1968 Shelby GT500

AMT did a solid job with this vintage kit. The kit includes different engine options and a precut outline under the hood for the Shelby engine. I discovered the outline too late in the build and had already painted the hood. What the kit lacked in decals it made up for it in details. I decided to add my own gages that were ordered from Hobbylinc, and I was pleasantly surprised by the raised wood grain on the dash. The kit also featured raised lettering for the exterior badges. I wished the badging was a little more raised. I also added aftermarket rims, but the rims in the kit were perfectly fine. Everything was going perfect until I got to the rear end assembly. The rear lights barely had enough exterior clips to glue it to the rear end. I did make the mistake of trying to add the bottom fender and bumper too fast, after gluing the rear lights on. I suggest gluing the rear lights on and allowing at least 24 hours for the glue to cure, before attempting to glue the bottom fender and bumper on. I really enjoyed building this kit.

This was a difficult kit in my opinion. First of all, I did not understand the kit being molded in a light green color. This made painting of the parts far more difficult and required many coats to cover up the green color. Also all of the parts did not fit correctly and required a lot of trimming and sanding. I am not sure if I just got a bad kit or if this is standard for all AMT kits. I am not ready for another AMT kit anytime soon.

This kit is not good for beginners at all. Numerous parts require trimming and don't fit well at all. Be very careful and take your time with this one, otherwise you're going to end up with many gaps and other issues. First AMT I've put together, so I'll be reading reviews before buying others.