Shite in Miniature II

[AndyW201]

27 minutes ago, egg said:

Has the worker just been electrocuted!?

I think he's the construction worker from The Village People...

 

[Datsuncog]

Surprise delivery arrived yesterday morning while I was away out at the builders' yard...

Couldn't really get away with pretending this was from Amazon, and not sure my protestations of innocence were fully believed...

I was genuinely stumped about what this might be, but a quick peek inside brought some enlightenment...

Well knock me down with a feather - it's a big ol' heap of Corgi Cubs; eleven of them to be exact.

Which strike me as extremely similar to some of the recent @bunglebus discoveries.

Uncannily familiar, some might say...

Thanks so much for these, dude!

I'll add these in with my other Cubs finds, give them all a bit of a tidy, and with any luck my brother and SIL won't be too appalled at me gifting forty year old toys to their darling offspring...

I mean, they'd stopped using lead in paint by then, right?

The sticker variations on the post vans did kinda amuse me:

And Royal Mail wonders why it has difficulties retaining staff...

The racers are a casting that I didn't even know existed until I started digging into this forgotten/ ignored range quite recently.

The super-simple construction where the base also forms the air scoop, the interior, the lights and a contrast to the cast-in No.7 makes a lot of detail out of very little manufacturing effort.

The blue-base example has had the Corgi Cubs lettering blanked out, which makes me wonder if this was one of the toys made for Mothercare, which - like Corgi's exclusive M&S range - was seemingly reluctant to display the original manufacturer's name on the products sold on their shelves.

I'm actually quite excited to go through these, as briefly comparing the castings with one another has already thrown up some significant differences in these toys where I'd assumed they shared some common parts, but nooo... 

So there's more to come on these, if you can possibly stand the excitement.

[Richard_FM]

21 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Surprise delivery arrived yesterday morning while I was away out at the builders' yard...

Couldn't really get away with pretending this was from Amazon, and not sure my protestations of innocence were fully believed...

I was genuinely stumped about what this might be, but a quick peek inside brought some enlightenment...

Well knock me down with a feather - it's a big ol' heap of Corgi Cubs; eleven of them to be exact.

Which strike me as extremely similar to some of the recent @bunglebus discoveries.

Uncannily familiar, some might say...

Thanks so much for these, dude!

I'll add these in with my other Cubs finds, give them all a bit of a tidy, and with any luck my brother and SIL won't be too appalled at me gifting forty year old toys to their darling offspring...

I mean, they'd stopped using lead in paint by then, right?

The sticker variations on the post vans did kinda amuse me:

And Royal Mail wonders why it has difficulties retaining staff...

The racers are a casting that I didn't even know existed until I started digging into this forgotten/ ignored range quite recently.

The super-simple construction where the base also forms the air scoop, the interior, the lights and a contrast to the cast-in No.7 makes a lot of detail out of very little manufacturing effort.

The blue-base example has had the Corgi Cubs lettering blanked out, which makes me wonder if this was one of the toys made for Mothercare, which - like Corgi's exclusive M&S range - was seemingly reluctant to display the original manufacturer's name on the products sold on their shelves.

I'm actually quite excited to go through these, as briefly comparing the castings with one another has already thrown up some significant differences in these toys where I'd assumed they shared some common parts, but nooo... 

So there's more to come on these, if you can possibly stand the excitement.

I remember having the Corgi Cubs police car & Ambulance.

For many years M&S used the St Michael brand for many things they sold, I've still got at least one book sold with this branding.

In the USA Sears used to sell many products with their own branding, including some early games consoles.

[MiniMinorMk3]

Random (x2) Diecast (Resin) of the Day

1. Spark 2005 TVR Sagaris

Spark have been making great resin cast models for years now. A bit on the spendy side, but they are rarely poor.

This has the ChromaFlair paint that was popular about 20 years ago.

Nice detail on the clear rear spoiler

2. Ebbro Toyota Alteza (Lexus is200) race car sponsored by Maziora, the Japanese version of ChromaFlair.

Ebbros paint mix is not as good as the Spark version. If you use flash photography the paint just goes to the purple phase.

