Show Rod Model Kits. Scotty Gosson

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      “The retooled kit got mixed reviews on accuracy, compared to the original version,” notes guerilla modeler Tim Kolankiewicz. Mark Gustavson agrees, adding, “A second version followed the first issue by just a few months. The original kit was bastardized over the years, with key parts being lost while other parts survive. The latest kit is a new tool, and it misses the mark in several important ways (hood is too flat, engine is laughingly too small, and other flaws). The late 2002 issue of AMT’s 1929 Ford roadster kit contains most of the original version’s Ala Kart body parts (no explanation for this anomaly, especially since AMT also issued the new tooling). Go figure . . .” Regardless, a million Ala Kart kits are known to have sold in the first year of production. (Photo Courtesy Dave’s Show Rod Rally)

      Ala Kart was merely an option with AMT’s stock 1929 Ford roadster 3-in-1 kit; the other option was a four-banger–powered dry lakes racer version. It stands as AMT’s first proper show rod release. Full-scale Ala Kart builder Dick Peters was forced to sell the 1958 and 1959 America’s Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR) winner in 1961, unaware that AMT consultant George Barris already had a deal in the works for AMT to kit the car. The kit sold more than a million units that year.

      Budd “AMT Kat” Anderson was idling Ala Kart out of an enclosed trailer at a 1963 show when the plastic fuel lines melted, resulting in a nasty fire. Gene Winfield restored the toasted car in 1966, coinciding with the kit’s re-issue. Later restoration work was performed at Junior Conway’s and Roy Brizio’s shops. A distraught Dick Peters could only watch this show from the sidelines.

       The AMT/Ertl re-issue sports much-advanced, yet still vintagestyled, box art. Actually, these can be considered the best of times for box art. Hindsight and technology mix pretty well. (Photo Courtesy Luca Roveda)

       AMT’s promotion machine boasted a razor-sharp tune and was running strong by 1962. These ads appeared in every automotive publication of the day. (Photo Courtesy Scotty Gosson Collection)

      Paul Canney’s take on Ala Kart, as seen on his most excellent Canney’s Garage site. Go there and drool. This guy has serious skills. (Photos Courtesy Paul Canney)

Tweedy Pie

      Revell # H-1286:198, 1963, 1/25 scale, Designed by Ed Roth, Updated (Tweedy Pie 2) re-issue 1999

      Tim Kolankiewicz declares, “Revell’s Tweedy Pie kit has been recently re-issued with all the original Tweedy Pie parts restored. The Tweedy Pie 2 kit cannot be built as an accurate replica.” No matter the source of their kits, the continued popularity of Ed Roth’s most conservative build is an eyebrow-raising testament to his fans’ perpetual reverence. Original Tweedy Pie kits were made in small numbers and their present scarcity nearly equals that of the full-scale real McCoy first screwed together by Bob Johnston. Bonus parts include fenders, a pickup bed, and variations on the front end. Revell has sold more than 11 million Tweedy Pie kits to date. (Photo Courtesy Dave’s Show Rod Rally)

      Quaint by show rod standards, Tweedy Pie (“A real dazzler!,” trumpets the box art, while Roth himself dubbed it “conservative”) made a major impact in the age of Norm Grabowski and Tommy Ivo T-buckets. Roth’s remake was merely a slightly more refined version of Bob Johnston’s original late-1940s build, sold to Roth for $1,150 in 1962 (paid with a check drawn on Revell’s account). But timing is everything, and all things Roth were red-hot by 1963. Tweedy Pie packed every venue it was booked into at the time. But Big Daddy was definitely the hook that pulled ’em in. Before selling the T, Johnston had declined an offer to loan the car to 77 Sunset Strip TV producers, citing his uneasiness with anyone else at the wheel. The TV contract went to Norm Grabowski instead.

Beatnik Bandit

      Revell # H-1279:200, 1963, 1/25 scale, Designed by Ed Roth/Jim Keeler, Re-issued 1994

      The ink was still wet on Ed Roth’s contract with show promoter Bob Larivee when Revell signed him on in 1961. Considered a national treasure (or moral threat, sayeth the holier-than-thou) by 1963, Big Daddy’s Beatnik Bandit broke new ground in styling and design that immediately extended to every facet of American culture. Revell must have been licking their chops over this release. Of the 128 parts in the kit, the infamous large rear decals tend to pose the greatest challenge. Many builders recommend hypnotherapy prior to final assembly. Included in Hot Wheels’ initial 1968 release of 16 cars (Harry Bradley scaled it down to 1/64), Mattel later issued a jumbo 1/18-scale Bandit. (Photo Courtesy Dave Shuten)

      The car that drove right over the cool barrier did the same for scale modeling. Big Daddy Roth twists his bandito mustache on the box art with a “Wait’ll they get a load of this” expectation. Sure enough, Big Daddy’s kits accounted for more than 16 percent of Revell’s total sales at the time. Roth’s success with Outlaw and Tweedy Pie had confirmed his intuitiveness and now this providentially timed release begat a worldwide epidemic of Roth Fever. Decades later, there is no cure in sight, despite protests from church groups and nervous parents. The end of civilization is surely nigh.

      At last report, the original Bandit was locked up in the National Automobile Museum in Reno, Nevada. Trivia: Designer Joe Henning originally christened the car Beatnik Band-It. Mattel released a limited edition (of 1,000) Hot Wheels Bandits in 2001 (shortly after Roth’s passing), with box art by Ed Newton.

      Mattel issued this limited edition of 10,000 diecast tribute Bandits in 2001 (just two months after Roth’s passing), with fresh original box art by Ed Newton himself. Note that Newt thinks and acts both inside and outside the box. (Photo Courtesy Ed Newton)

XR-6

      AMT # 2127-200, 1963, 1/25 scale, Designed by Steve Swaja

      AMT promoted this as a “Double Kit,” but the stock 1927 touring, jalopy tub, and XR-6 versions add up to, um . . . more than two. Three trees’ worth of “chrome” parts constitute the bulk of this package. СКАЧАТЬ