Shite in Miniature II

[flat4alfa]

4 hours ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

Next lot for the clean up were some modern Corgis. Well I think they are modern because they do not have separate tyres.

The Ambulances are in good condition.

The tow truck has seen a bit more action.

Metal base on van type and plastic on truck type

I never knew this sort of stuff existed. By the time these were a thing I was playing with real cars.

Did they come with glass?

What you have there is an *eclectic mix of both Corgi Hi-Speed and Corgi Cubs which are pushing 50 years old

To complete the collection, next you need to get hold of the Mini-Bus of cracked side window fame: Corgi 'MINI BUS' as it says on the base, was available 1974-78 and shown in Catalogue 1974 as 'Inter-City Mini-Bus' - the same as the sticker on the sides.  The box itself had it as 'High Speed Mini-coach' instead.

 

Joined by the others (and Noddy!) in 1975

Omitted from the catalogue for 1977, but back in 1978.  1977 did see the new 'Security Van' which was given code C424, so not numbered as part of the C70x series unlike its 'sister' the 'Motorway Service Ambulance' and the others.

All gone gone from catalogues for 1979 which gave us....   X-PLORATRONS !

Perhaps the High Speed series was the precursor to Corgi Cubs….   which I’ll post about next and bore you all further

[FakeConcern]

21 hours ago, flat4alfa said:

The Lotus Esprit was produced generically in Hong Kong and sold under Speedtrax, Toltoys and other brands depending on market.  The sets were 6v and battery-powered.  Speedtrax became Artin.  Pretty sure I have a later red one here, will have a look...   might make a good 1:43 track sister.

The gen-4 Camaro is much later (obviously!) and was in a set with a Corvette ZR-1.  Produced by Kwong Wah Toys, Hong Kong and sold under their brands such as Super Speed.  They go right back into the 1970s with battery-powered 6v sets, but this particular 1990s set was powered by a mains AC transformer

You should be able to see if they run by putting a 9v PP3 battery across the terminals.  Don't hold it there for long though as the LED will likely blow.  Yes, both of them have light!

That's very interesting, thank you. I'll try them with a battery when I get a chance I'll be interested to see the lights. Let me know if you would like them.

5 hours ago, Split_Pin said:

Received a brace of resto projects from @FakeConcern today.

I wasted no time in digging out a set of AMT Camaro wheels and test fitted the missing one:

That's a yes! Not sure if I'll fit all 4 or just leave it as is, depends how hard the other wheels will be to extract.

A good wash and some Glue 'n' Glaze for the missing light lenses and this one will look really nice again.

The wee Fiat is going to be a challenge to get looking better.

I can sort the bent windscreen, the glazing is OK, I can make some new bumpers and paint is no problem but finding a suitable set of wheels will be hard as one has a missing tyre. I did have a smashed Saico Minor which might have had some suitable wheels but I binned it. It's really small (obviously as the real car was tiny!)  for a 1/25, not much bigger than a Corgi Sierra.

If anyone's got any wheels with an approximate diameter of 18-20mm I'd be very interested. Or even a tyre that will fit the 13-14mm rim.

I really liked all of those and would have been happy to keep any of them if you didn't want them. The Pug looks better already, I hope you do all the wheels!

I did have a look in my wheel and tyre box for a tyre to fit the Fiat, but nothing was any good. However I have replaced tyres on other similar scale models with one from Scalextrics. I do often see someone selling them at toy fairs so I'll keep my eyes open for something suitable.

 

As regards the Cereal packet toy cars, I have related this before; when I was very young the old man who lived kind of backing on to our garden (drove a Wolseley 1500) gave me the tokens from (I think) Frosties to get free toy cars. We didn't have cereal like that as it was too expensive! Anyway I got Lone Star models (wish I still had them) Fiat 2300 which was my fave, Ford Taunus, Ford Corsair & Rolls Silver Cloud.

[flat4alfa]

SPEEDTRAX LOTUS ESPRIT FOUND IN LOFT BOXES 

Your example is in far better condition but will post about it later 

@FakeConcern

[andy18s]

40 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Very nice, for sale?

