AMT '40 Ford Coupe Review (1983 Re-issue)

[Dave Darby]

1 hour ago, Toner283 said:

Some of the flat box kits were molded in white and some were molded in orange. You had to look for the little sticker that tells you what color they were molded in. Although, maybe not all of the boxes got the sticker.

Well aware. Unfortunately all they had were the orange ones. But that's ok. They'll get painted anyway.

[Mike999]

All the "Art Box" '40 Fords I've seen so far had the "White" or "Orange" sticker.  Though if I owned a hobby shop, I might be tempted to yank those stickers off...

When this kit came out, my closest hobby shop in Los Angeles got a shipment of half "white" and half "orange" kits.  The white ones sold very quickly.  The kits with the "Orange" sticker stayed on the shelves for months, until the store cut the price on them.

As for plastic colors, all the Trophy kits I've seen have been molded in black, gray, or light blue.  At a local flea market a while back, one seller had an original AMT '40 Ford coupe, '40 Ford sedan and '49 Mercury.  All 3 were molded in light blue plastic.  I grabbed the 2 '40 Fords which were untouched, the Merc was partly built/painted and missing some parts. 

Along with the great vintage box art and decals, those original Trophy kits had entertaining history write-ups on the instruction sheet.  The '40 coupe mentions that the car is "twenty years old now."  The '40 sedan talks about these cars being pulled out of farmer's barns, etc.  Fun stuff.

[Casey]

On 10/25/2013 at 5:11 PM, ChrisBcritter said:

My first '40 kit was that same issue, molded in tan, back in '66 or '67.

Images have gone *poof*, but just stumbled across this version on eBay, molded in tan plastic. Probably my favorite box art out of all the AMT '40 Ford Coupe issues:

[Casey]

On 6/12/2013 at 9:28 AM, John Goschke said:

I love this kit. Particularly in the unadulterated early issue, which had a number of parts that were changed or deleted from later issues. These included custom wheel covers, fender skirts, short lake pipes, and stock Buick valve covers for the nailhead engine. Earlier issues are worth picking up because the molding is cleaner, with less flash and better definition of details. 

Huh, there they are:

 

And the "Parts List" from an original issue  instruction sheet, showing many of the long lost parts John mentioned:

 

Did the custom wheels discs ever reappear in another kit, or have they essentially never been seen since they disappeared from the '40 Ford Deluxe Coupe kit?

[ChrisBcritter]

Did someone mention stock Buick valve covers? Now there's a coincidence - these came out of the mold this afternoon:

Been hunting for a set of these from the '60 Buick because they were the most accurate, and then I spotted a set on an old '40 Ford chrome tree - same thing. Added flanges because for some strange reason AMT didn't put them on any of the early nailhead covers. These will go into my '63 Riviera, and the next set is for my '62 Electra.

[Motor City]

Only the valve cover on the driver's side should have the oil filler cap (canister-like blob) unless that varied by year on the 401 engine.  I drove a '63 LeSabre in high school that my folks bought new.  If you look at photos online, it often is on the passenger side, which is probably a result of changing the valve cover gaskets.

[ChrisBcritter]

True enough; in this case (one-owner 65k-mile '63 Riviera) it appears to be on the driver's side.

 

[TarheelRick]

Kind of late getting into this thread.  My first ever model kit was the Trophy Series '40 Ford Coupe. Got it for Christmas in 1959 and it was molded in black.  I am going to presume that was probably an original issue.  Also remember the '32 Vicky and the '32 Roadster were also molded in black.  My first issue of the '29 Roadster was in white (around '63-64) but I have since found light blue and tan ones.  Last year '2019' I won one of the flat box kits at a show raffle, it has the molded in orange sticker and the parts picture on the bottom shows the sedan delivery rear door.  The kit is still sealed so I cannot verify the accuracy of the parts.  It comes with mag wheels rather than the good original issue stuff. 

Edited December 31, 2020 by TarheelRick

[Motor City]

[Bob Ellis]

I got my 1940 Ford coupe in 1964. Was blue plastic like 59 El Camino and 58 Impala. For a 10 year old they built easily.

[Motor City]

Hopefully the kit gets reissued at some point.

[Mark]

The '40 coupe is out right now...same content as the flat-box "original art" late Sixties issue, only in a regular box.  The flat box used artwork from the late Sixties issue that came with a record, the regular box copies the revised version of the same issue that had a similar box, with a different decal sheet and no record.

