Shite in Miniature II

[flat4alfa]

[junkyarddog]

1 hour ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

I have a Guisval display tower.

It's from the 9th Japan Mini Day.

The models are made from the old Pilen casting.

They have been released from their bubbles

Cloer up you can see that these have suffered from zinc pest.

The bases how bowed badly and have surface corrosion.

The paint has suffered due to the pest and the door and boot fit is now crap.

The red one has also lost a small chunk out of the roof.

The worst case is this blue one.

At least it help to see the original Pilen interior, which is a left drive version of teh interior seen in the Corgi Mini Magnifique.

It's a pity they have suffered so badly. When I purchased them at auction over 10 years ago they were fine, but I have slowly watched their decline into oblivion.

Blue one looks like a Motorshow cutaway car😁

[ambassador84]

2 hours ago, MiniMinorMk3 said:

I have a Guisval display tower.

It's from the 9th Japan Mini Day.

The models are made from the old Pilen casting.

They have been released from their bubbles

Cloer up you can see that these have suffered from zinc pest.

The bases how bowed badly and have surface corrosion.

The paint has suffered due to the pest and the door and boot fit is now crap.

The red one has also lost a small chunk out of the roof.

The worst case is this blue one.

At least it help to see the original Pilen interior, which is a left drive version of teh interior seen in the Corgi Mini Magnifique.

It's a pity they have suffered so badly. When I purchased them at auction over 10 years ago they were fine, but I have slowly watched their decline into oblivion.

It's funny you should show me these pics as I have a red one which has done exactly the same. I bought the red Mini and a green Seat 600, also ex Pilen I believe, brand new in the early 2000s and kept both in mint and boxed condition. Roll forward to 2012 when I join Flickr and start taking pics of my collection and when it came to these two I was shocked. The red one still somehow survives to this day despite it crumbling but the poor Seat 600 literally crumpled in on itself. I now have a collection of nearly 24k diecasts and that was the ONLY ONE I've ever had to throw in the bin.

Thankfully I believe it only affected a brief period of construction and most Guisvals don't suffer. Touch wood 😉

[ambassador84]

36 minutes ago, sierraman said:

I’m in Spain in a few weeks, I’ll check out the tobacconists! 

Sometimes you might get lucky in newsagent type shops/stands plus of course if possible it's worth checking out Norautos and Repsol too. Happy hunting.

[Tenmil Socket]

3 minutes ago, ambassador84 said:

It's funny you should show me these pics as I have a red one which has done exactly the same. I bought the red Mini and a green Seat 600, also ex Pilen I believe, brand new in the early 2000s and kept both in mint and boxed condition. Roll forward to 2012 when I join Flickr and start taking pics of my collection and when it came to these two I was shocked. The red one still somehow survives to this day despite it crumbling but the poor Seat 600 literally crumpled in on itself. I now have a collection of nearly 24k diecasts and that was the ONLY ONE I've ever had to throw in the bin.

Thankfully I believe it only affected a brief period of construction and most Guisvals don't suffer. Touch wood 😉

24k 😳

Pics please…

[Tenmil Socket]

I like this one…

 

[ambassador84]

24 minutes ago, Tenmil Socket said:

24k 😳

Pics please…

Haha there's no camera lense big enough. All of em are on my Flickr account 😉

[bunglebus]

58 minutes ago, Tenmil Socket said:

24k 😳

I daren't count mine, don't think I'm quite there but I wouldn't be surprised at half that number. I've been quite good lately selling stuff I'm not especially interested in anymore, despite being quite unusual

225 have left via eBay in Feb with more live on the site, plus the tat boxes I sent you lot

[eddyramrod]

I feel like an amateur now!  My ever-growing collection comes to an estimated two thousand, approx.  And I've been at this for six decades.  Clearly I'm doing something wrong.

[bunglebus]

A quick count says 226 on display in the dining room alone 🤣

[ambassador84]

18 minutes ago, eddyramrod said:

I feel like an amateur now!  My ever-growing collection comes to an estimated two thousand, approx.  And I've been at this for six decades.  Clearly I'm doing something wrong.

Oh don't worry you've definitely struck the right balance. I unfortunately have become hopelessly addicted to collecting 1:64 diecasts which isn't good 😉

[ambassador84]

10 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

A quick count says 226 on display in the dining room alone 🤣

You buy one and then suddenly a few years have passed and we are swamped by our own addiction!

[bunglebus]

Right on cue, a few more arrive

Roving reporter @Spottedlaurel found me this set with the Jetta

We must have missed this mix, as I got that gulf set via my boss's son in Philadelphia.

The other is also a VW, I believe this was the last version of the Matchbox MK2 Golf

[Tenmil Socket]

3 minutes ago, ambassador84 said:

You buy one and then suddenly a few years have passed and we are swamped by our own addiction!

The problem for me is that I forget what I've already got and buy it again.

[bunglebus]

That's how you then find variations and end up keeping them all...

