Jump to content

Shite in Miniature II


Split_Pin

Recommended Posts

7 hours ago, eddyramrod said:

You jammy sod, I've been chasing those on ebay for years!  It doesn't have to have the speaker on the roof; it doesn't even have to have a box!  One day... (yeah, keep telling yourself that, Edward, you might even believe it eventually)

You're welcome to buy it if you'd like to make an offer ;-)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, Sudsprint said:

Brilliant write up!

 

12 hours ago, Split_Pin said:

Agreed on the Lesney fantasy cars write up, nice one Tim.

I can't say I ever cared for them, preferring models of cars that I could see on the road, but I can appreciate them now and will definitely look out for the 'Vauxhall'.

 

12 hours ago, 155V6 said:

+1 for the write up on the fantasy cars.The one that looks a bit like the Stretcha Fetcha is the George Barris SuperVan .I've got a Zylmex model of it,but could I find it? 

Cheers, folks - glad you got something out of it!

Yeah, the hate was always strong in me for fantasy cars - from any manufacturer - because hey, every Woosh 'n' Push and Mod Rod in the range was a waste of good metal that could have been a Mk3 Cortina or Austin Allegro instead...

But Vulg's top-notch restorations/modifications have given me reason to look at these omnipresent childhood automotive irritants with fresh eyes - and also do a spot of research into why they even came about. And, you know, I kinda get them now.

Like David Cassidy and jeans with tartan turn-ups, I can't fully grasp why certain things were so amazingly popular in the early 1970s - but I guess a bit of context kinda helps.

It makes sense to me now that, in an effort to fend off the threat from Mattel and woo youngsters back through greater novelty and excitement, Lesney skipped rapidly from manufacturer prototypes, to speculative cars of the future, to off-the-wall customs inspired by some of the wildest and most cutting-edge designs from the pages of hot rod magazines (as above).

It was a bold move, but it worked. Their designers grasped that making toy cars was no longer simply about making a decent replica of Dad's grey Austin to push around the carpet. Mostly.

For kids like me, it was still about the realism - but I guess I would have been in the minority. I'd love to know what the year-on-year sales figures were for each model in the 1-75 range. How did the Soopa Coopa sell against the Renault 17?

Corgi responded in a similar manner, consolidating their brand by refining  and retooling their smaller Husky range as Corgi Juniors with Whizzwheels - and also modelling motor show concept cars, like the Alfa Romeo Carabo and the Mercedes C111. They didn't commit as fully to the fantasy route of Matchbox - though continued to develop their valuable TV-franchise toys with increasingly bizarre and unique vehicles. As their 1970 brochure indicated, the future was looking bold and exciting...

75104115_CorgiToysCatalogue1970.thumb.jpg.a4df1f2ebfd1343157fa878dfd4c8ff1.jpg

Essentially, Hot Wheels' competition forced other manufacturers to change their game, rightly or wrongly. Action and Playvalue suddenly became buzzwords for UK diecast makers - and they could see their cars needed more than just opening doors to qualify as 'exciting'...

Matchbox had offered their Motorway tracks since the 1960s - but how exciting was that, to basically watch traffic circulating?

1060371962_MatchboxMotorwaySet.jpg.c6ceb3e95c345492280158f0d080172f.jpg

1876714827_MatchboxMotorwaySet-up.thumb.jpg.db44d3bd9e672758c8fe37d629203845.jpg

When you could have jumps, loop-the-loops and battery powered drag racing? Within a year or two, both Matchbox and Corgi were offering dizzying, gravity-defying racetracks featuring eyecatching vehicles - the fun was in the motion and the spills; what the cars could do, rather than just what they were.

1202965722_MatchboxSuperfastAlpineSet.thumb.jpg.492f9fdbbad359139b799b75ed4cca18.jpg

559607412_MBSuperfastTrack.jpg.3cfbca2196dff890a037684b43638e26.jpg

 

22078234_CorgiRocketsTrackAd.jpg.212c8048198d08638e3e99119331d051.jpg

Ah now. Basically, this diecast era which I'd written off as 'stupid' has come to interest me a bit, and I'm doing a bit of digging to educate myself, while also popping the results up here - just in case anyone else is interested.

(This is what happens when you work as a government researcher but there's no current government... )

And by all means, add to this stuff! I know bog-all, but I'm sure you lot have collective knowledge and memories that knock Google into the proverbial cocked hat.

