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Datsuncog

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  1. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to Ghosty in The new news 24 thread   
    Yaris has had a slow flat since I bought it. Goes down every 3 days. 
    Asked the tuning shop to sort it with the exhaust, they couldn't find an issue. 
    It was audibly leaking...
     
    Anyway there's a local car guy I see around a lot that's recently bought an EG Civic. I've spoken to him on Instagram but that's it. It transpired he was a tyre fitter at my local Ford dealer and was happy to do a repair in exchange for a set of EG wheeltrims I had knocking about. Win win. He found the hole easily, but it hadn't gone through the tyre completely hence why they couldn't find an issue the first time. Drilled out and plugged, sorted. 
     
     
     

  2. Haha
    Datsuncog reacted to Stanky in The new news 24 thread   
    Pah, you're obviously wrong! He would only have needed to work 40 hours a day if he worked 7 days a week, or he could have only worked 24 hours a day if he'd worked 12 days per week.
    Honestly, this is basic stuff man. This exact question was Q1 of my GCSE maths exam. 
    Q. "Paul works in a MG Rover specialist in <somewhere northern>, he moonlights as a chauffeur in a 200k mile Mercedes S-class, how many days a week does he have to work to put 960,000 miles on the S-Class in 12 months assuming he never stopped for fuel or food, pissed in the footwell on the move and did 70mph everywhere, all the time? Show your working"
    A. 12 days per week (crude drawing of a stick man pissing in a Mercedes footwell)
    93 marks
  3. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to cort1977 in The new news 24 thread   
    Saab back in service today after time off over the winter. Got down to Edinburgh no problem but a few issues appearing, oil leak now joined by power steering leak and a general baggy feel means a few new bushes are in its future. Still not bad for 220k and 32 years old though.

  4. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to Joey spud in The new news 24 thread   
    I recently bought an old Casio watch off eBay, one that I've always hankered after but when it arrived it didn't have the crisp clean dial of the one on the listing but a rather cloudy one instead.

    It's like over the years a dusting of the luminous coating has transferred to the back of the crystal. So today after watching a YouTube clip of an American chap sitting on his bed successfully pull a similar watch apart I had a bash at taking the mechanism out of mine and giving it a clean up.


    A bit of Tesco's finest glass cleaner and a soft cloth and it's come up like new again.
  5. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to Dyslexic Viking in The new news 24 thread   
    I spent 2.5 hours moving snow today and for the first time in my life moving snow is now enjoyable.
    I like this loader a lot.

  6. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to Spottedlaurel in The new news 24 thread   
    Needed to nip out and buy a tray of eggs, was going to take the Carina E but as it was a decent day I thought I should give this old thing a bit of an airing:

    Just taxed it the other day, need to get my £nil's worth. Other than shunting it out and back into the garage it was its first drive of the year. Felt like the battery was starting to get a bit low when I turned it over without the choke (my usual habit if it's been sat for a while, to get some oil around), but once the choke was pulled out it started fine.
    Drove the same as ever, after 15+ years (the longest I've owned any car, by some margin) I'm pretty well in tune with it. However it's probably time for a proper MoT and a bit of a service this year, just to make sure I'm not overlooking anything.
    This will be the year it turns over 100k - I'm just over 500 miles short of it at the moment.

    In extended fleet news, Miss SL's BF got new wheels for his MR2, they look much better than the old aftermarket alloys. It's been his daily driver since his LS400 ran out of MoT.
    Interesting to think that these two were on sale within 10 years of each other - the Laurel just about staggered into the '80s, but it's much more a car of the 1970s (more like the '60s in some regards), and the MR2 was launched here in early 1990.
  7. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to wesacosa in The new news 24 thread   
    Not sure how I drove this to Monaco and back, could hardly sleep with the nerves of driving it to the  MOT station today. That said as soon as I hit the road I felt ok, knew the car would be fine and really enjoyed driving it again for first time in about 8 months 
    Thanks to @Rust Collectorfor the tip on running a wire from the tailgate earth to a body earth, it's solved all the dashboard light gremlins
    Car passed the MOT,  I think a couple of the crusty bits around the turrets might need attention before the next MOT but for now they are deemed acceptable
     

  8. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to HMC in HMC- AUTOSHITE 2.0   
    A bit more of the bitsa interior. Upside- it’s semi trashed so very usable. (OSR door card- partially eaten by a dog?)


    Dog guard secured by a ww2 soviet machine gun sling
    The headlining is just the backing only, as it the internal a b c d pillar trim-

    The NSR 1/4 window still has the breakers yard markings on it for extra couldnt give a fuck points. Actually this glass is more tinted, and is optikool rather than the other side windows being triplex- so off a later model i think.
     