[eddyramrod]

1 minute ago, Tenmil Socket said:

The problem for me is that I forget what I've already got and buy it again.

The beauty of buying them the way I do: battered, played-with, missing paint and even parts - means that I can have several of the same model, restored in different ways!

As illustrated!

Time after time!

[ambassador84]

22 minutes ago, Tenmil Socket said:

The problem for me is that I forget what I've already got and buy it again.

😅😅😅😅😅😅😅

That's why I use Flickr as an electronic database. I can easily search my collection on there and instantly know whether I've got something already. I used to be really bad at duplicate buying but thankfully sanity has prevailed and I only do it if it's a casting I really like and is really cheap.

[MVX11V]

Looking at those deteriorating castings made me remember a couple of MB from the mid 80's in my collection, one which I owned from new, removing it from the box and the chrome plastic just crumbled like soft biscuit. I've read about Gold plastic syndrome in the transformer community, where metallic coated plastics break down, leaving it as a honeycomb type structure. They are right in describing the plastic finish as having a swirly appearance, and in the case of the chrome, a strange satin look. 

I know that my original collection, one which I started in the early 80's, had been subjected to extreme heat from being stored in the loft on a few occasions. Now I keep anything I value in a more stable environment and out of direct light. 

I know it's a different game for the metal deterioration, fatigue aside, but it might help someone reading to understand that the loft is likely a bad place for storing things they want to keep.

[Split_Pin]

5 hours ago, sierraman said:

I’m in Spain in a few weeks, I’ll check out the tobacconists! 

If you happen to see any reasonably priced Guisval Reediciones, I'd be very grateful if you would be able to lift a couple.

Guisval website is clunky and I can't get it to work in order to buy anything.

[ambassador84]

On 17/03/2024 at 16:33, bunglebus said:

A rather large box was handed over to me recently containing the things I'd managed to dibs from @danthecapriman. I'm not going to post them all but here are a few of the more unusual or interesting ones

I do really like the various Dinky Transits, this MK2 is similar to one I already have, but has the grille etc painted black rather than silver, and has a rather unlikely red interior rather than the sensible grey of its twin

Earlier, smaller MK is yet another version I'd not previously got my mits on. There are so many!

This one is definitely not a toy I've laid eyes on in person until now. Dinky Impala is a hefty beast. There's a hole in the boot floor as if a spare tyre or some luggage was once inside

Another Dinky that's never come my way before is this lovely Opel Commodore, even the quarterlights atop the doors have survived. Don't think the Whizzwheels really suit it though

I was keen to get the smaller Corgi Fiat 1800 after acquiring the larger 2100 a while back

Spot on Zephyr was below market value and came with new shiny bits

Matchbox Case Tractor has definitely been enjoyed, having plenty of mud embedded in its gubbins. However it's somehow retained its roof and Taylor Woodrow stickers

Much as the rear arch treatment on the Speed Kings Cougar bugs me, I'm very impressed with how well this one has survived

Fantastic Vantastic

Laser Wheels Lambo

Glo Racer Burnin 280...

....passed the glow test...

...and is now apart and having a bath in hydrogen peroxide to see if the yellowing can be removed

90s era Matchbox can be a bit hit and miss, but I like the GTO

Husky skip lorry somehow managed to retain its skip for all these years

Variation of the Corgi 740 I'd not previously found

Corgi must have modelled this on a real vehicle surely?

Not worked out who in Hong Kong made this Chevrolet van

I thought this bus was a Playart but it's not marked as such

Finally, Corgi Heinkel has gone in the customise/restore pile - spare pink body that came with it gives me ideas!

A Team styleee van made by Welly

Tomica copied Daimler Fleetline made by Fullright.

[155V6]

Not much diecast-wise here recently,although I did get a Bunglebox last week 😀

Galanite Citroen GS has gone into the bathroom

Corgi Rockets Porsche has joined my hoard

And Bip the Turtle met Bill the Crocodile 

Plastic 5-Series doesn't have a home yet

Also,the Realtoy Mercedes from a couple of weeks ago got some new wheels

[uk_senator]

Some recent ones..

Fiat 128 Rallye - Off ebay, I treated myself because it went cheap.
Other 3, got from me by a neighbour from the local charity shop.

[ambassador84]

3 hours ago, Split_Pin said:

If you happen to see any reasonably priced Guisval Reediciones, I'd be very grateful if you would be able to lift a couple.

Guisval website is clunky and I can't get it to work in order to buy anything.

Unfortunately Guisval don't ship outside of Spain even though I'm sure it would be worth their while in doing so. I own a place in Sitges several hours down the coast from the factory hence why I was able to get mine. Took them two weeks to process my order so they don't rush things! 

[hennabm]

23 hours ago, Spottedlaurel said:

A bit out of my patch, where were they?

Lincoln. On the corner of the Cornhill and Sincil Street. A bit further up was another toy shop - Nobbs - did all the meccano and model railway still

[danthecapriman]

Currently in between a couple of big jobs at home, but once they’re done I’ll be building a new shed/model room in the garden, which I’m really looking forward to!

