Comments on: Polar Lights Models: 1966 Batmobile Snap Kit Update https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/ Wed, 05 Aug 2015 05:56:00 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 By: paul wickham https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-39521 Wed, 05 Aug 2015 05:56:00 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-39521 In reply to paul wickham.

i guess i’ll just convert my Lincoln Futura kit. 🙁

]]>
By: paul wickham https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-39520 Wed, 05 Aug 2015 05:53:59 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-39520 these “’66” batmobiles are very nice. from the prepainted snap kit right up to the “deluxe” edition with photo-etched parts. however, in Australia, even the snap kit is frightfully expensive & as a result is still missing from my collection (i only build star cars) & i have a small collection of batmobiles. the only other one i’m missing is the tumbler (also expensive here if you can get it). sadly, by the time i could afford one, they’ll more than likely be off the market. Also, have you guys considered doing the animated batmobile?

]]>
By: Patrick Costello https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1273 Thu, 04 Aug 2011 02:51:39 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1273 That’s all I can ask for! Thanks Jamie!

]]>
By: JamieH https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1262 Tue, 02 Aug 2011 13:26:59 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1262 Patrick- A lot of hard lessons were learned during the development of this kit. I would do a lot of things differently…

As for the size of the wheels. I’m glad you found a worthy replacement.

I’m not sure what the price point will be for the deluxe kit as we have no control over what retailers will charge. It should be in the $50-60 range.

I hope the fact that we haven’t censored your reaction or comments says something about how receptive we are to our consumers. Though we can’t go back and correct everything. Rest assured we hear you and will use the lessons learned to do better next time.

]]>
By: Patrick Costello https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1259 Tue, 02 Aug 2011 04:07:17 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1259 I’ll bet! Sounds like a nightmare. It’s really too bad that such a highly anticipated, historic kit had to come together in such a “fish to fry” sort of way. I was under the impression that you did the initial design digitally, sent it to them and they made it a reality. Perhaps Round 2 really needs to keep creative control with the people who are most familiar with the subject.

I mocked up my Batmobile with those more correct Raders just to see how it looked. The wheels and tires were really mounted on the car for the photo but I Photoshopped the wheel bats onto them because I didn’t want to remove them from the original kit wheels. The tires are very incorrect 1/24 scale Goodyear radials but they handily fit the rims. I think it does a lot to make the model look right. They’re in the bottom of the three pics. I’d be very interested to hear your opinion.
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/hughbond/sideview4b.jpg

I also spotted a photo in Hot Rod Deluxe of a Ford Thunderbolt and remembered that the Thunderbolt kit by *those other guys* is another source of 1/25 Raders that are probably better than the ones from the Mysterion. It’s currently in production, therefore a cheaper, easier source that I’ll definitely investigate. I’ve been a chronic “kitbasher” for 30+ years so my mind is always working in that direction. 😉

Any word on what the price point will be for the Batmobile deluxe edition kit?

Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to give some brutally honest feedback. I hope you can pass it along to the Round 2 bigwigs to show them that they need to improve the process for future products.

]]>
By: JamieH https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1250 Mon, 01 Aug 2011 12:06:46 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1250 We sent no CAD information to the factory. They started by developing the kit in CAD on their end. I plan to post some of the horror stories encountered while developing this kit at some point. There were a ton of them.

]]>
By: Patrick Costello https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1247 Sat, 30 Jul 2011 21:56:51 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1247 Here are some photos of my completed model matched to photos of the original.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/hughbond/sideview4.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/hughbond/rear66.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/hughbond/DriversSide.jpg

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/hughbond/1966all-f.jpg

It looks pretty good overall though I see some proportion and contour issues in a few places. The fins are a bit heavy and lack the slight downward droop to the rear like the original. The headlight hoods meet the bumper farther back. The rear edge of the windshield canopy is too vertical. The beacon is a bit large. None of it is enough to call it bad or awful, maybe a grade of B+ overall. By far the worst part, the thing that ruins the look of it is the wheels, which have a rim diameter of 9/16″. That multiplies out in scale to be 14″. The Batmobile wore 15×7 rims. The kit tires, however, seem to have the same overall diameter in scale as the 1966 tires, making the sidewall excessively thick. The difference is really obvious in the photos. The rear wheel arch is also much smaller in scale than the original. This underscale stuff down low makes the slightly heavy fins look heavier.

Some significant body mods to the rear wheel arches are required if you want the body to look right. Then there’s the issue of the wheels, which are pretty awful. Rummaging through my parts box I found a pair of Rader wheels mastered over 45 years ago for the Ed Roth Mysterion kit. They lack lug nut detail but the diameter is right (5/8″ which is a bit over 15″ when multiplied out), the rims, which are deeper, look to be the correct depth and the spokes have the characteristic Rader shape.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c161/hughbond/IMGP4274.jpg

At the time I’m posting this, Mysterion kits list on ebay for about $30 each including shipping. Luckily I have a pair of them already because each Mysterion kit (now out of production) only came with two each, otherwise it would cost $60 in addition to the cost of the deluxe kit when it comes out plus the added build time correcting the rear wheel opening and dash top to have a scale Batmobile that looks respectable. That’s not even getting into the front suspension issues I mentioned when I saw the early glue kit pics. It’s gonna take A TON of work to make things right that could have been done right by Round 2 in the first place.

So now the question is, how bad do I want a Batmobile on my shelf?

]]>
By: Patrick Costello https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1238 Sat, 30 Jul 2011 04:25:42 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1238 I finished it tonight. I’ll shoot some photos that match the angles with the distances and focal lengths scaled to treat the model the same as the real car. I still think the fins are a bit tall in proportion to the rest of the car so that’s why I want to do a fair comparison in which the camera will bend the shapes similarly.

While I totally stand by my criticisms of the steering wheel, dash top and wheels, the completed kit does look very good, especially considering the lack of effort I put into it. It sucks that you had ANY fish to fry. Right is right, correct is correct, wrong is wrong. When I plunk down thirty bucks for a curbside snap model, I don’t expect a box of wrong but I guess that’s acceptable business these days when everything gets outsourced.

I was under the impression from previous posts here that you did CAD work on the model, sent that info overseas and they mastered it, tooled it and manufactured it. Perhaps “CAD” is the wrong terminology. 3D modeling perhaps? I’d be fascinated to read a post on here explaining how the process really works and how you fit into it. If you’ve already done that, I missed it but please link me to it so I can read.

I’m already thinking of how to sloppily fold Bare Metal Foil over the edge of the photoetched grilles to achieve this look: http://www.1966batmobile.com/cwrr.jpg The more I research it, the worse the Batmobile looks! Tell me again why I want to build a model of it???

]]>
By: JamieH https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1234 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 22:04:16 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1234 btw, the “tail lights” weren’t accurate to the car. They were a misinterpretation by the factory. Just a case of bigger fish to fry than having them removed. The glue kit won’t include photoetch grills but the deluxe kit will.

]]>
By: JamieH https://www.collectormodel.com/round2-models/935-polar-lights-models-1966-batmobile-snap-kit-update/#comment-1233 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 22:02:33 +0000 http://www.collectormodel.com/?p=935#comment-1233 Patrick- Sorry to hear you are disappointed with our Batmobile snap kit. To address your question about my practical experience. I’ve got more experience building cars than sci-fi kits. I’ve got no experience with CAD. I’m sorry if you found the kit lacking the precision you expected. There were many more serious problems with the kit along the way than the ones you mentioned so I had to prioritize the issues when developing the kit. There were limitations that prevented us from making it a “perfect” kit. Hopefully you will find that it is better than other Batmobile replicas.

]]>