A TALE OF THREE BOXES

MAT IRVINE:
I’ve mentioned ‘Annual’ (sometimes called ‘Yearly’) cars before, kits that featured all-new or refreshed models from the full-size Detroit auto companies. For a time AMT, Jo-Han, MPC - and to a certain extent, Revell - matched the showroom glitz with kit versions of their own.


AMT started the Annuals craze in the late 1950s, but the components for each kit were packed into generic, near-identical boxes, the only indication of what was actually inside being a label, sticker, or small insert panel on the box-end.

Why the similar look?
Exactly why the generic styling was used is not entirely clear, though it was most likely a simple economy measure. Whatever the reason, the ‘mystery kit’ packaging lasted only a few years.

Individuality wins
The generic approach stayed until 1963, when, although a standard box-top was used across the range, individual kits now had their own end-panels. The following year, each model car gained its own box-top art too, although within the framework of an overall graphic style.

Retro deluxe
The 1966 theme was ‘stripes’, which brings me to the recent Round 2 Mustang reissue. At first glance, the box (above) could be a straight reprint of a 1966 box. But it’s not - quite. For Round 2 has trodden the vintage path, with what it calls a ‘retro deluxe’ look. Essentially, this means taking the basics of an original visual style, then updating it with the latest graphic software to give the box that cool, old-but-new appearance. In this case, the design was based on the box of another AMT Mustang, the 1:25 scale Fastback (below).

Real vs. retro
Compare the retro-deluxe design with the actual Hardtop original, a comparatively plain-Jane piece of graphic design that’s beaten hands-down by both the original Fastback box, and Round 2’s retro deluxe version. Well, there’s logic in the design decision - if it looks better, that usually means more sales. Even more interestingly, the plain-Jane version (header pic and below) dates not from 1966, but 1970!

Old and new
Here we show the side-panel of an original - and rather yellowed with age - 1966 Fastback box (below, top), compared with the current Round 2 Hardtop box.

Top swap
Incidentally, the Round 2 box we show here depicts the Mustang in two colours - red on the box-top, blue on the sides. But if you want something different, try the online Auto World store, where you can also buy a kit that swaps the colours, depicting a blue car on the box-top.

Review kit courtesy Round 2 Models.

Visit the Auto World store here.

Plenty more AMT kits here.

SALUTE TO A LEGEND OF MOTOR SPORT - REVELL 1:12 SCALE FORD SHELBY GT500

MAT IRVINE REPORTS

Carroll Shelby, one of the best known names in US motor sport, died last week, on May 10, 2012, aged 89. Coincidentally, Revell-Germany has just released a big, 1:12 scale version of the Revell-US Ford Shelby GT500 Mustang kit, thus helping to mark the long career of this motoring legend.

Big hunk of Mustang

The Revell kit features the 2010 model year Shelby GT500 Mustang, and in many ways this big kit is a direct enlargement of the earlier 1:25 scale kit. Consequently, although the model is larger, the extra size makes it easier to build, simply because the parts, all 145 of them, are that much bigger and easier to handle. 

Some of the runners, here in black, silver-grey and chrome-plated. 

Kit build options

Options for the model builder are minimal, but do include instrument styles, supplied as decals, and raised or lowered suspension. The included plans indicate the latter, but because of the multi-lingual nature of Euro-kit assembly instructions (now up to 21 languages) the option subtleties are not exactly clear.

1:12 scale body with assembled and finished 1:25 scale version. The latter features on the cover of my Scale Car Modelling book.

Final result

Apart from those decisions, construction is a straightforward process, and you end up with a weighty hunk of model car around 400 mm (16 in) long, and a suitable tribute to a man who breathed power and speed into the standard Ford machine. As for finishing off, the comprehensive decal sheet provides a range of licence plates, suitable for various European countries.

White body shown here with a blast from the past, a Kodak film box, as size comparison.

About Caroll Shelby

Starting out as a race car driver, Caroll Shelby (shown below) was a record-breaker and one of the very few Americans to win the classic Le Mans 24-hour race, when he drove an Aston Martin to victory with Roy Salvadori in 1959. A heart problem cut short his racing career, so he decided: “If I can’t race ’em, I’ll build ’em.” His most famous car was what became known variously as the AC Cobra, Ford Cobra, or Shelby Cobra - basically a British AC Ace sports car, with a US Ford V8 stuffed under the British ‘bonnet’ aka the American ‘hood.’ Shelby went on to add muscle and handling ability to the Ford GT, and a very successful line of high-powered Mustangs.