    Farthest off road so far

    Verdict- must try harder
     
  9. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from andrew e in Shite in Miniature II   
    Been a funny old week, kids - could be that the effects of market tat withdrawal are kickin' in.
    As planned, I did head out on Saturday morning, early-ish, to see if I could happen upon a fresh case of Matchbox or Hot Wheels that had been newly stocked out.

    Also because out-of-town retail parks are famously lovely* places to be on a damp Saturday morning.
    I've been heartened by some UK sightings of the K-case Jaguar XJC and Chevy C10 longbed, and had high hopes that today could be my day of days...
    However, after scouring some twenty-six stores in the Greater Belfast area which carry Mattel diecast to a greater or lesser degree, I'm forced to conclude that, for 2024, it's probably only Poundland which are likely to be stocking any Matchbox mainlines - and even then, I don't think they're all that arsed about carrying them.
    God help me, I've started divvying the city up into clusters of retailers, so I can carry out precise, targeted strikes on stores.
    I know.
    What has my life become?

    Cluster 1 takes me the furthest away from home - focusing on Holywood Exchange and environs, allowing me to smack a Tesco Extra, a large Home Bargains, a big Sainsburys and an independent Toymaster store plus a Tesco Metro - should I wish to push my luck trying to park in Holywood town centre.
    Having already stopped off at the big Sainsbury's on Friday night, and made the fateful discovery that they carry Matchbox 5-packs and Majorette premiums (but not mainlines), I didn't bother going back in there again - though their two-5-packs-for-£15 offer was kinda tempting.
    However, the dark seed had been planted that there could be stuff out there, unbeknownst to me, hence taking an uncompromisingly rigorous and systematic approach to the act of procuring cheap mass-produced children's toys.
    Because, as any Fule Kno, this are Serious Bizniss.
    The big-ish Home Bargains proved a disappointment - no Hot Wheels mainlines at all, and only a handful of HW monster trucks huddled at the end of a shelf. No Matchbox whatsoever.
    I'd held out some faint hope that a few bargainous Matchbox Action Drivers sets might show up on the shelves, as they did this time last year, but nope.
    The big Tesco Extra at Knocknagoney had a few Matchbox left in a dump bin, but again it was the same early-to-mid-2023 dregs in torn boxes that my local store continues to carry:

    Not that these are bad - but I just have all I need from this range.
    There were quite a few late-2023/ early 2024 Hot Wheels in an adjacent tub, including the slammed VW T2 dropside which I probably should have picked up - but ultimately, I left the store empty-handed.
    Having hit up the Stewart Miller Toymaster store in January and again in February, with diminishing returns, I felt it more prudent to focus my attentions to stores I hadn't visited for a while.
    So it was over to Cluster 2, in East Belfast - Connswater Retail Park.

    There's the original but much-modified Connswater Shopping Centre on the site, dating from the 1980s - and the Poundland in the mall was the first stop.

    Okay, so five pegs of various 2023 case releases - though none of which I was mad keen on.
    So, so many of those pointless little luggage cart things.
    I very nearly picked up the blue Goodyear Tyres release of the Renault Kangoo - but I dunno, it just seems like quite a flimsy little thing. I kinda like it, but don't really love it. Especially not at £2.
    The few Hot Wheels left that weren't daft fantasy releases were ones I already have, too.
    Just across the concourse, Poundstretcher beckoned...

    With a dump bin crammed full of import 2021 Hot Wheels longcards they're plainly having trouble shifting, and a shamelessly lying sign.
    These are not 'great value' at £2.50 - not when Poundland directly opposite are knocking them out for £1.50.

    Looking closer, these seem to be Japanese-market releases, curiously with no import distributor details stuck to them.

    Well, okay then - I'll do my best to refrain from putting it in my mouth, or using the sun. No promises, mind.
    I'm still hoping these will go down to half-price, as Poundstretcher have done before with their slow-selling Mattel stuff, but maybe their corporate buying team cut a dreadful deal to acquire these, and Head Office won't authorise a reduction.
    They'll be sitting for a while yet, in that case.