Thanks to all for the encouragement, and stay tuned!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On ‎5‎/‎16‎/‎2019 at 11:50 AM, Datsuncog said:

Oh, and unfortunately I won't be in Belfast tomorrow, so I'll have to forgo my usual Friday Minishite Market Tat expedition - apologies!

(Knowing my luck, this is what Market Blokey's stall will look like tomorrow, in my absence...)

Nightmare.thumb.png.968d280a03e49c4782554d4c7308569a.png

Remember what I said last week?

 

Bollocks, I was only right and all.

HUGE amount of new diecast on the stall this morning. Mostly old stuff, but lots of other curios too.

Only I was running late because TRAIN and didn't have time for a proper guddle.

Heading back over there shortly - here's what I snapped earlier so if anything appeals, sing out quick and I'll do my best!

20190524_085156.thumb.jpg.118876f7d816050a69b52f4ad39451a7.jpg

^^^Mostly repaints of variable quality

20190524_085209.thumb.jpg.cc40da35de33028b6ae3d96c37579251.jpg

Also repaints? Weird bubbling happening on these, but at £2 a pop, maybe they'll do someone?

20190524_091913.thumb.jpg.901f841b596015a26bf150aab7fa7701.jpg

Can't see these being offered out at much more than £1 or so.

20190524_091417.thumb.jpg.1d727bcf02622264535b239922dd88f8.jpg

Heh, I remember those Sindy beach buggies; seems that everyone's sister had them in the mid-80s. The massive hardboard caravan's a new one on me, though.

20190524_091423.thumb.jpg.3147b1f376c6e671157a9755e2d79eda.jpg

Lexus LS400 cab is an unusual version... I'll assume a cackhanded Code 3 with Letraset.

20190524_085527.thumb.jpg.827901807f0f387e8af862e2d5afa1d6.jpg

Bizarre Corgi 'Turbine Truck' thing I ain't never seen before.

20190524_091712.thumb.jpg.eb3daff63295ffa2c73905c5bedc903e.jpg

20190524_091708.thumb.jpg.3b373437bdea95e2da58b80a3f145828.jpg

^^^ Lone Star E-Type: possibly the worst diecast rendition I've ever seen (yet, still strangely appealing nonetheless)

20190524_085325.thumb.jpg.444986aef4065fe8d7d0f220150a2f2e.jpg

Modern-ish stuff.

20190524_085329.thumb.jpg.97cc0983e3167937c32db45f2119537a.jpg

^^^ I should have bought this

20190524_085311.thumb.jpg.65b2fea087b1fbee1409ac0274dbf038.jpg

^^^ And this too - I'm not really doing large-scale stuff these days, but wasn't someone on here looking a Bburago Merc 190 recently?

20190524_091951.thumb.jpg.fe835413bcb403f21b0cde16961b222d.jpg

20190524_091931.thumb.jpg.4645e4742f379fd74ac07cace8cb5492.jpg

^^^ 50p Boxes were overflowing again with 70s Superfasts and Whizzwheels; most of 'em utterly bollocksed, naturally, but some still looking salvageable.

20190524_090915.thumb.jpg.4a8e17271dc41ab97bec45ceba3feddd.jpg

20190524_090919.thumb.jpg.8e0c7cb94d1040c68a136506525dfa94.jpg

I'll have my phone on me to read any pleas for diecast succour! Updates to follow...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Right, well... market revisited... and yeah, I kinda lost the run of myself. Again.

I'd bopped over to St George's in the vain hope of picking up that limited-edition white Vanguards Transit, but it was gone (and probably already on eBay for more than my house is worth, because FORD M8).

I'd also wondered if maybe those bubbly 1950s Lesneys might, after all, be quite nice - but they were also all gone.

On ‎5‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 2:27 PM, flat4alfa said:

I spot a Batmobile with the red wheel bats centres

How much is he wanting 

Hell's teeth, I hadn't even clocked that... think he was looking a tenner for the stuff on the top shelf. Might not have been there when I went back, mind - the stall was already pretty depleted in the space of three hours.

The homemade minicab Lexus was still there, but had an asking price of £15 and, nice as it might be once the wonky lettering's been cleaned off, I don't want to fall back down the 1/18 rabbithole (they're much harder to conceal under the bed, I find).

So I consoled myself by going buck daft in the 50p boxes. As you do.

So, not just Amishtat suffering a hefty dose of buyer's remorse this afternoon. When will I ever learn?

