Monogram’s customer relations department soon replied, sending me a reprint of an article from – to my surprise and disappointment – Old Cars<\/em> magazine.\u00a0 (“? – !”)\u00a0 Rather consistent with its title, the article covered the creation of car kits, rather than models of planes, tanks, warships, or spacecraft.\u00a0 (“Let down<\/em>!”) Though my curiosity wasn’t satisfied – at least directly – the reprint I received was nonetheless interesting, for its description of the design and manufacture of model cars was equally and entirely relevant to the creation of plastic kits of other genres.<\/span><\/p>\n Certainly; obviously, the world of plastic modelling has enormously changed since the 1960s and 70s.\u00a0 Monogram (as well as its competitors – Revell (Venice, California), Aurora, Hawk, Renwal, and Lindberg) no longer exists, the company’s Morton Grove headquarters \/ manufacturing facility having been demolished years ago.\u00a0 I would not be surprised if the buildings that once housed the corporate headquarters and manufacturing facilities for the other above-mentioned companies likewise remain only as memories.\u00a0 Another, altogether unsurprising change:\u00a0 Contemporary kits of military aircraft or automobiles – in most any scale – are no longer quite<\/em> available for – ahem! – $3.50. In that sense and spirit, the Old Cars<\/em> article presented below provides a glimpse of a world that has largely – albeit not completely! – “gone by”.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n ____________________<\/p>\n Old Cars<\/span> Old Cars<\/em> readers who spend many relaxing hours absorbed in building faithfully reproduced scale models of their favorite cars sometimes probably marvel at the detail and accuracy of the tiny replicas.<\/p>\n They didn\u2019t get that way by accident. \u00a0The planning, tooling, and manufacturing of the little model you purchased at the local hobby shop for $3.50 or so in some cases involves as much thought, accuracy, and time as their full-sized counterparts.<\/p>\n That\u2019s what we found out when we recently visited one of the nation\u2019s largest model manufacturers, Monogram, in Morton Grove, Ill.<\/p>\n Except for being locked into the styling of the car as it was produced, the production of a model takes on many of the overtones of an auto manufacturer planning a new car. \u00a0In the case of a scale model classic or antique car, the vehicle is decided upon and the real article located to serve as a model for the model. Monogram design people are dispatched for an extensive photo session with the car, then return to the workshop where a prototype is hand-built.<\/p>\n Once the prototype is completed, there are discussions on the feasibility of marketing the model. \u00a0If it gets the nod, three-view drawings of the car are carefully rendered and cost estimates for production are submitted. \u00a0Then it\u2019s go or no-go, based on what total production costs will be. Like we said earlier, it has all the overtones of Detroit planning a new car.<\/p>\n Monogram, with its 1\/24 scale, is somewhat of a maverick in the model-making industry. Other companies use a 1\/25 scale for their products, but Monogram\u2019s original models were done in 1\/24, and the company simply chose to stay with this figure.<\/p>\n Detroit needs its dies and stamping to bring out a new model, and Monogram must have intricate molds to build the component parts of their cars. \u00a0This is an internal operation, too, and a visitor sees skilled tool and die specialists working carefully with micrometers and pantographs, adjusting to the thousandth of an inch, so that hubcaps all conform to the same size and shape, and the plastic tires carry symmetrical tread.<\/p>\n Instead of molding one piece at a time, though, the model company plans their mold-making so a number of similarly-colored pieces can be produced in one pressing. \u00a0Complicating the mold-making is the need for adequate water passages, just as in an engine block, so the mold and the plastic won\u2019t distort, warp, or overheat during manufacturing.<\/p>\n Development from raw blocks of metal to finished mold takes from 16 to 18 weeks, Monogram officials said, and the final process of polishing the mold to a mirror-smooth surface is done with diamond dust. \u00a0A set of molds for a single kit can cost more than $50,000.<\/p>\n Sometimes they can cost even more. \u00a0One of Monogram\u2019s latest models, the Mack Bulldog stake truck, required molds that cost nearly $75,000 for the complete set. \u00a0For the Duesenberg SJ town car Monogram recently introduced five molds were required: a white model for the whitewall tire inserts, black and green styrene, a clear mold, plus a mold for the tires.