    Further round, in the toy aisle, their 2023 Power Grab Matchbox mainlines were still kicking about, too.
    I really like these rectangular boxes, better than the blister pack equivalents, but again - I already have all I want from this selection, and I'm not buying any more duplicates just cos they're in different packaging...
    There used to be a mid-size Tesco store as Connswater's anchor retailer, but it packed up a few years back and there's now a branch of The Range where it used to be.
    The Range used to have Hot Wheels shipper displays prominently placed a few years back, but now they only had a handful of mid-2023 releases swinging forlornly on some sparse pegs.
    Other than the little Mighty K pickup in bluey-grey, with the skateboard in the rear bed, they were all mostly fantasy castings and so didn't really appeal... and I already have the teeny-tiny pickup in its earlier metallic pink iteration. I'm not gonna fall down the every-casting-in-every-colourway collector trap...
    Not today, anyway.
    So I bustled out past the checkouts, clinking my keys and trying to look confident - as I'm afflicted with this fear I'm going to be challenged as a shoplifter because I'm leaving without buying anything, despite my years in retail teaching me that minimum wage staff don't care - and made my way across the car park to the newer big-box stores.
    This branch of Home Bargains had a small number of Hot Wheels mainlines on about three pegs - once again, that coppery-coloured Ford Coupe gasser and the Cadillac Seville in two-tone blue were prevelant - but again, nothing I really fancied.
    The Connswater branch of B&M is one of the larger stores, with several aisles of toys, but they make relatively little of it available for diecast.
    Instead, there's a few pegs just inside one of the emergency fire exits, which are easy to miss as you approach it from the main entrance.

    Eh... nothing new, and although a Matchbox Subaru Forester in black and a Hot Wheels Dodge Ram in white did raise my pulse slightly above tickover, they just felt like I'd be settling for something out of desperation, rather than finding something I really wanted.
    So I left them.
    While wandering the aisles just in case I happened upon any clip strips, I thought these 10-packs represented quite good value for money, at £20 for two...

    Good to see the first release version of the Volvo 240 Drift Wagon making it into the multipacks now - although, with a high proportion of them either fantasy or exotic castings, I can't say I was very much tempted.
    So I left, still without anything small and with wheels.
    There were other places to try...

    [TBC!!]
  10. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to Peter C in 1987 Ford Sierra Sapphire 1.8L - Ready for inspection - see page 20   
    My cunning plan to sort out the damaged front bumper trim was to cover it with silver vinyl tape. Back in the day, when I had 10 year old Sierras with chrome trim, I would cover the trim with red vinyl tape, to make them look like newer versions - see photos on page 1.
    I got a roll of this stuff from Amazon. It says "High Quality". 

    Ten minutes later, the front bumper looked like this.

    Unfortunately, the quality of the tape is not brilliant and where I pulled to extend it, the tape discoloured slightly. Not to worry, it looks better than the sun burned plastic strip.
    Once finished, I was left with one sexy looking front bumper.

    I then spent a couple of hours sorting out a few miscellaneous bodywork jobs.
    I sprayed over the non-matching oil based paint on the inner side of the nearside sill.

    I rubbed down a couple of small rust plebs on the back door. Fortunately, these are located beneath the trim strip and the repair won't be too obvious once finished. I'd rather have a small repair patch than leave untreated corrosion under matching paint.

    I did the same on the offside front door.

    There were also a couple of rust plebs on the sills, which extended from beneath the door seals. I treated them in the same way.


    I will touch up all these areas with the matching blue aerosol once the oil based paint, which will subdue the corrosion, fully dries.
    Whoever re-sprayed the nearside front door, re-used and badly applied the trim strip. The front section of the strip was peeling away.

    I got this stuff out. It's not the best, despite what the adverts say but hopefully it will do.

    At this stage, I need to explain that I had a different plan that involved putting pressure on the trim to make it stick but it didn't work out and I had to think fast and came up with this arrangement before the adhesive started to set. 


    Hopefully, the trim will be secure and I won't have 25 litres of 10W40 spilled all over my workshop floor.
    I won't have much time tomorrow or Friday to make more progress, so the plan is:
    This Saturday - finish off the bodywork repairs that I started today, tidy up and spray the front suspension components, clean the underside of the gearbox and engine sump and paint the sump.
    This Sunday - finish off what I started on Saturday, get the car back on its wheels and apply protective coatings to the underside areas that are currently concealed by axle stands / ramps. Then let everything dry.
    Next Friday (Easter) - fire up the engine again, bleed the cooling system. Weather permitting, pull the Sierra out of the workshop and give it a deep clean and hoover. Take pleasure in taking plenty of lovely photos. Clean my workshop, which is a total mess, just about everything is covered with a layer of black spray residue. 
    Next Sunday (Easter) - if the weather is shit on Friday, undertake the tasks scheduled for Friday, otherwise I shall rest.
    Next Monday (Easter) - the 1st April, get the Sierra taxed and take it out for a drive and take some more photos. 
     

