RETRO-FUTURE STYLE: DOUBLE-BUBBLE LINCOLN FUTURA DREAM CAR

A KIT REISSUE THAT harks back to the golden age of Detroit dream cars.

LIMITED EDITION HOT WHEELS BATMOBILE

SMN report:

Mattel’s Hot Wheels line has released a treat for Batman fans, with the latest Limited Edition Batmobile. “Not another Batmobile...” I hear you sigh, but read on, for this is a biggie 1:18 scale diecast model, with opening sections that reveal enough inner details to make it a unique entry for the Batman memorabilia shelf.

UNBOXING THE NEW SUPER-VALUE ‘BATMAN AUTOMOBILIA’ PARTWORK

SMN report

We’re using ‘unboxing’ in its widest sense here, as most of this new product is actually flat printed paper. Still, who’s quibbling - what we have is the first in ‘the definitive collection of Batman vehicles’, and this starter for what could be a l-o-o-n-g partwork series makes a terrific package, and as is usually the case with partworks, it’s offered as a knockdown price to lure you in as a faithful subscriber.

VINYL OR RUBBER TYRES? MAT IRVINE PROVIDES THE DEFINITIVE ANSWER

SMN report
We inspected the two-piece solid wheels sported by Revell’s Lincoln Futura, and mentioned that the tyre elements were not made of rubber, like most kits these days. Well, that's not quite right and here’s a correction from the acknowledged expert of scale auto models, Mat Irvine, who reminded us that almost all model tyres are not rubber at all, they’re usually made of vinyl, a soft plastic compound.

The styrene killer strikes
Apparently, the composition of some early vinyls could attack styrene and literally melt it, and Mat has a few examples of this. In Mat’s words: “I recall AMT for one went to styrene for many of its tyres in the 1970s for this very reason and only returned to vinyl in later years, when the formula had been changed. Airfix had the same trouble with the tyres in its James Bond DB5 kit, and with the tracks for many of its tank kits.”

Austin-Healey model kit
Mat continued: “This could have applied to the most recent reissue of the Revell Germany Austin-Healey 100-Six, though thankfully this reverts to the original styrene wheel-tyres combo for the latest release. Incidentally, I supplied an original box for Revell to photograph as artwork for the update.”

“Apart from the fact that this was the original format, the replacement vinyl tyres and chromed wheels used on later issues (as of course they were the 'in thing') were awful (and I don't mean 'full of awe...'). The originals were far, far better, having very finely moulded wire wheels, which with appropriate paint, look absolutely the part.”

“So... all-styrene isn't all bad!”

More on the Lincoln Futura
Back to the Lincoln Futura, the pix above are a couple of nice finds we thought you’d like to see. The 280 mm (11 in) long tin toy was made by Yonezawa of Japan, and dates back to the mid-late 1950s. Present value is around $800.00 USD (£500.00 GBP) for a tip-top example, and worth every note we’d say. Somewhat cheaper is the neat Johnny Lightning 1:64 scale model, which was issued as a Limited Edition. Even so, with careful shopping around, you can pick one up for just $15.00 USD (£9.40 GBP).

Visit Fast Autos with the tinplate Futura here.

Here’s a range of tasty tinplate items, though we suggest you ignore the cake tins, unless you like baking of course here.

BATMOBILE EVOLUTION - FROM LINCOLN FUTURA TO MONSTER TRUCK

The famed Batmobile has a long history, and more design changes than we can count. The tale of this fabled vehicle began with the 1955 Lincoln Futura 'dream car', touted at the time as: ‘A $250,000 laboratory on wheels’, complete with twin plexiglass canopies, hooded lights and air scoops for cooling the brakes. However, after successful display at various auto shows, the car was sold to the ace of auto-customizers, George Barris, who a decade later worked with stylist Dean Jeffries to produce the Batmobile of 1966 we know so well from the successful TV series.

Before that however, the Futura had been modelled to 1:25 scale by Revell as part of the Modern Car Kit series and the pictures we show here are of the kit's 1995 reissue. It’s simple enough, containing just 36 parts plus a pair of metal axles. The wheels were moulded in two halves as standard hard-plastic components - car kits had not yet evolved to include separate tyres. The box art is typical Revell of the time - drop-dead gorgeous, with a very happy pair of middle-class consumers under those twin canopies.

The instruction leaflet doesn’t stop at assembly notes, but also includes display suggestions, such as modding the Futura to make a bookend, an ash tray, or a TV-top decoration. Ah, those were the days!

