issue I had with the kit was that the tires were a little warped and with the way the wheel/tire assemblies are designed to go together, I had to use a little thin CA and a lot of patience getting them to go together properly. I did not, however have that problem during construction of the Pete 359 which has the same type of wheel assemblies. With paint and decaling I think I worked on this one about 10 hours. I will be doing many more W900's and 359's and these Revell kits are a WONDERFUL place to start!

The wide white decal stripes came with the kit. Revell supplies decals for two paints chemes, this type and the Lightning scheme that you see on the box. I added the Company Herald on the door, the lettering and the Wyoming State flag. When I get it back from the HS, I'll put plates and fuel stickers on it and put it under a trailer.

My next one will use the "Centennial" decal set offered by Modeltruckin.com

[whale392]

Very nice build! I din't realize that the W900 Aerodyne went back as far as it did; the round headlight version started in 1976 and ran until 1982-ish. Mine is far from yours, but I too will be using the white stripe option (only modified for the longer sleeper and some of my touches).

[whale392]

So now that I am further into this kit, I have a few more observations. It appears the ride height is too high (based on the KW W900s I see on the highways (and suprisingly there are quite a few), so I feel it has to be adjusted down a hare. Also, the distance from the aft sleeper wall to the first set of tandems is about 2' too short...also remedieable if you have a second kit or some scratchbuilding skills. Complete and total lack of any brake detail is somewhat bothersome, but again, parts-box raiding will solve this. No PoGo stick is also a bummer, especially since they included the standplate for it (access steps are also missing). The headlights are fine, but the amber signal stalk will have to be relocated to the headlight bucket top of the fender, centered between the headlights. However, for $23.00, this is a great kit and well worth it for its' trip back down my memory lane.

Edited April 8, 2010 by whale392

[Dr. Cranky]

I'm looking into this kit . . . I have a hankering for building one . . . we'll see. Thanks for all of you who've shared great information on this kit.

[om617]

Hi.

I have to ask if anyone here have any experience with this kit? I ask because they go for

around 19-23$ on Ebay,and thought this was cheap. Other kits go from 50$ and upwards.

Is it rubbish or somthing go get? And do i find resin parts for 1:25?

Tommy

[Jim B]

This is the Revell/Monogram Snap-Tite kit. It's a very good kit for a snap kit, it scales out well, and has a very nice Caterpiller 3406 engine that is quite detailed. The tires aren't very good, and it does lack brake details (but who needs brakes!) I have build several of these kits, and they do look very nice. The good part about them is because thay are relatively inexpensive, people generally don't feel too bad about "experimenting" with them.

The other kit you are referencing is the Revell of Germany glue kit. That has a higher level of detail in it (brakes, better tires, etc.), and a Caterpiller 3408. It's a nice kit as well, but it's major drawback is that it's molded in red!

As far as resin parts, what are you looking to do?

[om617]

Thanks for the write up.

Well,i only want a daily cab and maby get a c500 hood,single headlights,maby a detroit v12,not so much crome etc.

Also build an tool box behind the cab maby with a crane. If i go with the v12 i would want to add turbocharging.

A nice big bumper and grill guard would also be added,is it called grill guard?

[Jim B]

Yes, it's called a grill guard.

If yiou want to do all that, this probably isn't the kit you want as the frame is all one piece (it's a snap kit, remember), and the cab & sleeper are one piece as well. For a C500, you'd probably be better of scratch building the frame (the C500 has straight frame rails; they don't have the dip in the front like the W900). I think you can get all of your other parts from AITM (http://www.aitruckmodels.com/), possible even the 12V71.