1969 Chevy Camaro Convertible SS/RS 1:25 Revell #85-4929

RoR SnapShot Review 20120205* – 1969 Chevy Camaro Convertible SS/RS 1:25 Revell #85-4929 Review
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Review and Photos by Marty and Stephanie Oberman

I originally built this kit when it was initially issued as the “Pace Car” kit, and have fond recollections doing so. I built and painted it in the same color scheme as my best friend’s ’67 ragtop which he bought and restored to health back in the 70s. There were many memories in that car, and unfortunately I was forced to sell my ’69 model due to financial difficulties some years ago. Needless to say I was excited to have the opportunity to replicate this ’69 in the same color scheme.

(Fig. #0a) I began by assembling and painting the engine, which consists of a two-piece block/tranny with the oil pan molded in, separate cylinder heads, intake manifold, distributor, coil, fuel pump, oil filter, fan belt assembly, fan, alternator, starter, two-piece carburetor, four-piece exhaust headers, and chrome valve covers. There is also a two-piece air cleaner assembly which I installed in the latter stages of the build. Instead of my signature silver base/clear orange oil filter I used clear blue over the silver base to distinguish it from the Chevy orange engine block.

(Figs. 1, 2) I installed the fuel pump before painting the block, and then detailed the fuel bowl silver. Tranny and exhaust manifolds were painted Testor’s Magnesium buffing metalizer, and the intake manifold Aluminum of the same. Starter, distributor, coil, fan, and fan belt pulleys were painted gloss black, with the belt itself detailed in flat black. The alternator was painted Testor’s stainless steel metalizer. The engine went together like a dream, and looks absolutely beautiful when completed. The racing-style exhaust headers really add a muscular touch to the potent 396 Chevrolet mill (Fig. #1, 2)

(Fig. #9) I moved on to the chassis and its components. There is a front cross-member, one-piece front suspension, and two upper A-arms. I painted the chassis pan semi-gloss black, and the components (both front and rear) gloss black. After the front components were installed, with no issues by the way, I installed the engine into the chassis. The rear components include a one-piece rear axle, separate leaf springs, and shocks. In between are a two-piece “dual-chamber” exhaust system and driveshaft.

 

(Fig. #10) Everything fell together nicely without any issues except for the exhaust system…it seems one header was shorter than the other, even though I checked the fit of the cylinder head and exhaust header placement on the engine to assure they were installed correctly. Installing the exhaust pipes from the rear first would have left a noticeable gap where the passenger side pipe met the header. I attempted to solve this issue by gluing the pipes to the headers first, leaving them off-kilter on the frame. After they dried, I gently swung the rear of the exhaust pipe assembly over to its mounting points at the side of the gas tank in the rear of the chassis. This seemed to work well, even though the pipes running from the front of the chassis towards the rear axle are a bit off-center. I wasn’t too concerned about this since once they met the rear axle and extended rearward, they were square with the chassis pan.

 

 
(Fig. #8) At this time I installed the radiator and its shroud, battery (with Delco decal), and washer bottle to the radiator wall for assembly later. The washer bottle is clear, which enabled me to paint the inside of it clear Tamiya blue, giving it the illusion of being full of fluid, then painted the cap flat black. The battery caps were painted silver with a clear red overcoat, and the terminals were detail-painted as well.

(Fig. #13) I then turned my attention to the interior assembly. The interior itself is a bucket-style affair, with the rear seat molded in. Separate two-piece front seats, dash, steering wheel, steering column (with turn signal and tilt-steering stalks molded in), shifter, and console round off the interior. However, there are separate side door panels, which makes detailing much more easily than if they were molded in. I was able to foil the accent lines of the door panels and rear panels, as well as paint the door and window cranks with ease. Included are decals for the dash and console instrument gauges, shift-pattern indicator, and “Camaro” scripts for the side panels and dashboard, the latter really show up well on a black interior. What doesn’t show up well are the “hounds tooth” seat insert decals, which disappear if the modeler employs a black or dark gray interior.

(Fig. #14) There are two steering wheel options available in this kit; the standard Camaro “flat-panel” wheel for the RS version, and the three-spoke SS wheel. Since I’m building mine in the SS version, I chose the three-spoke wheel. I painted the spokes Testor’s Aluminum Plate buffing metalizer, then used my gloss black paint marker to detail the outer wheel ring. I also painted the shifter boot flat black and the knob flat white. The major components were painted semi-gloss black, except for the floor which was masked off and painted flat black to simulate carpeting. The entire interior assembled together with no issues whatsoever, and it looks quite realistic.
I then installed the rear spoiler and rear fascia to the body before painting it Dupli-Color GM Bright White. I then applied BMF to the windshield frame and lower rocker panel strip. Gluing the rear fascia into the body securely enabled me to paint the entire body uniformly. The front fascia is molded into the body already. I remember when I built this kit before that the chassis was flexible enough to be able to be finagled into the body without snapping anything on the undercarriage after the rear fascia had been installed. I then glued the interior into the body and installed the firewall to the front of the interior. The firewall contains separate brake booster and master cylinder, both of which I painted stainless steel buffing metalizer with gold cap. Next I slipped the windshield glass into the space between the dashboard and cowl and glued the upper part to the windshield frame, thus trapping it in place and avoiding any possible glue smears on the glass while attempting to install it otherwise. I love this trick, and I’ve been successful so far doing this with every convertible I’ve built. The glass contains an opening for the rear view mirror between the molded-in sun visors and it installed without issue. The taillight assembly, consisting of clear red lenses in chrome buckets, glues into place from inside the rear of the body. The application went smoothly. I detailed the separations on the red lenses with a silver Sharpie.

(Fig. #21) Once the chassis slipped into place, front first and rear last, I installed the two-piece air cleaner assembly. The bottom piece which sits on top of the carbs was painted gloss black, and I detail-painted the rim of it where it makes contact with the separate under hood cowl piece flat black. The upper air cleaner containing the filter is chrome, and has two nice decals proudly boasting the 375hp. 396 engine. I detailed the filter part flat white and installed the assembly as well as the upper radiator hose, which has the thermostat housing molded in. The housing was painted aluminum to match the intake manifold’s color, hose flat black, extension to radiator gloss black, and clamps silver. The installation went without a hitch.

I then began to apply the decals for the hood stripes, which did not conform well to the cowl-inducted bulged hood, despite the use of Micro-Set and Micro-Sol. While attempting to apply the second hood stripe I managed to mangle it badly and was therefore forced to delete that entire scheme. Instead, I went with the “hockey stripes” on the side of the car, which actually give the car a subtle “touch of class” where the hood/trunk stripes are a bit gaudier. All other script decals for the car applied without problem, and they look great.

(Fig. #19) The final assembly consisted of installing the front and rear bumpers, headlight/grille, clear front parking lights, chrome door handles and side-view mirror, and front chin spoiler, which I painted flat black. I also added the chrome license plate frames with California license plate decals. The finished product looks good, and is quite convincing.

Final impressions: Although the decal issue with the hood stripes prevented me from “replicating” my buddy’s ’67 convertible, and the exhaust header/pipe issue, I found no major fit or finish problems with this kit. Although it’s not the “perfect build” per se, it comes VERY close, and I enjoyed building it very much. Therefore, I give this kit an easy…and I mean EASY 4 1/2 stars. I highly recommend this kit to intermediate (like me) and advanced modelers looking for a trouble-free building experience of a classic subject. Would I build this kit again? In a “heartbeat of America” I would! ;c)

 (Fig. #999)

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