43rd and More - Kit reviews by Wayne Moyer Archive Edition

Showcase Review: Marsh Models Shelby Cobra Dragonsnake  by Wayne E. Moyer

Marsh Models has created an extensive series of superbly made and very accurate 1/43 scale multi-medium kits of Shelby Cobras, from the very first 260-powered race car to the "end-of-the-line" Shelby Super Coupe, but they've all been road-racing cars. Now they've added the most rare Shelby factory competition car, the 1964 Cobra Dragonsnake.

The kit is comprised of a VERY smooth and clean resin body and hardtop, 4 black resin tires with integral wheel backs, 20 white-metal castings and 8 chrome-plated metal parts, 18 photo-etched pieces, and both flat clear plastic and a vacuformed rear window for the hardtop. The decals are crisply printed and match, exactly, color photos of this car in Friedman's Shelby Cobra Racing Archives.

Both the resin and white-metal parts were truly excellent and I spent less time on cleanup and preparation than on any kit I've built to date. Marsh provides an actual paint color chip but color photos and the description in the reference cited makes me think it's just a tad too blue. Painting and decal application were straightforward and easy, as was almost all of the assembly. I found two problem areas (very unusual for a Marsh kit): the decal gauge faces didn't match up to the holes in the photo-etched instrument panel (cut them apart and adjust the spacing/location) and the rear axle didn't fit up into the body far enough. I know the Dragonsnake had a lot of clearance between the tire and the wheel arch, but a scale 8 inches was too much. That was an easy fix, too; simply file a notch about 0.1 inch deep across the baseplate. I was worried about getting the photo-etched stainless steel rear window surround bent to fit into the recess in the hardtop, but it was relatively easy to do. Fit the trim before adding the glass and start with one corner and glue just a little bit in place at a time.

My finished model matches photos of the second, and last factory team Dragonsnake (the first was used for development work in 1963) perfectly. The hardtop, hood scoop, vents in the front fenders, American GT wheels, and all other details are exactly correct. Needless to say (this is a Marsh Model) the dimensions and overall "look" of the model are right on the money, too. The Dragonsnake kit should be available from most of the shops that stock top-quality 1/43 scale kits for a while, but many of the earlier Cobra kits are being discontinued. If you want the best Cobra models available in this scale, get them while you can.

Contact Wayne at mailto:wmoyer@infinet.com

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