Revell '64 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt Kit Parts Review

[hpiguy]

Nice repop by Revell. Three wheel options, two full sets of tires, lots of chrome, two hoods, two transmissions. Lots of stuff for the parts box on this issue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmQFlByGxmo 

 

 

[stavanzer]

I have the last re-issue. I'll need to get this one too.

Thanks Again, Chris for posting this.

[Mr mopar]

I built the very first two along time ago .............. must get this one ,and Chris to answer your Question who came first .

https://www.hemmings.com/magazine/mus/2006/08/The-First-Thunderbolt---1964-Ford/1317232.html

Edited September 24, 2017 by Mr mopar

[ChrisBcritter]

I have had one of these kits for years, partway through conversion to a lower-class Modified Stocker with a small-block engine. Did a bunch of work removing the teardrop bulge from the hood before Revell brought out the stock(ish) version. 

If anyone has the new version and doesn't need the flat hood...

[unclescott58]

A kit I have little to no interest in. But, I love Chris' review. Though hearing can be built "stockish" I may need to take a closer look at the instructions over on Revell's web site. A basically "stock" street version of this car could get me to think about buying one.

[unclescott58]

After looking at the instructions over at Revell's web site, sorry to say this kit is nothing I would be interested in building. It's not close enough to a car you might find at most local Ford dealers at the time. Interesting is one of the exhaust system setups shown in the instructions. Just a single small full car length pipe and a muffler coming out of the right side header, near the crossover pipe from the left header. Who would use such a setup like this type? Looking at it, it makes no sense. I'm no expert on these type of drag cars. But, I can't believe a car like the Fairlane Thunderbolt would barely run being choked down by an exhaust of that type. Weird.

[RancheroSteve]

Interesting is one of the exhaust system setups shown in the instructions. Just a single small full car length pipe and a muffler coming out of the right side header, near the crossover pipe from the left header. Who would use such a setup like this type? Looking at it, it makes no sense. I'm no expert on these type of drag cars. But, I can't believe a car like the Fairlane Thunderbolt would barely run being choked down by an exhaust of that type. Weird.

NHRA rules for the class required a stock exhaust system (muffler & tailpipe) be in place - but they didn't specify that it had to be hooked up! So there was small gap between the stock exhaust and the Thunderbolt's big tube headers.

Lots of other modifications went into making a Thunderbolt out of a stock Fairlane - in fact, it's pretty far from anything you'd drive on the street.

[unclescott58]

NHRA rules for the class required a stock exhaust system (muffler & tailpipe) be in place - but they didn't specify that it had to be hooked up! So there was small gap between the stock exhaust and the Thunderbolt's big tube headers.

Lots of other modifications went into making a Thunderbolt out of a stock Fairlane - in fact, it's pretty far from anything you'd drive on the street.

That would explain it. And they indicate that exhaust system with the drag version in the instructions. I thought this was mistake. For they show dual pipes dumping in front the rear wheels for the "street version." I thought the instructions may have had that mixed up.

[RancheroSteve]

I'm sure the Revell engineers never intended a "street version" when they tooled this kit. It's a very fine kit and builds into an excellent Thunderbolt, but to make it close to an accurate stock Fairlane, you'd have to change the engine and make extensive modifications to the kit chassis.

[waynehulsey]

Haven't looked at one in a long time, but did the 65 Fairlane Mod Stocker reissue have enough of the stock front inner fender wells-shock towers to adapt in? From memory even thought they really changed the exterior sheet metal for 65, underneath there wasn't much of a change.  Here's a 64 Fairlane engine bay.

[RancheroSteve]

Could be! Interestingly enough maybe, the '66 Falcon Modified Stocker probably has the most accurate Falcon/Mustang shock towers available in kit form.

[waynehulsey]

Forgot about that one, don't think I ever picked one up.

[Mark]

Haven't looked at one in a long time, but did the 65 Fairlane Mod Stocker reissue have enough of the stock front inner fender wells-shock towers to adapt in? From memory even thought they really changed the exterior sheet metal for 65, underneath there wasn't much of a change.  Here's a 64 Fairlane engine bay.

The AMT '62 and '63 Fairlane kits have the engine compartment molded as part of the body, but the '64 and '65 had incorrect half-round inner fenders molded as part of the chassis.

Then, for '66, AMT went back to the engine compartment molded as part of the body.

[waynehulsey]

 

Could be! Interestingly enough maybe, the '66 Falcon Modified Stocker probably has the most accurate Falcon/Mustang shock towers available in kit form.

The AMT '62 and '63 Fairlane kits have the engine compartment molded as part of the body, but the '64 and '65 had incorrect half-round inner fenders molded as part of the chassis.

Then, for '66, AMT went back to the engine compartment molded as part of the body.

Think we're sort of getting apples and oranges (or at least different kinds of apples) mixed up. So we can eliminate the 65 Fairlane Modified Stocker as a source since it and the 64 (both the T-bolt and the original) are incorrect. The 66 Fairlane is a different beastie. But the Falcon modified stocker (which I think is actually a 69 IIRC) has accurate Falcon/Mustang shock towers. Are they accurate for a 64 Fairlane? So does that get us all on the same page?