This is what I scooped...

20190524_122424.thumb.jpg.d0bce01e554ef6b7ede29ebfabbaafc7.jpg

20190524_122431.thumb.jpg.d1e644ddde0041449d9d1d93db8da55d.jpg20190524_122539.thumb.jpg.98f68ca61c36847a385908d21a7eb66e.jpg

Matchbox Superfasts - MB 52 Dodge Charger III (another manufacturer concept car, this one first seen in 1968) and MB 27 Lamborghini Countach - which, at the point this model appeared, also only existed as a single concept car, put together by Marcello Gandini for the 1971 Geneva Motor Show. Later prototypes and the 1975 production car came with much more in the way of cooling scoops and whatnot. So both these toys tie in with whatever-it-was I was wittering about yesterday.

20190524_122503.thumb.jpg.d610e4861d646f21ce6148ceed48c317.jpg

This version of Matchbox's Countach is also notable as it featured tampo-print markings directly to the body of the models. Previously, paper stickers or waterslide transfers had been used to add decoration to Matchbox toys, but this method allowed more intricate designs. Tampo-print Superfasts were referred to as 'Streakers' and came in unique packaging (even though they were pretty much copying something Mattel were already doing).

 

20190524_122832.thumb.jpg.cc4cf33492e2939e8d1225e9f6067a1f.jpg

20190524_122844.thumb.jpg.a3a2f804f574df3949c532f3f53394e7.jpg

20190524_122858.thumb.jpg.07c74ba4fe9d90d410d81b4fb8951f27.jpg

MOAR Superfast - the Soopa Coopa in a belated attempt to appreciate it for what it is, and also because I've never before found one with both glazing and engine intact.

The Saab Sonett III (SNAP with Amishtat) is almost as good as a fantasy vehicle, given that they were made in such small quantities and not officially sold in the UK. For years, I thought that this was some sort of prototype, as I'd certainly never seen one. But, although an unusual choice (and the only Saab ever modelled by Matchbox?) it certainly had the right long-nose, short-tail look for the speed demon image Matchbox was pushing in '73.

The Red Rider is a much later model, a 1980s reissue of the Pie-Eyed Piper from the previous decade. I had this as part of one of those 20-car bumper gift sets; though I think it may have been sold individually too. Note the crude 'Made in China' modification to the base, erasing any mention of Lesney and 'Made in England'.

 

20190524_122601.thumb.jpg.2bf49b115a506f8406a60b7c1f6c550a.jpg

20190524_122620.thumb.jpg.09181c155550a5b634c812a05a9a646c.jpg

I like that Dodge Commando Pepsi truck; real versions weren't all that common, and I owned one of these when I was very small. One for the nostalgia box.

The two Unimogs are missing tyres but otherwise not that bad. I'm not sure why I took these, other than grabby-hands syndrome.

 

20190524_122738.thumb.jpg.7c89395f81a1623b48fc01f120761d1f.jpg

20190524_122752.thumb.jpg.8b59031436ac0ce742b2067ee98c9f49.jpg

20190524_122807.thumb.jpg.360ae924057eced5331fa9ddf76c22c3.jpg

From Lesney to Playcraft… some from the Corgi stable now.

The Husky Aston DB6 has bits of bumper missing and gained a repaint, but is still a handsome model and the suspension is intact. This casting enjoyed a very long life, still popping up well into the 1990s.

The Mercedes Benz C111 was part of Corgi's new-found efforts to appear cutting-edge: ditching the Husky name and buildings models of the cars of the future, not just replicas of Auntie Edna's Mini. The C111 was a Mercedes rotary-engine concept car from 1969, so Corgi were doing well to get it on the front of their 1970 catalogue. Corgi made a version of the C111 in both 1/64-ish Juniors scale and in 1/43 scale.

The blue thing is simply called a 'Can Am Racer', and is a basic enough little thing BUT does feature a 'Growler' mechanism - a rasping device not unlike sticking a playing card in the spokes of your bike wheel, which I believe were meant to approximate exhaust noise.

I'm not sure how successful these were (I had a Ford GT90 in both Growler and non-Growler versions - dunno which came first) and the whole enterprise does smack of Corgi feeling a need to produce something reasonably cheap and just a little bit gimmicky, as a retort to Lesney's (gimmicky) Rolamatics range.

Still, it's in surprisingly good nick, this model. Though four securing rivets to the underside does feel like overkill, maybe?

