The Kit

This review covers the 1957 Ford Del Rio Ranch Wagon 1:25 Scale Model Kit #85-4193. A 2015 release, this model is a collection of past offerings with refreshed trees and some brand new tooling. It is a skill level 3 kit for the 12-year and older builder, molded in 156 pieces of white, clear, transparent red and chrome pieces with waterslide decals and instructions. As you can tell from the piece count it comes with quite a few options. Two complete versions can be built; either the police wagon or a stock version. Both use a highly detailed rendition of the 312 c.i.d. Thunderbird V-8. This kit includes a separate frame for enhanced detailing along with custom wheels and disc brakes. The completed dimensions are Length: 8”, Width: 3”, Height: 2-3/8”

Construction and Detailing

I elected to build the police version of this wagon for its “cool” factor and because the kit pieces were so nicely done in a period accurate manner.

History

The Vietnam War was a helicopter war. Many of the most lasting images are of fleets of helicopters, mostly the ubiquitous UH-1 “Huey,” filling the sky. What would newsreel footage of that war be without a sound track of the “whup-whup-whup” of chopper blades?

Among the many uses the UH-1 was put to was as an early version of the gunship, the ancestor of today’s Apache. Those Huey guns took a crew of four: a commissioned or warrant officer pilot (left seat) and copilot, and two enlisted door gunner/crew chief in back. This four figure kit represents the aviators of those gunships employed in that conflict.

History

At the height of the Great Depression, aircraft executive Walter H. Beech and airplane designer T. A. "Ted" Wells joined forces to collaborate on a project to produce a large, powerful, and fast cabin biplane built specifically for the business executive. The Beechcraft Model 17, popularly known as the "Staggerwing" was first flown on November 4, 1932. During its heyday it was used as an executive aircraft, much as the private jet is now, and its primary competition were the Waco Custom Cabin and Waco Standard Cabin series of biplanes.

On the back of the seventh Fast & Furious movie release, Revell has re-released a kit born in the 2 Fast 2 Furious era, or more commonly, 2003. Responding to the tuner craze of the time, Revell released several 2’ n 1 style kits of popular imports such as the Acura Integra Type R, Mitsubishi Eclipse, and the subject of this review, the ‘99-00 Honda Civic Si coupe. Each of the the tuner-inspired kits included several aftermarket wheels, body kits, and spoilers, along with the parts to build a stock car.

Pavla Models has been putting out a lot of nice sets for older kits. I really love this because I’m one of those people that are hooked on the model kits of my childhood. This time they did a conversion for the Monogram B-36 Peacemaker. Another interesting thing about Pavla is their choice of subjects for their conversions. They picked the 20mm cannons and compartment for the front top of the aircraft. Talk about different, every time you see a model of a B-36 they all look the same, but with this conversion you have the top bay open with guns retracted.