Shite in Miniature II

[MiniMinorMk3]

16 hours ago, bramz7 said:

 

When is a Norev not a Norev?

When it's by Universal Hobbies. 

 

Universal Hobbies used to supply models for sale in Renault Dealerships. Here's a Clio Renault Sport V6 24v.

 

And now for an odd ball Norev.

 

[flat4alfa]

17 hours ago, eddyramrod said:

I vaguely remember discussing a selection like this with someone here, referring to my Gerry Anderson project, and that someone did offer me a box of project vehicles.  Well it's here and it's great, thank you; there's plenty for me to fiddle with over the coming winter.  But, er... I don't remember who I was talking to, or even in what thread.

It was thus:

On 16/08/2024 at 14:08, eddyramrod said:

An ebay job-lot has arrived; I've posted most of it in my Diecast Sale thread.  I kept a couple back though, these are not for sale.  These are for my Gerry Anderson project: using 70s fantasy castings to make vehicles that could have been background traffic in any of the earthbound Anderson series.  I'm not restricting myself to modelling actual vehicles used, which is just as well.  So here's what I kept back:

They'll both get stripped and repainted.  I've done some already...

Including the blue truck!

On 16/08/2024 at 18:19, flat4alfa said:

I have a few of these available, without loads.  Are they of use?

K-13-2 and K-114 share a cab design and did get different number plates:  AKB 546N and KTH 683P

Also a few of K-9 Fire Tender with the 8-head V8 also shared cab design style with K-12 Crane

All repainted / ready for repaint / cutting about

[flat4alfa]

On 16/08/2024 at 21:15, eddyramrod said:

I can't turn those down, can I!  Thank you kind sir.  I seem to be turning into Derek Meddings here, lol!

RIP

[Datsuncog]

But fret not, the day wasn't completely devoid of tat.

After having to wait for a catering wholesaler's truck to bugger off (it'd double-parked for a delivery to Subway, and boxed me into the on-street parking bay outside the market), I took the opportunity to stop off at Cityside Retail Park on my way home.

This place contains the charity shop from which I'd had a bag of decent-looking Superfast Lesneys yoinked in front of my very eyes, a few months back. 

Today, they'd nothing whatsoever with wheels on offer.

It also contains branches of B&M and Home Bargains, and they did come up with some goodies:

I'm a terrible one for Dodge Chargers, and had been dithering over this Hot Wheels Silverline version in The Entertainer for some weeks now. Seeing it in B&M, a whole quid cheaper, was enough to sway me.

I'll compare it with a very similar Majorette version sometime.

The white Honda Civic coupe was in Home Bargains for £1.49, and again the relative cheapness did for me. I already have the gold version from earlier in the year, but if looks nicer in white, I reckon.

A swift hustle through Asda and Poundland gave nothing but older selections of Hot Wheels and Matchbox, so nothing doing there.

But a last-ditch exploration of one of the smaller branches of Tesco in North Belfast did pay off...

 

[Datsuncog]

Seems that Cityside Tesco is also going to let The Entertainer manage their toy aisle, and so are flogging off all their existing stock cheap before the big rebrand.

Only unlike the other branches I've visited, packed with remaindered older stock from 2023, this place has recently stocked up with 2024 series Matchbox 5-Packs...

Ohhh.

Well, that makes me feel a lot better about dithering over these same two sets when they were on offer at '2 for £15' in Sainsburys.

I did hunt through all of them in case there was a Volkswagen pack in there - but no, sadly not. No Autobahn Express V, either.

Oddly, they only had a solitary Matchbox mainline left - and it was quite an old one.

2022 selection, I believe - and still at full price.

Never mind, I already have one of these.

So, overall - not a bad morning.

Happy Friday, kids.

[egg]

48 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Off-topic a little, but I was also finding detailed work/ reading things off screens required me to take my glasses off, and felt that the time had come for varifocals - however my optician advised that it might not be necessary just yet, and that it was possible to get lenses that weren't true varifocals but just had a bit of a 'bump' down in the lower half which would correct the close-up issue. And it has!

Useful advice, any idea what to Google for - I usually find some cheapo Specsavers frames/lens because shiter...? Ta.

[Datsuncog]

1 minute ago, egg said:

Useful advice, any idea what to Google for - I usually find some cheapo Specsavers frames/lens because shiter...? Ta.