I have asked,what sort of price would they go for? I have no knowledge of them . 

[flat4alfa]

A glazed Corgi Cub is a rare beast and separates the men from the boys 😝

And why? Because it makes a basic Mothercare toy transform into a potential Gerry Anderson film prop!

Tiny Tom agrees.

[flat4alfa]

The Corgi Cubs range was produced in 1977-78 and withdrawn shortly afterwards. They were designed to be cheap to produce so that Corgi could enter the nursery toy market. The models and the packaging were all made in Britain.

The range was launched October 1977 at price point 55p each RRP.  They were produced through 1978 but proved to be a low seller.

There was an advertising campaign to encourage Mums to spend 55p and do the patriotic thing.  Note *xenophobic bottom paragraph!

They came in blister packed singles:

Then boxed singles.  Notice the price had doubled to £1.10, inflation rate in 1977 hit 15.85%, but still, maybe the first few months they were sold at 55p as a loss-leader ploy  (also check out the regular Corgi line wheel type on that ambulance) :

The R600 4-pack set looks like a nice historical artifact to collect

But true TAT Connoisseurs should surely go for the R601 6-pack set

Mothercare became a stockist:

Later, they were also distributed by Avon Cosmetics (with the Corgi brand removed) as part of the elusive AVON SMILERS range.  The 'AVON Smilers' trademark was filed in Australia in 1988 and Canada in 1989, but was never filed in North America, so those would be a European market exclusive (therefore potentially more valuable to Men living in their attics, in Connecticut)

As you can see, I have no interest whatsoever in the things.

But there is a man in Belfast who runs the DATSUNCUB CLUB, apparently, and perhaps will be along shortly to show off his superb collection that we helped lumber him with 😎

@Datsuncog

[bunglebus]

25 minutes ago, andy18s said:

I have asked,what sort of price would they go for? I have no knowledge of them . 

Not hugely valuable, you might pay a tenner if you're feeling generous. Fiver would be great

[Split_Pin]

307cc progress.

Disassembled, cleaned and glue setting on the wheels on one side.

New headlights made from Glue N Glaze, they'll dry clear in a day or so.

[Lord Sterling]

New addition to my 1/24 collection.

A 'Franklin Mint' 1/24 Rolls Royce Silver Seraph (with thanks to @Weird Car)

Never had one of these before. Really nice and heavy model. The 1/25 Sterling though is still far heavier.

The Rolls is nicely proportioned and the paint feels really nice and smooth.

The wing mirrors needed some careful glueing back on and the front plate but it's all there. A nice model. Now to find somewhere to display it as display space is at a premium here.

However, next on my list is a Danbury Mint '64 Aston Martin DB5.

[sierraman]

I recall them being on the back pages of magazines that allowed people to pay on the monthly. Finance on miniature shite! Maybe I could offer a PCP service on the MB8 Rover 3500 that’s sat in my window at the moment. 12p a month limited carpet mileage of 10m a week. 

[RoadworkUK]

58 minutes ago, Lord Sterling said:

New addition to my 1/24 collection.

A 'Franklin Mint' 1/24 Rolls Royce Silver Seraph (with thanks to @Weird Car)

Never had one of these before. Really nice and heavy model. The 1/25 Sterling though is still far heavier.

Lovely, that. Still properly jel of the 1/25 Sterling, though

[Lord Sterling]

1 hour ago, sierraman said:

I recall them being on the back pages of magazines that allowed people to pay on the monthly. Finance on miniature shite! Maybe I could offer a PCP service on the MB8 Rover 3500 that’s sat in my window at the moment. 12p a month limited carpet mileage of 10m a week. 

Yeah, I think I recall that too. Gotta admit, they are nice. I guess it's the kind if thing I'd have been dribbling over as a kid if ever I saw one. But I never did. In fact the only place I ever saw a Franklin/Danbury Mint model was a few years ago in Leominster. It was a 1.24 scale Rolls Royce Silver Cloud, not jn a bad condition but they wanted £75 for it or something. In those days the thought of spending that much on a model car brought me out in a cold sweat.

