REISSUE OF A CLASSIC REVELL KIT: NIKE HERCULES MISSILE FROM ATLANTIS MODELS

 

RECREATING OLD KITS is a specialism of Atlantis Models, and here the company adds to its nostalgic list with a 1:40 scale missile from the mid-20th century.

SMALLEST MODEL KIT EVER MADE? A NEW CONTENDER WITH THE 1:144 SCALE SPACE CRUISER FROM FREIGHTDOG MODELS

SOME TIME AGO WE POSED the question, “What is the smallest model kit ever made?” We came up with an answer in the form of the tiny two-part Nike Hercules missile included as a ‘Revell kit’ in the My Merry Hobby Shop children's play set.

WHAT IS THE SMALLEST-EVER MODEL KIT?

MAT IRVINE MINI-WEEKENDER:

Here’s a pub quiz-style question for you: “What is the smallest-ever model kit?” And the answer is: “Probably the one featured here!” It’s a tiny two-piece model of a Nike Hercules surface-to-air missile, apparently made by Revell - except that it wasn’t...

GUARDING AMERICA WITH THE NIKE HERCULES

A MAT IRVINE REVIEW
The US is full of aerospace museums displaying obsolete equipment. The vast majority are extremely well maintained and most have been lovingly restored and maintained.

The Air Power Park in Hampton, Virginia, which I visited when attending last year’s US IPMS (International Plastic Modellers Society) Nationals in Virginia Beach, has a variety of aircraft and missiles on display. These are mainly associated with the nearby Langley Research Center, but it is a bit of a mixed bag. Most of the aircraft are in fair condition, but the missiles have certainly seen better days and like all equipment, if they are not carefully maintained, they tend to show it. One such item is the Nike Hercules surface-to-air missile on display.

I was reminded of my visit recently, as one of Revell Germany’s recent Classic Kit reissues is of the original 1:40 scale Revell Nike Hercules kit. This stems from as early as 1958, and even in those early years of the plastic kit industry, it was extremely well detailed. The missile has moveable fins, and the solid-rocket booster separates from the forward section, while the launcher can be moved into firing position. Add the three supplied crewmen for scale, and you have a model that, somewhat ironically, is in far better condition than the example sitting in the Air Power Park!

This is the fourth issue of this kit . After the first one in 1958, it was reissued in The History Makers Series 1 in 1982, then as an SSP (Selected Subject Program) in 1994 - and all four issues have presented the plastic in different colours! First it was ‘Molded in 2 Colors’ (as it says on the box – in tiny print at the upper left), white for the missile, dark green for the launcher. The History Makers was all in a dark olive-green, the SSP was all-white, while the latest Classic Kits issue is all in bright mid-green!

The pictures show, top to bottom:
1 All four issues, anti-clockwise from top left - the original 1958 issue, the History Makers release, SSP, Classic Kits. The last box art was created by scanning the image from the actual box at top left.

2 An assembled kit, standing on a base that I added. The booster stage has been painted black, (as against the recommended white), as this was often used as a variation on an all-white scheme.

3 The Nike Hercules at the Air Power Park in Hampton, VA. When used in anger, the missile was jacked up to a vertical position. Standing behind, you can see two Nike Ajax missiles. The Ajax was the first in the Nike missile series, becoming the first US air-defence missile in 1953. The faster Hercules model followed some years later, in 1958.

Buy the kit here.

Visit the Air Power Park here.

Visit Revell here.

REVELL ‘CLASSIC KITS’ - SELECTED SUBJECT KITS REVISITED

Reissuing kits isn’t new, but many collectors wanted not only the plastic but the whole paraphernalia that went with the original issue - plans, decals and especially, the box. To this end, Revell and Monogram started their Selected Subject Program (SSP) in the 1990s to recreate some classic kits in exactly this manner, and by 1998 had reissued over 300 kits in virtually original packaging. By then most that could be reissued had been, so the SSP idea ceased as a regular event, although recent years have seen a few reissues in the general catalogue.

The idea of SSPs was initially confined to the USA, but Revell GB (when there was a Revell GB - it ceased as a separate entity in 1997) issued its own range, and now Revell-Germany has taken a similar line with its current ‘Classic Kits’ range. These are not quite the same as the American SSPs, as the boxes are not absolutely identical, but they do use the original artwork. There were ten kits in 2008, and 2009 will see a further ten. To date, half of these have arrived (top picture). Four originate from Revell itself, while the 1:32 scale 1928 Rolls Royce Phantom I is a Matchbox kit, Revell-Germany buying the Matchbox kit brand in 1991. Initially the Matchbox name was retained on the boxes, but gradually many kits were absorbed into the main Revell brand, which is what has happened with the Phantom.

Other Revell-original kits in this first batch are the USS Burton Island, one of the original Revell Inc kits from the 1950s, (it first appeared as the icebreaker Eastwind). The 1:32 Bf109F reappears, as does the Nike Hercules surface-to-air missile. The latter uses box art from a sample I loaned from my collection to Revell-Germany (top box in the pair above). Unlike previous reissues - such as the SSPs - the new issue shows the whole image of a distant missile being launched on the far left. Previous issues had cut off the nose, under the Revell logo!

The final issue of this batch is the Fairey Rotodyne; it’s arguably the most interesting, as the kit hasn’t seen the light of day for many a year. Three similarly-scaled kits were available during the Rotodyne’s heyday - 1:72 scale ones from Airfix and Frog, and the slightly smaller 1:78 Revell, but the fully detailed interior gives it an advantage over the others.

You can visit Revell here.

Mat Irvine