Introduction

There cannot be many people in the world today who have never heard of the Ford Model T. The Model T was not anything like the first car to grace our streets, but it was the first car for the masses in terms of variants and sheer number built; it was a car for the people due to being affordable to people on a modest income. The Model T went to war during WW1 as an ambulance and an early strike type vehicle with the ANZACS, it was the basis for a fire engine and also altered into many forms of civilian transport.

ICM has kind of made the Ford Model T their own by producing a huge selection of the vehicle in many different forms in use by a good number of countries and in two popular scale of 1/35th and 1/24th scale. The model I am looking at here is the Model T 1912 Commercial Roadster in 1/24th scale. The Model T 1912 Commercial Roadster was an open bodied soft top version of the Model T.

Review

This offering from ICM is packaged in the usual robust cardboard flip top box with a separate card lid with the artwork on it to finish the external packaging. Inside there is a single re-sealable plastic bag that contains all of the sprues for the model with two further re-sealable bags containing tyres and clear sprues. There is also the instruction booklet for the model inside.

An examination of the contents of this model reveals only one issue that will prove problematic during the course of the build; ejector pin marks are that issue and they represent an issue due to ICM having supplied a good interior for the model, that said I believe many of the ejector pin marks will be well hidden. There are also a good number of flow marks on the larger mouldings, but these do not look or feel to have caused deformations in the moulded parts.

With ICM having released a number of Ford Model T’s in 1/24th there are a number of parts that are not used in this model and so take care during construction not to grab a part by look and use the number to locate parts. As with many offerings from ICM this product is supplied with an engine and a fair amount of detail as regards the water cooling system. The detail present in the engine is of a good standard and only really requires the addition of some wiring, with that said seeing this nice detail will require extra work on the part of the modeller, more on that shortly.

The chassis of this model is moulded as part of the floor and so there are no concerns over keeping everything square. The moulded frame does mean you get a simple frame runner system with no real detail present beyond locators. The radiator is a very nice moulding with the Ford logo present both on the brass tank and cooling vane detail. The Ford logo is also nicely replicated on the running boards that have anti slip detail present. From assembling these models from ICM of the Model T I do find the join between the front suspension and the chassis to be a weak joint and it requires care in getting the angles right.

The drive shaft and rear axle are ok having a reasonable level of detail and a strong location. The exhaust is a weak point in my eyes now as I would have liked to see a recess where the gases vent from at the very least; this could then be used as a guide for making the hole deeper if wished by the modeller. The front steering rack is simplistic as it was in the original, but I do wish ICM had tackled this in a way that allowed the front wheels to be shown turned left or right, I feel wheels that are turning have a more pleasing aesthetic look to them. The out rigger supports for the rear axle are covered and return to the bell housing of the gear box; these pieces add some nice interest to the underside of the model. The wheels provided are the coach wooden wheel type and this is one of many wheel types to my understanding. The tyres are a white vinyl and I am unsure of how well they take paint.

Moving to the upper portion of the vehicle and we are given a good floor pan by ICM with the Ford logo again well replicated. The engine cowling has been supplied in two halves with the central hinge separate down the centre, this is an attempt by ICM to allow the engine to be displayed I believe, but the doors are way too thick and cannot fold in the middle and as such an alternate part would have been a nice inclusion. The external armchair seat has limited detail present; I believe this to be accurate as it was not a covered area of the vehicle and so open to the elements; the seat you put the kids in when they get annoying. The front leather sofa is a really nice detail that with careful painting could be made into an eye catching aspect. Perhaps the red and black look of some leather sofas with the stud detail painted brass.

The windscreen is nicely done having separate glazing and frame making painting it brass an easy task. The glazing is very clear and does not magnify when looked through. There are only two glazed areas on the model which is the windscreen and a small area in the back of the hood. The foot pedals and steering wheel/column has been well tackled and should look pleasing on the model. The steering column is where the gear shifter is found and has not been overlooked. The lights and horn have nice detail and clear lenses, the coach lamps are also well down front and rear and I wonder if it would be possible to install LEDs in these for a bit of bling. The horn has been supplied with the piping to the drivers position and the rubber ball to push the air through it; a nice touch. The soft top is a little plain for my tastes, but it is an accurate representation from what I can see; this is another aspect of the model I would have liked to see with the folded option included. I believe that part (G5) is a number plate, but as no decals are provided I think ICM may have slipped up here.

ICM has only provided a single finishing option in green, but a quick internet search reveals the vehicle in a few colours with red being my favourite. ICM has done a nice job of calling out a lot of painting during the construction of the model.

Conclusion

Overall this is another nice Ford Model T offering from ICM in 1/24th scale. As this series of vehicles increases I am hoping that ICM will release a set of figures for placement in the vehicles to give them some live beyond the figure sets offered for standing around the vehicles. Detail wise the model would appear to be very accurate when viewed against the actual vehicle images found easily on line that also provide a ready reference for the modeller.