You need to shoot it without flash to see the effect, but then it mostly shows up as just gold.

With flash again

No flash

With flash

The model itself is well proportioned and captures the Altezas shape well

Nice details like the tow eye and red seat Sabelt belts.

[andrew e]

5 hours ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

So that’s the origins of the Simpsons kaleidoscope van!

[andrew e]

5 hours ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

So that’s the origins of the Simpsons kaleidoscope van!

[sierraman]

30 minutes ago, andrew e said:

So that’s the origins of the Simpsons kaleidoscope van!

I have those, got them with a Simpsons book as a kid. 

[flat4alfa]

23 hours ago, FakeConcern said:

I'm not sure as the label was partly obscured and badly written, but I think £53. I also think I should have bought the Westminster that I think was £8 as that's pretty cheap. However I don't know when I'll be in Brighton next though.

You could always give Jimmy a ring, maybe he would give you a lift next Saturday

[FakeConcern]

3 minutes ago, flat4alfa said:

Give Jimmy a ring he could give a lift

No he couldn't...

[MiniMinorMk3]

Never seen this before, probably US market only.

[Tenmil Socket]

17 hours ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

Random (x2) Diecast (Resin) of the Day

1. Spark 2005 TVR Sagaris

Spark have been making great resin cast models for years now. A bit on the spendy side, but they are rarely poor.

This has the ChromaFlair paint that was popular about 20 years ago.

Nice detail on the clear rear spoiler

2. Ebbro Toyota Alteza (Lexus is200) race car sponsored by Maziora, the Japanese version of ChromaFlair.

Ebbros paint mix is not as good as the Spark version. If you use flash photography the paint just goes to the purple phase.

You need to shoot it without flash to see the effect, but then it mostly shows up as just gold.

With flash again

No flash

With flash

The model itself is well proportioned and captures the Altezas shape well

Nice details like the tow eye and red seat Sabelt belts.

Even after all these years I think the Altezza / IS200 is a great looking car.

[andy18s]

[Split_Pin]

11 minutes ago, andy18s said:

That can't be right surely!?

[MiniMinorMk3]

Latest news from Vanguards

The Black Tulip 1275GT is finally being released 

Everything else is Ford though.

[andy18s]

21 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

That can't be right surely!?

Might be a photoshop but the OP has been trustworthy in the past

[danthecapriman]

I definitely did not* add another Dinky to the collection this morning!

Looks to be all original which must be unusual for those tipper body sides! They probably fall off very easily Id think. Works well too. 
It’ll go with my D series tipper very nicely.  
I’ve already got the white version of this TK but it’s lost its tipper sides and had a weird home made aluminium body added in its place. 
Once I’ve (finally!) got moved I’ll dig them all out for some pics.

[MiniMinorMk3]

Random diecast of the day.

Best Lancia Fulvia HF 1967 Monte Carlo Rally

Great front detail with photo-etch grille...

and SEV Marchal lights.

Decal side repeaters are a bit of a let down though.

Rear end is just as good...

with multicolour light lenses and chrome trim around the rear panel.

Great detail inside with wood rim wheel and wood effect dash

More photo etch around the side windows...

and on the bonnet

Over all a great model from Best.

[Datsuncog]

On 8/31/2023 at 8:57 PM, egg said:

I see the scalpers retail arbitragers get to work on these pretty quickly. But as a standard punter - how would you rate the value for money? Is the dopamine hit proportionate to the price?

It's kinda borderline, to be fair.

When they were priced at £19.99 +£3.99 p&p it felt about the right balance, but putting membership prices up by another three quid last year bumped them from 'oh, well it's only around £20' to 'a bit too close to £30 for comfort'.

They are pretty well finished, I'll give them that, and although I wasn't exactly waiting by the letterbox for the Studebaker, I like it more than I thought I might. It is a bit of a highlight of the month for me - while the Tat Market can be a bit variable in terms of quality and quantity, the Corgi Model Club arrival does give me a reliable dose of diecast love every four or five weeks.

