Shite in Miniature II

[Spottedlaurel]

22 hours ago, eddyramrod said:

I well remember that generation of Cedric as a pillared sedan, but not a "hardtop."  You can tell where the Japanese were aiming their cars, can't you!  The untrained eye could mistake the Cedric for a 1973-ish Ford LTD.  What a shame we didn't get the hardtops over here....

A shame indeed. There was a 2-door hardtop as well.

I banished myself to the shed last night as Mrs SL needed the PC and wouldn't have wanted the TV distracting her, so the Cedric got what I hope will be its final coats of primer and I can now wet sand it ready for some colour, and the Ipsum/Picnic got more of its black trim painted.

I got these roofboxes from a Fujimi accessory set, may as well use one of them here as the Ipsum has rails I can fix the bars to. If I'm feeling really keen there's also a Trek mountain bike I can paint up as well.

Also dug out these two for resurrection:

Both built back in the '80s, when I was 14/15. AMT GTO needs a full stripdown, sadly that means it'll lose the unprimed, poorly applied Vermillion paint I remember buying from our village AR dealer. The Lotus was brush-painted with Humbrol enamel, which looks pretty decent, and I think I will do no more than give it a light polish and then reassemble it.

[flat4alfa]

18 hours ago, bunglebus said:

The "something" was this, to donate glass to my custom one. I feel bad destroying it as it's really tidy, but not especially rare or desirable? 

That's too nice to donor!  Especially as it is the brown seats early version that will be 45 years old now

Growing on me, that one.  In fact all of the five Corgi series 700 'High Speed' series need a second look.  They photograph well too

[bunglebus]

34 minutes ago, flat4alfa said:

That's too nice to donor!  Especially as it is the brown seats early version that will be 45 years old now

Growing on me, that one.  In fact all of the five Corgi series 700 'High Speed' series need a second look.  They photograph well too

I've got one that's not quite as good - but the glass is cracked. I'm going to try making the larger sections of glass from clear plastic and just use the front/rear sections from the donor.

20200615_184212 by RS, on Flickr

[bunglebus]

Anyway - weather's cack so I can't paint anything. Scanner is out. First up is a fold-out leaflet from Corgi in 1976. Anyone seen the F1 cars with removable wheels?

I want to find the Mustang and Capri and some point

 

Corgi leaflet 1976 001 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 002 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 003 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 004 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 005 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 006 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 007 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 008 by RS, on Flickr

[flat4alfa]

Corgi 'MINI BUS' as it says on the base, was available 1974-78 and shown in Catalogue 1974 as 'Inter-City Mini-Bus' - the same as the sticker on the sides.  The box itself had it as 'High Speed Mini-coach' instead.

 

Joined by the others (and Noddy!) in 1975

Omitted from the catalogue for 1977, but back in 1978.  1977 did see the new 'Security Van' which was given code C424, so not numbered as part of the C70x series unlike its 'sister' the 'Motorway Service Ambulance' and the others.

All gone gone from catalogues for 1979 which gave us....   X-PLORATRONS !

Perhaps the High Speed series was the precursor to Corgi Cubs

[Bren]

41 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Anyway - weather's cack so I can't paint anything. Scanner is out. First up is a fold-out leaflet from Corgi in 1976. Anyone seen the F1 cars with removable wheels?

I want to find the Mustang and Capri and some point

 

Corgi leaflet 1976 001 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 002 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 003 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 004 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 005 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 006 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 007 by RS, on Flickr

Corgi leaflet 1976 008 by RS, on Flickr

Here's mine. I have the boxes but they are tatty. Picked up for not much from a toy fair.

[bunglebus]

I have the High Speed Van

 

20170629_164553_zpsj5vsivuf by RS, on Flickr

 

And a tatty recovery truck

 

20190422_205115 by RS, on Flickr

 

I'm not especially fond of generic stuff, hence making the Minibus into a custom

[flat4alfa]

28 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

I've got one that's not quite as good - but the glass is cracked. I'm going to try making the larger sections of glass from clear plastic and just use the front/rear sections from the donor.

Very similar crack here! 

 

How about lopping the roof off the ruined and stripped one and making a futuristic pickup? 

[bunglebus]

^ The fire engine seems to be the most unusual one of the range. 

