Ok! Enough Griping! What are the best kits ever made!

[Modelmartin]

What kit to your mind is the best engineered, easiest to build and accurate kit.

It is hard to pick because some of our favorites aren't the best engineered. I love the AMT 23/25 Model T kits. They are well engineered but not the best.

I am just going to go with the Tamiya Morris/Austin Mini Cooper 1275 S. I have built 5 of them so far and plan on about a dozen more. It falls together, looks fantastic, and takes up less shelfspace when done.

This one uses a resin body from Scalekraft.

[my name is nobody]

Revell 1969 Dodge Dart GTS. Great Kit.

Revell 1968 Dodge Charger R/T. Another great kit.

Revell 1970 Ford Torino Cobra. One of my current favorites.

I would have to add the Monogram 1970 Ford Mustang in all of its variations.

BOSS 429, BOSS 302, I enjoy building every version.

[brad4321]

Most Revell kits are miles behind Tamiya kits. But there simply isn't a Tamiya kit for most great American subjects. The best kit I've built was the 1/32 Spitfire by Tamiya that was released a year or two ago. I will eventually do one of the 1/32 Mustangs. The best Revell kit I've built was the Chevy Nova. That kit was so much better than the Mongoose Funny Car from Revell I was working on at the same time. It's hard to believe they're from the same company.

[Dr. Cranky]

AMT 1950 Chevy Pick Up

REV 1932 Ford

REV 1950 Ford

REV 1941 Wyllis

REV 1955 Chevy Belair

I would say those are definitely in my top five.

[bandit1]

AMT 1950 Chevy Pick Up

GO FIGURE THAT WOULD BE ONE OF THEM!

another great kit would the be 70 challenger t/a by r/m (streetburner) the only issue i have with it was my own doings! so this one would just go together like bread and butter!

[Scale-Master]

Not that I have built too many of them out-of-the-box, but I am partial to the Tamiya Caterhams. Big surprise, no?

The R-M '69 Camaro's (both scales) rank up there pretty high too.

Edited November 2, 2011 by Scale-Master

[Casey]

IMO, the fit and finish of Tamiya parts is second to none, but I still hold Revell's 1/25 '69 Camaro is high regard. They are accurate, everything fits well (ok, the BBC headers are a tight squeeze and a tad bit fussy to fit), and it's easy to assemble.

[bandit1]

IMO, the fit and finish of Tamiya parts is second to none, but I still hold Revell's 1/25 '69 Camaro is high regard. They are accurate, everything fits well (ok, the BBC headers are a tight squeeze and a tad bit fussy to fit), and it's easy to assemble.

I swear you could build them kitw without the instruction sheets! eh?

[ChrisR]

All models, some are just better than others!

Edited November 2, 2011 by ChrisR

[gray07]

All the van kits from the 70s, also any johan kits.

[Jantrix]

The Revell '67 Charger is the nicest kit I have ever built as far as fit & finish, accuracy and mold quality. The kit is a breeze to build.

[Modelmartin]

All the van kits from the 70s, also any johan kits.

I was asking for the best, not the favorite kits. That is a subject for another topic.

[Howard Cohen]

I think the best kits in 1/25th/1/24th ever for accuracy, detail and assembly are:

JoHan Chrysler Turbine Car

IMC Chaparral 2E

Moebius Hudson

Revell 1949 Mercury

While the first two may be a little fragile, they do assemble well out of the box (unless you are named Mr. Obsessive ) and have details that were very advanced for the 60s and still today 50 years later.

[charlie8575]

I'll agree with Howard on the Turbine Car. Absolutely stunning in full-detail form, and someday, I'll have the guts enough to actually build mine.

I think a lot of the Jo-Han Gold Cup kits are very good- the 1931 Cadillacs are wonderful. The Turbine Car speaks for itself. Monogram's "Museum Pieces" capital "C" Classics are excellent kits, also.

Revell and AMT have also made a lot of good products, especially recently. AMT's '66 Nova is a very nice kit, Revell's Tri-5 Chevies, even with some assembly quirks I've run into, look great and build nicely overall.

I also like Revell's '48 Ford wagon. Well-done.

Galaxie's postwar Chevies are also very nicely-done, good-looking models that anyone would be proud to have on their shelf.