 

Now here's a bit of a rarity...

20190524_141505.thumb.jpg.6b394b5cc4899b565450acb3dc1c7774.jpg

20190524_141512.thumb.jpg.a6cac8d894958fab3e495299bb1b0eeb.jpg

Yes. Matchbox did produce an Alfa Carabo - Bertone's amazing contribution to the 1960s wedge wars, and which ultimately influenced the Lamborghini Countach, with its scissor-action doors and near-flat lines - but this one is by Corgi. A Corgi Rocket, no less.

20190524_141521.thumb.jpg.4bef81b17a730b461131437ba8884f65.jpg

Built to beat Hot Wheels at their own game with their intricate race tracks and 'tuned for speed' tagline, Corgi launched the Rockets range with great fanfare and scooped 1971's Toy Of The Year prize. With bodies made from electroplated chrome oversprayed with coloured lacquer, they were also fast and eyecatching - even if their much-vaunted 'strip n tune' function basically consisted of putting a drop of oil on each exposed axle.

1261388081_CorgiRocketsBertoneCaraboFront.thumb.jpg.b798b824b56fa8dabbd8d140506e691a.jpg

 

1686857207_CorgiRocketsBertoneCaraboFrontBack.thumb.jpg.d88866de01a2de9b10d675fd0a784f41.jpg

1065685417_CorgiRocketsTrackAd.jpg.8c1ac3c7b75f02b09854db3113b85305.jpg

Unfortunately for Corgi, Mattel held a patent for this kind of flexible track, and a court case determined that Corgi had infringed it. They were permitted to sell existing shop stock, but manufacture no more.

A year after coming to market, Corgi Rockets were gone. (I'm not sure why Matchbox didn't get a tug too, since their Superfast track was also the same basic idea - unless the case hinged on some specific feature of Corgi's track.)

Rockets sets are, apparently, amongst the most valuable pieces from the Corgi Toys oeuvre by dint of sheer rarity. Vectis Auctions has achieved four-figure sums for some of them - with the James Bond gift set, containing unique iterations of the Ford Escort and Ford Capri, achieving 'Holy Grail' status amongst serious collectors with deep pockets.

1751083051_CorgiRockets007JamesBondGiftPack.thumb.jpg.0946acd3cec2d82922ef5301fbe5bf22.jpg

 

Hot Wheels and Majorette, now...

20190524_122926.thumb.jpg.37ba6fef3aeed668b6b5d2f660f88779.jpg

20190524_122948.thumb.jpg.73491c6ff2c5a1ce406dd7c9ce9aba4c.jpg

20190524_123002.thumb.jpg.c6049af763bed3a16e6ce91b217a626b.jpg

The Chevrolet Vega is a recent release and has suffered a bit of toybox wear, but still a tidy wee casting. I'll keep this for a bit, I think.

The 'Minitrek' camper is one I used to own when I was a kid, and I swear I was just thinking about it on Wednesday afternoon, wondering where the hell it went as I really loved it and I would never have got rid of it - yet I can't remember seeing it much past 1986. At a guess, it was a casualty whenever my dad demolished the greenhouse (cos my brother kept falling through it) and I spent a while hiding cars in the 'caves' left by the broken-up founds, before it was all rotavated and grassed over.

I know I lost an ERTL police car in that episode, through being too good at hiding them and not good enough at finding them... maybe that's where my Minitrek went?

Tampo prints have rubbed off, but it still looks good in AS team colours, you'll agree.

The Majorette Toyota Lite Ace... erm...

At the market: "Wow! It's got pink wheels!"

Back at my computer: "Oh... it's got pink wheels."

Sorry, really dunno what I was thinking. Was this something like a Majorette equivalent to those 'My First Matchbox' cars?

 

Bigger scale stuff, now...

20190524_122633.thumb.jpg.5c7722b3c9d206703a7124f3d942279a.jpg

20190524_122641.thumb.jpg.b758c11fc2d54eb361877d0682e11ac0.jpg

20190524_122651.thumb.jpg.22c0dfbeef85be724c33e68cab9ed631.jpg

A Hot Wheels branded BMW 635, in 1/43 scale... weren't these essentially rebranded Polistils, or am I confusing them with something else?

I owned a few of these, along with their Bburago competitors, but found them not quite as sharp as Bburago, castings wise.

This one's picked up a few scrapes but the sticky residue should clean off ok, hopefully.