[eddyramrod]

12 minutes ago, Lord Sterling said:

 £75... In those days the thought of spending that much on a model car brought me out in a cold sweat.

Up here it still does!

[Split_Pin]

3 hours ago, Lord Sterling said:

New addition to my 1/24 collection.

A 'Franklin Mint' 1/24 Rolls Royce Silver Seraph (with thanks to @Weird Car)

Never had one of these before. Really nice and heavy model. The 1/25 Sterling though is still far heavier.

The Rolls is nicely proportioned and the paint feels really nice and smooth.

The wing mirrors needed some careful glueing back on and the front plate but it's all there. A nice model. Now to find somewhere to display it as display space is at a premium here.

However, next on my list is a Danbury Mint '64 Aston Martin DB5.

That Sterling 😍

[Lord Sterling]

Here is the Sterling;

Only 100 ever made and probably the most I've ever spent on a model. I think I've shown this car before and told the story, bit for those new amongst us;

I'm a Rover 800 apologist. I love everything about them and still have 3 in my collection which I hope I'll never have to sell.

As well as that, I'm a model car collector, I never knew of this models' existance until about 2006 or 2008 when I spotted it in a scan of a brochure I found online (one of those ones that sells Rover-branded ties, briefcases, calculators, keyring etc...

It looked so good but I couldn't find any pictures of one, so it remained a dream. That was until I randomly spotted one for sale on eBay, finally I could see clear pictures of what it looked like. Bids were strong and I bid something like £250 (a weeks' pay for me then) and low and behold, near to the hour of finishing, Ma_Sterling decided she needed a packet of bread sauce or something and it was my task to go out and find said packet.

At the time, my mobile technology wasn't great. Whilst at Asda, I tried on my phone to access the net with extremely limited results, I couldn't tell one way or the other if I'd won or not.

So with bread sauce procured, I hailed it back to the computer only find I'd been pipped to the post at £260! 🤬 to say I was a tad unhappy would be a massive understatement. 

So, for the next 12-ish years, it was still a dream. Until one day just after the lifting of the lockdown (I remember I was driving the 407 at the time) I spotted this 1/25 Western models Sterling on Facebook. I immediately made an offer and was prepared to up it if needs be. I offered something like £120/£130 and it was accepted. I sent the guy a deposit to ensure it was kept for me and went to go and get it the next day. I couldn't believe it, I finally got the rarest or rare car models that meant something to me. I handed over the cash and went straight home.

It's a heavy model given 90% of the parts are metal including the interior and dashboard. I did once take it apart to place a "wood effect" piece on the front of the dash as it was missing despite having it on the door cards. Getting it back together was a little fiddly but I got there in the end.

It now takes pride of place in the middle of my living room above my stereo.

[bunglebus]

Going to stick some more Matchbox on my sales thread at 7pm

[MiniMinorMk3]

17 hours ago, FakeConcern said:

 

As regards the Cereal packet toy cars, I have related this before; when I was very young the old man who lived kind of backing on to our garden (drove a Wolseley 1500) gave me the tokens from (I think) Frosties to get free toy cars. We didn't have cereal like that as it was too expensive! Anyway I got Lone Star models (wish I still had them) Fiat 2300 which was my fave, Ford Taunus, Ford Corsair & Rolls Silver Cloud.

A bit of a coincidence. This morning I was looking at Lone Star Flyers info and read this.

Lone Star Impy & Flyers - article by Robert Newson    It's about halfway down the page.

Quote

The Flyers were announced to the trade in December 1968, together with 'Flyway' track.  Initial deliveries were in April 1969.  Flyers were promoted in conjunction with Quaker cereals who gave away over 150,000 cars (six different models) in an on-pack offer.  It was designed so that it was unlikely that a child would get more than one free car, and each model sent out included a leaflet showing 18 Flyers models to encourage further sales.

 

[Tenmil Socket]

16 minutes ago, Lord Sterling said:

Here is the Sterling;

Only 100 ever made and probably the most I've ever spent on a model. I think I've shown this car before and told the story, bit for those new amongst us;

I'm a Rover 800 apologist. I love everything about them and still have 3 in my collection which I hope I'll never have to sell.