I'd considered skipping this one - apparently, quite a few other collectors have chosen to do so - but I've already skipped a few, and the annoying completionist in me is now griping that I now don't have a complete set (I was very skint at the point the Monte Carlo Rally Citroen DS came out, and I've always had a violent aversion to  the 'Lazy Bones' custom Corvette, for unknown reasons) .

That said, other than the Fire Chief version of the Chevrolet Impala (a recolour of last year's taxi version), all the models announced for the upcoming months look pretty good.

I'm very keen to get my paws on the big  Mercedes 600 Pullman with working windscreen wipers, and the Mini Magnifique - and also the VW T1 breakdown truck and the Austin A60 Driving School Car, with steerable wheels.

I'm a little less bothered about the MGA, but I'm really champing at the bit for the Rover P6 with Golden Jacks wheels - though that won't come through until next spring.

With general cost-of-living pressures and folks not really having as much disposable income as they might have done a few years ago, I'd say it's a bit of a tightrope walk to keep a concern like this going.

Too many new or feature-packed releases and there's higher development costs - too many recolours or basic castings released and they'll lose subscribers. Put the prices up again and lose subscribers. Keep the prices down and then can't afford to develop interesting new releases, so lose subscribers.

I really hope they're doing well with this, as I want the collection to continue and hopefully cover some more of my personal favourites, but I suppose only time will tell.

I reckon they might want to think about a standalone series of Corgi Majors, outside of the monthly subscription service - premium releases like replica gift sets and large commercials. Even just one release, put out in time for Christmas with a price tag of say £59.99, might be popular amongst those of us who are reportedly 'hard to buy gifts for'... I'm sure we could all think of something we'd like to see under the Christmas tree in a replica box!

 

On 8/31/2023 at 8:58 PM, FakeConcern said:

I was never a fan of the Golden Hawk even as a kid I thought they looked gawky (Golden Gawk?) and felt the same about the chrome plate effect and never had one of those E Types because of that (I have a tatty one now) but I shan't be getting any Golden Hawk.

A new Corgi Elan? My fave eva Corgi? Which one is it going to be? Detachable chassis or not?

Details are still a little hazy, but the first picture of the factory sample dropped over the weekend there:

It's the #318 Elan S2, but sadly not the version with the removable chassis - that was #319.

I have to say, I'm disappointed too that it's not the take-apart version!

Though CMC did produce the De Tomaso Mangusta with removable chassis all the way back in November 2021...

 

Quote

I joined the Corgi Model Club to get a Monte Mini, but un joined without getting any more models, now I wonder if I can re join to get a new Elan?

If you re-join, then you'll likely have to go through the entire set of releases until you get to the Lotus - so it'd be some time in early 2026 before that arrives...

But luckily you can now buy individual models from the Corgi Model Club shop. They're a bit dearer than through the 'one price' monthly subscription service - going anything from £31.99 to £49.99 plus £3.99 p&p. depending on size and complexity. Still not cheap, but may be a more cost-effective way to nab an Elan?

Once they arrive, they'll be listed on here with the others:

Official Diecast Metal Re-issues Made By Corgi Toys – Corgi Model Club

[Cookiesouwest]

4 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

It's kinda borderline, to be fair.

When they were priced at £19.99 +£3.99 p&p it felt about the right balance, but putting membership prices up by another three quid last year bumped them from 'oh, well it's only around £20' to 'a bit too close to £30 for comfort'.

They are pretty well finished, I'll give them that, and although I wasn't exactly waiting by the letterbox for the Studebaker, I like it more than I thought I might. It is a bit of a highlight of the month for me - while the Tat Market can be a bit variable in terms of quality and quantity, the Corgi Model Club arrival does give me a reliable dose of diecast love every four or five weeks.

I'd considered skipping this one - apparently, quite a few other collectors have chosen to do so - but I've already skipped a few, and the annoying completionist in me is now griping that I now don't have a complete set (I was very skint at the point the Monte Carlo Rally Citroen DS came out, and I've always had a violent aversion to  the 'Lazy Bones' custom Corvette, for unknown reasons) .

