Revell 1/24
'77 Firebird 'Smokey & the Bandit'

Background

Way back in 1977, a new comedy was released in theaters that featured Burt Reynolds as Bo Darville (CB Handle 'Bandit) and Jerry Reed as Cledus Snow (CB Handle 'Snowman') as a team that could smuggle beer across the country, but Sheriff Bufort T. Justice (Jackie Gleason) was there to stop them. In this first movie, the lovely Sally Field plays Carrie, a runaway bride that is 'rescued' by the Bandit and is subsequently chased by her would-be husband, Junior (Mike Henry) and his father - Sheriff Bufort T. Justice.

One of the symbols of this move was Pontiac's newest Trans Am Firebird sporting an all-black paint job with stylized Firebird emblems and pin striping in gold. Under the hood was the Pontiac 400, as the 455 previously used would no longer fit in the down-sized body. The car was also equipped with removable T-top window panels and a hood scoop to provide the 400 ample air volume at full power.

This new machine took center stage in the movie and it was an excellent marketing move for Pontiac as everyone in the country wanted one of these cars after seeing the movie!

The Kit

Revell-Monogram has released this beautiful kit of the Smokey & the Bandit Firebird in its line-up. Dead center in the spotlight is the die-cast body that is pre-finished with artwork, lights, chrome and even the license plate. If you look inside the windshield, the chrome rear-view mirror is already pre-finished and pre-installed. So what's left?

The remainder of the kit comes on five trees molded in flat black, plus the chassis, two frames in silver-gray, one chromed tree (that also has the gold-tinted wheels!) and a clear tree with the T-top window panels. As you can see in the photo, there aren't many parts in the kit and as the box says, you can assemble this car without painting. The more AMS-oriented modeler will want to do some painting, but there is little to do to achieve a nice finish.

One of the few items on the paint list are the T-top windows - I believe these were tinted and you can replicate the tint with Tamiya Clear Smoke. The engine block is the appropriate silver (close enough anyway) so a few painted details and a wash will bring out the molded detailing. The kit even includes the Bandit's cowboy hat to park on one of the seats.

As the body is pre-finished, there are no decals or stickers to mess with. The whole project will go together rather quickly and look stunning on the shelf.

Conclusion

This is another nice die-cast body kit release from Revell-Monogram. The now-famous paint job on that 1977 Pontiac Firebird brings back many memories and now its time to hunt down a copy of the movie! My sincere thanks to Revell-Monogram for supplying this review sample!

If you'd like to see a build-up review of this kit, click here.