here's one i hadnt seen before

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diymirage

HP@idle > hondaHP@redline
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i wonder if it is a new release?
(the sticker in the lower left corner would say so)

AMT Plymouth Valiant Scamp Kit Car 1:25 Scale Model Kit

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The prototype kit car was a Challenger that Dale Earnhart helped test and I think I've seen Dart Sport/Duster versions, most were F-bodies, but don't recall seeing a "real" '72 or earlier A-body.

AMT had a '72 Petty version also.
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You really need to graft a mpc duster front end to make a proper scamp.
I have the Warren dart sport, Petty Dart, and the Cushman duster, they're enough for me.
 
The prototype kit car was a Challenger that Dale Earnhart helped test and I think I've seen Dart Sport/Duster versions, most were F-bodies, but don't recall seeing a "real" '72 or earlier A-body.

AMT had a '72 Petty version also.
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The Scamp is just a re-boxed Petty Dart. The AMT Cushman duster uses what looks like a camaro bumper but using it's front is probably good enough for making a generic short tracker.
 
its been a while since I build a model, is AMT the one who runs metal axles through the oil pan?
LOL, haven't seen that but doesn't surprise me. AMT kits are very poorly engineered from a builder's stand point and the molds they use are so old that the plastic flashing is almost as much as the pieces.
 
Great discussion here. All model companies had a large price increase a few years ago, so use your coupons. I have been building car model kits for over 50 years and have found poorly molded and poorly engineered kits from AMT, Revell, MPC, and Johan. Very disappointing to open a kit and see how little detail there is or how poorly it is molded. It takes the inspiration right out of building it. Also, some kits by these same companies are excellent! The Revell Mopar kits of 68-69 Darts, recently reissued 1/25 scale 70 Cudas, 68-69-70 Charger, 71 GTX, and 69 super bee are great. The AMT 71 Duster is excellent with the best 340 engine. The AMT/MPC 70 Coronet is excellent as well as the late model "Kit Cars" of Petty and Cushman, except for the obvious Dart grille on the "Valiant" kit car. The Moebius Mopars of the mid 60's in their various forms are as well engineered as the Tamiya kits from Japan. Lots of our favorite old super stock and A/FX cars! Time to get busy building, and encourage some youngsters along the way to participate in the hobby.
 
The Revell kits are the worst, the detail is good but the shapes are so off, in this day and age can't they just scan a real car? Almost better to stick an MPC body on a revell kit.
 
I built a Revell B-26 Marauder who's fuselage would not even mate together in the pins and holes. Had to shave them down and glue the whole thing under rubber bands to set. Poor.....
 
its been a while since I build a model, is AMT the one who runs metal axles through the oil pan?
That would be MPC. They are tied neck n neck with AMT for the worst kits around . Monogram I thought was the best. MPC always had shitty drippy chrome. I was always disappointed with their models. As a kid I would get suckered in by the box art.
 
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i never minded about "likeness" and "quality"

my favorite kits where the ones that you could build 4 different way, with enough spare parts to build 2 more
and of course the wilder the better
 
That would be MPC. They are tied neck n neck with AMT for the worst kits around . Monogram I thought was the best. MPC always had shitty drippy chrome. I was always disappointed with their models. As a kid I would get suckered in by the box art.
I’m probably one of the oldest model car builders in this discussion. My introduction to plastic real scale model cars was in the early 50’s when my dad, about 30 years old at the time, got a box with two 1/25 scale Cars. One was a ‘49-‘51 Studebaker coupe. I was astonished at the accuracy of scale that the model StudBeaker displayed. I was smitten (well, in love) with models in general. In following years I drooled over promo model cars and couldn’t ever get one. At about 11 or 12 I won a white ‘53 corvette promo. Wish I still had it but the amt repro cars are far better.

Anyhow, in December, ‘58, I got a ‘58 Edsel hardtop Customizing kit that started my customizing. There were revell car kits but the earlier revell kits were hard to assemble by a ten-year-old. At that point I didn’t like revell kits. The last few years I find revell to be quite good.

JoHan promos were as good as amt from my perspective at the time. Kits too actually, in my ten-twelve years of life. Later in the ‘50’s to early 60’s Some kits were labeled smp and seemed that packaging and artwork We’re identical to amt. Then came mpc kits that seemed a lot like amt.

Earlier monogram car bodies weren’t all that great to me. Bodies not quite shaped right to my eyes.
Some of those were sometimes 1/24 scale as I recall. I’ve only had one or two monograms.

I built kits through high school college and the air force. Now and then I consider building more but my damned fingers are getting thick and calloused from age and my 1/1 scale ‘60’s cars.

I couldn’t tell much about the Quality new kits but I have “accidentally” received a few so someday I’ll dive in.

Jerry
 
60jerry,

I have been finding since I work as a mechanic for a living doing aviation sheetmetal and riveting panels for 25 years that my hands are not as steady as they used to be. Nerves are somewhat shot.

I bought an AMT petty short track dodge dart at hobby lobby with a 40% off coupon and got to working on it. Now I have to put the parts I need to do fine paint detail in a fixture, and hold my painting hand with my other hand braced against the table. I have not had much time lately to finish it as I am sheetmetalling my sons 1-1 69 barracuda that we are working on.

The plastic quality on the newer kits seems very weak compared to the plastic used in the 60s,70s,and 80s. I loved the JoHan kits especially the MoPars. It's a shame johan went out of business. I regarded their kits as something special. I am getting my son into plastic kits as well. He finds them fun to do.
 
