Shite in Miniature II

[Datsuncog]

45 minutes ago, Jon said:

That's a lovely Siku Range Rover and horse box, M.Cog - and you were only just mentioning them earlier on the same page! I have that one boxed in my UK stash but with a red RR towing a white horse box with blue plastic bits, from memory. It must be 20 years since I actually laid eyes on it, so I'm assuming I'm right.

Cheers, it is indeed a nice big thing and, with a bit of careful cleaning, should polish up very nicely.

I especially like that Siku were happy to just issue this in a plain beige paint job, without slapping loads of graphics all over it like Matchbox or Majorette might have done... your red variant sounds very smart.

Which reminds me... I still haven't scanned/photographed that 1980s Siku catalogue for you. A job for the weekend, hopefully!

[Amishtat]

Thanks DC, I'm perfectly happy with those two! 

[Datsuncog]

So while having a dig through the Reserve Selection box under the stall, looking for that DS Break for Bramz7, I encountered this...

Which somehow rang a small bell deep within...

And so, scuttling back round to the 50p box out the front, I dug and dug in case it was still in there... and it was.

I'd noticed this about a month ago; a weirdly narrow Budgie model but with a strange charm nonetheless.

And yes, this is indeed the front axle and base piece from it.

I do flatter myself that I have a reasonable knack for identifying random bits of diecast.

No idea what to do with the bugger now, but I'm oddly pleased to have reunited the two pieces. No sign of the crane component, sadly.

This is what it would have looked like, once upon a time:

 

Also, from the dregs of the 50p box, was this (in the interests of rounding up to a pound, y'see):

The final incarnation of the Pininfarina BMC 1800, which had rather lost the lines of the original casting:

Pre-production prototype:

Initial production run, with Superfast wheels:

Later production run, with the arches vastly expanded to accommodate bigger wheels

 

 

 

Hmmm. But then again, if you were planning on doing this...

… then you probably needed all the grip you could get.

 

And lastly for today, another oddity:

An unbranded model of a Mercury Bobcat, a badge-engineered Ford Pinto. Irritatingly, it's missing a front wheel. The only marking on the base is '8006 China'

It's also very, very smol - approx. HO scale, as seen here with my Wiking Mk2 Transit.

I said I'd be good this week and not spunk a load of cash on a bunch of random models I have no need of...

Ah now.

Try again next week?

[Amishtat]

Well to be fair I need two new Lesneys like a fish needs a bicycle but here we are.. 

[Tenmil Socket]

I've got this one...

 

[Amishtat]

Having confidently stated the other day that I had some Revell slot cars kicking about somewhere I've just rooted them out and of course they're nothing of the sort, they're by Aurora. Found in a junk shop in Nuneaton around 2003 and never done anything with them. Also, I really need to put more effort into photographing these things, I can't match Jon's backdrops but the garden table is getting a bit stale. Best light at this time of day though. 

[DoctorRetro]

Latest acquisition... 

 

[flat4alfa]

4 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

An unbranded model of a Mercury Bobcat, a badge-engineered Ford Pinto. Irritatingly, it's missing a front wheel. The only marking on the base is '8006 China'

1/87 scale,  released under brand 'Motormax Toy USA Inc' as part of their 'Fresh Cherries' range.  8006 is the model number in the Motormax catalogue.

Motormax scaled down the range around ten years ago and deleted the 1/87 series  http://www.motormaxtoy.com/pro_p2_2014.asp  

https://www.hobbydb.com/catalog_item_types/model-cars/keyword_type_search?keyword_query=Fresh+Cherries

[flat4alfa]

2 hours ago, Amishtat said:

Having confidently stated the other day that I had some Revell slot cars kicking about somewhere I've just rooted them out and of course they're nothing of the sort, they're by Aurora.

Mustang body might be K&B, but it is wearing an AMT chassis now I think.

The Ford GT is Monogram

Cobra is Revell.  Spare brass chassis I also think is Revell. 

 

2 hours ago, Amishtat said:

Found in a junk shop in Nuneaton around 2003 and never done anything with them.

Ohhh... I could do something with them

 

Edited June 7, 2019 by flat4alfa
edited due to spaz

[Amishtat]

GTO body has this moulded into it.. 

[flat4alfa]

You beat me to my correction!

Yes It's K&B/Aurora and the licence plate should read F46M.  

[Amishtat]

Yes it does, I bow to your slot car knowledge! 

[vulgalour]

That's a stroke of luck.  I found some red plastic scraper things in a local shop that appear to be made from exactly the same type and colour of plastic as the rest of the Mercury kit.  I then spend a long time trimming and gently heating the bonnet to get it something like close to the proper shape.  It's not perfect, it'll have to do.  If another broken kit appears with a bonnet further down the line I'll fit that, for now this one will do the job and since this part of the car will be painted generic black, colour matching won't be an issue in the future.

[Amishtat]

Sounds like you've a colour scheme in mind.. 

[flat4alfa]

It's going to look great in Camo with Headers coming out the hood.

'cudas and Firebirds had 'shakers'.  You've now got .... Wait for it....  a Scraper' !

...I'll get me coat.

 

[sheffcortinacentre]

Sorry don't get online till late def take the 100e. Interested in the twin boom Holmes wrecker on the table if around a fiver pm your PayPal & will sort payment.

Still looking for a 1-75 flip body funny car (no rush though).

[vulgalour]

Going for a Packard inspired tri-tone on this one due to the trim lines and the fact that the standard Mercury colour offerings aren't quite what I'm after.  The amazing thing is that from the factory the engine was gold with turquoise rocker covers and air cleaner so I'll definitely be doing that.

