MONOGRAM:
Slot racing golden era’s most important company after Cox, Monogram used their tremendous molding talents to produce the sharpest injected bodies in the business. They made their entry unlike most, immediately offering seven 1/24 and two 1/32 kits without ever having offered spare parts prior to this impressive introduction, in the middle of 1964. The 1/24 bodies were recycled static kits with extra molded parts for mounting on a 3-piece brass flat pan chassis, equipped with the earliest metallic red-painted FT16 motor. The bodies were sitting in the center of the colorful kit boxes, and as usual for Monogram products, instructions were very complete and well illustrated. Racing decals adorned them, most unlikely subjects for slot cars. The ’34 and ’36 Ford coupes, ’40 Ford pick-up truck and ’55 Chevy hardtop coupe were joined late in 1964 by a Duesenberg double-phaeton and a Mercedes-Benz 540K, obviously not your everyday drag racing units.

Splendid ’36 Ford coupe kit is a fairly early version with FT16 motor. Monogram early kit boxes had no “chrome” coat, rendering them vulnerable to friction. Few have survived without some color loss.)
’40 Ford pick-up is collector’s delight. Many re-issues (but not in same color) of the static kit, make low-cost facsimile possible as chassis can be found.)
Monogram’s glorious Mercedes-Benz 540K makes an unlikely slot car.  It is recommended not to crash with one.)

Before this later introduction, there was a change of motor in favor of the more torquey FT36 motor, metallic red, then plain red-painted, with the inner packaging changed to allow a better display of the parts. A colorful “flap” was added for store display, spelling out all the technical advantages.
Almost at the same time, a line of 1/32 scale kits was released, including an MGA and a ’32 Ford “hot rod”. The MGA had what became the standard Monogram “series 1” chassis, a 2-piece flat design with no drop arm. The Ford had a unique chassis where the pick-up was located behind the front axle, a mistake not repeated by the designer. The little hot rod is quite scarce today.

A whole new series followed late in 1964, including the 1/24 Scarab, Porsche 904 and Ferrari 275P kits. They had a brass inline pan-type bolted frame, and were fitted with red FT36 motors with unusually long pinion shafts. Bodies were extremely well detailed, comparable to Cox’s. Several other 1/32 kits were also issued at the same time, including a Cooper-Ford, first molded in light blue, then in darker metallic blue.

Delightful little Cooper-Ford was first molded in pale blue. Second series had modified rear fenders, opened to clear wider tires.)

 A Porsche 904 and Ferrari 275P, smaller clones of the 1/24 kits, a beautiful Lola GT and another Ferrari, the 250GTO/LM, also joined the Monogram stable. The technical failing of all the above kits were their poorly designed crown gears. Most of the examples found today had theirs replaced by Cox’s or other quality parts.
All these were sold in beautifully illustrated boxes, with yellow or blue inner trays containing all the tiny parts under vac-formed clear plastic bubbles. Each car had been lavishly painted with full background representing various racing situations. It appears that the same artist painted them all.

Competition was such that Monogram had to renew the line less than one year later, issuing re-engineered kits in new packaging: there was not more fancy background around the cars pictures, just glossy white.
The inner trays were similar but now also white. New inline brass chassis with sprung steel drop arms and zinc-plated steel motor brackets were fitted with the latest FT36D (1/24) and FT16D (1/32), with wider rear wheels shod with molded black sponge tires, were the other major changes.  Bodies remained untouched except for the 1/32 Cooper that had its rear wings opened up and flared to fit the wider tires.

First and second series Lola GT kits show different box art and chassis components. Very attractive in either case.)
 
Totally new issues were the 1/32 Ferrari and Lotus F1 cars, using a new slim-line chassis and the Mabuchi FT13UO. They were delightful and are rightly appreciated today.  Numerous plated parts added to their character.

Ferrari F1 kit: absolute perfection. The 3-piece brass-steel frame was also sold separately.) 
Lotus 33 F1 kit. Scarcer than the Ferrari, it had similar, beautiful, box art and presentation. Both were powered by Mabuchi’s FT13UO, dubbed the “Tiger X88”.)

