In the vast world of Tom Daniel model kits, one particular TD design that doesn't get very much in the way of exposure is the "Mean Maverick". This 15 inch long, 1/12th scale, customized Ford Maverick funny car is part of the collection of my friend of over 20 years, Phil Davis.

Some of you may recognize his name from the Tom Daniel video, "Tom Daniel: The Man Behind The Models", which incidentally, is offered through TD's website. Phil acquired this particular model kit sometime back in the 1990's. A few short years ago, Phil asked me if I'd be interested in building this model for him. We do a lot of 'horse trading' for stuff like this, so we struck a deal and off to the model workbench I went.

I started with a complete, unassembled, and nearly 'mint' kit. The only issue I had with starting the construction on this car was that the geardrive that lifts the body had been started by someone else and I had to repair it in order for it to operate properly. Otherwise, everything else was still on the sprues. Even the fuel lines, spark plug wires, seat belts, and blower belt were still there! The body was molded in orange and looked clean, so I just prepped and polished the plastic, clear coated it, applied the decals (I remember having to actually paint the purple panels as those areas of the decal sheet were all cracked), and then I cleared the body again to seal it all. Everything else was either painted and/or detailed with Testors paints. Nice and simple! The rest of the build-up went pretty well.

The few problems encountered were minimal...mostly 'fit and finish' stuff. For those of you out there that are not familiar with this model, it has a powered body-lift mechanism. here's a quick synopsis: The 'foot' pedal has 2 AA batteries and a very simple switch in it, that power an electric motor, that turns a geardrive cluster, that raises and lowers the body. There's some definite play value there, guys! The model also comes with an option of an open or closed parachute. We went with the closed one. I don't remember spending a terribly long time building this one....maybe a couple of months. The completed model now sits proudly in Phil's glass display case, along with his other TD models, monsters figures, and other cool collectibles. Needless to say, Phil was very happy with the finished product, as I was. When it comes down to it, that's what really matters right? Thanks for looking!