Monogram 1/24 "Badman" Street Funny Car
By Dave Lawniczak
From 1969 to 1975 Tom Daniels designed over 75 models for Monogram. In 1969 he created The Badman, which while not based on a real car was very indicative of the modified cars running on drag strips in the late 60's. This kit has been reissued several times over the years and was it also modified into a street machine with different wheels, tires and full exhaust, plus clear windows instead of the red glass included in this kit.
This kit is the 2012 reissue, now available through Revell/Monogram, and is faithful to the original issue. It is molded in yellow, chrome and transparent red plastic. The body and three sprues are molded in yellow and there is also a fourth sprue in chrome. The loose parts consist of 4 solid tires, a red transparent sprue with a one piece window and hood scoop and finally a quarter sized sheet of decals and the instructions. There is not a lot of flash on this kit, but you will need to spend some time cleaning up mold lines, especially on the larger pieces and the body.
By today's standards this is not a very detailed kit, nor are the included details very accurate. The interior has minimal detail but when the red glass is installed it's not that noticeable. The engine is a supercharged small block Chevy with headers and exhaust dumps behind the front wheels. The front and rear suspension is simplistic but should build up into a stable platform. I like the five spoked wheels, front tires and slicks from this kit. They look great and I actually used a spare set on the Bestwick GTO Judge funny car because they were more accurate than the wheels and tires included in that kit.
The instructions appear to be complete and they include a very nice parts breakdown. Did you know that if you have a problem with any of the parts for a Revell kit and need a replacement of a damaged or missing part, you can request a replacement part by ordering it from their website? It will be easier if you know the part number from the kit instructions, but you can also get by with the number from the sprue in this case. I have done this in the past and it usually takes a couple of weeks for you to receive the replacement part.
Overall, I am a fan of this kit, having built it two or three times in the past. It does not have the detail level that the mid 60's Revell 55 – 57 Chevy kits have, not does it have any opening parts other than the hood. However with a little work and a little parts cleanup this will build into a respectable shelf model and if you step up the detail level and add parts and details beyond what is contained in this box you can turn this into a pretty nice showpiece. Personally, I am planning on crossing this with parts from my box and other kits to come up with a fuel injected gasser version to replicate a car that my dad and uncle raced across the Midwest in the 60's...I would like to thank Revell for providing the review sample.