They were joined by one of Monogram’s greatest, the 1/24 Kurtis Midget, using the same running gear as the two F1’s. The little car had a wonderfully “busy” driver, and a large array of plated “nerf” bars and suspension details. They were so successful that special races were organized just for them, and many have survived today.
Kurtis Midget kit had everything to please dirt oval-racing fans. Body color is a different shade from static kit.)
Unusual plated Midget with series 1 Scarab and later Ford GT40 Roadster, expertly assembled by Bill Wessels. Courtesy Joe Alessi.)

Another issue for the year was the 1/24 Chaparral 2, using the drop-arm brass frame. It featured prominent front “winglets”, as seen on the full-sized Chaparral 2 during the ’65 season.
Monogram released a Ford GT40 Roadster kit, using an all-new brass sidewinder chassis to fit the FT36D. It had a very simple but beautifully made body with superb plated wheel inserts.  This very sturdy kit survives in large numbers today, but is very desirable nonetheless.

For 1966, Monogram was feeling the pressure from the companies producing cars with vacuum-formed bodies. But before they joined the fray, two beautiful kits were issued. The McLaren-Elva had a new stamped aluminum sidewinder frame with drop arm, with the FT36D driving a new glass-filled nylon spur gear of much better quality than previously offered by Monogram.
The other one was Monogram’s most collected car, and one of the most beautiful slot car ever made, the 1965 Indy 500-winning Lotus-Ford 38. This popular kit had a new slim line, aluminum chassis with drop arm, and the FT16D motor was mounted inline. Wonderful plated suspension details and great decals were included, along with nickel-plated axle spacers.
 
The McLaren-Elva was patterned after SCCA National Champion Ralph Salyer’s car. The new aluminum frame was used in most subsequent kits and RTRs.)
The Lotus 38 kit is one of the finest made by any company in the 1960s. Attention to detail was let down by driver’s compartment. If Monogram had gone one step further and made separate moldings for drivers, they would now compete neck to neck with Cox for the honor of being the very best.)

The last 1/32 kits were then released: a splendid Lola T70, a Ford GT40 and a Ferrari 330P/LM.
All featured the second series chassis, but the FT16D motors varied in colors: red, then silver, then nickel-plated with red end bell, as in the “set” cars (see below), with the rare last issues featuring the latest ball bearing-equipped “oval hole” FT16DBB with aluminum can bearing box. The Ford body had factory-painted hood and numbers, modeled after Phil Hill’s 1964 Le Mans lap record holder. The 330P/LM was modeled after the 1965 Le Mans winner. They were very simple models of few parts, the only plated bits being the wire wheel inserts.  Boxes were, as usual, superb, with nicely detailed paintings of the real things.
(Photo 128: Lola T70 kit with assembled car, and underside of “set” RTR car showing the one-piece aluminum chassis. This kit is regarded as one of Monogram’s best.)
(Photo 129: Scarce Ford GT kit, shown with “set” RTR car. Some late production kits were fitted with Mabuchi “oval-hole” motor, the FT16DBB.)

All featured the second series chassis, but the FT16D motors varied in colors: red, then silver, then nickel-plated with red endbell, as in the “set” cars (see below), with the rare last issues featuring the latest ball bearing-equipped “oval hole” FT16D with aluminum can bearing box. The Ford body had factory-painted hood and numbers, modeling Phil Hill’s 1964 Le Mans lap record holder. He 330P/LM was modeled after the 1965 Le Mans winner. It was a very simple model with very few parts, the only plated bits being the wire wheel inserts.  Boxes were, as usual, superb, with great detailed paintings of the real things.

Monogram went in a big way into home-racing sets, and issued special versions of the 1/24 Lotus 38, featuring a modified chassis with deleted drop arm, and an FT16D motor with red end bell and nickel-plated can. Bodies were green or blue, and they had self adhesive number decals.
The Chaparral 2 (sans winglets) and McLaren-Elva were also fitted with one-piece inline stamped aluminum chassis, identical to the Lotus 38’s but with an added aluminum pan. The bodies received a special plastic bracket to affix the pan. The bodies had the same, rather unattractive, decals as the Lotus.
 The 1/32 Ferrari and Lotus F1 had a specially designed plastic chassis and simplified suspension.
The Ford GT and Ferrari 330P/LM were fitted with a one-piece inline brass chassis with the red FT16, and a pin-type guide. All had plated plastic push-on wheels but of accurate design for each car type.  A Lola T70 using an aluminum chassis similar to the previous one, but with a conventional guide flag and an FT16D motor was next in line, followed by one of today’s rarest Monogram cars: the Chaparral 2.  This had the same running gear as the Lola and is quite hard to locate today. It was a smaller clone of the 1/24 kit car, with front winglets. All these were factory-decorated with identical self-adhesive numbers.