Coming up to date, we show a recent Hot Wheels 1:64 scale Batmobile in the form of a ‘Monster Jam’ truck. Hot Wheels designers have had a field day with the swoopy finned design to produce a nice little model, with satin-finish paint, lots of chrome (even if it is somewhat overbright), and those huge tyres. A nice feature from Hot Wheels is the steering mechanism - just lean the vehicle to left or right and all four wheels twist and turn to match your movement.

You’ll have to hunt around a bit for the Lincoln Futura. We found one for sale on eBay here.

The Monster Jam truck is widely available, and we also found one on eBay here.

BATMOBILE 1:1 REPLICA SEEN IN STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN

This little movie is doing the internet rounds at the moment, and according to reports elsewhere it cost more than $1 million USD (£630,000 GBP) to construct. Hmmm... that sounds a bit of a hyped-up figure to SMN, but short of seeing the till receipts, we won't quibble. The vehicle, built by Stockholm resident Leif Garvin, is apparently based on the running gear from a 1973 Lincoln Continental, typical current asking price a definitely non-stellar $3000 USD (£1893 GBP). However, Leif's Batmobile took over three years to build, and as you can see, it’s a very impressive piece of work, packed with technoid gadgets, and with a paint job that Batman would be proud of - and in SMN satin-finish too ;)

Our own AMT Batmobile refurb is coming on a storm, and we’ll be able to show her off very soon. Meantime, there are lots of Batmobiles out there, and don’t forget that the Batman franchise has churned out many variations over the years.

SMN current favourites are both 1:18 diecast models. The Hot Wheels 1960s-era Batmobile is the TV-series design, created by customizer-king George Barris from a Lincoln Futura concept car. The other is a pricey but interesting Corgi bare-metal casting, based around a 1940s comic design, and an unusual addition to any collection.

Pictures show, from top:
1 Hot Wheels 1:18 1960s Barris Batmobile.
2 Corgi 1:18 1940s bare-metal Batmobile.

Video courtesy 'Simonize82'.

View the Hot Wheels Batmobile model here.
The Corgi bare-metal Batmobile can be seen here.

FAB FIVE: RARE REVELL CLASSICS

Revell kits have waxed and waned over the years, and today the range is probably stronger than ever, with regular new kits coming from Europe and the US. Snap-together models are now established in popularity, with the Star Wars range leading the way. But will today’s kits (and their boxes) ever achieve the status earlier beauties have earned in my hall of fame? Only time will tell, but here we go with Mr J’s five rare Revells from the vaults:

1 USS Nautilus nuclear submarine
This was the world’s first nuclear submarine when ‘atomic’ was the big buzz-word, so a 1950s boy just had to have it. Revell’s Nautilus had a large pod behind the sail (or conning tower) and a Loon cruise missile, which was an upgraded US version of the World War 2 German V-1 ‘doodlebug’. This was a bit odd, as the real sub never had this feature at all. No matter, at the time it looked suitably aggressive.
2 Lincoln Futura
The concept alone sold this to me - a car with double-bubble canopies, just like the Anastasia personal spacecraft flown by my comic-book hero, Dan Dare. The real thing was hand-built by Ghia in Italy and did the show-car circuit; later it was the genesis for the Batman TV series.
3 Cutty Sark
Ah, the days of sail! Revell’s beauty was a stunner, and the beautifully detailed hull really set it off. Sad to say, it would NOT stay upright in water, ending its days capsized on a pond, being pounded by pebbles and stones thrown by... yes, you guessed it, me and my pals.
4 Boeing Bomarc
To my eyes the Boeing Bomarc interceptor missile looked more like a sci-fi rocket, and I built it as such, finished in gleaming silver, sitting on an alien landscape with a bunch of astronauts (‘spacemen’) around the base, ready to explore a strange new world. In reality, the Bomarc’s job was to knock out Russian intruders with its nuclear warhead, before they had a chance to drop their A- and H-bombs on US cities.
5 Martin Seamaster
Wow, a jet flying boat! Sleek, but ultimately doomed, the Martin Seamaster was another must-have for this tech-obsessed model builder. It did mark a watershed though, as around this time I got fed up with Revell’s weird-scale (‘fit the box’) policy - the Seamaster was made to a bizarre 1:136 scale - and decided to stick with 1:72 for most aircraft models. Which of course opened the door to the likes of Airfix....

OK, that’s my Rare Revell Fab Five - what are your own choices?