As well as that, I'm a model car collector, I never knew of this models' existance until about 2006 or 2008 when I spotted it in a scan of a brochure I found online (one of those ones that sells Rover-branded ties, briefcases, calculators, keyring etc...

It looked so good but I couldn't find any pictures of one, so it remained a dream. That was until I randomly spotted one for sale on eBay, finally I could see clear pictures of what it looked like. Bids were strong and I bid something like £250 (a weeks' pay for me then) and low and behold, near to the hour of finishing, Ma_Sterling decided she needed a packet of bread sauce or something and it was my task to go out and find said packet.

At the time, my mobile technology wasn't great. Whilst at Asda, I tried on my phone to access the net with extremely limited results, I couldn't tell one way or the other if I'd won or not.

So with bread sauce procured, I hailed it back to the computer only find I'd been pipped to the post at £260! 🤬 to say I was a tad unhappy would be a massive understatement. 

So, for the next 12-ish years, it was still a dream. Until one day just after the lifting of the lockdown (I remember I was driving the 407 at the time) I spotted this 1/25 Western models Sterling on Facebook. I immediately made an offer and was prepared to up it if needs be. I offered something like £120/£130 and it was accepted. I sent the guy a deposit to ensure it was kept for me and went to go and get it the next day. I couldn't believe it, I finally got the rarest or rare car models that meant something to me. I handed over the cash and went straight home.

It's a heavy model given 90% of the parts are metal including the interior and dashboard. I did once take it apart to place a "wood effect" piece on the front of the dash as it was missing despite having it on the door cards. Getting it back together was a little fiddly but I got there in the end.

It now takes pride of place above my stereo.

The Mrs did you a favour there.

Does the bonnet open?

[MiniMinorMk3]

17 minutes ago, Lord Sterling said:

So, for the next 12-ish years, it was still a dream. Until one day just after the lifting of the lockdown (I remember I was driving the 407 at the time) I spotted this 1/25 Western models Sterling on Facebook. I immediately made an offer and was prepared to up it if needs be. I offered something like £120/£130 and it was accepted. I sent the guy a deposit to ensure it was kept for me and went to go and get it the next day. I couldn't believe it, I finally got the rarest or rare car models that meant something to me. I handed over the cash and went straight home.

 

My dad had an 820 SE as his last company car. He hated it and could not give it back fast enough as it munched it's auto box 3 times in 9 months.

Anyway, back to Western Models. I guess you have one of these, a 1/43ed example. This one has come and gone from my collection.

 

[sierraman]

43 minutes ago, Lord Sterling said:

Here is the Sterling;

Only 100 ever made and probably the most I've ever spent on a model. I think I've shown this car before and told the story, bit for those new amongst us;

I'm a Rover 800 apologist. I love everything about them and still have 3 in my collection which I hope I'll never have to sell.

As well as that, I'm a model car collector, I never knew of this models' existance until about 2006 or 2008 when I spotted it in a scan of a brochure I found online (one of those ones that sells Rover-branded ties, briefcases, calculators, keyring etc...

It looked so good but I couldn't find any pictures of one, so it remained a dream. That was until I randomly spotted one for sale on eBay, finally I could see clear pictures of what it looked like. Bids were strong and I bid something like £250 (a weeks' pay for me then) and low and behold, near to the hour of finishing, Ma_Sterling decided she needed a packet of bread sauce or something and it was my task to go out and find said packet.

At the time, my mobile technology wasn't great. Whilst at Asda, I tried on my phone to access the net with extremely limited results, I couldn't tell one way or the other if I'd won or not.

So with bread sauce procured, I hailed it back to the computer only find I'd been pipped to the post at £260! 🤬 to say I was a tad unhappy would be a massive understatement. 

So, for the next 12-ish years, it was still a dream. Until one day just after the lifting of the lockdown (I remember I was driving the 407 at the time) I spotted this 1/25 Western models Sterling on Facebook. I immediately made an offer and was prepared to up it if needs be. I offered something like £120/£130 and it was accepted. I sent the guy a deposit to ensure it was kept for me and went to go and get it the next day. I couldn't believe it, I finally got the rarest or rare car models that meant something to me. I handed over the cash and went straight home.