 

20190524_122659.thumb.jpg.cfb882ea60374f24d3e7e15854572fee.jpg

20190524_122705.thumb.jpg.6be08ef9750da44efc8e75ff60417437.jpg

20190524_122714.thumb.jpg.e1011011f9168f41c26f3b0d57c4a206.jpg

I probably should have left this Mustang, as it is fucked - missing door, missing A-posts, and cracks to the sills just behind the (missing) side rivets. But, y'know... 50p. ?

 

20190524_123014.thumb.jpg.e45e9cec33a4288bb1b779b8449083a0.jpg

20190524_123020.thumb.jpg.d00f288d3cb5b984b8d629429fc5bd06.jpg

20190524_123035.thumb.jpg.189ee7ada705265588f0e8274a473afc.jpg

And, ultimately, I did pick this one up too. Possibly just to make it up to a round tenner for Blokey

I have no need of this (like the others, pretty much) but figured that maybe someone on here could use it?

 

Yargh. Remorse, remorse, remorse... I'm full of it. Oh well. I probably should try to sort the Box Under The Bed (you can tell it's bad when it becomes capitalised) this weekend, and offer out my assorted OMG MARKETFIND M8 diecasts to any folks here who can rehome them.

Then I'll go out next week and do it all again. I am a silly sausage.

Watch this space.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Enjoying your ponderings about 1970s Matchbox/Corgi/Hot Wheels etc Datsuncog. As a child of the '70s these very much define my younger days.

I don't recall having strong feelings either way about the OTT custom/prototype models, but if I think back to those I remember playing with most they were the more standard type of vehicles - the everyday cars and lorries. Easier to recreate what I was seeing around me? Dominos made useful loads for the HGVs.

Matchbox Superfast were my main playthings, followed by Corgi and a handful of Majorettes (and very few, if any, HW). Although they'd been replaced by Superfast by the time I was born, I did have a few regular wheels as hand-me-downs and jumble sale finds. The latter were pretty poor on my double-loop race track, and Corgis with plastic bases weren't that great either.

Fastest one I had on that track and the various extensions it ended up with over the years was a pink Lotus Europa with no doors. Rola-matics weren't much good, so would end up with the little plastic nibs on the wheels snipped-off. Had a Growler E-Type that of course was useless.

My loop set had Streakers versions of the Countach (as just purchased by DC) and a Hairy Hustler. Both survive, as does most of the track, but the Lamborghini has ended up with a rather clumsy white Humbrol repaint. Some years later I got the Stunt Jump set and that had the unlikely combination of BMW CSL and Citroen CX.

DSCN6639.thumb.JPG.6643717d3d0b96f5fc1e02e595d6a4c5.JPG

What I liked most as an accessory to my Superfast etc was a card roadway set I had, like the above that I bought a few years ago as a replacement . The scale suited the cars nicely. I also had one of thicker card but narrower lanes and tighter bends which wasn't as satisfying. Edit: Just remembered the good one was called Roadmaker - I've picked up a couple of versions of it off eBay.

Searching fruitlessly for photos I stumbled across one for Matchbox Playtrack. That seemed a bit too toy-like with chunky single-lane plastic tracks in bright colours.

Tomica Hypercity was a good modern version which my son had. Shame they don't appear to sell it here any more. I still regret that a local shop wouldn't/couldn't sell me their Hypercity display when it was clear they didn't have any stock to sell.

Picked up some HWs at the local supermarket tonight - VW SP2 and '69 Squareback Custom plus an Escort Mk1. There were versions of the Skyline R32 and Mazda REPU that differ to what I already have, but that way madness lies. I just pick up whatever random oldies that I find appealing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/25/2019 at 7:28 AM, Spottedlaurel said:

 

Maybe I'm imagining it, but did old Highway Codes use real toy vehicles on Roadmaker track?

I seem to remember that,black & white pictures with the flashing indicators added in colour?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I had several of these as a kid plus a smaller Matchbox version. I couldn't resist this for a quid from ebay.

Picking up a box from the Post Office today from our Mk2_Craig and that's the end of scale model car buying for the forseeable future or until I get another job.

IMG_20190526_220249_681.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 25 May 2019 at 7:28 AM, Spottedlaurel said:

My Stunt Jump photo located now Flickr is back up and running:

5847870148_71541f8a29_o.jpg

Matchbox S-800 Stunt Jump set by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr

Maybe I'm imagining it, but did old Highway Codes use real toy vehicles on Roadmaker track?