That said, other than the Fire Chief version of the Chevrolet Impala (a recolour of last year's taxi version), all the models announced for the upcoming months look pretty good.

I'm very keen to get my paws on the big  Mercedes 600 Pullman with working windscreen wipers, and the Mini Magnifique - and also the VW T1 breakdown truck and the Austin A60 Driving School Car, with steerable wheels.

I'm a little less bothered about the MGA, but I'm really champing at the bit for the Rover P6 with Golden Jacks wheels - though that won't come through until next spring.

With general cost-of-living pressures and folks not really having as much disposable income as they might have done a few years ago, I'd say it's a bit of a tightrope walk to keep a concern like this going.

Too many new or feature-packed releases and there's higher development costs - too many recolours or basic castings released and they'll lose subscribers. Put the prices up again and lose subscribers. Keep the prices down and then can't afford to develop interesting new releases, so lose subscribers.

I really hope they're doing well with this, as I want the collection to continue and hopefully cover some more of my personal favourites, but I suppose only time will tell.

I reckon they might want to think about a standalone series of Corgi Majors, outside of the monthly subscription service - premium releases like replica gift sets and large commercials. Even just one release, put out in time for Christmas with a price tag of say £59.99, might be popular amongst those of us who are reportedly 'hard to buy gifts for'... I'm sure we could all think of something we'd like to see under the Christmas tree in a replica box!

 

Details are still a little hazy, but the first picture of the factory sample dropped over the weekend there:

It's the #318 Elan S2, but sadly not the version with the removable chassis - that was #319.

I have to say, I'm disappointed too that it's not the take-apart version!

Though CMC did produce the De Tomaso Mangusta with removable chassis all the way back in November 2021...

 

If you re-join, then you'll likely have to go through the entire set of releases until you get to the Lotus - so it'd be some time in early 2026 before that arrives...

But luckily you can now buy individual models from the Corgi Model Club shop. They're a bit dearer than through the 'one price' monthly subscription service - going anything from £31.99 to £49.99 plus £3.99 p&p. depending on size and complexity. Still not cheap, but may be a more cost-effective way to nab an Elan?

Once they arrive, they'll be listed on here with the others:

Official Diecast Metal Re-issues Made By Corgi Toys – Corgi Model Club

I think Corgi must be doing ok with these releases.

They can be pretty ruthless when they ain't making money. They would have stopped by now.

[Datsuncog]

Also, while trawling the CMC Facebook page to swipe a pic of the next release, I thought this interview with Hornby Hobbies chair Lyndon Davies - who formerly worked on the assembly line at the Corgi factory in Swansea - talking about the actual production process might be of interest to some on here?

 

Q: Why did you have to make new toolings for our Corgi Model Club replicas – didn't it already exist?

A: It may come as a surprise to many Corgi fans out there but around 4,000 of the original Corgi and Mettoy moulds actually still exist! However, the records are not always complete and identifying them can be very difficult. It also needs to be realised that the die-casting machines back then were designed and built by Mettoy, with moulds and machines intended to work as one. These machines don’t exist today. If we do locate and identify an original mould, modification would be needed to make it compatible with modern machinery. Or, as is often the case, the surface finish of the mould is too poor to be used anyway. That is why we have re-tooled the moulds for the Corgi Model Club replicas.

 

Q: Is there any difference between recreating the tooling for an accurate Corgi Model Club replica compared to what you would do for a contemporary Corgi die-cast model?

A: Although the older Mettoy machines were faster, the design of the moulds running in modern die-cast machines differs. The castings are made from a zinc alloy which melts at around 420°C, which cools rapidly. Today’s machines run in a different way to the ones we used back in the day. It would be like putting a 2023 Mercedes engine into a 1960’s Formula 1 car – the new machines would quickly destroy the older moulds!

1960s moulds were designed for high volume manufacture, whereas the Corgi Model Club moulds we use today are designed for low volume.

 

Q: What raw materials are used – are they different to what was used in the 1960s and does this affect the manufacturing process?