     
  11. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to bunglebus in Shite in Miniature II   
    Well that's convenient, the one I want is in the display case. They are strikingly similar, even the bases have some commonality







  12. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to eddyramrod in Shite in Miniature II   
    A box has arrived today, while we were out celebrating our wedding anniversary...

    ...from the Birthday Boy Bungle Bus  

    At long last, a Proton!  Plus a couple of sweeteners for the projects box.  Thank you Rich!
  13. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to MiniMinorMk3 in Shite in Miniature II   
    I like the Probe. Here's a Pilen for omparison.





    and some shots of one I spotted at a show a few years ago



  14. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from andrew e in Shite in Miniature II   
    Bit of an oddity I happened to spot earlier today, sat atop one of those pop-up stalls that sells phone cases and chargers in the middle of the shopping centre concourse:

    Seems to be a plastic model of a 1955 Pontiac Star Chief that doubles as a Bluetooth speaker. Of course.
    It reminded me a bit of those terrible 'classic car' radios and telephones from back in the 1980s.
    I didn't see it out of the box, but it looks like it might be quite large. And the headlights seemingly come on.
    Possibly 'inspired by' the rather spendy 1/18 Sun Star version?

    I didn't see a price on the shopping mall example - but some light internet searching indicates that the 'WSTER WS-598 Music Car Speaker' can be obtained via AliExpress in the sub-tenner price bracket...
  15. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from AndyW201 in Shite in Miniature II   
    Been a funny old week, kids - could be that the effects of market tat withdrawal are kickin' in.
    As planned, I did head out on Saturday morning, early-ish, to see if I could happen upon a fresh case of Matchbox or Hot Wheels that had been newly stocked out.

    Also because out-of-town retail parks are famously lovely* places to be on a damp Saturday morning.
    I've been heartened by some UK sightings of the K-case Jaguar XJC and Chevy C10 longbed, and had high hopes that today could be my day of days...
    However, after scouring some twenty-six stores in the Greater Belfast area which carry Mattel diecast to a greater or lesser degree, I'm forced to conclude that, for 2024, it's probably only Poundland which are likely to be stocking any Matchbox mainlines - and even then, I don't think they're all that arsed about carrying them.
    God help me, I've started divvying the city up into clusters of retailers, so I can carry out precise, targeted strikes on stores.
    I know.
    What has my life become?

    Cluster 1 takes me the furthest away from home - focusing on Holywood Exchange and environs, allowing me to smack a Tesco Extra, a large Home Bargains, a big Sainsburys and an independent Toymaster store plus a Tesco Metro - should I wish to push my luck trying to park in Holywood town centre.
    Having already stopped off at the big Sainsbury's on Friday night, and made the fateful discovery that they carry Matchbox 5-packs and Majorette premiums (but not mainlines), I didn't bother going back in there again - though their two-5-packs-for-£15 offer was kinda tempting.
    However, the dark seed had been planted that there could be stuff out there, unbeknownst to me, hence taking an uncompromisingly rigorous and systematic approach to the act of procuring cheap mass-produced children's toys.
    Because, as any Fule Kno, this are Serious Bizniss.
    The big-ish Home Bargains proved a disappointment - no Hot Wheels mainlines at all, and only a handful of HW monster trucks huddled at the end of a shelf. No Matchbox whatsoever.
    I'd held out some faint hope that a few bargainous Matchbox Action Drivers sets might show up on the shelves, as they did this time last year, but nope.
    The big Tesco Extra at Knocknagoney had a few Matchbox left in a dump bin, but again it was the same early-to-mid-2023 dregs in torn boxes that my local store continues to carry:

    Not that these are bad - but I just have all I need from this range.
    There were quite a few late-2023/ early 2024 Hot Wheels in an adjacent tub, including the slammed VW T2 dropside which I probably should have picked up - but ultimately, I left the store empty-handed.
    Having hit up the Stewart Miller Toymaster store in January and again in February, with diminishing returns, I felt it more prudent to focus my attentions to stores I hadn't visited for a while.
    So it was over to Cluster 2, in East Belfast - Connswater Retail Park.

    There's the original but much-modified Connswater Shopping Centre on the site, dating from the 1980s - and the Poundland in the mall was the first stop.

    Okay, so five pegs of various 2023 case releases - though none of which I was mad keen on.
    So, so many of those pointless little luggage cart things.
    I very nearly picked up the blue Goodyear Tyres release of the Renault Kangoo - but I dunno, it just seems like quite a flimsy little thing. I kinda like it, but don't really love it. Especially not at £2.
    The few Hot Wheels left that weren't daft fantasy releases were ones I already have, too.
    Just across the concourse, Poundstretcher beckoned...

