Shite in Miniature II

[junkyarddog]

Well,this was an unexpected twist to tat Friday!!

Please tell me one of you bought that Tin plate Rambler!

[bunglebus]

50 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Excellent to finally meet you, Rich!

It's funny, you don't type with an Irish accent...

[bunglebus]

1 minute ago, junkyarddog said:

Well,this was an unexpected twist to tat Friday!!

Please tell me one of you bought that Tin plate Rambler!

I didn't but it really was lovely. Turning up sans cash was probably a good move on my part

Anyone know the brand?

[junkyarddog]

Bandai?

[Datsuncog]

After a good natter, and exchange of mutual tat boxes, there was just about time for a quick whistle-stop tour of the market's other attractions...

Colin, of the Irish Tat Stall, was away on holiday this week but the new-release 1/72 Oxfords had shown up in the shape of the Emberglow Metro.

Not so much down at the other end of the stall, where Toon'd Hot Wheels Silverados seem to be breeding...

No Matchbox this week, and no new Greenlights to interest me much.

The Charity Stall had nothing bar some very cheap plastic toys in a 50p rummage box, but nothing really to tickle our collective fancies.

Alan was... Alan.

He won't be rushed.

So, while waiting for him to set out the 50p Tray, time for coffee and buns over at Drop Hopper...

[Datsuncog]

10 minutes ago, junkyarddog said:

Bandai?

I think you might be right!

The logo in the middle of the baseplate writing looked like a stylised gothic print 'B', as per the lower left hand one here.

Awesome, thanks!

I really liked the Rambler too, but I just couldn't bring myself to pony up £40 for it.

[bunglebus]

28 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

@flat4alfa 

I'm sure this is the same as the wheel-less one that headed your way a while back

[barrett]

27 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

I really liked the Rambler too, but I just couldn't bring myself to pony up £40 for it.

Looking at prices realised on ebay, that's actually possibly something of a bargain.

The 1980s tinplate Buick, Corvette etc are extremely nostalaic for me. There was a period of time when every upper-middle class household, or young 'design' type, or Yuppie in general seemed to have one of those on their mantlepiece. A real zeitgeist moment when '50s Americana was suddenly extremely cool in the UK and Europe. As a child, they were always quite fascinating to me, although it was obvious they were 'new' and not actually old. I did actually get one as a Christmas gift one year (which I still have). If I ever become upper-middle class, or design-y, or a yuppie, it will be proudly displayed in my minimalist Bauhaus-inspired living room, alongside one of these:

 

I'd actually like to know the story of those things. Who made them? Why did they catch on in such an enormous way? Were they actually replicas of old Bandai toys or just 'in the style of'? I bet you can still buy them new, somewhere.

[bunglebus]

Old meets new

[Datsuncog]

With time ticking on, and the workday breathing uncomfortably down our necks, all too soon we had to say cheerio and go our respective ways - but I managed a final sweep just in case anything fantastic had suddenly materialised.

Because, as we know all too well from this thread, strange things do happen...

Although I think all the strangeness had already happened for the day!

Nothing of interest on the £2 table, annoyingly.

I'd kinda hoped the police Hongwells from last week might have been downgraded to here - but not yet, anyway.

Some of the boxes had been partially emptied out onto the table, giving us some early Lesneys...

Big tinplate fire truck was quite appealing too.

Some okay Superfast era Lesneys too, but quite a bit of repainting was evident.

Regular wheels VW fastback was redone in matt red, for some reason, and of course the A-pillar was cracked.

Corgi Whizzwheels quarry dumper looking a bit ungainly on the speed wheels, as well it might.

Mercury Commuter on wide wheels not too bad; Lincoln on narrow wheels also appealed, but a cracked screen put me off.

I've a nice regular wheels Lincoln, but I sort of want one of these too.

I could also have come away with this...

Yeah, it's like four rectangular ceramic plates joined together in a wooden frame, and a load of jumbled text and gold leaf on the back of each one with 'authenticity stamps' and limited edition numbers and 'authorised by the estate of Elvis Aron Presley'.

What would you even do with this?

So, ruminating, off I went into the brightening morning...

...with a bag. Of course.

 

[Split_Pin]

I was hoping that the collective forces of you two would summon up a 4m² tray of £5 Hong Kong 1/76 scale buses, or a Bburago Renault Fuego. 

Next time.

Next time.

[Datsuncog]

There's always a next time!

[Zie]

23 hours ago, bunglebus said:

Did you nab them? Could do with the BMW for its glazing if nothing else 

Yeah couldn't say no at that price, a fair few the same as I had as a kid. 