GM, Chrysler, back to Ford

The relationship with Ford lasted until the 1970s, and the oil crisis of those years. He went to Africa to run a safari park for more than a decade, but eventually returned to the US, working with General Motors and Chrysler, and was involved with development of the Dodge Viper. However, he finally returned to Ford, recreating his early successes with today’s new-generation Mustang, itself a model that echoes the original 1960s design. 

Thanks to Revell-Germany for the review kit.

The 1:12 scale Ford Shelby GT500 is in stores soon. Meantime, here’s a bunch of Shelby Mustangs, including my Scale Car Modelling book - and it’s marked down with a decent discount too!

The kit as shown when new at the 2010 iHobby Expo show, Chicago (above, below) and as shown in January this year, at the London Toy Fair, 2012 (bottom). 

AUTOMODELLISMO 2012 SHOW REPORT

Show update from Mat Irvine:

The second Automodellismo Show - the show that features model cars inside and 1:1 scale classic cars outside - was very successfully held last Sunday, April 15, 2012. This is the second year under its new banner and location, in Hanslope village, Buckinghamshire, UK.

Tasty auto lineup included, left to right: Ford Mustang, Chrysler PT Cruiser, MG-TF, Lotus Elan 2, Bond Bug, Triumph Herald, TVR 350C, Morgan Plus 4. 

HaMeX model shows

Automodellismo is held under the HaMeX banner - Hanslope Model Expos - that now runs three model shows a year. Automodellismo 2 drew a wide range of visitors, and had a fascinating range of full-size display cars for them to drool over. Although this aspect of the show was really a ‘taster’, it immediately caught the attention of passers-by, and confirmed to anyone arriving that: “Yes, you are in the right place!”

The PT Cruiser brought its very own mini-model show in the back.

Auto visitors

A dozen cars graced the car park, though not all at the same time, as some had to go early, others could only arrive late. It was an eclectic mix, ranging from a brand-new Morgan Plus 4 to a 1928 Austin 7. Add to that a Bond Bug three-wheeler (any colour you like, so long as it’s orange), a subtle purple BMW M3 convertible, and a Lotus Elan S2, and let’s not forget - as it was difficult to miss - a tricked out Chrysler PT Cruiser, complete with a wild flame job down the sides. So, if anyone had any doubt that something was happening at Hanslope Hall, well…

General view inside the Hall, which got pretty packed at times.

Miniatures on display

Inside, displays from model clubs in the surrounding area filled the main hall, and this year’s Automodellismo Award was presented to Simon Taylor, for his exacting build of a 1:12 scale  Tamiya Formula 1 McLaren MP4/6 in Team Marlboro markings. Simon’s model had been a labour of love, taking some two years to complete.

Simon Taylor (above) won the 2012 Automodellismo Award.

Les Garagistes club contradicted the sound of their name, and (below) celebrated a Diamond Jubilee of British motor sports.

Links and next show to visit

More on Automodellismo 2012 can be seen on the HaMeX website, link below. There are also details of the next show - smallspace - featuring models on the linked themes of space, science-fiction and fantasy. Make a note in your diary - it’s another one-day special, to be held on July 1, 2012.

Heaps more info and pix on Automodellismo 2012 here.

CAR CRAFTER COMBINES THREE PONY CARS INTO ONE MEAN MODEL

US pony cars began with the 1964 Ford Mustang, a sports car for everyman USA, even if it was based on the mundane Ford Falcon sedan (to the Brits, that’s a saloon btw). And now we’re up to the 2010s, with not only new, fire-breathing Mustangs, but also modern versions of its original competitors, the Dodge Challenger and Chevrolet Camaro. You can take your pick which one you prefer of the three, or you can do what car model fan Robert D did, and that was to combine elements of all three into a model auto-fusion concept, nicknamed the Challarostang.

In fact, sections of the three vehicles blended together without too much trouble at all, and Robert’s yellow-peril final result looks pretty much like it could have been designed in one studio instead of three. Of his Challarostang he says: “I like the main body of the Camaro better than the Challenger. I like the Challenger front end better than the Camaro. Once the idea was in my head to add Mustang to the equation, it all came together, because I found out pretty quickly that the three could combine into one”.

