ICM Ford A Gangster Car (24052) 1:24

[Mike]

Ford A Gangster Car (24052)

1:24 ICM via The Hobby Company

 

 

After the runaway success of the Model T Ford, it was eventually replaced eighteen years later by the more modern Model A, reaching showrooms at the end of 1927.  It was produced until 1932, by which time almost 5 million units had been sold with various bodyshell options, although it was more likely referred to as coachwork at that time.  The chassis ran a 3.3L inline four-cylinder petrol engine that could propel it to a maximum speed of around 65mph, which might seem a little slow to today’s motorists (unless they’re on modern British motorways strewn with cones for no discernible reason), but with only drum brakes slowing each wheel, it was probably for the best.  The more standard bodied variants of the Model A was available in two- or four-door formats, and the gearbox gave a single option of a three-speed unsynchronised (crash) gearbox, plus one reverse gear.  Due to the difference in controls that were offered by most competitors by this time, the previously quirky and individualistic layout of the driver’s controls were standardised to clutch, brake and accelerator pedals left to right on the floor, and a shifter in the centre for gear selection.  It was replaced by the Model B after ‘32, and just to carry on confusing people, the Model 18.

 

The A was a prime choice for criminals that could still roam around America robbing banks and carrying out daring and sometimes foolhardy raids that gave a few a kind of Robin Hood-style notoriety, free from the threat of Police in fast cars, monitoring by CCTV, and airborne tracking that led to the reduced uptake of bank robbery as a career path for the majority of modern criminals, especially if they wanted to stay free, or in many cases within the US where guns are routinely carried by Law Enforcement, alive.

 

 

The Kit

This is a new boxing of a recent tooling in this scale, with more variants likely to come.  The kit arrives in a top-opening box with a captive lid on the bottom tray, and inside are ten sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue, a bag of five flexible black tyres with short lengths of runner still attached, and a small decal sheet that is slipped inside the colour instruction booklet that is printed with a glossy cover and matt paper inside, having a colour profile on the back cover.  Detail is up to ICM’s current high standards, portraying the full chassis, engine, interior and bodyshell in glorious detail, plus a removable soft-top that can be fitted or removed at will once complete.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Construction begins with the main chassis rails that are set apart by five cross-members of various shapes and widths, adding bell-housings near each end, L-shaped front bumper supports, and a steering column with box at the bottom end attached to the left chassis rail, as this is a left-hand drive model.  The engine block is made from two halves and a sump, making the transmission and clutch housing from four parts, emplacing the cylinder head, and ancillaries such as the generator, fan & belt, and the exhaust manifold, bringing the sub-assemblies together before it is inserted into the front of the chassis along with a long drive-shaft to the rear axle, which has the differential moulded-in to slot between the two axle stubs moulded into the chassis.  The front axle with short laterally oriented leaf-springs is fixed to the front cross-rail, and a two-part exhaust with tapering muffler is slung under the chassis, mating with the down-pipe of the manifold.  Rear drum-brakes have small parts fitted to their rear before they are glued to the ends of the axle, adding small pivots and more L-shaped supports along the outer length of the chassis rails, plus a brake actuator rod that fits to a pivot.  The front drum-brakes are single parts, adding links to the axle, and more control rods running down the outer faces of the chassis rails, plus an extension to the chassis, and two diagonal supports under the rear on either side of the drive-shaft.  Three more control rods attach to the brake drums and pivots, linking the hubs together, and adding a V-shaped damper bar between the two ends.  By this time wire-wheels were available, and this kit has five made from two styrene parts that are joined together, trapping a flexible black tyre in position, sliding four of them onto the ends of the axles, and leaving the last for the spare later in the build.