BMW looks like a stolen recovered. 

[bunglebus]

Cracked screen, dammit

[MiniMinorMk3]

5 hours ago, bunglebus said:

This is lovely

 

That is in great condition.

2 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

But there were some new tinplates, too.

And oh, this Rambler station wagon was just glorious. How it's survived in such good nick is anyone's guess.

 

It is good.

2 hours ago, bunglebus said:

I didn't but it really was lovely. Turning up sans cash was probably a good move on my part

Anyone know the brand?

Bandai

2 hours ago, junkyarddog said:

Bandai?

Beat me to it!

1 hour ago, Datsuncog said:

I think you might be right!

The logo in the middle of the baseplate writing looked like a stylised gothic print 'B', as per the lower left hand one here.

Awesome, thanks!

I really liked the Rambler too, but I just couldn't bring myself to pony up £40 for it.

Yes £40 is a very very good bargain.

A quick browse of teh interwebs throws up various examples

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/235349692530  Advertised at £102

This one sold for $212

Vintage 1959 Bandai Rambler Rebel 4 Door Station Wagon Friction Tin Toy Car NIB -- Antique Price Guide Details Page (antiquesnavigator.com)

 

[MiniMinorMk3]

I've done some more on the Corgi Mini project.

I've polished the windows to get rid of the file marks.

As I am building a road going Mini Cooper I needed a rear bumper with the little towel rails on. On my unboxed shelf there was an early Vanguards, which is teh same casting as the modern Mini that has donated it's windows, seats etc. So the Vanguards was quickly drilled to break the rivet and the bumpers cut from the base.

No I have another project that will need a bit of filler in the back...

some filling and filing at the front...

and with some some race numbers this will quickly turn into a Cooper Car Company BSCC car from around 1965. But that's for another day.

  

To get the bumpers to sit properly I ground away the front...

and rear bumpers on the original Corgi.

Then the roof was filled with some Araldite.

I have also stuck the grille in...

and filled round the edges.

[Datsuncog]

5 hours ago, Jon said:

Hmm. Cooper-Jarrett trailer with intact doors! If that's a couple of quid, colour me interested. Am still very much after a bogie for the double trailer rig, too...

Looking forward to further surprise duo updates! Were you aware of a guest appearance prior, Tim?

Sadly I was already gone for the day before I saw this - but yes, it was a pretty decent example of the trailer.

Will keep an eye out for it next week!

And now - what did I come away with?

[Datsuncog]

Well, a few things.

Fortune was smiling upon @quicksilver...

On 26/01/2024 at 10:20, quicksilver said:

@Datsuncog was this in the £5 or £10 box? If the former can you grab it for me please?

The requested Majorette gooseneck caravan in Coca Cola Football colours turned up again in one of today's boxes.

It's a curious thing; after a fair bit of poking at it, it became clear that this was the same casting as the Majorette camper - it just has the plastic back removed, and a wind spoiler hiding the hole in the roof where the front clips on (I believe Majorette had done that before - turning the Renault 18 Taxi into a caravan towcar with a wind deflector clipping into the same aperture as the taxi sign)

Look at that. It even has the gooseneck hitch just visible through the window.

It's also odd in that Majorette tended to model accurate renditions of vehicles, but it seems that this is just a generic pickup of no particular manufacturer. It looks a little bit Ford or Mazda, but not definitively either of them.

Underneath just says 'Camping Car', which isn't very illuminating.

Still - not bad value for £3, and marking a reduction from previous price points.

Will set that one aside for you, dude!

[bunglebus]

Very odd that the trailer hitch is cast in despite the camper body not using it

[Datsuncog]

Then there was this Corgi Land Rover breakdown wagon:

Missing its towing hook, although it's been ingeniously reconfigured so it can now act as a mobile gallows, so, y'know... swings and roundabouts.

The tinplate canopy had come loose and was in the bottom of the box - it's a little bit bent, but I sort of like it because of that.

It just feels like an honest little model that's been used, but not abused, during a long working life.

I had one of these as a kid and managed to lose it during an ill-fated trip to the beach at Kilclief, when a deep tunnel in the sand collapsed while it was 'driving' through, and no matter how much I dug I just couldn't find it again.

Nice to have one again - and, at £5, half the price it was back in January.

On 26/01/2024 at 09:08, Datsuncog said:

More boxes of Corgi and Lesney too.

But honestly, I can't be paying those sort of prices for these. I'm not quite seeing a tenner's worth in most of the items offered.