A: We use a zinc alloy known to old timers like me as 'Mazak 5’ (or more commonly as ‘ZAMAC'). This alloy, in its raw form, can come in varying standards. Because our knowledge of chemical properties has developed considerably over the years, this has resulted in the’ ingredients' of the alloy today being an updated form of what we used in the 1960s. Importantly, the new grade of Zinc can now be ‘spun’. If you look under at the base of the models you will see that the body is secured to the chassis by ‘spinning’ the zinc. Typically, modern die-cast models are often screw fits.

Significant changes have also taken place with paints – especially as we have become more aware of environmental impacts. Although we have more sophisticated ways of mixing paint today, we also have a more limited supply of certain pigments. Thus matching to older colours can be challenging – especially with yellows and greens. Even if you can obtain a good match, sometimes the viscosity of the final paint is difficult to control. This causes it to dry more quickly during the masking process – for example when applying a secondary colour.

 

Q: Tell us more about what effect using old fashioned tooling has on the process. For example, what do the ‘slides' do and what impact do older slides have on the finished models?

A: In simple terms, a casting is produced with a mould consisting of a 'fixed half' (which is connected to the machine) and a ‘moving half' that opens to allow the casting to be ejected when it is opened. Four ‘slides' come together as the mould is closed via guide pins. These ‘slides' are needed to form the outer shape of the body and to block off areas where no zinc is required – such as windows. The 'fixed half', 'moving half' and ‘slides' must all lock together before we pump zinc into the mould cavity to form the required shape. 'Ejector plates' then push the casting off the mould as it is opened.

Modern tooling design methods mean that moulds can be more efficiently produced. However, there lies the difficulty as we want the Corgi Model Club replicas to closely emulate those of the 1960s. Where the ‘slides' come together we have joint lines and these need to be the same as those on the 1960s originals. Today we can achieve much better flow patterns through the moulds, but these would result in different joint lines. Thus to replicate the older methods of joints and gates using new moulds that run less efficiently in modern die-casting machines is quite challenging!

 

Q: What are 'flow gates’ and what implications do they have on the castings?

A: The molten zinc flows through a ‘gooseneck’ from a molten pot. This has to be done at speed as the temperature of the molten metal cools as it enters the mould and begins to solidify. As the molten metal enters the mould, the ‘gate system’ feeds the metal through the cavities. This flow of metal has to be balanced, so to draw it into the different areas of the mould more quickly, we use overflows – which are excess areas in the mould. Back in the 60s and 70s, the design team would make suggestions but it was the foundry and the skilled die-cast engineers who would refine the process. The gates can also affect the surface finish of the casting. ‘Flash’ (deposits of excess zinc) can be left attached to the casting, which have to be removed, affecting the accuracy of the desired shape.

Also, as moulds get older they need rebalancing as the ‘slides' begin to wear away. The flow patterns change and below the surface areas, air can get trapped. This can cause surface inconsistencies. Worse, if air gets trapped beneath the surface, it expands during the electrostatic painting process, which causes surface blemishes.

 

Q: The liveries on older, original, Corgi Toys seem cruder and less consistent than on modern die-cast models, especially metallic paint finishes. Why is that?

A: I’ve already mentioned that in the 1960s, metallic finishes were quite difficult to achieve. Each batch of paint would differ as the metallic elements were added to the base colour. Back then we would use hand spraying methods to apply the paint. Today, re-creating the 'old colours’ – especially where some pigments are no longer available for health and safety reasons – can be quite challenging!

In later years, electrostatic painting became more common. The paint (which has a positive charge) is drawn to the metal surface (which is negative), therefore reducing any overspray and giving an even coating. Replicating the finish seen on some original Corgis means that sometimes we have to revert to hand spraying – which means that the end result isn’t as good.

