RDean58 Posted December 21, 2018 Share Posted December 21, 2018 From careful web searching I have deduced that AMTs "Old Pro" Nova is a 71 model. I cracked this kit open the other day and was thinking of getting the Revell 69 Nova for it's frame, engine, and interior, and then I thought, "Why?" Let's just put this one together! The drivers side "C" pillar has a weird bulge to it that I managed to sand out a bit, although it is still there. The frame and interior fit into the body loosely, so I'll have to make sure I have them well glued in. Tires are an aftermarket set of white line Goodyears from Modelhaus. A close up of the wheels shows where I painted the aluminum and black vents. After looking as some pictures of the wheels in real life I discovered that AMT made them with too much depth and slant from the outer edge to the center cap. I matched this engine up with one from the Revell 57 kits and I can definitely tell you that the engine block is way too long. It is supposed to be a 350 which is the same outside size as all the other "first generation" (265, 283, 327, 302, 307, 350) small blocks but AMT decided to do this one differently :-) Later on I'll shoot some comparison pictures to show you the difference, as you can see in the picture, the distance between the rear of the intake and the beginning of the transmission is how much longer this engine is. Perhaps an 8th of an inch maybe, which translates into a little over 3 inches difference in a 1:1 scale. I have not put a ruler to it to confirm the gap so it may even be larger! Obviously, this will not be a super detail build, just straight out of the box (with a tire change), some flocking, and paint. Thanks for looking, all comments welcomed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disconovaman Posted December 21, 2018 Share Posted December 21, 2018 I've been trying to straighten one out myself. I like the kit and have gotten used to all the problems. Those molds have gotten so worn out over the years not to mention it was never a good tool. You just have to do the best you can with what you have to work with. I've built many over the years and I've never been dissapointed with the end result. Keep on Truckin! I'll be watching... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draggon Posted December 21, 2018 Share Posted December 21, 2018 Might I suggest block sanding the area where the front fender meets the door? Amt did a lousy job on this when they decided to make the fenders separate. Also, the wheels look just like ones I had on my 79 El Camino. I ditched the brushed aluminum trim rings it came with, for some polished rings from (I think) a 71 Camaro. Much nicer looking IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted December 21, 2018 Share Posted December 21, 2018 I must own 6 or 8 copies of this kit but have never gotten one together. Been fiddling with one since the '70s (1st issue) and another one for a decade or more. Between the front fender fit, the crummy door/window pillars, and the incorrectly shaped lower corner of the side glass, I just haven't been able to pull one together. One kit donated its rear end and bumper to correct a Revell '69, which I got pretty far along. I still hope to get at least one built one of these days. Best of luck to you on your project! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sledsel Posted December 21, 2018 Share Posted December 21, 2018 As much slack as this kit gets, it isn't all that bad, just old. Glad to see one being built. I have a few and will get another for a Saturday night stock car build. That being said, if the body is too loose, consider gluing in rocker panels. I have done this on quite a few old kits and it helps a lot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsxse240 Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 What a Terrible kit! I have been working on one for about 10 years or so. I found the Poncho conversion on eBay, used the frame from either a Baldwin Motion or stock 70.5 Camaro, but when I started to work on the interior, I just kinda gave up, because the Revell kit came out and there was no way my work could stand up to the new kit straight built oob. I may drag it out again and just finish it slammer style or something. Good luck on your build. I hope it turns out well for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espo Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 I have built several thru the years and the only real big thing that bothered me was the front fenders. I realize AMT did this for a couple of reasons. This kit is from the old 3 in 1 days and they just thru everything in the box. This could also be built as an early Funny Car, not as we know them today but much like they were then. Having owned a new '72 Nova SS I have always thought that the part of the fender between the wheel opening and the edge where it meets the grill is to narrow. This may have been done for the Funny Car option. About a year after this kit was first released AMT offered the Pontiac version that was the same kit but with the Pontiac front Fenders, Hood, Grill and bumpers. This had to save them some development expenses to bring the Pontiac kit to market. You mentioned the engine issue. I just don't remember if they had a complete engine block for the Big Block option on this or not. As I recall, and I may very well be wrong, they just had different Heads and Manifolds to make the Big Block and that may be the reason behind the different engine size. It is also common to find engine size differences between kits with the same engine by the same model company. All that aside I think you will enjoy this kit and it will build to a great display Nova. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disconovaman Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 21 hours ago, Snake45 said: I must own 6 or 8 copies of this kit Two seperate engines... AMT just got the small block wrong... And I thought the Poncho Pontiac came first then the Novacane Pro-mod then in 78 or 79? the Old Pro nova was introduced... Snake might know for sure... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snake45 Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 3 minutes ago, disconovaman said: And I thought the Poncho Pontiac came first then the Novacane Pro-mod then in 78 or 79? the Old Pro nova was introduced... Snake might know for sure... Sorry, I don't. I got out of model cars about 1970 and went back to airplanes. The only model cars I bought in the '70s were two Monogram '69 Camaros (I was driving one at the time), one Mono '66 Chevelle, and one AMT "Old Pro" Nova. I never saw the Ventura or the Novacaine on the hobby shop shelves so have no idea when they came out. Come to think of it, I did buy a couple other cars in the '70s--the "Countdown" reissues of the '66 Mustang and '69 Chevelle and '62 Corvette, the reissued '66 AWB Mustang street freak, and the MPC '57 Chevy gasser, but I never got any of them actually built except the two Monogram '69 Camaros. I didn't get back into serious car modeling until the mid-'80s, with the AMT '68 Camaro, Monogram '70 Boss 429 Mustang, and a JoHan Maverick resissue. Been pretty much keeping up with the hobby ever since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1930fordpickup Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 The Nova SS, the Pontiac Ventura and the Novacaine were released in 1972. Everything else was after, from the Directory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disconovaman Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 I think espo may be right because I can't imagine why Amt would make those fenders seperate from the beginning. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiO7pqrkbTfAhWkd98KHWlEB5YQjhx6BAgBEAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.modelcarsmag.com%2Fforums%2Ftopic%2F137179-125-amt-72-pontiac-ventura-ii-sprint%2F&psig=AOvVaw3dzCaZAXbYGrNyVHAWqlgx&ust=1545591759372330 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
espo Posted December 22, 2018 Share Posted December 22, 2018 By my memory The Nova SS was the first issue and the Novacaine was issued sometime later. The parts content was the same but the box art and decals were different. I really don't recall just when the Ventura II came into the picture since I picked mine up after it had been on the shelf for a while. Life was kind of getting in the way of modeling at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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