Revell SSP Austin Healey 100-Six

[Duntov]

HI:

I picked this up at the hobby shop a few days ago. This is the Revell SSP reissue of the Austin Healey 100-Six. It has been out for some time so I wanted to get it and figured it would be worth a review. I will review the kit here but a few words first. This is a nice kit but you need to be aware of three things. First this is a multi-piece body build up so if that is not your cup of tea then pass this up – the money will be better spent on a one piece body and newer tool. Second, just be aware that this is an older tool….it has aged very well and has minimal flash but just keep the age in mind if you get this one and third….this may be a deal breaker….this thing is expensive. At $30 plus it’s a matter of deciding where you want to put your money. For me it was OK because I like the subject and enjoy the challenge of the older tools when assembled with state of the art paints, glue and tools……so here we go……

The box is pretty much the same art as the original if memory serves….don’t hold me to that though…

The body is a multi-piece affair as I mentioned. It runs around 10 to 12 pieces with all the panels, hatches, inner panels and roll pans…..go slowly here and test fit everything…..it will come out just fine if you do….hurry this and you will have problems….there are hinges too and they are a bit delicate so be careful there as well.....the frame is nice and needs just some minimal clean up to look good. It has the belly pan and some front suspension components cast onto it so plan accordingly for painting and detail work.

The chrome and glass come in their own separate packages (something I really like – it is amazing how quickly chrome wears off just sitting in the box!!!)….the chrome itself is OK…not great but it gets the job done quite well. The windscreen is clear and thin and is well done overall. (A race car version would be cut down any way.....). The healights and lenses are cast as one piece on the chrome tree so substituting parts box pieces or reworking the kit parts with clear lenses will help immensely with realism.....also...the windscreen frame is cast in white plastic so some Alclad is in order.....maybe BMF but you decide.....

The front and rear suspension is simplified but will benefit from careful detailing and perhaps a bit of scratch building here and there. My pet peeve is well addressed here too!!! That being a two piece fully cast rear axle. I really get miffed when I spend $$$$’s for a nice kit and the rear end is half cast!!!!

The engine is a well done representation of the original albeit very simple…at just ten pieces it will benefit from doing your research on the original and some scratch building and parts swapping. Just messing around I compared the kit engine to a Chevy small block......the length is just about spot on in 1/25 th scale....HMMMM....have to think about that one!!! Also, R&M has some really nice Webber carbs (40's) avaialbe in resin....they may not be the exact items (again do your reseach) but would look great with a set of small Parks aluminum air cleaners that match the stock items.

The interior is well done and builds up from multiple pieces. A small decal sheet provides gauge faces and some very well done UK license plates.

Multi-piece body and simplified drive train aside the one big disappointment here are the wheels and tires. They are the original two piece hard plastic wheel and tire composite. At this price point vinyl tires and separate wheels would have soothed the sting a bit. You can build them up as is and they will look really nice but this will take time. There are several after-market options available as well as several swap-in’s from other kits to address this. For me I may be doing this as an SCCA racer anyway so I will address the wheel and tire issue in that manner with aftermarket items.

Overall, this is a neat kit and I did not hesitate (much) when I picked it up. The price will be an issue for some but if you like the nostalgic stuff and enjoy the challenge of the multi-piece kits this is a good one for you. Do your research and build this SLOWLY and you should end up with a nice addition to your collection. Box stock this can be a fun build but the possibilities for parts swapping here are huge..... Have fun.

Regards Bill (Duntov)

[Nick Notarangelo]

I've done this kit once and with just a litte efford and clean up it comes out really good for itss age and subject matter.

[Foxer]

Thanks for the review on this kit. I always had a soft spot for these Healeys and it's nice to see what's in it.

One question ... I'm not sure I'm following you on your comment about the rear axle being "half cast". I can't remember any similar axle that wasn't cast this way. This doesn't look like it uses a metal axle that would need to pass through, but a casting of the differential solid would surely have dimples from the thickness. I'm just feeling I'm misunderstanding what you meant.

[Zoom Zoom]

My biggest beef with this kit is the scale; 1/24 is the standard scale for this type of subject. Not when the kit was issued, but it is now. So it looks kind of puny. There's an expensive aftermarket kit all in white metal from England that is a 1/24 scale A-H 3000...but a bit rich for my blood, and rare. I was shocked at how nice it was in white metal, which I usually despise.

In the meantime, it's a decent kit and a better set of wheels/tires can go a long way to improving the looks. The body goes together quite well, though it's funny when builders put the body together and smooth out the seam lines...seam lines that are supposed to be there

[Duntov]

Thanks for the review on this kit. I always had a soft spot for these Healeys and it's nice to see what's in it.

One question ... I'm not sure I'm following you on your comment about the rear axle being "half cast". I can't remember any similar axle that wasn't cast this way. This doesn't look like it uses a metal axle that would need to pass through, but a casting of the differential solid would surely have dimples from the thickness. I'm just feeling I'm misunderstanding what you meant.

Hi Mike: the term "half-cast" is a flip comment on my part and is my way of taking a swipe at rear axle differential castings that have only the bottom fully cast and the top missing.....the model companies assuming that you would not see the top of the differential any way..... so "half-cast" is my euphemism of "half - XSSed" ..... the rear axle in this kit is in fact fully cast top and bottom which I really appreciate and like a lot..... an example of half-cast is the old AMT 36 Ford (Dick Tracy coupe for one....amongothers)..... the top of the differential is missing.... )

Regards Bill (Duntov)

[Foxer]

Hi Mike: the term "half-cast" is a flip comment on my part and is my way of taking a swipe at rear axle differential castings that have only the bottom fully cast and the top missing.....the model companies assuming that you would not see the top of the differential any way..... so "half-cast" is my euphemism of "half - XSSed" ..... the rear axle in this kit is in fact fully cast top and bottom which I really appreciate and like a lot..... an example of half-cast is the old AMT 36 Ford (Dick Tracy coupe for one....amongothers)..... the top of the differential is missing.... )

Regards Bill (Duntov)

I DID understand you correctly then. What did throw me was seeing top and bottom of the diff in your photos. .. and I agree on half-cast!

[Guest Johnny]

I have this one in my stash from the last time it was released!

I also have a SA magazine that had a neat 60's build of it using steel wheels and baby moons and a Buick nailhead for a powerplant!

[Phil Patterson]

I have this one in my stash from the last time it was released!

I have an earlier release too, about 80% done that I need to get back to. One thing on the multi-piece body. I used liquid cement which allowed me to slightly squeeze the glue joints, which if carefully done would leave just a slight bead of plastic which you could scrape smooth when cured.

Toughest part was the front and back gravel pans, IIRC, I filled most of those gaps with pieces of kit sprue using again, liquid cement.

[old gearhead]

I built this kit when I was a teen-ager. It went together pretty well. I used the Rudge K-Os from the AMT 330 SL kit with some narrow vinyl tires (they may have been Continentals from a VW kit; I don't remember). Painted it two-tone; light metallic green on top w/dark green scallops, black interior w/light green piping. I guess it was kind of lurid now that I think of it.

PB.

[Elliottfan9]

I built this kit back in the late 1970's. I believe it was red plastic with black plastic tires. It's built box stock with the exception of the tires and wheels. It was probably painted with Testors red rattle can. I used Testors on everything back then.