Chaparral and McLaren-Elva “set” cars have a unique chassis not found on any other Monogram cars. Not easy models to find.)

Scarce 1/32 Chaparral 2 “set” car, sold as a replacement in clear plastic box. It used the same running gear as the Lola T70, but had its own proprietary wheels.)

Monogram hedged their bets with a new line of four 1/24 “double kits” which must have been quite good sellers as witnessed by the large amount found today. They featured the same chassis as the Ford GT40
kit, but with aluminum or brass outriggers to hold either one of two factory-painted, excellent quality but quite simplistic bodies. This gave rise to starnge mixes, as the Ferrari 365P, 330P/LM or Lola T70 paired with a Ford GT Roadster, GT40 coupe or Cobra 427 coupe, a car that was only on Shelby’s drawing board and was never completed *, or a Chaparral 2 along with a Mustang GT350.  All featured a vac-formed black styrene interior with injected white driver’s head. Chassis and most running gear were the same as the injected-body Ford GT kit.
* This “427” car was eventually assembled from a kit of remaining parts in 1990.

Most elusive of “double kits” was this Ford GT roadster/Ferrari 330P2 combination. While quality was impeccable, bodies were a bit simplistic in shape and details.)

Three of these bodies were also issued as RTRs in a clear vac-formed packaging with printed built-up display insert, which had to be destroyed to get at the car. The blue Ford GT40 Coupe,  green Lola T70 and red Ferrari 330P/LM featured the same aluminum chassis and running gear as the McLaren-Elva kit, and all had the vac-plated  “Cooper” style 8-spoke wheel inserts found in the Scarab kit, sometimes in plain black plastic. Each display box was printed to reflect each model, and are scarce today. The cars are not so easy to find in good condition either. All got the same self-adhesive numbers as previous “set” cars.

Lola T70, Ferrari 330P/LM and Ford GTall used the one-piece aluminum frame with drop arm. Although the package had a white protective sleeve, very few have survived.)

Three “thingies” followed, with a slightly altered version of the two-piece aluminum chassis with outriggers bent downwards to mount the bodies, now fastened by self-tapping screws underneath the car, so as to keep an uncluttered look when seen from the side. Tom Daniel, a famous automotive stylist of the time, designed the Vampire, Snake and Assassin. They were issued in two color schemes of gold or red for the Vampire, green or gold for the Snake and several shades of gold and red for the rare Assassin. All had white cloth tape inside the body mounts to absorb crash impacts. All had permanently riveted braided pick-up contacts that made replacement difficult. Most has new closed-cell sponge tires glued and trued on the usual wide rear wheels. All had the Cooper-style wheel inserts found in the Scarab kit. Packaging was individualized but identical in form to the previous three RTRs. These are very seldom seen in their original package.
 
Snake, Assassin and Vampire have become collector favorites. Paint quality was nothing short of superb.)

The last two cars are also the last slot cars ever made by Monogram. The McLaren-Elva kit saw its beautiful injected blue body and plated accessories replaced by a vacuum-formed re-painted unit with gray styrene interior, and no mechanical changes. The Cooper wheel inserts were again used, and the very last issues had Twinn-K silicone tires included as a bonus, with an added sticker on top of box.
An all-new instruction sheet was included, showing an altered stock number (See appendix). Very few of these kits were produced and are some of the rarest slot racing collectibles today.
very last car was the same McLaren-Elva, now as an RTR, unfortunately using the same packaging as all previous RTRs. While less rare than the kit, it is one of the toughest Monogram cars to find.
In 1968, Monogram announced, but never produced, a 1/32 Corvette Sting Ray for home racing sets.
Monogram went back to what it knew best, and still exists today as Revell-Monogram.
The biggest drawback on all Monogram cars, compared to Cox, and what makes them “Number Two” in the mind of collectors, is the way the driver’s compartment was handled. While Cox’s had full drivers with detailed seating arrangements, Monogram, like K&B and so many others, used a simplistic treatment with flat decks and molded-in driver “busts” requiring extremely artistic paint treatment to look decent.  Monogram should at least have molded separated drivers that could have been painted and later assembled to the flat decks supplied. This would have made a world of difference.