AMT/Round 2 Model Trouble

TheBeardedRaptor

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Joined
May 21, 2015
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Alright, so after much debate internally I decided to bring my question here to the forum. I recently purchased and began assembling the AMT/Round 2 USA-1 Monster Truck. However, I've been having some major fitment issues and I'm trying to determine if it's just my inexperience or if it is the quality of the kit itself that's causing problems. As due to my inexperience I am unsure whether it's just the build quality of the kit or my lack of skill.

My question is this, has anyone else had major issues with AMT/Round 2 kits? The first major thing I noticed was it seems to me that when the kit was made they put together a bunch of stock parts and enough parts to make it a monster truck. Most of the kit goes together without any sort of major issue, but for instance, when I attempted to dry fit the body over the chassis with the engine in it I found a severe lack of being able to fit it. I had to spend two hours sanding and adjusting the rear of the body and the chassis' registration pegs at the rear just to get it to even come close to fitting properly. Even then it didn't fit all the way.

I ended up having to trim off part of the radiator cowl just to get the engine to sit in proper and even then the tolerances are extremely minuscule. After all this one really can't fit the radiator as the engine does not clear it. The second biggest problem I have is fitting the leaf springs after the headers are fitted to the engine as per the instructions. The tolerances there are also almost too tight to both slot the springs into their proper locations, but also hold them in place with any sort of leverage so that the model cement can properly set up.

It seems to me that the kit has been converted, perhaps from another stock form in order to accommodate and look like an approximation of the USA-1 truck. Hence why I'm curious. I'm eager to learn from my mistakes, and I am open to all forms of feedback, both positive and negative. If need be I can provide pictures of the truck in its current state to assist in the diagnosis of my troubles.
 
Although I have not built the kit you are having difficulties with, I have built several AMT/Round 2 kits in the past. It is likely AMT used stock sprues with the addition of some parts specific to the truck when they released the kit. Older kits often have some fitment issues, especially as the molds age. Round 2 is re-releasing these older kits with some additions or improvements, but usually with the original plastic.
These builds are the ones you can really improve your skills on as you work through the problems. Keep at it and use what you learn here to make the next one better! Post pictures over in the Auto area and let us know how it goes.
 
So then they're using stock parts and pieces from other kits. It makes a lot more sense now. The body was pretty much stock. Though, the chassis isn't stock I don't think, it might be from the original kit. I've noticed in putting the suspension together that it's warped a bit, and that the angle for mounting a couple of the leaf springs are off, so they end up looking crooked no matter how many adjustments I make. Because I'm not building the kit box stock, I'm going to leave it as is and not let it frustrate me. I'm building it as a mud bogger that's been abandoned because I wanna try my hand at weathering.

As to the engine, it's been a bit of a pain. After a setback involving some paint thinner, I ended up stripping the engine back to bare plastic and reassembling it. When I did this I noticed that the top of the block doesn't sit level it's angled slightly to the right side, which throws off the whole build, I've tried sanding it but no matter how much material i take off it doesn't sit right. I think the original kit might have come with a different block. When I first went to assemble the chassis I had a transmission cross member that had a registration hole in it, but there wasn't one on the transmission that came in the kit.

I haven't noticed anything bad with the interior though, the only thing different about the interior I noticed is that it doesn't have a clutch pedal, despite the fact the truck has a manual transmission, but that's just a minor nitpick. I had other issues with the body though, the tailgate and tail lights didn't want to fit in properly. I was able to fix this with some sanding however on the tailgate and I had to chop off one of the pegs to get it to fit properly. Also, I had to shave the pegs in the tail lights to get them to fit flush with the body and I was afraid I would have to take the pegs off entirely.

I'll probably end up trying another AMT/Round 2 kit in the near future just to see if it is me or the kit. I just finished the paint on the wheels today, and I've almost got all the seams on the tires removed and I've also sanded them to make them more realistic, so there is that. Thank you to all those who read my post and for the advice I've been given. I know I'm new and I'm bound to make mistakes.
 

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