    With a dump bin crammed full of import 2021 Hot Wheels longcards they're plainly having trouble shifting, and a shamelessly lying sign.
    These are not 'great value' at £2.50 - not when Poundland directly opposite are knocking them out for £1.50.

    Looking closer, these seem to be Japanese-market releases, curiously with no import distributor details stuck to them.

    Well, okay then - I'll do my best to refrain from putting it in my mouth, or using the sun. No promises, mind.
    I'm still hoping these will go down to half-price, as Poundstretcher have done before with their slow-selling Mattel stuff, but maybe their corporate buying team cut a dreadful deal to acquire these, and Head Office won't authorise a reduction.
    They'll be sitting for a while yet, in that case.

    Further round, in the toy aisle, their 2023 Power Grab Matchbox mainlines were still kicking about, too.
    I really like these rectangular boxes, better than the blister pack equivalents, but again - I already have all I want from this selection, and I'm not buying any more duplicates just cos they're in different packaging...
    There used to be a mid-size Tesco store as Connswater's anchor retailer, but it packed up a few years back and there's now a branch of The Range where it used to be.
    The Range used to have Hot Wheels shipper displays prominently placed a few years back, but now they only had a handful of mid-2023 releases swinging forlornly on some sparse pegs.
    Other than the little Mighty K pickup in bluey-grey, with the skateboard in the rear bed, they were all mostly fantasy castings and so didn't really appeal... and I already have the teeny-tiny pickup in its earlier metallic pink iteration. I'm not gonna fall down the every-casting-in-every-colourway collector trap...
    Not today, anyway.
    So I bustled out past the checkouts, clinking my keys and trying to look confident - as I'm afflicted with this fear I'm going to be challenged as a shoplifter because I'm leaving without buying anything, despite my years in retail teaching me that minimum wage staff don't care - and made my way across the car park to the newer big-box stores.
    This branch of Home Bargains had a small number of Hot Wheels mainlines on about three pegs - once again, that coppery-coloured Ford Coupe gasser and the Cadillac Seville in two-tone blue were prevelant - but again, nothing I really fancied.
    The Connswater branch of B&M is one of the larger stores, with several aisles of toys, but they make relatively little of it available for diecast.
    Instead, there's a few pegs just inside one of the emergency fire exits, which are easy to miss as you approach it from the main entrance.

    Eh... nothing new, and although a Matchbox Subaru Forester in black and a Hot Wheels Dodge Ram in white did raise my pulse slightly above tickover, they just felt like I'd be settling for something out of desperation, rather than finding something I really wanted.
    So I left them.
    While wandering the aisles just in case I happened upon any clip strips, I thought these 10-packs represented quite good value for money, at £20 for two...

    Good to see the first release version of the Volvo 240 Drift Wagon making it into the multipacks now - although, with a high proportion of them either fantasy or exotic castings, I can't say I was very much tempted.
    So I left, still without anything small and with wheels.
    There were other places to try...

    [TBC!!]
  16. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from RoadworkUK in Shite in Miniature II   
    Been a funny old week, kids - could be that the effects of market tat withdrawal are kickin' in.
    As planned, I did head out on Saturday morning, early-ish, to see if I could happen upon a fresh case of Matchbox or Hot Wheels that had been newly stocked out.

    Also because out-of-town retail parks are famously lovely* places to be on a damp Saturday morning.
    I've been heartened by some UK sightings of the K-case Jaguar XJC and Chevy C10 longbed, and had high hopes that today could be my day of days...
    However, after scouring some twenty-six stores in the Greater Belfast area which carry Mattel diecast to a greater or lesser degree, I'm forced to conclude that, for 2024, it's probably only Poundland which are likely to be stocking any Matchbox mainlines - and even then, I don't think they're all that arsed about carrying them.
    God help me, I've started divvying the city up into clusters of retailers, so I can carry out precise, targeted strikes on stores.
    I know.
    What has my life become?

    Cluster 1 takes me the furthest away from home - focusing on Holywood Exchange and environs, allowing me to smack a Tesco Extra, a large Home Bargains, a big Sainsburys and an independent Toymaster store plus a Tesco Metro - should I wish to push my luck trying to park in Holywood town centre.
    Having already stopped off at the big Sainsbury's on Friday night, and made the fateful discovery that they carry Matchbox 5-packs and Majorette premiums (but not mainlines), I didn't bother going back in there again - though their two-5-packs-for-£15 offer was kinda tempting.
    However, the dark seed had been planted that there could be stuff out there, unbeknownst to me, hence taking an uncompromisingly rigorous and systematic approach to the act of procuring cheap mass-produced children's toys.
    Because, as any Fule Kno, this are Serious Bizniss.
    The big-ish Home Bargains proved a disappointment - no Hot Wheels mainlines at all, and only a handful of HW monster trucks huddled at the end of a shelf. No Matchbox whatsoever.
    I'd held out some faint hope that a few bargainous Matchbox Action Drivers sets might show up on the shelves, as they did this time last year, but nope.
    The big Tesco Extra at Knocknagoney had a few Matchbox left in a dump bin, but again it was the same early-to-mid-2023 dregs in torn boxes that my local store continues to carry:

