MONOGRAM'S MIDGET RACER

Monogram Models was one of the Big Three US kit companies, and had begun making wooden ship kits in 1945, quickly expanding in to aircraft and racing cars. They soon added plastic parts, and in 1954 produced their first all-plastic kits – the same year they released their last new wood and plastic kits.

The first of the all-plastic kits, numbered P1 or PC1, was the Midget Racer. A small racing car, with a driver, and a removable hood to show off the engine.

It was moulded in red plastic, and was to 1/20th scale. The model remained available in to the 1960s, and was re-issued in the 1990s.

After having been unavailable for over 20 years, it was re-issued by Atlantis (a US company which specialises in re-issuing vintage kits by a variety of manufacturers), in 2023. This time the kit was moulded in light blue.

I recently spotted one of these kits in a local model shop, and grabbed it. While racing cars are not my usual subject, the fact that this was the very first, all-plastic kit by Monogram, makes it historically a very important model.

The kit is very well designed, and fits together beautifully. No wonder Monogram had a reputation for quality.

There are 33 parts, plus a small sheet of clear plastic from which to cut the windscreen, and a decal sheet. The instructions consist of a single exploded view, and written directions – follow them.

The parts are a tight, snap fit, so make sure you have things positioned correctly, or it will be difficult to get them apart again without breaking anything. The wheels, steering wheel, brake lever (on the outside of the body) all move, and the hood is removable.

The only problem I had was that the hole on the right rear of the body, where the rear of the exhaust pipe fits, was flashed over, and needed to be opened up. I did not spot that until the body was together, so finding exactly where to drill involved holding the model up to the light.

I finished my model exactly as per the box top illustration. I used Aluminium rather than Silver for most of the metal parts, with Metallic Grey for the exhaust pipe, and Silver for the fasteners around the cockpit edging.

This is a great model, and a real piece of modelling history. Building it is certainly a trip back in time.

Have you made one?

Paul Adams from New Zealand