So, to conclude, the combination of producing moulds in the way we did in the 1960s, using them in modern casting machines and hand painting instead of electrostatic painting all creates variations. And these variations can make locking out areas during masking extremely challenging!

~~~~

We thank Lyndon not only for answering these questions and for patiently explaining some of the complex methods that go into producing the Corgi Model Club collection of replicas – but also for the continued hard work and expertise of his team at Hornby. We’re sure you’ll join us in applauding their tireless efforts to help us produce our growing collection of replicas that hopefully do the originals proud.

[egg]

@Datsuncogthanks for the comprehensive review. To b fair, some are a reasonably priced on the bay.

Poorly fotographed Thunderbird - £20 or best offer - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/354907603211

The Merc SL for £22 - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/204449810906

[Datsuncog]

22 hours ago, Cookiesouwest said:

I think Corgi must be doing ok with these releases.

They can be pretty ruthless when they ain't making money. They would have stopped by now.

There appear to be a few different companies involved - from what I can tell (and I may be wrong), Corgi Model Club is administered in its entirety by an outfit called Blue DTC Brands, headed up by a fella called Guy Stainthorpe.

It seems that they work with designers in the Hornby Hobbies office in Margate to select and re-engineer classic era Corgis, which are then tooled-up, tested and produced by one of Hornby's contractors in China.

From my understanding of the arrangements, Blue DTC use the Corgi brand under licence from Hornby Hobbies and also pay for the rights to produce replicas of the original Corgi models (plus any third-party licensing costs; it seems they made a boob with The Saint's Volvo, not realising it was a Paramount Pictures trademark - and the licensing issue is what's continuing to stymie any Batmobile replica).

So I think that, technically, Corgi themselves aren't the ones producing these - even though it says Corgi on the box and they're designed by Hornby Hobbies. They're being commissioned to design and manufacture these replicas on behalf of Blue DTC, who then do the sales and distribution legwork.

What's interesting is that Corgi's official website have now started selling a couple of different colour versions of the Blue DTC models, which presumably was an option included in their agreement.

They're a good bit slightly cheaper than the standalone Blue DTC models, which may give some indication of the cost to produce the model once licensing costs are stripped out:

Corgi® Vintage Corgi Toys

[That's odd - I'm sure the official Corgi shop had these on their website for only £18.99 a few weeks ago, but they're now £21.99 a throw - not very much less than the subscription cost. Still, the Corgi Model Club shop lists their versions of the same five models to purchase directly between £31.99 and £35.99, so they're at least a tenner cheaper bought through Corgi than they are through CMC.]

So I reckon Blue DTC are the ones shouldering the design/ production/ sales risk here, rather than Hornby/ Corgi themselves.

And if Blue DTC do crash, then Corgi/ Hornby probably have first dibs on a lot of nice fresh tooling...

[egg]

9 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

It seems that they work with designers in the Hornby Hobbies office in Margate

Damn, I could ask my mate's brother about this who is a Hornby designer, but we're not currently in contact, even though his job title says Scalextric.

[Datsuncog]

3 hours ago, andy18s said:

[Bren]

On 9/3/2023 at 3:09 PM, Datsuncog said:

Surprise delivery arrived yesterday morning while I was away out at the builders' yard...

Couldn't really get away with pretending this was from Amazon, and not sure my protestations of innocence were fully believed...

I was genuinely stumped about what this might be, but a quick peek inside brought some enlightenment...

Well knock me down with a feather - it's a big ol' heap of Corgi Cubs; eleven of them to be exact.

Which strike me as extremely similar to some of the recent @bunglebus discoveries.

Uncannily familiar, some might say...

Thanks so much for these, dude!

I'll add these in with my other Cubs finds, give them all a bit of a tidy, and with any luck my brother and SIL won't be too appalled at me gifting forty year old toys to their darling offspring...

I mean, they'd stopped using lead in paint by then, right?

The sticker variations on the post vans did kinda amuse me:

And Royal Mail wonders why it has difficulties retaining staff...

The racers are a casting that I didn't even know existed until I started digging into this forgotten/ ignored range quite recently.

The super-simple construction where the base also forms the air scoop, the interior, the lights and a contrast to the cast-in No.7 makes a lot of detail out of very little manufacturing effort.