In the meantime though, I’ve started a little project building a replacement truck body for one of the Bond partwork vehicles. 
This one’s the Chevy C30 which comes as a farm truck.

Removing the rear body is easy. Just two screws.

This one is going to become a ramp truck! 
A bit of measuring up and chopping some plastic card sheet to size/shape gives the basic shape.

 
Some extra reinforcement on the inside just to beef it up a bit as it’ll have a car on the back.

A bit of embossed plastic chequer plate and angle edges etc and it’s looking the part.

More still to do, and the back end needs making but it’s looking the part I think. 
Once I’m happy with the new rear end I’ll strip the cab for a repaint.

[ambassador84]

17 hours ago, Split_Pin said:

If you happen to see any reasonably priced Guisval Reediciones, I'd be very grateful if you would be able to lift a couple.

Guisval website is clunky and I can't get it to work in order to buy anything.

Unfortunately Guisval don't ship outside of Spain even though I'm sure it would be worth their while in doing so. I own a place in Sitges several hours down the coast from the factory hence why I was able to get mine. Took them two weeks to process my order so they don't rush things! 

[ambassador84]

Although Hot Wheels and Matchbox predictably dominate my collection I also have a big thing for lower end/ budget/ off brand Far Eastern diecasts too in 1:64 scale.

I miss the days of the now departed Realtoy who offered exceptionally well detailed vehicles for half the price of the competition. Sadly as we all know that void has been replaced here in the UK by those unspeakably shite HTI Teamsterz generics.

Their spirit lives on in a new 1:64 range by a Chinese toy company called QY Toys who are more known for the cube shaped puzzles. 

One of my favourite new castings is their new generation Defender 110. Fully licensed and really well detailed including working suspension too. Shame our UK retailers have zero imagination when it comes to stocking stuff like this...

[AndyW201]

While I was in the loft at the weekend, I noticed this Trofeu Escort, still in bits in a plastic bag.

I got this in among a box of smaller stuff a while back, from @bunglebus. It had been modified quite a bit, I think to fit a big pair of 'Fandangos' on the back. I got as far as taking the baseplate off and seeing if I had a spare pair of wheels for it, then put it back in the bag and forgot about it... 

So, it can be seen where the base was 'trimmed' to fit the Fandangos, which had also cracked the base in places. The little plastic loops that the axle slides through to keep it in place had also broken off. As did the ones at the front when I tried to remove the front wheels... 🤬

This model cost me I think, a quid, and the interior door panels and dashboard have long since disappeared, so this was only ever going to get a quick and dirty cobble-it-back-together job. Which is indeed what it  got!

First job was to glue the base back to the seating unit, which made it all a bit more solid.

I looked around for some plastic I could shove in to fill the gap where it had been cut about. None found. So, spotting a roll of gaffer tape instead, I made a packing piece from tape wrapped around a piece of fairly thick cardboard, then glued it over the axle recess, giving a bit more rigidity and something to stop the rear axle and wheels from disappearing up or sideways into the body.

The same was done up front. Another packing piece was glued onto the underside of the bonnet , to clamp everything down when the baseplate was secured back to the body.

I had a bit of a 'mare with the wheels, I had a set of Minilites from another Trofeu Escort, but the axles are shite on these, being soft flimsy plastic rods. Wheels should just pull off them, but in practice, they just shear at the wheel hubs, which meant I've had to glue the minilites onto what was left of the axles, so the track is a little on the narrow side. The front axle has had to be located up on top of the baseplate, rather than into the recess undeneath, so as well as being upgraded to alloys, it means it now sits a bit lower than standard. 

Oh dear...

The wheels themselves were a bit horrible, being full of glue and shite from being fitted to various other cars, but a quick dab of silver sharpie, and Project Escrap now looks like this. Not exactly up to the standards of the other diecast restos and customs on here (More up to the standards of the glue and jewel-encrusted cries for help unearthed by Mr Cog on Market Blokey's stall), but at least it's back on four wheels and back together. Could do with a door mirror (sure I can dig one out from somewhere) and there are other things like the door handles and wipers missing (TADTS on Trofeu models), but I'm fairly happy with it now.

Must have pushed it's value up to at least £1.25 now, as well...

[MiniMinorMk3]

2 hours ago, AndyW201 said:

 

 

Must have pushed it's value up to at least £1.25 now, as well...

That's crying out for a grey primer front wing and primered rear arches. Also a coat hanger aerial, a Daytona Yellow passenger door and quartered front bumper.

 

By the way, Trofeu put Minilites on their Mexico models.

 

 

[bunglebus]

Charity shop finds

Corgi roofless Range Rover 

Some weird Hong Kong thing that I probably should have left in the tub

And one of two I offered on the WhatsApp group, snapped up by @Spottedlaurel. In hindsight I should have kept it as it has a yellow interior, and my current one has red - but you can't keep 'em all