Cost: £10 (or less)
Date of Review: 2nd January 2026
The Sales Pitch from Metal Earth:
- Item#: MMS056
- Number Of Sheets: 2 Sheets
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Assembled Size: 3.54″L x 0.98″W x 1.26″H (9 x 2.5 x 3.2 cm)
- Ages: 14+
Source: Ford 1965 Mustang Coupe Metal Earth | 3D Metal Model Kits
What You Get:
A small flat packed carboard envelope which holds the paper instruction sheet and the two sheets of parts.
Two thin sheets of laser cut metal and a single sheet of instructions. The metal sheets are highly polished and where the detail is required the laser etching is very clean and accurate. To give the idea of colour the laser creates a cross hatch effect.
To aid with the build there is a link via a QR Code that takes you to their website to view a 360o rotational view of the finished item, or you can just click on the link here.
Product Description:
A flat pack of metal sheets that are bent and assembled together to make a larger 3D model. Fitting is via a tab and slot where the tab is bent over to secure the pieces together. No glue is be needed, although I had to use some, not by choice but more on that later.
Once completed the model is a highly polished silver look, unfortunately my photos don’t do the finish justice. Only a couple of my images show the correct colour balance.
Instructions:
The paper instructions is a single sheet folded into quarters to step you through the process. There are no written words to explain what is going on. This approach suites fine me as written manuals don’t really mean that much to me and takes a few attempts to register in my head.
Tools required are needle nosed pliers, wire cutters, and a pair of tweezers. I recommend two pairs of tweezers, but one pair of top quality with a point should be enough. The needle nose pliers need to be able to close with no gaps in order to hold the thin metal during some bending, although I didn’t use them much. The wire cutters are small and sharp with a no gaps on the jaws. I used my Snap-On pliers and cutters as accuracy is important with such small parts.
An old table with a dark coloured book was used for a build area in order to be able to see the tiny parts as I was going along. There may be a yellow tinge to some photos, this was due to the warm kitchen LED lights.
Assembly:
The first thing to notice is that there is no numbering on the metal sheets, just a pointer to the part on the instructions. Where multiples of the same parts are needed, only one instance is highlighted and you need to look for the other corresponding parts.
The parts are held on the sheet via a little pointed tag which holds the part(s). The wire cutters are used to cut the tag as close as possible to the part. The better the quality of cutters the easier the job to separate from the sheet and neater it will look on the finished build.
NOTE:
When clipping the parts from the sheet be very careful not to clip the fixing tabs of the parts, otherwise you will be unable to connect the parts and the sections correctly.
TIPS:
- Make sure you bend (where required to do so) only once in the right direction.
- Under bend the parts, you can always bend more.
- Over bending and then having to unbend back will stress the part and cause the fold to weaken.
- Some of the parts are etched with details on a one side and need the correct orientation for assembly.
The folds on the parts are designated by the dotted lines where some of the metal is removed by laser to allow the metal to be bent without kinking the part. However this approach already weakens the very thin metal, bending should be done incrementally, evenly and as close to the fold lines as possible.
The top part of the body is the roof, front ‘A pillar’, rear window and the trunk. All need to be bent to form the shape of the upper body. The wipers need to be bent over to look like they are on the glass, the rear view mirror needs to be bent down a little. The trunk has no fold lines, but a gentle bend is required to create the rear light panel and looks a little odd as the rear lights wrap around the trunk not under the trunk. You need to make a gentle curves, when shown in red on the instructions. The amount of bend is a bit of guess work, but it helps to know the shape of the cars. I found it easier to make curves over a various diameter of marker pen to get an even looking curve.
The hood needed to have the side edges folded and then slotted into the bottom of the front screen to make the complete top section.
The sides of the model are a single piece and and the top edges needed a subtle “S” type sequence on both sides from the “A” pillars back to the rear quarter tops, but the front fenders just need a 90o folds to create a box section. A fairly complex fold process. Fitting together shows the position of the hood and the actual bend needed for the trunk. My guess was pretty good and just needed a little more roll at the end.
Below left shows the tabs and slots for the fitting the sides. Below right shows the tabs and slots inside the fender and hood also showing the fold lines.
The assembled sides will need some minor tweaks as we go along as visible by the trunk sitting slightly proud of the rear quarters, for now. The doors are able to opened and not aligned up here. They will be properly aligned later in the build.
The rear lights need the lenses and four folds for each lens to create a box and attached the projected extensions. It’s worth pointing out that these parts are only a few millimetres in size and precision tweezers used to hold the parts for the folds are essential. Once they are in place the lights can be folded around the back as bottom right below.
Next is the floor plan where I encountered my first problem. The wheel arches need a curve after a bend. On bending the front section (valance) it broke off, bottom left.
Trying to fix this with super glue wouldn’t be practical as there is no way to set the correct angle. Showing the two fixed sections together again.
TIP:
I used an ultraviolet glue kit. This allows application and then set. If you use a partial setting it will remain slightly flexible allowing for a correct positioning a little later. Once in place you can complete the full setting of the glue with more light.
The steering wheel and column require a made up part where two fittings are intersected to form the mount to the steering wheel and the floor pan. This is a very fiddly process. Both top and bottom sections of the steering column require the inter-connected fittings. Folding over the tabs is difficult to achieve without also bending the steering wheel itself.