    Not that these are bad - but I just have all I need from this range.
    There were quite a few late-2023/ early 2024 Hot Wheels in an adjacent tub, including the slammed VW T2 dropside which I probably should have picked up - but ultimately, I left the store empty-handed.
    Having hit up the Stewart Miller Toymaster store in January and again in February, with diminishing returns, I felt it more prudent to focus my attentions to stores I hadn't visited for a while.
    So it was over to Cluster 2, in East Belfast - Connswater Retail Park.

    There's the original but much-modified Connswater Shopping Centre on the site, dating from the 1980s - and the Poundland in the mall was the first stop.

    Okay, so five pegs of various 2023 case releases - though none of which I was mad keen on.
    So, so many of those pointless little luggage cart things.
    I very nearly picked up the blue Goodyear Tyres release of the Renault Kangoo - but I dunno, it just seems like quite a flimsy little thing. I kinda like it, but don't really love it. Especially not at £2.
    The few Hot Wheels left that weren't daft fantasy releases were ones I already have, too.
    Just across the concourse, Poundstretcher beckoned...

    With a dump bin crammed full of import 2021 Hot Wheels longcards they're plainly having trouble shifting, and a shamelessly lying sign.
    These are not 'great value' at £2.50 - not when Poundland directly opposite are knocking them out for £1.50.

    Looking closer, these seem to be Japanese-market releases, curiously with no import distributor details stuck to them.

    Well, okay then - I'll do my best to refrain from putting it in my mouth, or using the sun. No promises, mind.
    I'm still hoping these will go down to half-price, as Poundstretcher have done before with their slow-selling Mattel stuff, but maybe their corporate buying team cut a dreadful deal to acquire these, and Head Office won't authorise a reduction.
    They'll be sitting for a while yet, in that case.

    Further round, in the toy aisle, their 2023 Power Grab Matchbox mainlines were still kicking about, too.
    I really like these rectangular boxes, better than the blister pack equivalents, but again - I already have all I want from this selection, and I'm not buying any more duplicates just cos they're in different packaging...
    There used to be a mid-size Tesco store as Connswater's anchor retailer, but it packed up a few years back and there's now a branch of The Range where it used to be.
    The Range used to have Hot Wheels shipper displays prominently placed a few years back, but now they only had a handful of mid-2023 releases swinging forlornly on some sparse pegs.
    Other than the little Mighty K pickup in bluey-grey, with the skateboard in the rear bed, they were all mostly fantasy castings and so didn't really appeal... and I already have the teeny-tiny pickup in its earlier metallic pink iteration. I'm not gonna fall down the every-casting-in-every-colourway collector trap...
    Not today, anyway.
    So I bustled out past the checkouts, clinking my keys and trying to look confident - as I'm afflicted with this fear I'm going to be challenged as a shoplifter because I'm leaving without buying anything, despite my years in retail teaching me that minimum wage staff don't care - and made my way across the car park to the newer big-box stores.
    This branch of Home Bargains had a small number of Hot Wheels mainlines on about three pegs - once again, that coppery-coloured Ford Coupe gasser and the Cadillac Seville in two-tone blue were prevelant - but again, nothing I really fancied.
    The Connswater branch of B&M is one of the larger stores, with several aisles of toys, but they make relatively little of it available for diecast.
    Instead, there's a few pegs just inside one of the emergency fire exits, which are easy to miss as you approach it from the main entrance.

    Eh... nothing new, and although a Matchbox Subaru Forester in black and a Hot Wheels Dodge Ram in white did raise my pulse slightly above tickover, they just felt like I'd be settling for something out of desperation, rather than finding something I really wanted.
    So I left them.
    While wandering the aisles just in case I happened upon any clip strips, I thought these 10-packs represented quite good value for money, at £20 for two...

    Good to see the first release version of the Volvo 240 Drift Wagon making it into the multipacks now - although, with a high proportion of them either fantasy or exotic castings, I can't say I was very much tempted.
    So I left, still without anything small and with wheels.
    There were other places to try...

