12/06/2011

"On looks alone"

Those are the words I said to myself when I bought this car. Do not be too critical of me though, you have done the same in the past.

Since the first Classic NASCAR's arrived from Revell/Monogram (Revogram for you old school slotheads) I have had a love/hate relationship with them. They simply are stunning aesthetically and because so I am just powerless with my wallet when a new one comes out. I know good and well that as good as they look, they perform so poorly out of the box that they will need some work to get them to run the way I want them to. For a more detailed look check out our first review here.

But I don't care anymore. This MOPAR has been on my radar since the day they leaked the news about it's arrival. Now it is finally in my selfish little hands. This model has it all for me. First, the driver: Paul Goldsmith. I could fill many pages about him so do yourself a favor and look him up and just sit back and enjoy. Second: The Car! I just love these old Plymouths, especially these so-called unattractive crates. Looks like the opposite of a race car, one that was never intended to race as fast and hard as they did.

Revell/Monogram makes a few mistakes in my eyes, but not in the scale accuracy departments. At least in this series of models they really deliver a very fine scale reproduction of these beloved race cars.

I will let the photos try and speak for themselves. Do some research on this car and I think you will be happy.

The only inaccuracies that might stand out to the finely tuned eye are the omissions of the Goodyear logos on the front fenders and the tires. This is due to licensing which Revogram is not the only victim. Carrera's latest Classic NASCAR'S are void of them as well. However, that is another story.

The rest of the paint and clear coat is flawless. The shade of blue here is as close as it gets too. I have a close friend of mine that has literally worked in the NASCAR circle most of his life. Drivers that are heroes of mine he calls buddies. Him, along with other knowledgeable fellows will tell you that back then these cars changed a LOT from race to race. If they had the right paint shade at the time? Good! If not? They got it as close as they could. By the way there is a red version of this car that I bet will be next on the list.

Overall this model is just fantastic. It is not perfect, but I cannot think of many slot cars that are.

Looking underneath we see the standard chassis in place.

To be as objective as possible the newcomer needs to know these cars WILL function out of the box on plastic track. With the dual magnets working that voodoo that they do so well, the cars will operate. And in some cases they are actually pretty good.

However, for those of you racing non-magnet on plastic OR wood I will simply echo my thoughts from the first review. Disappointment is still how I feel when I see this chassis. As execution goes in our modern slot car hobby, this is likely one of the worst. The 37 tooth large spur gear is still here and will drag the track if you sand the tires just a shade too much. The rear axle bushings still have much more slop than needed causing most of the noise you will hear, especially from the gears. All of this coupled with wheels that are sometimes seated/mounted incorrectly and you have what I feel is a very poor running model out of the box.

Ok, there I said it. But I feel this is fair...the good with the bad.

Some disagree with me on this, but I have too many of these cars to chalk it up to bad luck. Plus, most of my friends have had the same "luck" that requires work to get them to run smoothly. But time is our ally here. There are many enthusiasts who have solved some of these issues and have created MUCH improved performance. One such person is my friend Mark Thomas of Derby City Speedway fame.

So I will direct you HERE TO HIS HOW-TO ARTICLE. If you follow his advice you will discover how well these models can truly run.

Final Thoughts

1. As the beginning of this review stated, they are just too beautiful not to own.

2. Because of this they deserve MUCH better running gear and quality control underneath them.

3. Magnet racers should be ok with some light tuning.

4. Price is great! These are listed for under $40.00 which in today's hobby of some brands being way overpriced is VERY attractive and refreshing.

And this great price means that the sting of upgrading/replacing the parts in order to tune it to your liking doesn't hurt as much. This advanced tuning is simply one of the costs of owning a wood track. These models are not designed for these tracks and you have to respect that fact. I do. We have all spent extra time and money making our models run better and the truth is sometimes that is half the fun of slot car racing.

In addition, I do not take what we have in this hobby today for granted. Just having this car produced thrills me. We do not see many other manufacturers creating classic American iron like this all the time, nor do they have the wide range of them Revell/Monogram has given us.

Regardless of all the issues with the running gear, if you are a fan of vintage NASCAR you almost have to own one. But beware. Once you have one in your hands it likely will not be your last. Once tuned, the sight of these classics on your track is truly a sight to behold.

- Harry

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