Charlie Larkin

[Erik Smith]

"Best kits" is different than "favorite kits" - which seems to be a confusing point. Those 70s vans? Cool, but best kits ever made? No. Jo Han kits are great - body proportions and look are right on - but simplified chassis and interiors move a lot out of "best kit" category.

The Best would require a combination of accuracy, fit, ease of build (to a certain extent), and quality of casting.

To me, Revell's 1962 Chevy Impala kit is one of the best kits I have built. Great fit, finish, and look. It also provides some extra parts and building options. It is a state of the art kit.

I would also toss in Revell's midget kits, 66 Chevelle wagon and SS 396, plus a handful of Tamiya kits. I haven't built but seen the Hasegawa Ferrari kits and think those too would rank high.

Edited November 3, 2011 by Coyotehybrids

[MikeMc]

Revell 49 Merc......worth the hype

Revell 32 Sedan....I just liked it.

[62rebel]

subjective versus objective... very difficult category to fill in, without qualifiers; such as, say, best kit for quick assembly, best for beginners; best to paint, etc etc.....

ferinstance; let's ask which are best for outwardly projecting an accurate representation of the car without addition of paint or detail parts... well; here's where 90% of those often maligned AMT and MPC annuals get kudos, as well as JoHan; they often have the most accurate OUTWARD appearance of any kit... sometimes better than later released "full detail" kits.

how about easy assembly and foolproof instructions? Monogram's showrods and Tom Daniels creations rate pretty high for being kid friendly starting points.... and here again some of those dissassembled promos get some due.

if it's downright accuracy of detail and LOTS of it... historically, we've had to go Tamiya or Fujimi for most of that until lately.

of course, i don't build race cars, nascar, or even drag cars for the most part; stock and custom are my venues. i have to agree that the Tamiya Austin Cooper is a downright joy to build and i wish ALL my cars were available as Tamiya kits.

[Sixx]

Revell's 41 Willys

[Lownslow]

Galaxie 48 chevy

Revell SLS

Tamiya Porsche GT2

Tamiya LFA

Tamiya Aston Martin DBS

[Tom Setzer]

1: Galaxie 48 Chevy

2: Revell 48 Fords

3: Revell Ford F1 Pickup

4: Revell 32 Ford Series

5: Revell Kurtis Midgets

6: AMT 50 Chevy Pickup

7: AMT Pontiac Catalina SD

8: Revell 49 Merc.

There are Many More Kits That Belong On This List! I kept this list limited to American Kit. There are a lot of great Sports Cars, and Classic Cars from Japanese and European Manufacturers.

CHEERS!

Tom

Edited November 3, 2011 by Tom Setzer

[mr cheap]

1970s revell 1/32 p 40 old kit ez looks so good // and p51

[Nick Notarangelo]

AMT 1950 Chevy Pick Up

REV 1932 Ford

REV 1950 Ford

REV 1941 Wyllis

REV 1955 Chevy Belair

I would say those are definitely in my top five.

you left out the Rev 1957 chevy

1959 big pinkcaddy

1959 impala

[Junkman]

From an engineering point of view I'm still thrilled by the Airfix 1:12 Bentley and the Japanese classic car kits where you have to make the wire wheels with nylon thread and a tool that's included in the kit.

The one which I find yields the best end result with absolutely minimal effort is the AMT '57 Chrysler. It just turns into a totally plausible model if you simply nail it together.

[Chuck Most]

I'd have to go with Revell's '29 Model A pickup and '31 Tudor. Very accurate and highly detailed- and they were tooled, what, five decades ago?

[sjordan2]

From an engineering point of view I'm still thrilled by the Airfix 1:12 Bentley and the Japanese classic car kits where you have to make the wire wheels with nylon thread and a tool that's included in the kit.

The one which I find yields the best end result with absolutely minimal effort is the AMT '57 Chrysler. It just turns into a totally plausible model if you simply nail it together.

Totally agree with the Bentley and in my case, the 1/16 Mercedes SS for the wheels (though I haven't mastered the assembly yet. Figuring it out makes my brain hurt). These kits are extremely accurate and detailed, though they allow ample room for adding missing detail and improvement of molded-in details, and need help with door hinging. But that's part of the fun and the challenge.