The centre console is easier but the gear stick requires a fold and attaching before the console to the floor pan. The complete centre console and steering wheel are in place in the top picture below.
The seats are folded on the base and the seat backs just need a 90oish bend. Another problem here with the back part of the seat breaking which required yet another fix with the ultraviolet glue, it’s worth noting that no excessive force was used during this build.
The front of the vehicles suspension is next with main box section needed to hold the wheels on the end. Smaller box sections are needed to be attached which would the set to the floor pan.
On the end of the box section the inner part of the wheel needs to be attached and the tabs folded over. The tyre tread needs to be rolled around the outside of the wheel. The outside of the wheel then fits the other side of the wheel and tyre tread where tabs both inside and outside need to be folded over to secure the complete wheel.
The completed front axle needs to be attached to the inside of the front curve of the floor plan. The underside of the floor pan with the exhaust, prop shaft and steering linkages need a couple of smaller parts attached on the rear fuel tank and the transmission gear box to give the 3D look again.
The completed oil pan and fuel tank section is attached to the front floor pan section and laid flat across the floor plan towards the back.
The rear wheel section needs the exhaust pipes pressing into the curved wheel well. This gives the illusion of the pipes going over the top of the rear axle as they would on the real cars.
However during the bending process the rear section broke off again. This may have been my fault as I bent a little to far and needed to unbend it back, this probably caused the fatigue and the failure. But it should be able to take a couple of bends. See my “Tips” above on bending of these parts.
The rear axle needs making up the same way as the front axle. One large box section, two smaller box sections and the wheels to be made up. The completed axle section needs connecting to the wheel well.
The fixed rear section shown once again after using the ultraviolet glue process. The rear leaf springs provide positioning for the rear section in relation to the floor pan. The leaf springs are a single (bridging) part that need subtle bending to look correct. The tabs are also difficult to fold over for this section.
The chassis and the body shell need to be connected together. Align one side of the chassis to the body section. Slight bending to achieve the correct alignment. Careful outwards bending of the body allows the tabs of the chassis floor pan to be inserted and folded over. The front and rear sections are able to be moved as the glue was not fully set hard. Once in position, I completed the rest of the ultraviolet glue setting to make the repair(s) more permanent and sturdy.
NOTE: Bending and re-bending will eventually weaken the fold lines and should be done with care. Bend only as you need to, little and often.
The completed two sections together look a little distorted due to holding and distorting the sections in order to make them assemble. Once together you can neaten and re-straighten the parts, like the doors and hood etc.
The rear light panel and valance need the bumper overriders fitted. these are the smallest parts and measure only 1mm once folded. With the tabs on the inside you can flatten the tabs fully (bottom left).
The rear valance then needs a bend to close the gap to the trunk, and fitting to the rear quarter slots.
The front of the car needs the bumper making which is comprised of a lower section a bent formed inner and then the top section. The lower section needs to align with the upturned front valance. This is takes some patience as each of the front valance sections need to be aligned individually. Folding over the tabs is difficult as you can’t get a flat leverage point.
Fitting the top part of the bumper needs inner bent part to align with the top and then held in place to the sides of the front fender.
The final part is the front grill. This is two parts where the grill needs a slight bend and the grill slots into place.
That’s the end of the build, the completed all round views
Results:
A nice looking little model that took me around 6 hours to make. Yes it could have been completed a lot quicker had I not needed to repair sections.
It’s not the most realistic looking model, but it’s recognisable and different. No need for paint either.
Rating: 5 out 10
My rating has taken into account the failures of the model. The seat breaking apart and the front and rear sections also falling apart. I may be responsible for one failure for bending and unbending, but it shouldn’t result in a complete breakage.
I was able to repair the model with the repair not visible from the outside, but that’s not the point.
Ease of use – 4 out 10
Finish – 5 out 10
Conclusion:
A cheap model that took me most of a dark and miserable day to build, frustrating sometimes with some very fiddly parts being only 1mm in size. However overall it was pretty enjoyable use of time to produce something from a totally flat pack of the parts.
Instructions were OK and did the job. When making curves and there is no guide on how much to do it before you overbend.
The completed model looks Ok, but also not very accurate as expected, and a little ugly in some places.
Glue, shouldn’t be needed on a model type like this due to the tab and slot approach. But, where things broke there is no consistency on holding the parts at the right angle in order to assemble, such as the body fitting to the chassis. Using a “Super Glue” if you could even get it to stick would have been a rigid fix and not allow for any adjustments. I used a ultraviolet glue kit that allowed a clear repair fix, and could be partially set until I needed the final setting by re-shining the light on the glue again. Buy some glue, just in case you need it.
I wouldn’t recommend the model as it’s very fiddly with some very tiny pieces for your children. The build is rated as “moderate” compared to what scale ratings I’m not sure. Some of the build wasn’t easy with my big hands.
Top quality tools are needed in order to make the build easier on yourself.
There are lots of models by this company to choose from with some ‘harder’ difficulty levels than others. Before making a purchase, do your homework.
Would I recommend it? No
Would I buy it again? No