It's a heavy model given 90% of the parts are metal including the interior and dashboard. I did once take it apart to place a "wood effect" piece on the front of the dash as it was missing despite having it on the door cards. Getting it back together was a little fiddly but I got there in the end.

It now takes pride of place above my stereo.

Life’s too short and if £120 gets you something that gives you such pleasure it’s a bargain. 
 

The price of things has gone all over the shop, I remember about 2004/5 being offered a Rover 820i for £50! 

[danthecapriman]

Finally managed a bit of time & space (and found just enough tools & stuff to do it!) to do a bit of modelling today.

I got the AEC Regent stripped and ready a while ago but it’s taken until now to find all the stuff needed to go any further with it. 
I’ve filed away all the raised detail from the front and rear destination blinds so they’re nice and flat. The real ones were panelled over when the buses were overhauled and repainted from blue to the final white/red colours. From what I’ve managed to tell from photos, this was done a bit differently on some buses. Some seem to be very well done and look to be flush fitted with the original bodywork. Others are blatantly just a simple panel riveted over the blinds underneath. The rear ones are slightly varied again with some have both upper and lower blinds panelled whereas others had only the bigger upper blind panelled leaving the smaller lower one just being painted over. 
The one on the side above the passenger access platform on the back seems to be flush panelled on all so I’ve filed and smoothed off all the unwanted detail for that. 
Then I used some thin plastic card and cut a new cover panel for the front blind which will represent one of the non flush ones, just superglue’d into place.

 
Rear & side ones all sanded smooth. 
The one on the side was an absolute twat to do as I need to retain the raised detail around the blind, but remove the details in the middle of those without damaging any of the soft cast details!

 
I’ve given the rear and side blinds a good key with some coarse sand paper, masked off the small lower blind on the back and used some fine automotive filler to fill them flush. I wanted to keep the smaller lower one on the back just to give the rear end a bit of detail rather than just a flat smooth panel. It’ll just be painted over in red as they were on the real buses. 
Filler is currently drying out in the garage which will probably take a while given current temperatures!

After it’s dried I’ll give it a rub down and a further skim of filler if needed, then everything will be washed off again and primed.

Its nice to actually be able to do something like this again!

[Lord Sterling]

31 minutes ago, Tenmil Socket said:

Does the bonnet open?

It does indeed and it shows a good representation of the 2500cc engine:

Sadly nothing else opens up. I do have pictures of the interior that I took when I took the car apart.

This would have been launched around the time of the launch of the then-new Rover 800 Sterling.

Here is some of the interior I've just taken albeit a little tricky as the doors don't open:

It's not a bad representation of the Rover 800 and it's certainly nice to have a good-sized model.pf one instead of the usual 1/43s, Corgis and Matchbox ones.

45 minutes ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

Anyway, back to Western Models. I guess you have one of these, a 1/43ed example. This one has come and gone from my collection.

I don't have one of those and never have! I wouldn't mind one just to have it as it were, but I always found the 1/43 WM ones quite crude looking, they look like they done in a rush and by memory. The rear lights, for example, are too deep, the black trim on the A and B pillars are not black as they should be. It just looks a bit of a mess. However, if I saw one for a good price that's in gold condition, then I might give it a home. I'd have happily have given that a home but as you said it's gone from your collection. 

[warch]

Acquired a nice model of an Escort Cosworth in 1/64 scale. I assume the livery is fictitious but it looks smart and I like the scale proportions, door mirrors and intricately detailed wheels. 

I quite like 1/64 true scale models, they’re not that cheap but look the part and take up much less space than larger scale ones. 
 

[bunglebus]

Ooh, latest Atlas For Men catalogue has arrived, with a free Corgi Model Club 481 Chevrolet Police Car

Police geezers present and correct 

[bunglebus]

1 minute ago, warch said:

Acquired a nice model of an Escort Cosworth in 1/64 scale.