Sadly she didn't elaborate any more than 'gives you a bit of a bump for up-close work' - could be something along the lines of 'near-sight correction zone'?

I went to Specsavers for years, but it now seems that my eyes have become banjaxed in so many unusual and creative ways that going 'full custom package' through an independent optician seems to be the only way I can see!

[Datsuncog]

56 minutes ago, flat4alfa said:

I saw this in a local antiques shop and thought of you

Is there a MINT IN BOX AND STILL SEALED IN ITS OWN ATMOSPHERE example in the DatsunCubs™ Collection ?

Does it need one?

This could* be the start of a new way of life and the grounds for the CCCC (the Carrickfergus Corgi Cubs Club) who meet on the second Tuesday of the month at 7pm to share experiences, cakes and have a natter.

I have no boxed Cubs whatsoever, as it happens - but packaging's a weird one.

I vividly remember the early-80s Mettoy packaging for 1/35 Corgis from the toy aisle in Stewarts, and that's the era I absolutely gravitate towards - something about the boxes grabs me even if I'm not all that fussed about the actual model.

Same with that era of Lesney Matchbox packaging.

There's just something hardwired into me to want it.

I had a few Corgi Cubs, presumably new, but I've no memory at all of the packaging, or seeing them in a shop! So although I probably should feel like a boxed version would be a thing of wonder and a joy forever... I'm kinda ambivalent.

Setting up the CCCC does sound quite good though - a fine excuse for me to sit alone in a room scarfing buns...

[flat4alfa]

48 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Sadly she didn't elaborate any more than 'gives you a bit of a bump for up-close work' - could be something along the lines of 'near-sight correction zone'?

So, a bifocal then, graduated?

[Datsuncog]

1 hour ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

And now for an odd ball Norev.

 

Hell's teeth, that looks absolutely lethal.

I can envisage leaning forward to adjust your mirror slightly while riding at moderate speed, and losing your nose. Bibendum suit may be necessary for more than just advertising reasons...

Wow. Just wow.

[Datsuncog]

4 minutes ago, flat4alfa said:

So, a bifocal then, graduated

Could be something like that - Cog Sr. went to bifocals/ varifocals a while back and I could always see a small area where the lens correction appeared different. With these, I can't see any difference at all across the lens area; my overall prescription hasn't changed but I'm not having to take them off to read a phone screen any more, so there's been a noticeable improvement.

£400 tho. 😬

[flat4alfa]

9 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Hell's teeth, that looks absolutely lethal.

I can envisage leaning forward to adjust your mirror slightly while riding at moderate speed, and losing your nose.

Wow. Just wow.

 

[danthecapriman]

@Split_Pin

The blame for this lies squarely on you my friend!😄

The real thing still exists too, on SORN looking at DVLA site.

With all my messing about with 1:43 stuff lately I’d somehow forgotten how small 1:76 is! It’s been some time now since I last saw all my 1:76/OO gauge models. 
Definitely worth your time finding one of these though, it’s such a lovely little thing! Utterly bizarre they only released a couple of versions of it. EFE definitely needs to dust off the tooling for this one and do another run.

[flat4alfa]

24 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Setting up the CCCC does sound quite good though - a fine excuse for me to sit alone in a room scarfing buns...

[Datsuncog]

1 minute ago, flat4alfa said:

AMBITIONS YO

[flat4alfa]

6 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

AMBITIONS YO

From dusty old hall to CEO of a multinational members club

[Split_Pin]

20 minutes ago, danthecapriman said:

@Split_Pin

The blame for this lies squarely on you my friend!😄

The real thing still exists too, on SORN looking at DVLA site.

With all my messing about with 1:43 stuff lately I’d somehow forgotten how small 1:76 is! It’s been some time now since I last saw all my 1:76/OO gauge models. 
Definitely worth your time finding one of these though, it’s such a lovely little thing! Utterly bizarre they only released a couple of versions of it. EFE definitely needs to dust off the tooling for this one and do another run.

Amazing!

SMT Edinburgh had a lot of these. One survives from the earlier batch:

They also had a later batch of H-OSC buses on the longer S75  chassis. They had the same Reeve Burgess Beaver body as the EFE example.

