Weathered GMC Pickup with Snow Plow

RoR SnapShot Review 20120918* – GMC Pickup with Snow Plow – Revell 85-7222 1/24 scale Review
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A SnapShot review by Tom Schaefer

When Revell announced the re-issue of their short bed ’77 GMC 4×4 a cheer came from all of us off road lovers. Then, when I heard it was going to include a new snow-plow, well, that was the icing on the cake! The short bed 4×4 pick up is not a real popular subject among the big model companies anymore, and with so many building and diorama choices I really can’t figure out why. There are so many things that can be done with this truck model!

Upon opening the box I first noticed how clean all the molds were. This is a 30 plus year old mold, but it looks like something Revell just tooled up. The chrome tree was a little heavy, but it was all clean and smooth. I commend Revell for not just re-packaging a thirty year old model, but cleaning it up, giving it all new decals (which are beautiful) , and adding something new to give it some added value!

As I said the truck is clean of flash. The instructions are actually more like a small book. The pictures are almost life sized, so if you are an old guy like me, it makes it a breeze to read and follow. The Tires are the typical G**DYEAR Tracker A/T’s, but now, they are made of a nice soft vinyl. There is no lettering on them due to a licensing issue. The whole model went together easily, no warping, no adjustments, just straight up build where it all fit very well. The Snowplow is BEAUTIFUL! It includes almost all you need, except the lift chain and a hook on the plow mount to hook the chain to. That was easily fixed with a visit to my wife’s old jewelry box [yes I asked first]. The detail is really nice, especially the springs on the back of the plow.

On the other hand, if you are looking for detail, this truck is not going to make you happy. The interior is plain; no door panel detail and vague dashboard engraving. But, on the other hand, a lot of cheap Chevy’s in the day really had nothing either. The engine bay is really sparse, and I question the fuel injection set up. There was no master cylinder. The chassis is nice, but the dual shock set up in the back is all wrong, because it didn’t exist. The front could have had dual shocks up front like the K5 Blazers, but it was set up differently. But I am just being critical. Another thing I have always hated on these trucks was the hood fit. It just never seems very tight, but it is better on this version than others I’ve built. This truck actually borders on a skill level 1 build, if it wasn’t for gluing it together. The plow on the other hand is definitely a skill 2. I ended up weathering this kit to make it challenging and more interesting.

For The Modeler: With the high cost of models nowadays, I feel ripped off buying reissues that aren’t any better than the same model I bought for $5 twenty years ago! I made mention in previous reviews something new should be added to these re-issues to enhance their appeal. Revell must be listening to us! I will end up building more of these, it’s a great model to have back and the lack of detail can be easily made up with aftermarket/scratch built parts. With a ton of these trucks in Wildlife Parks, used by the Military (Air Force used short boxes), Fire and Police departments, Shop trucks, Mud Boggers, Off-roaders, etc., the options are endless!

Detailing Notes – Most of the weathering was done with acrylic paints and the dry brush technique. The rust holes were made with a Dremel tool and fine-tuned with an x-acto knife. Yes that is bird doo-doo on the window and hood, and real dirt was sprinkled on the wet paint on the frame then painted over. The base paint is Testors flat white, flat red and Dupli-color primer. It is all based on the fact that I pass no less than four Chevy Plow trucks on my way home from work. They all sit rusting away until needed when Old Man Winter comes a calling.

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