After months of anticipation, I finally got my hands on this kit. I was, and remain, pretty excited about the snowmobile, the gas cans, and the tool box in particular. I really like that kind of stuff. I bought two of these so I would have one to steal parts from for other builds.
I haven't built this yet, but after months of anticipation, I had to open the box right away and see what was inside. One bag with the main body, two small bags of clear parts, one bag of tires, one bag for all the rest. The instructions are what you would expect from Revell. They're clear, easy to decipher, and printed well on good quality paper. There are two choices for graphics on the decals, either blue as in the box image or the red-orange-yellow version of the same. Of course there are a couple things for the license plates, gauges, and a couple other details.
There is no chrome in this kit. Not a single bit. If you want bling, you'll have to rely on your parts box and your paintbrush. The clear pieces are in short supply, too. The snowmobile has a headlight piece and little windscreen, the Jeep itself has two headlights and the front windshield, no rear. No red or other color transparent for the other lights.
The parts are nicely molded and I expect it to go together well. There is almost no flash, and mold lines are also minimal. All the parts for the snowmobile (seven pieces) are on a sprue by themselves, as are its clear pieces (both of them-nine total). Likewise, the rollbar, front bumper, gas cans, and tool box are all on a single sprue. The tool box is for display only; without extensive modification there is no way to put tools in it.
The engine is nicely detailed and comprises about a dozen pieces on two trees. The axles/leaf springs/drive shafts are molded as units for the front and rear. The spare is molded into the frame. The cab, bed, and most of the engine compartment are all molded as one piece.
There are a few options for the adventurous builder to customize this kit, but most modifications are going to be more involved than simply not installing something. If you want to omit the bed, for example, it's going to be quite a task.
Overall this looks like a good kit. If I had realized that it's a 1:24, not a 1:25, I would have probably passed on this one. Between that, the lack of chrome, and the very limited options for variation from the box build, this kit isn't quite what I was hoping for. It will still be a great build, it looks like, and I would have given it a full five stars if not for the mis-identified scale and the lack of build options. The extras for the bed kind of cancel some of that out, and I think I can make an exception to my preferred scale, just this once.