I wonder how easy it would be to get an example of the much more common Mercedes version, cut a bay from the body and make a replica of the Edinburgh version..... 

[sierraman]

1 hour ago, Datsuncog said:

Seems that Cityside Tesco is also going to let The Entertainer manage their toy aisle, and so are flogging off all their existing stock cheap before the big rebrand.

Only unlike the other branches I've visited, packed with remaindered older stock from 2023, this place has recently stocked up with 2024 series Matchbox 5-Packs...

Ohhh.

Well, that makes me feel a lot better about dithering over these same two sets when they were on offer at '2 for £15' in Sainsburys.

I did hunt through all of them in case there was a Volkswagen pack in there - but no, sadly not. No Autobahn Express V, either.

Oddly, they only had a solitary Matchbox mainline left - and it was quite an old one.

2022 selection, I believe - and still at full price.

Never mind, I already have one of these.

So, overall - not a bad morning.

Happy Friday, kids.

Really wasn’t keen on the new Field car but it looks good in the tribute to the Bushwacker. 
 

I could do with finding an F-Type as well to repaint white to match the one a family member has. 

[sierraman]

 

This is what we had in Sheffield as @sheffcortinacentre will attest to! They used to have them on the circular route round Wybourn etc as they were small enough to get round the estates. 

[danthecapriman]

57 minutes ago, sierraman said:

 

This is what we had in Sheffield as @sheffcortinacentre will attest to! They used to have them on the circular route round Wybourn etc as they were small enough to get round the estates. 

I’m sure I remember a few being in the old Doncaster Mainline bus livery? Although it could have also been the Mercedes version?

1 hour ago, Split_Pin said:

Amazing!

SMT Edinburgh had a lot of these. One survives from the earlier batch:

They also had a later batch of H-OSC buses on the longer S75  chassis. They had the same Reeve Burgess Beaver body as the EFE example.

I wonder how easy it would be to get an example of the much more common Mercedes version, cut a bay from the body and make a replica of the Edinburgh version..... 

Only one way to find out!😆

[bunglebus]

Had a mooch around Basildon today, the usual places like Asda, BuM, One Beyond, Entertainer, Home Bargains all failed to have anything new or exciting.

I did find new Majorette 5 packs in Sainsbury's, and once again the flippin' things weren't on the system so wouldn't scan at the till. Luckily a helpful lady found a different barcode that worked at the correct discounted price

Also managed to find almost all of the Hot Wheels Porsches in Poundstretcher.

Cayman is probably the one I'm least excited about, but the completionist in me meant I had to buy it

935 looks really good in blue over gold wheels, even if the rear detail is slightly lacking

944 is really good...

...but I don't think detailing the stethoscope on the parcel shelf really helps, maybe it's my childish sense of humour but it looks even more like an ejaculating cock now

Anyway. 911 is great in orange with Fuchs, and has a metal base

As does the 356

Only one I'm missing is the 914, fingers crossed my local one or Maldon have one this week.

In other news, found one of the later versions of the Piston Popper on eBay 

Black base changes the look significantly, and the base itself is different, saying "Mustang Piston Popper" but losing the #10 designation 

[Datsuncog]

1 hour ago, bunglebus said:

Only one I'm missing is the 914, fingers crossed my local one or Maldon have one this week

Weirdly, the 914 was missing from the selection in my local Poundstretcher too - struck me as odd that it would have sold first, as I'd have thought the others would appeal more to Porsche fanbois.

All the others were still unsold when I last checked; they are very nice, but I think I'm too much of a skinflint to cough up £6...

[bunglebus]

19 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Weirdly, the 914 was missing from the selection in my local Poundstretcher too - struck me as odd that it would have sold first, as I'd have thought the others would appeal more to Porsche fanbois.

Looking around online, it seems the 6/6 914 is not usually included in the set, so is some sort of chase car. Ah Mattel, you bunch of bastards.

[quicksilver]

5 hours ago, Split_Pin said:

Amazing!

SMT Edinburgh had a lot of these. One survives from the earlier batch:

They also had a later batch of H-OSC buses on the longer S75  chassis. They had the same Reeve Burgess Beaver body as the EFE example.

I wonder how easy it would be to get an example of the much more common Mercedes version, cut a bay from the body and make a replica of the Edinburgh version..... 