60jerry,

I have been finding since I work as a mechanic for a living doing aviation sheetmetal and riveting panels for 25 years that my hands are not as steady as they used to be. Nerves are somewhat shot.

I bought an AMT petty short track dodge dart at hobby lobby with a 40% off coupon and got to working on it. Now I have to put the parts I need to do fine paint detail in a fixture, and hold my painting hand with my other hand braced against the table. I have not had much time lately to finish it as I am sheetmetalling my sons 1-1 69 barracuda that we are working on.

The plastic quality on the newer kits seems very weak compared to the plastic used in the 60s,70s,and 80s. I loved the JoHan kits especially the MoPars. It's a shame johan went out of business. I regarded their kits as something special. I am getting my son into plastic kits as well. He finds them fun to do.
Yes, it seems my steady ness is quite reduced these days. I might build me some kind of device to hold smaller parts for brush work. I hadn’t considered that. I’ll probably not try to silver-paint the side chrome or windshield/back glass trims anymore. Even with two hands it would be challenging. In high school in the early 60’s my model builds were among the nicest of the “hotrodders”. My builds of those days aren’t as nice as some I see these days.

The early kits didn’t have opening hoods and I’d really like to be able to get them like that nowadays. I’ll probably cause a riot on this thread, but the engine compartment and steering has never been of much interest to me. I build for the appearance of the body design and my custom bodywork I performed. When hoods came off I went ahead and made the compartment and engine look good and even wired som ignition systems (secondary only). My real “gripe” is the front suspension and steering that involves tiny parts of plastic that need to operate. I could never get ride height and steering to be right. Small parts are so fragile that they break easily. I find it’s hard to even stabilize it with big-*** glue blobs. I likes the steel rod stuck through the oil pan partially because ride height was easy to modify. The plastic “lowering blocks” sometimes weren’t low enough but that’s an easy fix. When I wanted to have the front wheels turned I just bent up the axle rod. Fixed position was fine with me. I really do understand why the newer kits have this steering build-up. Today’s builders are more sophisticated about kit building than I was. Some are just amazing and I say more power to them. Whenever I build another with that little parts problem, I think I’ll work up something to make robust lock-downs of some sort.

Not car related, but
I’ve always enjoyed building the balsa Wood airplanes. You know, the kind with jillion’s of little balsa parts and pinning everything to the printed layout. After all that work to build I could never allow one to go for a flight. As with model building, I could never mistreat my 1/1 cars either. However, being a custom car fan I do tend to cut the cars up a bit. As I get older I cut less and less. I’m realizing that the original designs are pleasing.

My first noticing of quality issues was a few ‘65 Chevelle wagon kits I got some years ago. The bodys werekinda cheesy and small parts were sometimes almost useless. I got four of the wagons that were all missing the red plastic taillights. A note to amt did not even rate a response. Disappointing. I like the early (‘64-‘66) Chevelle a lot. The ‘67 was not bad but a little sharp-edged for me. Would I build one? Yep, they ain’t that bad. I’d probably build it and try to trade for a ‘64-‘65 of any body form. Heck, I have always liked some of every manufacturers’ designs like Ford squarebirds, ‘60-‘61 Starliners, ‘’55-‘57 Fords, AMC Javelin and AMX, ‘60 Chrysler, Dodge Darts (‘63-‘66 the most) and one big favorite is the 1972 Plymouth Satellite Sebring. The Sebring is too expensive right now. However, I did score a red promo.

I always liked JoHan kits but their variety was smaller.

I gotta stop this and go to the garage and work on my ‘63 Dart wagon. Kind of a barn find and not too bad. Slant with exhaust manifold with glass packs and three on the tree.

Jerry
 
60jerry,

I also did balsa and tissue airplanes. Used to buy colored tissue and clear dope. I would never fly them, just hang em on fishing line. Would have 2-3 weeks in one airplane. I loved building those kits.
 
Petty Dart. Good to know they reissued it. Will have to pick one or two up for the 70 Dart parts and graft them onto a 68 or 69 kit. Think that is only one of two ways to build a 70 Dart unfortunately.

mother is to get a resin aftermarket body and graft it onto a 68 or 69 kit.

for those complaining about kit quality you should try one. . They suck. Or a vacuformed kit. They are super fiddily. There there are the short run low injection molded kits. Don’t even know how I got some of them together.
 
Petty Dart. Good to know they reissued it. Will have to pick one or two up for the 70 Dart parts and graft them onto a 68 or 69 kit. Think that is only one of two ways to build a 70 Dart unfortunately.

mother is to get a resin aftermarket body and graft it onto a 68 or 69 kit.

for those complaining about kit quality you should try one. . They suck. Or a vacuformed kit. They are super fiddily. There there are the short run low injection molded kits. Don’t even know how I got some of them together.
I'd just try and modify the rear wheel openings of the LA Dart,detail it's body, use the trunk lid from the Petty dart, and only use the interior and chassis of the revell dart. Revell bodies suck.
 
I'd just try and modify the rear wheel openings of the LA Dart,detail it's body, use the trunk lid from the Petty dart, and only use the interior and chassis of the revell dart. Revell bodies suck.

Ya the wheel openings are going to be the tricky part. Front and back are hacked on the Petty Dart for the big tires. I had found an article online a long time ago where someone did the conversion. Will have to look for that to see what they did.
 
yea, this is a recent reissue!

I have the Richard Petty, Dodge Dart kit, haven't built it yet, but looked at it, very well detailed! It's my understanding, Petty used it in one race.....still trying to find some reference photos of his car if anyone has any.
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Heads up, they also did a combo pack with this car and Richard Petty's truck.
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