<\/p>\n Depending on the size and intricacy of the parts to be pressed, the polystyrene plastic used in Monogram models may be subjected to as<\/p>\n Color chips used for molding the parts are very critical. \u00a0Monogram custom-mixes some colors in their own small cement-style mixers to assure consistent color. \u00a0Just one off-color chip among thousands, a Monogram official said, will change the hue of the entire color batch, with disastrous consequences to production of model kits using that color of plastic.<\/p>\n When the kit parts come out of the press, they are checked for consistency and quality, then passed on to the kit assembly line.<\/p>\n Situated in a large, clean, cheery room, the assembly line is nothing like those in Detroit. \u00a0It\u2019s quiet, with an air of humming efficiency, rather than frantic activity, and the ladies who staff the line work smoothly and quietly at their tasks. \u00a0But the pace is deceptive, for we were told that an average of 2,000 kits per hour were packed, wrapped, and dispatched on each of the 3 production lines every working day.<\/p>\n That adds up to a potential of 50,000 to 75,000 completely-packaged kits per day when all the lines are in full operation.<\/p>\n Quality control is a personal watchword, too, and each packer acts as a check on the work of the employee preceding her on the line, making sure each kit contains the proper components when it reaches her station.<\/p>\n If it doesn\u2019t, the line stops, the missing part is put in the kit, and off the line goes again. \u00a0Naturally, the responsibility for the completeness of a kit increases as the line nears the end, and humans being humans, mistakes and omissions sometimes will happen. \u00a0That\u2019s why Monogram plucks a random sample of 10 kits off the line each hour to check and see that they are complete.<\/p>\n But what if a kit comes to a customer with a missing wheel, or tire, or bumper, despite all these precautions? \u00a0No problem, says Monogram. \u00a0The customer should simply write the factory and tell them what\u2019s missing. \u00a0Monogram will send the missing part pronto, no questions asked.<\/p>\n Monogram will be celebrating its 30th year of model manufacturing in 1975. \u00a0The company\u2019s first products were balsa-wood ship models. \u00a0After their initial success with the ships, the company branched into airplanes, then cars, and has recently introduced a 1\/32 scale World War II armor troop and vehicle series. \u00a0The company has enjoyed an impressive number of \u201cmillion-seller\u201d models, with a sample of each on display at their home office but, strangely, none of their classic car series have yet reached the magic figure.<\/p>\n Scheduled for introduction in July is a variation on the Mack, a Bulldog AC Texaco gasoline tank truck. This particular model could possibly become a significant piece of Americana, reminding us of the days when gasoline was plentiful.<\/p>\n In June, Monogram will introduce their new Special Interest Car series. \u00a0The first three models in this group will be the \u201858 Thunderbird convertible, a 1930 Ford cabriolet, and a 1930 Ford 5-window rumble-seat coupe. \u00a0We\u2019ve seen them, and they\u2019re authentic enough to pass muster at a national meet.<\/p>\n Model-builders have every right to marvel at the detail, intricacy and authenticity built into their economically-priced kits. \u00a0There are some dedicated people in Morton Grove, Ill., who work very hard so you\u2019ll do just that.<\/p>\n Years ago, I wrote to Monogram Models, in Morton Grove, Illinois, asking for information about the design and manufacture of plastic model kits.\u00a0 I was hoping that Monogram possessed “in house” literature and promotional material, with a specific focus on the creation of models of military aircraft, and, military (armored and “soft-skin”) vehicles.\u00a0 Of particular … Continue reading Models from Monogram I: The Design and Manufacture of Plastic Model Kits in the 1970s<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[106,2],"tags":[107,216],"class_list":["post-839","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-plastic-modelling","category-technology","tag-monogram-models","tag-plastic-modelling"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/839","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=839"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/839\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1999,"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/839\/revisions\/1999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=839"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=839"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=839"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/span><\/p>\n
\n<\/span><\/p>\n
\n<\/em>
\n<\/em>The Twice-Monthly Newspaper of the Hobby
\n<\/strong>
\n<\/em>April 16-30, 1974<\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/thepastpresented.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/1-1.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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