However, for those of you who like the real machines (and like ’em as separately running ponies) then the Car & Driver video road test above ought to be worth watching. The Camaro of course, has featured in both Transformers movies, and very nice it is too. This writer’s torn between it and the Mustang - handsome as the Challenger is, it’s doesn’t quite do it. Still, any of the three parked in front of the house would bring a happy New Year smile!

Thanks to Model Car Magazine forum, where these pics first appeared here.

If you fancy making your own custom cars, there are Ford Mustang kits here.

Dodge Challengers here.

And Chevy Camaros here.

FORD RACING CAPRI TO 1:43 SCALE FROM CORGI

First off, let’s just say that Corgi has made a decent fist of the Ford Capri Mk3. Shape and proportions are pretty good, with neat detailing to the wheels. The real thing is generally reckoned as the best all-rounder of the Capri series, various models of which were made from 1961 to 1986. The Mk3 in particular was a well-balanced good-looker, and fitted the bill as a Euro-size mini-Mustang pony car. These days it’s reckoned as a collectible classic, though some still run in anger on circuits and dragstrips.

It’s a mystery why Ford let the model die - the Capri really ought to be in its Mk6 or 7 version by now - but there are rumours of a rebirth in a year or two’s time. Come on Ford! And another mystery is Vauxhall/Opel's great-looking Calibra - why did the company drop it so suddenly a dozen years ago?

Rant over, and back to the models. A trawl through SMN’s Vault of Ancient Models revealed the Tamiya 1:24 scale Zakspeed Capri, which was finished with a dinged and dented ‘dirt and grime’ look. The kit was a good one to build with absolutely no fit problems, and a driver figure that looks just right in the cockpit. The kit came complete with a rear-mounted electric motor that can still drive the soft rubber tyres. The real thing had its engine upfront, but at least Tamiya's neat underbelly detail included the bottom of the engine.

The pictures above show:
1 Corgi Capri Mk3, 1976 race winner.
2 Capri powered up for drag meets.
3, 4 SMN’s own Tamiya 1:24 Capri.

Amazon has a range of Capri models here - look out for the original ‘hairdresser style’ Ford Consul Capri from the early 1960s. Amazon has the Corgi model featured above at a small discount.

eBay has some Tamiya Capris on sale here, and there's also an attractive-looking photo-etch detail set from a Belgian seller.

AND HERE'S THE CHASE ITSELF...

If you haven't seen it (and another chance to view if you have) here's THE chase. I've been up and down many of these steep streets, so believe me, the drivers earned their pay!

It's not perfect mind - some sequences are overcranked a little, to speed up the action, and there are continuity issues, but the overall effect is just great.

Also note the different 'voices' of the two cars - you can shut your eyes and know which one's onscreen at any time.

Enjoy!

Thanks to FreakKeeper for the YouTube video.

STEVE McQUEEN'S BULLITT: THE MOST FAMOUS CAR CHASE IN MOVIE HISTORY

Ask anyone to name a movie car chase sequence and (unless their tastes are very strange) the one that comes top is usually the duel between the 1968 Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger in the Steve McQueen movie Bullitt. Oddly though - especially considering the number of other ‘star cars’ available - neither car appeared as a kit for many years. In fact the closest you got was a set of the correct license plates, produced in etched brass from the UK company Miniature Autobits in 1987, but this left you to provide your own Mustang and Charger, probably from AMT and MPC kits.

Revell amended this situation slightly in 2000, when it issued multi-material versions of both Mustang and Charger. These were available as kits with mostly plastic parts and pre-painted metal bodies, or ready-built, with figures. But there has not been a conventional plastic kit until now, when Revell has gone half-way there with the Mustang, and has adapted the metal body tooling and produced it in conventional plastic.

The two new movie tie-ins (top picture) feature the original 1968 Ford Mustang, and the 2008 ‘new’ Mustang. The 1968 model is a re-tooling of the earlier metal-bodied kit, while the 2008 model is based on brand-new tooling.

There are plenty of differences if you compare the metal-bodied Bullitt Mustang (left in the lower picture) with the new all-plastic version. Besides the obvious changes to the body, other details are that the exhaust system is no longer painted, while the chrome runner for the new kit has modified wheels and the extra parts - lights etc - that were on the original completed body. The Frank Bullitt figure comes only with the metal ready-built, not the kit.

Now all we kit builders need is that Dodge Charger!

Visit Revell here.

Mat Irvine