[bunglebus]

11 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

That's good fixerage - plus, fascinating to see the two castings in the raw. Huge amount of difference between the crisp, earlier one and the worn-out later one... bonnet lines vanished, headlights blending into the body, number plate letters that look like doodles... thanks for that!

 

They both look a bit different today

The crap one;

20190607_121932 by RS, on Flickr

 

The good one;

 

20190607_191839 by RS, on Flickr

Probably the most complex fade paint I've done. Gloss into silk into matt black.  Interior will be going red to match the wheels. 100 Shite points to anyone who can tell me where they came from!

[bunglebus]

11 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

That's brilliant - I didn't realise those came with working steering.

Is it a 'Tiptronic' system like Matchbox used in the 1960s where you press down on the side you want it to steer towards - or just allows you to position the wheels so you can push it round in a circle?

 

You just put the wheels where you want them. Very tempted to put some 1mm masking tape on the bumpers and paint it silver...

[bunglebus]

My favourite charity shop yet again had some gooduns;

 

20190607_111022 by RS, on Flickr

 

20190607_110937 by RS, on Flickr

 

20190607_110912 by RS, on Flickr

 

20190607_110856 by RS, on Flickr

 

20190607_110800 by RS, on Flickr

 

20190607_110744 by RS, on Flickr

[Jon]

1 hour ago, bunglebus said:

20190607_191839 by RS, on Flickr

 100 Shite points to anyone who can tell me where they came from!

I was going to say it was one of these 1980's issued Hotwheels Cadillacs but looking closer, I think it's a 'no':

I had a silver one with the rubber tyres back in the day, so presumably it's still languishing in my UK stash. Your Porsche 'tyres' actually look plastic on closer inspection, too.

 

Oh and Vulgalor, I right royally salute your bonnet making efforts! And your speed at getting stuck in, too. I would say it's inspiring stuff but it's yet to have that effect on my stalled model making progress. Never underestimate laziness.

[Spottedlaurel]

Some great updates on here over the last few days.

Particularly pleased that Sam went for the Majorette transporter. I have one or two of their other commercials in that scale and they're very pleasing things - that one will look great with a set of their 1/60-ish cars on the back.

I've been a bit limited on my purchasing this year, just a few HWs and these odds and ends:

Patrol breakdown truck and delightful Simca + trailer both purchased through AS - thanks! Anyone want the Crown Vic as a project? I only bought it to make up a quantity.

I also got this blue Majorette Hilux a little while ago, but it's a bit of a puzzler when I compare it to the orange one I already had:

Parts of the casting are identical, but it's lost some detail like the door shuts and it has a different number. The way the baseplate has been altered looks like they've just gone over the top of the previous number and "MADE IN FRANCE" text. Can anyone shed light on this small mystery? Did they produce cheaper versions outside France?

[sierraman]

Yes, production was moved to Thailand sometime in the late 90’s

[Tenmil Socket]

15 hours ago, TheDoctor said:

Latest acquisition... 

 

Ford or VW?

[bunglebus]

8 hours ago, Jon said:

I was going to say it was one of these 1980's issued Hotwheels Cadillacs but looking closer, I think it's a 'no':

The models are cack, but they have nice wheels. I pick them up for 50p as donors

 

Disney-Pixar-Cars-2-3-Lightning-McQueen-F1-Chick-Hicks-Metal-Diecast-Toy-Car-1-55.jpg_640x640 by RS, on Flickr

[bunglebus]

Meant to show you guys this one - by far the worst car in my collection, but I keep it as I found it buried in the park years ago, metal detecting with my kids

 

20190604_122711 by RS, on Flickr

[bunglebus]

You guys like my Lone Star buggy?

 

20190606_144909 by RS, on Flickr

[Datsuncog]

16 hours ago, flat4alfa said:

1/87 scale,  released under brand 'Motormax Toy USA Inc' as part of their 'Fresh Cherries' range.  8006 is the model number in the Motormax catalogue.

Ah, excellent - I've a Plymouth K-car in the 1/64 Fresh Cherries range; this one threw me as it's so much smaller. But very nicely detailed, even so. Thanks for that!

13 hours ago, sheffcortinacentre said:

Sorry don't get online till late def take the 100e. Interested in the twin boom Holmes wrecker on the table if around a fiver pm your PayPal & will sort payment.

Still looking for a 1-75 flip body funny car (no rush though).

Not a bother - will see if I can pick that Holmes wrecker up for you next Friday. Other than the tyres and paint, it looks not too bad. Will let you know, and advise on PayPal details!

No sign of a flip-body funny car just yet, but I'll keep looking for you. The combining of all the tat boxes into one makes it a pain to rummage through, but I'm confident one will show up sometime soon.

 

Oh, and Market Blokey advised that he has "a lot" of small Lesneys coming in next week, so if there's anything in particular anyone's searching for, let me know and I'll see what I can do. The price asked tends to fluctuate between £2 and £3 (seemingly dependent upon mood).

[Datsuncog]

23 hours ago, flat4alfa said:

How much was the slot Miura?

Should probably have said, but if you're interested I'd happily swap it! I mean to go up to the attic later to have a look for those Airfix Astons and MGB I mentioned too.

[quicksilver]

I'm sure you all knew this was going to happen. Photos are much larger than actual size so the chrome looks much better in reality. Smaller wheels are from a Viva and are a big improvement,