At first thought it’s an absurd idea: reproduce classic Aurora model kit box art, box, shrink-wrap and all. Sell it for 25x the cost of the original-with no model inside! But admit it, the box was often much cooler than what you ended up with after you put the model together. So why not collect empty boxes. MorbidMonster.com sells loving reproductions of many of the great Aurora monster and movie vehicle kit boxes. Maybe even cooler are their boxes of kits Aurora did not make, but should have. These include the Fantastic Four, King Kong on the Empire State and the 20,000 Leagues Nautilus.

A side note: I actually still have the Aston Martin Super Spy Car original box and my buildup I purchased in the ‘60s. Note that it does not say “James Bond” or “007″ anywhere on the label, even though it’s exactly the same as the car from Goldfinger.

http://www.morbidmonster.com/index.html

Posted: June 7th, 2008 under Models.
Comments: none

Before giving us the Tricorder and Tribbles, master Hollywood designer Wah Ming Chang fired the time travel fantasies of a generation with his early “steampunk” Time Machine from the 1960 film of the same name. While Aurora never gave us kit version in the old days, the machine has become quite a favorite of garage kit builders in recent years.

This week sees the release of a new model kit version in 1/12 scale with a 5″ roto-dish. This is a great scale for diorama builders, since most dollhouse miniature items are also in this scale. Of particular interest is the way it was created. All of the parts were created on a 3D prototyping printer based upon a 3D model of the machine by Chris Perrotta.

Available from: Sci-Fi Station, $120 + S/H , Monsters in Motion, $99.99 + S/H, Masterpiecemodels, $100.00 + S/H

Posted: April 10th, 2008 under Classic Machines, Models.
Comments: none