Don't know about the track, but I definitely remember the cars in the green edition, late 60's.

image.jpeg.accec02d28dc3d397847fe593d227e37.jpeg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been to 3 car boots & a couple of charity shops this weekend,& not bought a single diecast model.All I've seen is modern Chinese rubbish,& Matchbox & Corgi stuff that looks like it's been at the bottom of the sea for 10 years.  

Verdict-disappointed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/24/2019 at 4:51 PM, Datsuncog said:

20190524_123014.thumb.jpg.e45e9cec33a4288bb1b779b8449083a0.jpg

20190524_123020.thumb.jpg.d00f288d3cb5b984b8d629429fc5bd06.jpg

20190524_123035.thumb.jpg.189ee7ada705265588f0e8274a473afc.jpg

And, ultimately, I did pick this one up too. Possibly just to make it up to a round tenner for Blokey

I have no need of this (like the others, pretty much) but figured that maybe someone on here could use it?

 

Yargh. Remorse, remorse, remorse... I'm full of it. Oh well. I probably should try to sort the Box Under The Bed (you can tell it's bad when it becomes capitalised) this weekend, and offer out my assorted OMG MARKETFIND M8 diecasts to any folks here who can rehome them.

Then I'll go out next week and do it all again. I am a silly sausage.

Watch this space.

Can't sleep ?

Is the Merc 190 available? I used to have one but I think it's in that completely missing box with my 1.24 scale Chrysler Voyager.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Lord Sterling said:

Is the Merc 190 available? I used to have one but I think it's in that completely missing box with my 1.24 scale Chrysler Voyager.

Yep, it sure is... 

I only noticed when I got it home that although the wingmirrors and wiper are still in place (complete with impressive wipermarks to the screen), the backs of both front seats are unaccountably missing... weird. Not all that noticeable, though!

There's a few chips to the paint here and there, but if you still fancy then it I'll put it aside for you with your other bits and bobs (Citroen C4, Czech tinplate garage) - Blokey charged me £2, if you're happy enough with that?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On ‎5‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 11:28 PM, Spottedlaurel said:

Enjoying your ponderings about 1970s Matchbox/Corgi/Hot Wheels etc Datsuncog. As a child of the '70s these very much define my younger days.

I don't recall having strong feelings either way about the OTT custom/prototype models, but if I think back to those I remember playing with most they were the more standard type of vehicles - the everyday cars and lorries. Easier to recreate what I was seeing around me? Dominos made useful loads for the HGVs.

Matchbox Superfast were my main playthings, followed by Corgi and a handful of Majorettes (and very few, if any, HW). Although they'd been replaced by Superfast by the time I was born, I did have a few regular wheels as hand-me-downs and jumble sale finds. The latter were pretty poor on my double-loop race track, and Corgis with plastic bases weren't that great either.

Fastest one I had on that track and the various extensions it ended up with over the years was a pink Lotus Europa with no doors. Rola-matics weren't much good, so would end up with the little plastic nibs on the wheels snipped-off. Had a Growler E-Type that of course was useless.

My loop set had Streakers versions of the Countach (as just purchased by DC) and a Hairy Hustler. Both survive, as does most of the track, but the Lamborghini has ended up with a rather clumsy white Humbrol repaint. Some years later I got the Stunt Jump set and that had the unlikely combination of BMW CSL and Citroen CX.

DSCN6639.thumb.JPG.6643717d3d0b96f5fc1e02e595d6a4c5.JPG

What I liked most as an accessory to my Superfast etc was a card roadway set I had, like the above that I bought a few years ago as a replacement . The scale suited the cars nicely. I also had one of thicker card but narrower lanes and tighter bends which wasn't as satisfying. Edit: Just remembered the good one was called Roadmaker - I've picked up a couple of versions of it off eBay.

Cor, that's one amazing pic - positively green with envy here! Some lovely examples there, epic stuff.

Glad you got something out of my assorted ramblings, and good to hear how the different cars performed (or didn't) on the stunt track.

I think the same cardboard set appeared under a number of names - I received this 'Roadways' set in the late 80s/early 90s, but the cars (and the kids) appear to be from at least a decade before. Interesting mix of Matchbox, Corgi and Majorette cars in evidence.

IMG-20180426-WA0051.thumb.jpeg.1965a21f9162503b7ab3ac4c9baaa657.jpeg

I believe this set now lives with 155V6 - the box was a bit squished and bowed but, amazingly, the contents were almost all complete.