[Mark]

The Falcon (or Mustang for that matter) towers aren't correct for the early ('62-'65) intermediate Fairlane.  The Fairlane towers have a huge bulge towards the bottom.  The Revell kit has the DST-modified original towers...easiest way to get from A to B might be to modify those back to stock. 

[Force]

Mark is right, the 1962-65 Fairlane was not built on the Falcon/Mustang platform, the 1962-63 Mercury Meteor is the only other car with the same chassis.
I had a 1964 Fairlane 500 Sports Coupe for 12 years and sold it last year, so I know that it isn't much from the Falcon/Mustang chassis that fits these Fairlanes.

[RancheroSteve]

Agreed - sorry for any confusion. I was just remarking that the '66 Falcon had accurate shock towers for a Falcon/Mustang platform - not for a Fairlane.

[Mark]

The '62-'65 Fairlane/'62-'64 Meteor have a number of, shall we say, unique front suspension parts.  The front shock absorbers fit absolutely nothing else.  The OEM control arms had the ball joints riveted to them.  Usually those were sold as an assembly, or as "rebuilt" with the replacement ball joints again riveted in place.  Every so often, the ball joints were/are made available as separate items. 

[waynehulsey]

Excellent, looks like we've got that all squared away. So looks like best solution for the T-bolt is to use reference (see photos above) and reverse the modifications.

Never worked on them much myself, but do remember our front end guys hated working on the 64-65 Fairlanes.  The irony of that was our Auto Center manager had a 64 Fairlane Sports Coupe for a couple of years.

Thanks Steve for the tip on the Falcon pieces for early Mustang/Falcon.

[Casey]

Hard to believe this kit is now 30 years old, and looking back through its history, I was surprised to see how many times it's been reissued. Though the kit did get an update in the '00s with new parts and/or a second build option, it has remained mostly the same...which is a good thing as it was one of the earlier kits to emerge from the "new" Revell, post Monogram merger.

First two issues from 1990, which were decal engineered versions of the same kit:

Tasca Ford THUNDERBOLT, kit #7450:

 

Russ Davis Ford THUNDERBOLT, kit #7451:

 

'64 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt Street Machine, kit #85-7679, from 1999:

 

Revell/Classic Hobby Distributors '64 Ford Thunderbolt SS, kit #CHD-9664:

 

Revell "Streetburner" '64 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt, kit #85-2065, released in 2006:

 

Revell/Model King Hubert Phil Bonner/Hubert Platt Thunderbolt, kit #85-2049, released in 2007:

 

Revell '64 Ford Fairlane Street Machine 2'n1 Special Edition, kit #85-2076, released in 2008, was the first to include the new optional "flat" hood, steel wheels, and dog dish wheel covers. The new parts allowed the builder to create a more stock appearing car, rather than a 100% factory stock vehicle:

 

Revell '64 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt, kit #85-4408, released in 2017, which again included the optional street machine parts:

 

I can't recall if this kit was packaged with another Revell kit in their HOT ROD magazine series two kits, so let me know if I missed any.

[Rbray47]

I've noticed these kits since pretty much the first issue. They never appealed to me for some reason. I may get one just to see what they're all about. 

[Daddyfink]

Almost ashamed to say it, but, I have never built one! I have most of these issues, but, I have yet to glue parts or paint anything! 

Time for a Quarantine build of this one, maybe. 

[Casey]

I built the Tasca Ford version in the mid-'90s, and it was a challenging build. The pars fit is very close, especially the way the headers snake through the engine bay/front suspension/crossmember. Bare metal foiling the side trim is no fun, either. There's a reason Revell rates this a Skill Level 5 kit.

I should also mention the excellent set of chrome plated Keystone Klassic Kustomag and Radir wheels, as well as the very nice steel wheels included in every version of this kit. The narrow front tires aren't great (and always seem to have mold shift issues), but the rear pie crust style slicks are great for vintage projects, and don't have flashy sidewalls like the recent AMT parts pack slicks. Though the two front wheels of each style are one scale inch smaller than the rears, you still get three sets of wheels, and something which almost never happens-- they all look like their full-size counterparts.

Edited May 18, 2020 by Casey

[niteowl7710]

7 minutes ago, Casey said:

There's a reason Revell rates this a Skill Level 5 kit.

Because the current Revell rating system is based on the total number of parts? ?  I mean come on it can't be THAT hard, it wasn't even a Skill Level 3 in the old system.  *I kid, I kid*

[Don Sikora II]

7 hours ago, Casey said:

 

'64 Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt Street Machine, kit #85-7679, from 1999:

 

I can't recall if this kit was packaged with another Revell kit in their HOT ROD magazine series two kits, so let me know if I missed any.

The 1999 street machine issue was originally supposed to come with a cardboard cut out of a vintage Taco Bell, but was never released that way. Not sure if it had a different catalog number than 85-7679. 

Don’t think the T-Bolt made it into any of the special two-packs, so think you’ve caught all the various issues of this one.