 

The bodyshell is made by fitting the combined arches and running boards that have their texture removed and made good to a tapering floor, and strengthening the assembly by adding another layer on the underside, sandwiching the sides between the two layers.  This is carefully mated with the chassis, making a small three-part fairing for the front of the car under the radiator, taking care to arrange the two triangular parts with the slots on the outside.  The firewall is augmented by adding a diagonal kick-board, steering column, lever and foot pedals, plus a stylish dashboard with lower fairing that slots into place horizontally, applying decals to the central instrument binnacle after choosing a colour to paint the assembly, depending on which colour option you have chosen.  Panels are made up from dual layers, fitting to the sides of the firewall and supporting the dash, with a scuttle to the top, a filler cap for the fuel tank, and dash pots on the engine side, fitting it to the growing assembly at the front of the floor.  Three foot pedals are mounted on holes in the kickboard, adding a steering column and lever on each side of the floor, installing it at the front of the cab area with a central lever.  The body’s side panels are fitted with three interior cards per side, adding handles and a rear panel that is best placed on the floor pan during curing of the glue to ensure it sets straight, mounting a three-part radiator and housing to the front, with engine cowlings linking it to the rest of the bodywork, and a pair of catches on each side, plus the top-cowling that is moulded as a single part.

 

The front and rear bench seat cushions are layered from three parts each, and are located on L-shaped raised marks, fitting a rear shroud to the front seat to support the back, which is a single part, and has a pair of tapered arms added to the sides of the shroud, painted to match the seat cushions.  The same style of rear cushion is fitted to the back seat, supported by the rear of the bodyshell, but without arms, mounting the steering wheel and control stalks on the column, and the gear shifter on the transmission tunnel.  A two-part rear-view mirror is fixed in the centre of the clear windscreen, adding a wiper motor casing to the top frame, which operates the single wiper that is moulded into the windscreen part.  The remaining wheel is mounted on a back-plate with a diagonal tube that links it to the back of the car, adding short double-rail bumper stubs, light clusters and an optional number plate holder to the sides, and side-lights on the rear corners of the bodywork.  The front of the car is finished off by a full-width bumper, a pair of headlights with clear lenses, horn and optional number-plate on a curved rod that is placed between the forward arches, adding a pair of clear wind deflectors to the sides of the windscreen, completing the vehicle by building the removable roof from top and rear segments with a small window in the latter, making a frame from five parts that hold it to shape when it is in position between the windscreen and the rear of the car.

 

This car’s usefulness to the American Gangster was partly because it had plenty of seating room, and a turn of speed that increased their chances of escaping justice if they could get it started in time.  The new sprues include a pair of Thompson “Tommy” guns, one with a stick mag, the other benefitting from the high ammo count of a drum magazine, both separate parts to the main weapon.  Two three-part loot bags are also included of a design typical for the time, with a pair of handles at the top, and a studded underside that is a separate part, fixed under the two-part upper that is moulded that way to include the handles.  A brace of 1911 pistols are also on the sprues, although because there aren’t any build steps to follow, it isn’t featured in the instructions, but appears on the profiles page along with the other accessories.

 

 

Markings

There just one option depicted on the decal sheet, as Gangsters often chose a black car for the sheer malevolence of it, and it was a common colour at the time.  From the box you can build the following:

 

 

 

There is a printed newspaper page from the time next to the profiles that you can fold according to the instructions printed nearby and place somewhere within the vehicle to add a little candid gear to what’s already included in styrene.

 

The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas.  This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film.  It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain.

 

As is common now with ICM kits, there is a page of the instruction booklet devoted to the masking of the windscreen, using the printed shapes on the right of the page and the diagrams on the left to create your own masks if you wish.  Mask shapes for the rear window and deflectors aren’t included, as they can be left off until after painting to avoid ruination by overspray or errant brush-strokes.

 

 

Conclusion

Modelled in the dominant scale for vehicle kits, this Gangster’s get-away car is even supplied with some bullet-hole decals for that “just escaped” look, and includes everything but the criminals that drove it.  Good detail, and the extras really make it clear that it’s a car used for nefarious deeds.

 

Highly recommended.

 

Available from all good model shops now.

 

Review sample courtesy of

 

via importers