The blue-base example has had the Corgi Cubs lettering blanked out, which makes me wonder if this was one of the toys made for Mothercare, which - like Corgi's exclusive M&S range - was seemingly reluctant to display the original manufacturer's name on the products sold on their shelves.

I'm actually quite excited to go through these, as briefly comparing the castings with one another has already thrown up some significant differences in these toys where I'd assumed they shared some common parts, but nooo... 

So there's more to come on these, if you can possibly stand the excitement.

Corgi cubs. A blast from the past.

Always thought the police car was at bit UFO / Ed Straker - esque.

Me and my brother had a green jeep and a couple of shell tankers as well as the police car. There was even a helicopter but I don't recall seeing it in the shops.

Takes me back to the mid to late 70's.

[bunglebus]

Hello! Sorry I've been AWOL, had a weekend at Santa Pod doing lots of Volkswagen and beer things so I chose to concentrate on the real world for a few days. Glad the Cubs got to @DatsuncogOK, I hunted in all the places I might have stashed this one

But to no avail - must have sold it previously. 

Came back from 'Pod last night, unpacked dirty clothes and re-packed for a week mostly away from home, hopefully with some die-cast hunting thrown in. Did check out Asda which looked promising 

But it wasn't much cop. Did find this Majorette 

But I was good and left it behind.

I've spent the day driving to the arse end of nowhere (well Manchester and Nantwich) and catching up on the thread as and when I could - I now have the Beverly Hills Cop theme stuck in my head...

However I have to say Ferris Bueller's Day Off is the best film in that 80s set for me

[Datsuncog]

31 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

I chose to concentrate on the real world for a few days.

The REAL world?

How perfectly ghastly.

 

No, but seriously - hope you had a great time at Santa Pod, and cheers again for the mystery Cubs parcel!

Very much appreciated, and no doubt a roadster-style model will turn up before too long; it's quite likely I've encountered them in tat boxes before now and just never gave them a second look...

[Nibbler]

Visited the biggest boot sale in southern Sweden yesterday. At least that’s what the organisers claim. Always good stuff there, loads of die cast. 

[barrett]

Not sure how it happened, but I seem to have acquired these over the last few days. I've talked about my childhood obsession with Spot On in the past, but it's something I've not really dived into as an adult, mainly for the reason of cost. I still don't quite understand the premium these seem to command over other toys of the era. I get they're a bit less common, but in the era of ebay there's always hundreds of examples for sale and I'd have thought demand and supply were pretty much on par at this point. But hey, what do I know?

Anyway, I don't mind slightly scruffy examples, but even very rough Spot Ons seem to make big sums, so I was happy to get these for an average of £10 each. The Bentley and A-S are a bit tatty, but the others are very nice despite a bit of paint loss, and all the bumpers etc are present, and the glass is all unscratched. Apart form the Siddeley and the Mult, I can't say these are cars I have any particular interest in, and I actively dislike those 60s Crestas, but I'm very pleased to have found these at such a good price. What do you reckon, have I done well?

The front suspension on the Mult is down on one corner, so I thought I'd compare it to my childhood Humbrol restoration example (the only Spot On I ever found when I was a kid - 5p at my school's boot sale). In doing so, I've made a discovery

Different bases! I suppose students of Spot On know all about this, but I didn't realise any of these were produced for long enough to see multiple variations. I guess the one on the left is the earlier of the two. It has four individual coil springs, whilst the later one relies on flexible tabs which are part of the moulded interior (one of which has broken off). This leads me to discovery number 2 - totally different interior mouldings

The early car just has three individual seats (the springs are inside the front-most and rear-most 'towers' which the seats are attached to), whilst the later one has a one-piece moulding with 'door cards' and 'floor'

The wheels on the early care are also different - the rubber tyre is not detachable. I guess these would have to be fitted to the axle before the wheel centres, and then the ends were stamped to provide the lip which prevents the wheels falling off, and then the tyres were pressed into the rim. An extra process of labour which seems unneccessarily complicated. Anyway, I learned something.

[Dick Longbridge]

1 hour ago, Nibbler said:

Visited the biggest boot sale in southern Sweden yesterday. At least that’s what the organisers claim. Always good stuff there, loads of die cast. 

What's the yellow blackwall HW? I vaguely recall owning one when new. Is the tailgate window louvred?