 

A keeper, for now.

[Datsuncog]

Also finding favour the second time around were these pair of Lesneys:

Once again, present in January but kinda too pricey at £5 each.

On 26/01/2024 at 08:49, Datsuncog said:

He wants £5 for the chipped, unboxed MoYs and Days Gone and the Humbrol'd EFEs in the smaller box.

I mean, what?

Really?

£3 is rather more palatable to me, for the Superfast Monteverdi Hai and for the regular wheels Opel Diplomat.

The Monteverdi is just so 70s; it looks awesome.

I can't remember if I have a Diplomat already - but this one's pretty clean, so if it turns out to be surplus, it's available for the £3 paid.

[Datsuncog]

Also putting in an encore from its January debut was this 1-75 range Ford Model A van.

I know, I know - they're everywhere, they're boring. The omnipresent Kelloggs Cornflakes promo. I know.

But it's totally pristine. No yellowing to the roof, no dulling of the chrome. It's perfect.

I'll be honest: I just love this era of box. It's these illustrations I lusted over when I was like three or so.

So I wasn't going to pass up a lovely clean boxed example at a fiver. I'm pleased with this, although I realise probably shouldn't be.

[Datsuncog]

And wrapping up today's Tat Stall acquisitions was this filthy but still appealing Corgi Commer milk float.

It's one I was missing - I have a white chassis from a Constructor Gift Set, but no milk float back on it.

Although this is the mainline release without the removable back.

Hopefully it should scrub up alright - a spot of soapy water later should make it a little more presentable, and then it can join the others on the fleet.

[Split_Pin]

[Datsuncog]

But! That's not all... because today you see, there was a Bunglebox in the mix also...

And within was...

Some Matchbox I couldn't resist when they came up on the @bunglebus sales thread.

A few service vehicles which appear better than the ones I have already...

And some construction site vehicles likewise.

Some of these may go down to my folks' place for my brother's kids to play with, but I'm already thinking they're maybe a bit too nice for that.

Plus some others:

The controversial generic tractor unit which may have been modified from a Leyland prototype (and which I erroneously thought for years was a Mercedes); a Rover SD1 peelermobile with more paint than my current version, and a delightful Land Rover 90 which is exactly the same as one I had as a kid, only it's not had the roof turned yellow with prolonged UV light exposure.

And! Bonus unexpected Corgi Cubs:

The ambulance isn't one I've had before, and the Fire Chief car's a bit cleaner than the one I already have.

Hmm... maybe the kids should get these instead, and I'll hang on to the Matchbox a wee bit longer...

There were also these:

Recent Mattel releases which I've found unaccountably difficult to track down locally.

I believe the Proton and bay window VW pickup were sourced from Germany, so this truly is an international operation happening on the Smol Tat Thread.

Which brings us to an additional Proton that was in the box - one that'll be added to the current @andy18stat box, for eventual shipping onwards to Bulgaria.

So there we go... I tell you, it's a whirlwind...

[Datsuncog]

Is that the finish line for today?

Y'know, I think it is.

I'm adding in the Matchbox Magirus Deutz fire tender as I still reckon it's been a pretty special find this week - and also because researching the history of the casting kept me up waaay too late, and sort of spilled over into Tat Friday by default.

So there we are - a banger of a day, and all thanks to @bunglebus for making time to call up for some tat market action!

Hopefully that'll not be the last time a thread regular makes it over to these damp shores... I can't guarantee dryness, but I can guarantee you'll be most welcome.

Until next time... Happy Friday, kids.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

When you get bored of the Corgi Land Rover I’ll give it home to go with the canopy-less one you previously supplied. Which brings me to todays big arrival, or as my wife pointed out;probably my favourite present I’ll get for my 60th ! Yes, a Cogbox.

And as usual I’d forgotten what was in it, the Fiat was a total surprise. The Cortina the only one I’ll be getting for my birthday as MrsN can’t find one ,of any mark,  worth buying in 1:1 so far. Well not this side of £8,000 anyway.

[Split_Pin]

I had that Magirus as a kid, it would have been around 1986. It came in a set with a Unimog that had a foam cannon and a generator trailer, together with a selection of firemen.  A pretty cool toy by all accounts.

[sheffcortinacentre]

Anyone recognise this mercury cougar slot car  ( ho-ish scale) no marking looks unused?

[Split_Pin]

I originally thought that was a Micro Machine but a quick Google tells me it's an Auto World. Actual Micro Machines Slot cars are the same size as regular ones i.e. much smaller and more of a caricature of the car.