It's been done by a couple of very skilled modellers but isn't easy as the proportions are different. You can't just splice in an extra bay but have to alter the rear axle position to get the longer overhang, which involves a lot of fiddly cutting. Easier to put the EFE bonnet on the Lancer resin kit of the 811D version that's the right length, like I did here.

[danthecapriman]

I’ll leave mine as it is I think, I quite like it as it comes so no reason to mess with it.

[eddyramrod]

More arrivals today!  First up, a box of, honestly?  Mostly scrap.  But that's exactly what I wanted so, many thanks @bunglebus  

Plenty there for the long summer winter evenings!  As you can probably tell, I wasn't at home when I opened this box, and indeed it's safely in the boot of the Jag at the moment.  But a couple did find their way into my pockets, and from there into my Projects Box upstairs.  It won't take long for the whole lot to make the trip.  The things you have to do, hey?  So I came home and was met by this:

Which contained these:

Which, thankfully, contained these:

"Thankfully" because these are what I thought I was buying from an ebay seller.  It's always a relief when you find it's what you wanted.  These have also gone in my Projects Box.  The Jag will be going into the Film/TV collection... anyone want to make an early guess which of the many Jags that have featured regularly on British TV it's going to become?  You've got plenty of time, there's a strip-and-respray involved and a queue ahead!

[MiniMinorMk3]

18 hours ago, bunglebus said:

935 looks really good in blue over gold wheels, even if the rear detail is slightly lacking

 

 

When I saw that I thought what kind of 935 is that, as it looks nothing like the one I a familiar with. Then after a quick interwebs search I found out why. That's a model of the 2019 935, which does not have much at the back to detail.

18 hours ago, bunglebus said:

In other news, found one of the later versions of the Piston Popper on eBay 

 

 

Piston Popper was the first Rola-Matic I purchased. I remember seeing it the catalogue and as soon as I saw one in my local Matchbox stockist I got one. I had the Boss Mustang that came out the year before, and the Piston Popper was just what a 9 year old wanted in 1973.

By the way your version is one of teh last Macau produced versions, and by then it was number 60 in the series, hence the numbers on the doors.

[AndyW201]

Finally got a chance to get this out of the box and have a look,

Many thanks to @bunglebus for nabbing this for me, as there would be zero chance of finding this at any of my local retailers. I've been collecting Hot Wheels (as an adult...) for a good few years now, but this is my first Team Transport. I've been tempted by a good few recently (especially the Honda Accord one) but this is the first one to inspire sufficient want to actually buy one.

This one in particular appealed, firstly being an all-Merc edition, and also because, unlike with many Team Transports, the transporter is of a vehicle that actually existed, even though the real thing is so wacky, it could actually pass as an old school HW fantasy casting! The proprtions and that front overhang put me in mind of those Superkings K series futuristic transporters that were discussed on here too.

The Blaues Wunder/Renntransporter has always fascinated me since I first got into older Mercs. So, what do you do when you want a truck to carry a race car across Europe at high speed? If you work for Mercedes-Benz, evidently you look around the factory, grab a spare chassis and suspension from a W188 300S, and stretch it out a bit, fit it with the engine and running gear from a 300SL, and knit it together with some body panel offcuts and drivers cabin from a 180 Ponton saloon.

Good for 100mph by all accounts with a W196 300 SLR on the back. Not bad for 1955!

So, the two do look good together although Im pretty sure it only ever carried  "Silver Arrow" SLRs in period, rather than the SL, ( I'm pretty sure Jay Leno has a replica, which he uses to carry a red gullwing) but the SL does at least look 'right' on there, if a little out of scale...

I've already got a couple of mainline versions of the gullwing in silver and red, but this premium version looks loads better, mainly because of the lovely dished steel wheels and extra detailing. I assume that being a premium, it has a metal base, thus the sills look a lot better on this as they are part of the base, so are painted metal, rather than coloured plastic as on the mainlines.

[bunglebus]

99p local eBay win...

Having sieved out all the Chinese nonsense and old sweets etc

That's a lot of cars. Almost 100% worn out resto projects or parts donors, but then I only actually wanted one of them...

But which?

[sierraman]

The tractor unit from the MB Freeway Gas Tanker 🤣