E.J.'s Hobbies Eldon Dodge Coronet Kit

08/19/02

EJ's has something special. For a little bit more money than a ready to run slot car you can get a kit that takes you back to the days of old, the days when kits were abundant, cheap, and fast! Back when model kits were often used for slot car conversions, and were never molded in color. Everything in kit for was molded in white. If you wanted color, you painted it. EJ's newest offering is a reproduction of the Eldon Dodge Coronet. It's the car that Americans have been asking for, or at least one of. The shape of things that were, and quite possibly, the shape of things to come.

Like the Strombecker I reviewed earlier, the Eldon comes packaged in a plain white box, with only a photocopied end panel to dictate the contents of the box. The parts are nicely separated into bags, keeping apart the separate assemblies such as the chassis, axles, motor, and wheels. The body is molded in a milky white, as is the interior pan, driver and other parts. The grill and rear bumper are

chromed very nicely, as are the wheel inserts and various other pieces.

Also included in the kit are a number of custom pieces, such as exhaust pipes, a parachute pack, air scoop, rear view mirror, roll bar (metal!), and tach. By using these parts it is possible to assemble the Coronet in one of three ways; Stock Car, Drag Car, or Street. Of course, with some imagination, it doesn't need to be limited to just three ways.

Assembling the Eldon is not the easiest task, though not impossibly difficult either. The instructions aren't as intuitive as they could be, but do offer a good diagram to assist you in your assembly, as well as additional background information to make the whole experience even more enjoyable. The modeler with average experience should have no trouble getting the Eldon together, the beginner may require just a bit of assistance.

The beauty of the EJ's kits are the finely crafted chassis. An adjustable brass construction makes this chassis not only perfect for the kit it is packaged with, but versatile for many custom projects you might want to tackle. Also available separately, the chassis alone is well worth the cost.

The chassis went together fairly easily, utilizing brass Oilite bearings for the axles, and an adjustable motor mount that appears as though it would accommodate many different sized motors. The FOX motor included with the kit is plenty strong for some very fun racing, though.
One of my few criticisms is that the wheel inserts didn't fit as snuggly as I would have liked. I found that they required some Krazy Glue to keep them in place.

The interior consists of the flat pan, the driver's upper torso, and the driver's head. Additionally, included is a metal roll bar, a rear view mirror, and a tachometer. I opted not to use the tach or mirror, but I did use the rollbar. In order to place the rollbar in place it is necessary to drill two small holes into the pan, then glue the bar in place. I painted the driver the colors of my choice, as you can as well, and the interior as well.

I'd decided I wanted to go for a more stock look about my car, so I picked out a Testors Lime Gold Metal Flake paint for the body. I'd seen a real Coronet painted close to this color, and I thought it gave it a sleeper look. I've also see the rear Coronet's in teal (or aqua), red, and white. I gave it several thin coats and allowed it to dry thoroughly before proceeding.

I took time while waiting for the paint to dry to detail the grille by painting the grooves with

Testors flat black paint, then wiping off the excess.

Once the body was dry, I began to assemble the separate pieces. Remembering to remove the paint from mating surfaces to be glued, I glued the windows to the underside of the roof. I had to drill out the holes in the grille and rear bumper for them to fit the body mounts, as explained in the instructions.

One vast improvement over the Strombecker previously reviewed was the brass body post inserts. On the Strombecker it was required to tap the inserts into the body posts, possibly risking breaking or stressing the body. On the Eldon the inserts are of a new design that expands as the screws are inserted. This basically eliminates the problem of stressing or breaking the posts, or the body. Out of the box they fit very loose, but what I did was turn the screws into the inserts until they expanded enough to fit snuggly into the posts. Then, when inserted, I finished tightening the screws to

secure the inserts permanently into the posts. I then removed the screws and placed the body onto the chassis.

After oiling the bushings and gears, it was off to the track. What I found was that this car really, really runs well. Heavy into nostalgia, the Eldon kit by EJ's runs very much like the cars of days past. It slides around the corners in a very controllable way, and powers our of the curves like a classic muscle car.

The real fun of this car, in addition to the excitement on the track, is that there is so much that can be done with it. Jon at Rad Trax was nice enough to send along a set of Radical Decals, and the addition of some sponsors, stripes, or flames and you have a truly personal, unique ride that will not only impress your friends at the track, but give

you a very fun driving experience. This is the roots of slot car racing, and it's slot car racing at it's best. A thank you goes out to Jon at Rad Trax for sending me this great kit. I recommend you check out his website for this or other great cars, as well as a great selection of Radical Decals. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to eMail me at ken@slotcarillustrated.com.

Ken

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