AMT #1173 1977 Van w/Vending Machine (Coce Cola) 1:25 Scale Model Kit

great

Very nice model

Pieces are to rounded not enough detail. Instructions are awful.

From the first moment I saw this model I fell in love with it, I waited a long time until I had the opportunity to buy it, and as soon as I was able I bought it. But Like the size of the expectation- so was the size of the disappointment.A. As soon as I opened the box, I discovered that this model does not have headlight lenses but a curved lens on the chrome, which is something I personally hate in car models (I relied on what I saw in the description of the transparent parts a pair of transparent circles and I was sure it was the headlight lenses but it is not, and so far I have no idea what it's used for ...).B. When I started building the model I got frustrated too many times, the parts barely fit each other, don't bother doing a "test fit" because it doesn't fit anyway...c. There is no number on the parts as in any normal kit (although the booklet has a number for each part) you have to guess what part they mean by its shape.d. There is flash and/or injection mark on almost every part. I really don't know what happened to AMT in this kit, I usually enjoy their kits a lot and I've been building car models for almost 20 years ... this model I built pretty sloppy just to finish it already.Despite all I gave this kit 3 stars, why? ... Very simple! Because of the fantastic subject !!! Who doesn't want a glossy red Coca Cola van on its shelf !!! even all the flaws in the building process it came out very beautiful even though the sloppy job ...In conclusion, this kit is not recommended for anyone just maybe for a simple builder who doesn't care about accuracy and fit or for the super professional builder who can spend a year on weathring one wheel ...Anyway good luck, I at least very enjoyed the result...By the way, the wood effect on the Coke machine in the photo is a wallpaper from my personal stash, it did not came with the kit's decal page, which is really good by the way...

You need to know your expectations of this kit. I often see in the questions section of many model kits someone will ask "will my ?? year old grandson, or my ?? husband be able to build this kit" and the answer is a tough one. If you're just starting out, maybe go with a newer type Snap together kit. If you haven't built models before I would NOT start out with this kit as it will take time, patience and in the end you may not want to finish this kit. If you want a challenge and are willing to mess with something and try to make it look good, then maybe give it a shot. Many experienced modelers who like a challenge won't even want this kit. I see it a little different and here's why:Originally, I purchased this and some other AMT kits solely for the Coke items not really caring too much about building the van. As I was building, I thought how bad this kit actually is, BUT, can really be great at skill development as well as developing patience and problem solving. I have built many model kits and have referred to assembly drawings countless times in both my personal and professional life. I often dealt with OLD drawings that give you the info, but had to be interpreted. This kit will have you scratching your head in some areas. As other have pointed out, the parts aren't numbered, they don't fit well and they are absolutely right, it's pretty bad.However, I think it can be a great example to develop problem solving skills. You WILL need to trim flash. You WILL need to sand (a lot). You may want to use filler on some gaps. You DEFINITELY will have to concentrate on what the drawing is depicting because it definitely is NOT clear. it's not easy to figure out what is excess plastic and what is a detail of the part.If your expectations of this kit is to open the box and just pop it together it's NOT going to meet your expectations. Because of the nature of the old tooling, old directions etc, this will frustrate most people and I would NOT recommend it to anyone just starting out in model building because it will probably turn you off and make you give up. IF you like a challenge and want to solve a puzzle as well as assemble a model kit this might be great for you. Of course, the irony is that this is NOT supposed to be a training exercise but something you WOULD want to work on.As I'm building this kit I find myself making lots of mistakes because I expect it to be like most kits that have better parts and instructions. Several times I've had to go back and take something apart and redo it because the parts and directions suck, BUT also because I wasn't paying attention.I have a lot invested into this hobby with tools, glues, paints etc so I don't mind so much as I have to really think this one through. Many people would say the heck with it and scrap it, but I'm embracing it as a skill building practice kit.Will it live up to my other kits? Probably not and I'm not really expecting it to. I am approaching it as a challenge as to how I can make this into something it's not ( at the moment). It's not supposed to be a complex kit but it is. It will really make you appreciate how good other kits actually are. If I end up making it look decent I will update the review. For the money, you expect much more than what you get here.

very little flash.converted mine to a 70s van after a few modifications.