AMT 1/32 Maxwell House Thunderbird, previewed by Scott Van Aken

AMT 1/32 Maxwell House Thunderbird

KIT#:	8708
PRICE:	$8.00 from a vendor
DECALS:	One option
REVIEWER:	Scott Van Aken
NOTES:	1992 release

Sterling Burton Marlin (born June 30, 1957) is an American semi-retired, professional stock car racing driver. He currently competes part-time JEGS/CRA All-Stars Tour, driving the No. 114 for Sterling Marlin Racing. He formerly competed in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, winning the Daytona 500 in 1994 and 1995, and in 2001 he was involved in Dale Earnhardt's deadly crash. He was on his way to possibly winning the championship in 2002 when he had a crash late in the season that sidelined him for the rest of the year. He is the son of late NASCAR driver Coo Coo Marlin. He is married to Paula and has a daughter, Sutherlin, a son, Steadman, a former Nationwide Series driver, and a grandson Stirlin who splits a schedule with Sterling in Sterling’s No. 114 Super Late Model.

This kit is of Marlin's 1991 car that he drove for Junior Johnson. It is a snap kit so the so the mounting surfaces are fairly large and the detailing isn't the same as a standard glue kit. It is also in 1/32 scale rather than 1/24th or 1/25th. However, the kit is not a curbside. There is a 12 piece engine and nicely molded suspension. Vinyl tires attach to chrome wheels and are pressed in place of suspension axle stubs.

These suspension bits and then attached to the chassis pan along with the engine. and exhaust. On the upper portion of the chassis one builds the interior which includes a seat, stick, roll cage instrument pane and steering. There is a decal for the instrument. Once the chassis/interior is completed, the body is attached. The kit has a separate hood and rear bumper along with clear bits for the windows. In order to have this kit look good when done, there is quite a bit of painting that needs to happen. Biggest is the body which has a red interior and white exterior so get plenty of masking material for this.

Instruction sheet is large and provides not only color info in generic terms, but also several tips on construction. Most of this car, including the chassis/interior is a dark blue with the instructions recommending that color for the interior and the chassis. While the body is molded in blue, it is not as dark as it needs to be and it should be painted. The sheet is glossy and a bit thick, but past experience with AMT sheets shows that it will work just fine, especially if one uses hot water.

I have to admit that I purchased this kit from the seller (along with a few others), because I wanted the body for a slot car. However, it does look like it will build into a nice model and I may well forego the robbing of it for the body and build it as intended. It does look like it will be a pleasant experience. Another thing I noticed is that it seems as if everything under the body is the same in all these kits. Since the distributor is in the back of the engine, all these cars (even the Fords), have Chevrolet engines!