Looks better detailed than the Hot Wheels, not that it's bad but all the detail is done with tampos rather than separate parts

Matchbox one has a separate spoiler at least

 

[MiniMinorMk3]

9 minutes ago, warch said:

Acquired a nice model of an Escort Cosworth in 1/64 scale. I assume the livery is fictitious but it looks smart and I like the scale proportions, door mirrors and intricately detailed wheels. 

 

That's a Green Light Collectables, from their Running on Empty series

Version with green wheels

Red Line is a Texas based lube manufacturer.

Red Line Synthetic Oil

[MiniMinorMk3]

Last of the larger scale stuff from my last auction buy included this Tonka Bulldozer.

Due to the holes in the side I thought it might be missing a cab or something. It turns out they did another version with a lifting shovel. Also in the US people are asking $20+ for them. Pity Tonkas are not as sort after in the UK.

Next up is this no name pull back and go Hong Kongese Countach. The base states that it is 1/38th scale.

It still pulls back and goes and features the scissor doors. 

A couple more Hong Kongese pull back and goes.

Pity they both have broken handle bars.

At first site I though this was a Polistil 1/25 Triumph Bonneville.

But as soon as I picked it up I realised it was not.

The HK on the exhaust explains that it is a Hong Kongese plastic copy.

DY1, the first of the Matchbox Dinky Collection. It's in great condition, but then so are 99.9% of the other 100,000 (my estimate) that were made.

Finally a bunch of F1 subjects. 1/25 Yardley McLaren, missing all the parts that go missing. 1/32 scale Ferrari 312 T6. 1/43rd Brabham Alfa Romeo BT 48 and a 1/36 JPS Lotus.

I might have a go at bending the wheels back on the Polistil Ferrari.

The 312 T6 was only used in testing and never went to race.

 

[sierraman]

1 hour ago, danthecapriman said:

Finally managed a bit of time & space (and found just enough tools & stuff to do it!) to do a bit of modelling today.

I got the AEC Regent stripped and ready a while ago but it’s taken until now to find all the stuff needed to go any further with it. 
I’ve filed away all the raised detail from the front and rear destination blinds so they’re nice and flat. The real ones were panelled over when the buses were overhauled and repainted from blue to the final white/red colours. From what I’ve managed to tell from photos, this was done a bit differently on some buses. Some seem to be very well done and look to be flush fitted with the original bodywork. Others are blatantly just a simple panel riveted over the blinds underneath. The rear ones are slightly varied again with some have both upper and lower blinds panelled whereas others had only the bigger upper blind panelled leaving the smaller lower one just being painted over. 
The one on the side above the passenger access platform on the back seems to be flush panelled on all so I’ve filed and smoothed off all the unwanted detail for that. 
Then I used some thin plastic card and cut a new cover panel for the front blind which will represent one of the non flush ones, just superglue’d into place.

 
Rear & side ones all sanded smooth. 
The one on the side was an absolute twat to do as I need to retain the raised detail around the blind, but remove the details in the middle of those without damaging any of the soft cast details!

 
I’ve given the rear and side blinds a good key with some coarse sand paper, masked off the small lower blind on the back and used some fine automotive filler to fill them flush. I wanted to keep the smaller lower one on the back just to give the rear end a bit of detail rather than just a flat smooth panel. It’ll just be painted over in red as they were on the real buses. 
Filler is currently drying out in the garage which will probably take a while given current temperatures!

After it’s dried I’ll give it a rub down and a further skim of filler if needed, then everything will be washed off again and primed.

Its nice to actually be able to do something like this again!

Wonder if a Corgi 1/36 Classics RT would look good in the Matchbox livery?

[danthecapriman]

28 minutes ago, sierraman said:

Wonder if a Corgi 1/36 Classics RT would look good in the Matchbox livery?

I don’t see why not? 
Some of the scales on them aren’t exactly accurate though! I was looking at a Routemaster by Corgi a while back which said it was 1:43 but it blatantly isn’t. It’s significantly smaller.

[flat4alfa]

On 02/02/2025 at 15:29, bunglebus said:

Yeah it's marked TCR, and definitely a Pantera. Cost me a fiver, yours if you want it

Dug out the Ideal TCR cars

Oh no, I don't have the Pantera

Which means only one thing

I have to buy it now!