I also once owned another, slightly earlier-looking version, which came in a browny-orangy box and had a full-width photo depicting larger, mid-70s Dinky cars on the front like the Mini Clubman police car and AA Bedford CA van... the box was burst and the contents were mostly missing or torn, though. This might have been the Roadmaker set?

I know Dinky also used the same track in their 'Dinky Way' playsets (and interestingly, also show a police Clubman and AA Bedford), with a stylised box illustration - plus the lure of four shiny vehicles inside:

198649840_DinkyWayPlayset.thumb.jpg.490662679546c982dd3151916a911659.jpg

On ‎5‎/‎25‎/‎2019 at 6:44 AM, Split_Pin said:

I had the Matchbox Playtrack. I remember being slightly frustrated that it was essentially a one-way system as the track was only one car width. I did like the correct Uk roadsigns and the car park areas.

My Playtrack was a hand-me-down from my cousin, and I believe it looked a bit like this (red box, battered).

698944260_MatchboxPlayTrackSet.jpg.9c8888850503b98f1631e4495f7c509a.jpg

The over-bright colours and one-way nature of the track annoyed me too, as it wasn't like a real road... but there were a few bonus Matchbox cars still lurking in the bottom of the box, so swings and roundabouts... I did quite like the buildings, even if they were somewhat two-dimensional.

852423699_MatchboxPlayTrackpieces.jpg.366e3dd76dfe0ecd13fb34aa134bea41.jpg

The petrol station bit was ace (though mine was missing its orange canopy), as it was sloped so could gently 'launch' the cars.

Regrettably, I never had any of the more exciting loop racetracks - though I did receive one of these one Christmas:

1440398777_MatchboxMotorCity500Set.thumb.jpg.bf4f908836a702261537dfaa39d5e909.jpg

I could almost forgive the one-way track for the sheer size and Lego-like functionality of the modular system...

1205397770_MatchboxMotorCity500Set-up.jpg.4be5bfc3aec3918421d74f3c2b54e0b6.jpg

The 'correct' signs and street lights pleased me greatly. I kinda wish I'd hung onto this one, now - I think I sold it at a car boot sale in my mid-teens though, as I probably hadn't taken it out of the box for years and was rather more keen on Corgi Classics, Vitesse and Minichamps 1/43 by that stage...

(all pics yoinked from a search engine - sadly not mine)

I also had one of these when I was about four or so...

1136690831_HotWheelsConstructionSitePlayset.jpg.c7e6dfcf98de9b3151952c973cb60fe2.jpg

1808863834_HotWheelsConstructionSitePlayset2.jpg.7a69da1c15cdde70e469f65750596a19.jpg 

A Hot Wheels 'Sto-and-Go' Construction Site playset. It was brilliant - so many bits to move and work with, plus little garage areas to hide cars in... 

I still have some of those orange plastic 'steel girders' kicking around too... 

Good times.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Datsuncog said:

Yep, it sure is... 

I only noticed when I got it home that although the wingmirrors and wiper are still in place (complete with impressive wipermarks to the screen), the backs of both front seats are unaccountably missing... weird. Not all that noticeable, though!

There's a few chips to the paint here and there, but if you still fancy then it I'll put it aside for you with your other bits and bobs (Citroen C4, Czech tinplate garage) - Blokey charged me £2, if you're happy enough with that?

I am indeed!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On ‎5‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 7:12 PM, Noel Tidybeard said:

tell me moar about dinky atlantean buses please

He had three of 'em on the stall- one MIB Silver Jubilee jobber, and two orange and white versions wearing Kennings Car & Van Hire ads, one of which was boxed and the other loose. 

Think he was wanting a tenner for the boxed ones, and a fiver for the unboxed one - assuming they'll still be there on Friday!

On ‎5‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 10:34 PM, sheffcortinacentre said:

On the front of the table 2nd pic is that a 4dr 100e in grey if so I'm interested in that, I'm also looking for a flip body funny car matchbox I recall did a green beetle & ithink a dark pinkish charger (1-75) scale body condition not important want the base/ wheels if on in 50p box thanks.

All the metal-wheels Lesney had been scooped by the time I went back over, sadly - but I'll keep a look-out for any further 100Es, if you're looking one?

Will also search for any of those 1-75 funny cars, or indeed just the bases - I have the pink Charger in my own little collection, but it's minty and I'm keeping it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...