    [TBC!!]
  17. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from Spottedlaurel in Shite in Miniature II   
    Been a funny old week, kids - could be that the effects of market tat withdrawal are kickin' in.
    As planned, I did head out on Saturday morning, early-ish, to see if I could happen upon a fresh case of Matchbox or Hot Wheels that had been newly stocked out.

    Also because out-of-town retail parks are famously lovely* places to be on a damp Saturday morning.
    I've been heartened by some UK sightings of the K-case Jaguar XJC and Chevy C10 longbed, and had high hopes that today could be my day of days...
    However, after scouring some twenty-six stores in the Greater Belfast area which carry Mattel diecast to a greater or lesser degree, I'm forced to conclude that, for 2024, it's probably only Poundland which are likely to be stocking any Matchbox mainlines - and even then, I don't think they're all that arsed about carrying them.
    God help me, I've started divvying the city up into clusters of retailers, so I can carry out precise, targeted strikes on stores.
    I know.
    What has my life become?

    Cluster 1 takes me the furthest away from home - focusing on Holywood Exchange and environs, allowing me to smack a Tesco Extra, a large Home Bargains, a big Sainsburys and an independent Toymaster store plus a Tesco Metro - should I wish to push my luck trying to park in Holywood town centre.
    Having already stopped off at the big Sainsbury's on Friday night, and made the fateful discovery that they carry Matchbox 5-packs and Majorette premiums (but not mainlines), I didn't bother going back in there again - though their two-5-packs-for-£15 offer was kinda tempting.
    However, the dark seed had been planted that there could be stuff out there, unbeknownst to me, hence taking an uncompromisingly rigorous and systematic approach to the act of procuring cheap mass-produced children's toys.
    Because, as any Fule Kno, this are Serious Bizniss.
    The big-ish Home Bargains proved a disappointment - no Hot Wheels mainlines at all, and only a handful of HW monster trucks huddled at the end of a shelf. No Matchbox whatsoever.
    I'd held out some faint hope that a few bargainous Matchbox Action Drivers sets might show up on the shelves, as they did this time last year, but nope.
    The big Tesco Extra at Knocknagoney had a few Matchbox left in a dump bin, but again it was the same early-to-mid-2023 dregs in torn boxes that my local store continues to carry:

    Not that these are bad - but I just have all I need from this range.
    There were quite a few late-2023/ early 2024 Hot Wheels in an adjacent tub, including the slammed VW T2 dropside which I probably should have picked up - but ultimately, I left the store empty-handed.
    Having hit up the Stewart Miller Toymaster store in January and again in February, with diminishing returns, I felt it more prudent to focus my attentions to stores I hadn't visited for a while.
    So it was over to Cluster 2, in East Belfast - Connswater Retail Park.

    There's the original but much-modified Connswater Shopping Centre on the site, dating from the 1980s - and the Poundland in the mall was the first stop.

    Okay, so five pegs of various 2023 case releases - though none of which I was mad keen on.
    So, so many of those pointless little luggage cart things.
    I very nearly picked up the blue Goodyear Tyres release of the Renault Kangoo - but I dunno, it just seems like quite a flimsy little thing. I kinda like it, but don't really love it. Especially not at £2.
    The few Hot Wheels left that weren't daft fantasy releases were ones I already have, too.
    Just across the concourse, Poundstretcher beckoned...

    With a dump bin crammed full of import 2021 Hot Wheels longcards they're plainly having trouble shifting, and a shamelessly lying sign.
    These are not 'great value' at £2.50 - not when Poundland directly opposite are knocking them out for £1.50.

    Looking closer, these seem to be Japanese-market releases, curiously with no import distributor details stuck to them.

    Well, okay then - I'll do my best to refrain from putting it in my mouth, or using the sun. No promises, mind.
    I'm still hoping these will go down to half-price, as Poundstretcher have done before with their slow-selling Mattel stuff, but maybe their corporate buying team cut a dreadful deal to acquire these, and Head Office won't authorise a reduction.
    They'll be sitting for a while yet, in that case.