[Motor City]

thanks, Mark, and happy New Year!

[espo]

On 12/31/2020 at 9:00 AM, TarheelRick said:

Kind of late getting into this thread.  My first ever model kit was the Trophy Series '40 Ford Coupe. Got it for Christmas in 1959 and it was molded in black.  I am going to presume that was probably an original issue.  Also remember the '32 Vicky and the '32 Roadster were also molded in black.  My first issue of the '29 Roadster was in white (around '63-64) but I have since found light blue and tan ones.  Last year '2019' I won one of the flat box kits at a show raffle, it has the molded in orange sticker and the parts picture on the bottom shows the sedan delivery rear door.  The kit is still sealed so I cannot verify the accuracy of the parts.  It comes with mag wheels rather than the good original issue stuff. 

I have to agree with you on the black plastic used on the first '40's. The time frame you mention is when I got my first one. I had just finished building the '32 roadster and the coupe mixing parts between them. I didn't paint the '40, Instead I removed the license and trim from the trunk lid and used automotive rubbing compound to bring back the shine on the black plastic. I still like the De Lux better than the standard '40.  

[Dave Darby]

On 6/12/2013 at 10:28 AM, John Goschke said:

I love this kit. Particularly in the unadulterated early issue, which had a number of parts that were changed or deleted from later issues. These included custom wheel covers, fender skirts, short lake pipes, and stock Buick valve covers for the nailhead engine. Earlier issues are worth picking up because the molding is cleaner, with less flash and better definition of details. The biggest issue I found was the hood fit and the compromised definition of the side molding on the hood.

 

The virtue of this kit over the comparable Revell kit is simplicity. As far as I can see the AMT is just as accurate in basic shape as the Revell kit.

 

Here're a few shots of mine showing the early valve covers and exhaust system. I replaced the hood side molding with a bit of styrene strip...

 

http://images45.fotki.com/v148/photos/4/1486704/7348940/40_4-vi.jpg

 

http://images9.fotki.com/v131/photos/4/1486704/7348940/40_1-vi.jpg

John, you posted this build 8 years ago and I still never get tired of looking at it! It just sings to me. Now when you get that Ranchero done, get back on that Model A coupe! 

Edited June 30, 2021 by Dave Darby

[Casey]

AMT 1346, coming  in 2022:

 

[blizzy63]

I understand the adoration for this early AMT Trophy kit. I've built a few of these since 1974 and this one may be my last.

Built last year, during the COVID lockdown, as a box art "strip" version from the original 1960 AMT Trophy kit (no. 140) box.

Been meaning to do it for a while. Used vintage tires, Buick valve covers, exhaust headers and decals.

I say that it may be my last because it was such a simple, quick, satisfying build, I don't know if I ever need to build another. (Maybe a flat-colored jalopy version...??)

(This year, I completed its mate: The AMT '40 Ford Tudor Sedan original 1960 box art drag racer with vintage headers, tires and decals.)

Edited November 30, 2021 by blizzy63

[slusher]

Nice box art..

[blizzy63]

On 12/29/2020 at 9:41 PM, Casey said:

Did the custom wheels discs ever reappear in another kit, or have they essentially never been seen since they disappeared from the '40 Ford Deluxe Coupe kit?

No. Those 'cone discs' from the original No. 140 kit from 1960 were not reproduced after the kit went through its first "up-date" in 1966 (No. 2340). They were replaced by Olds Toronado-like hubcaps (see Casey post above).

Also altered were the Buick 'Nailhead' valve covers, exhaust headers, and the fender skirts were deleted.

 

Edited November 30, 2021 by blizzy63

[Dave Darby]

On 11/30/2021 at 1:39 PM, blizzy63 said:

No. Those 'cone discs' from the original No. 140 kit from 1960 were not reproduced after the kit went through its first "up-date" in 1966 (No. 2340). They were replaced by Olds Toronado-like hubcaps (see Casey post above).

Also altered were the Buick 'Nailhead' valve covers, exhaust headers, and the fender skirts were deleted.

 

And the year scrubbed from the license plate area of the custom bumpers. Aren't those headers great? The 40 sedan had a great pair too. Those actually lasted a few issues. 

[stavanzer]

Coke decals, but no extras. No Crates of bottles, no Coke Machine, or anything else. I don't see much in this box to excite me.  Sorry, this issue will be only for Die-Hard Fans.

Of Coke, or '40 Fords.