    Further round, in the toy aisle, their 2023 Power Grab Matchbox mainlines were still kicking about, too.
    I really like these rectangular boxes, better than the blister pack equivalents, but again - I already have all I want from this selection, and I'm not buying any more duplicates just cos they're in different packaging...
    There used to be a mid-size Tesco store as Connswater's anchor retailer, but it packed up a few years back and there's now a branch of The Range where it used to be.
    The Range used to have Hot Wheels shipper displays prominently placed a few years back, but now they only had a handful of mid-2023 releases swinging forlornly on some sparse pegs.
    Other than the little Mighty K pickup in bluey-grey, with the skateboard in the rear bed, they were all mostly fantasy castings and so didn't really appeal... and I already have the teeny-tiny pickup in its earlier metallic pink iteration. I'm not gonna fall down the every-casting-in-every-colourway collector trap...
    Not today, anyway.
    So I bustled out past the checkouts, clinking my keys and trying to look confident - as I'm afflicted with this fear I'm going to be challenged as a shoplifter because I'm leaving without buying anything, despite my years in retail teaching me that minimum wage staff don't care - and made my way across the car park to the newer big-box stores.
    This branch of Home Bargains had a small number of Hot Wheels mainlines on about three pegs - once again, that coppery-coloured Ford Coupe gasser and the Cadillac Seville in two-tone blue were prevelant - but again, nothing I really fancied.
    The Connswater branch of B&M is one of the larger stores, with several aisles of toys, but they make relatively little of it available for diecast.
    Instead, there's a few pegs just inside one of the emergency fire exits, which are easy to miss as you approach it from the main entrance.

    Eh... nothing new, and although a Matchbox Subaru Forester in black and a Hot Wheels Dodge Ram in white did raise my pulse slightly above tickover, they just felt like I'd be settling for something out of desperation, rather than finding something I really wanted.
    So I left them.
    While wandering the aisles just in case I happened upon any clip strips, I thought these 10-packs represented quite good value for money, at £20 for two...

    Good to see the first release version of the Volvo 240 Drift Wagon making it into the multipacks now - although, with a high proportion of them either fantasy or exotic castings, I can't say I was very much tempted.
    So I left, still without anything small and with wheels.
    There were other places to try...

    [TBC!!]
  18. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to bunglebus in Shite in Miniature II   
    A while back I mentioned the larger Hot Wheels that are now available in a few different scales, but they were mostly Mattel's own creations rather than licensed castings. Well I found one today I'd not seen before

    And I just happened to have its little brother handy in the to-be-customised box

     
  19. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to bunglebus in Shite in Miniature II   
    Win!

  20. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to danthecapriman in Shite in Miniature II   
    Got the Lada filler rubbed down, primed and wet flatted off.

    Rubbed the filler down on the Sierra estate too. The roof was easy and went well but the front bumper was a pain in the arse. I got it very close to perfect then the front edge chipped! 
    I think the filler Im using is going funny. It’s dregs in the bottom of a tin and I think it’s started to dry out and not mixing well. 
    After a second coat it seems fine.
    Ive given it a good wash off in soapy water since the pic and it’s looking good enough to prime now. 



  21. Like
    Datsuncog reacted to bunglebus in Shite in Miniature II   
    Gone into Saafend for the day. There's a toy shop!

    And next door a craft shop with various model kits

  22. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from warch in Shite in Miniature II   
    Bit of an oddity I happened to spot earlier today, sat atop one of those pop-up stalls that sells phone cases and chargers in the middle of the shopping centre concourse:

    Seems to be a plastic model of a 1955 Pontiac Star Chief that doubles as a Bluetooth speaker. Of course.
    It reminded me a bit of those terrible 'classic car' radios and telephones from back in the 1980s.
    I didn't see it out of the box, but it looks like it might be quite large. And the headlights seemingly come on.
    Possibly 'inspired by' the rather spendy 1/18 Sun Star version?

    I didn't see a price on the shopping mall example - but some light internet searching indicates that the 'WSTER WS-598 Music Car Speaker' can be obtained via AliExpress in the sub-tenner price bracket...
  23. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from Remspoor in Shite in Miniature II   
    Bit of an oddity I happened to spot earlier today, sat atop one of those pop-up stalls that sells phone cases and chargers in the middle of the shopping centre concourse:

    Seems to be a plastic model of a 1955 Pontiac Star Chief that doubles as a Bluetooth speaker. Of course.
    It reminded me a bit of those terrible 'classic car' radios and telephones from back in the 1980s.
    I didn't see it out of the box, but it looks like it might be quite large. And the headlights seemingly come on.
    Possibly 'inspired by' the rather spendy 1/18 Sun Star version?

    I didn't see a price on the shopping mall example - but some light internet searching indicates that the 'WSTER WS-598 Music Car Speaker' can be obtained via AliExpress in the sub-tenner price bracket...
  24. Thanks
    Datsuncog got a reaction from bunglebus in Shite in Miniature II   
    @bunglebus

    Good to see the Gods of Tat have been smiling on you!
    Enjoy 😎
  25. Like
    Datsuncog got a reaction from danthecapriman in Shite in Miniature II   
    @bunglebus

    Good to see the Gods of Tat have been smiling on you!
    Enjoy 😎
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