I'm aiming at changing the interior as I feel it's out of scale with all those seats, possibly just a driver's seat and a few benches, it looks to me like it should have been a camper size van not a bus - like this

 

20190709_112324 by RS, on Flickr

[bunglebus]

Jumping forward a decade, here's Matchbox's jumbo 1988 catalogue. Some grey glass pre-production stuff in here, and once again regretting selling the mint Road Blasters I had

 

Matchbox 1988 001 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 002 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 003 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 004 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 005 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 006 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 007 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 008 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 009 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 010 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 011 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 012 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 013 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 014 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 015 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 016 by RS, on Flickr

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Matchbox 1988 019 by RS, on Flickr

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Matchbox 1988 024 by RS, on Flickr

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Matchbox 1988 044 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 045 by RS, on Flickr

[Tenmil Socket]

8 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Jumping forward a decade, here's Matchbox's jumbo 1988 catalogue. Some grey glass pre-production stuff in here, and once again regretting selling the mint Road Blasters I had

 

Matchbox 1988 001 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 002 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 003 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 004 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 005 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 006 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 007 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 008 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 009 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 010 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 011 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 012 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 013 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 014 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 015 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 016 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 017 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 018 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 019 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 020 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 021 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 022 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 023 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 024 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 025 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 026 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 027 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 028 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 029 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 030 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 031 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 032 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 033 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 034 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 035 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 036 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 037 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 038 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 039 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 040 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 041 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 042 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 043 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 044 by RS, on Flickr

Matchbox 1988 045 by RS, on Flickr

Thanks @bunglebus!

That was a great year for Matchbox. I was in my prime around then. That brought back some memories... I even had the Gargantua!

[flat4alfa]

88 pages!!

I don't recognise many there, not those multiple different weird and wonderful sections.  Flashbacks?  Power Lifters?

I suppose by 1988 I'd already passed my test and was on second real car - and had discovered girls and clubs by then 

[Amishtat]

That's awakened some pleasant memories, I was eight and had that catalogue. So much I'd forgotten about. 

[barrett]

I had that catalogue too. The only toy catalogue I ever had (I probably still have it somewhere). As we were too poor to afford new toys, I only ever saw those cars years later at jumble sales etc. I always wondered, as a small child, why the Le Mans Bentley was photographed on a giant block of cheese... I did end up with a handful of those cars (the Follow Me Land Rover is one I remember) but mostly they're things I've still never seen.

[cms206]

Had a few job lots land recently I've not managed to dig through yet; this was today's one.

[bunglebus]

Some interesting bits in there - is that the Porsche logo lorry from the catalogue!?

[Remspoor]

On 8/24/2020 at 4:53 PM, bunglebus said:

This arrived with something else - odd that even a '72 trademarked, made in England casting has foreign plates and LHD

 

That looks like a Matchbox King Size K-13 DAF lorry. there should be a site cabin or other building materials included.

There should be holes in the flat bed to secure the load. Your photos it is hard to say if they are there.

The Matchbox would normally come with logos and Pat numbers. Does not yours have them?

The Lorry being a DAF is Dutch, the plates are correct for the country and period .

 

 

[cms206]

5 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Some interesting bits in there - is that the Porsche logo lorry from the catalogue!?

There are a few Convoys in the box - there are three layers! I'll have a dig through it tomorrow.

[bunglebus]

3 minutes ago, Remspoor said:

That looks like a Matchbox King Size K-13 DAF lorry. there should be a site cabin or other building materials included.

There should be holes in the flat bed to secure the load. Your photos it is hard to say if they are there.

The Matchbox would normally come with logos and Pat numbers. Does not yours have them?

The Lorry being a DAF is Dutch, the plates are correct for the country and period

I actually have that green one you pictured, this one doesn't seem to have anything on the load bed to attach to

It's the K-34 Pallet truck

[bunglebus]

6 minutes ago, cms206 said:

There are a few Convoys in the box - there are three layers! I'll have a dig through it tomorrow.

I can see a Majorette Hilux pickup in there too, not the standard suspension one I'm hunting for though

[bunglebus]

Actually my other one is green and yellow - but marked as a DAF

[bunglebus]

It's not finished yet but my custom VW Fastback is coming along nicely

[hennabm]

The laser launcher in the 88 catalogue shows some resemblance to the old CR super booster.

[flat4alfa]

[AndyW201]

More GM rammel through the post!

(Note the incorrect box! At least it was mentioned in the listing)

I was idly browsing 1/43 Calibras as I had seen a Schuco one in yellow, which I liked the look of and was on ebay, looking to see if they come up cheap. They don't! However a Gama one in red was on at a fairly cheap price, and looking through the pics, I noticed the listing also had a MK3 Astra thrown in. I've been after a Gama MK3 for a while now, as apart from a few IXO GSi rally jobs, the MK3 Astra isn't seen in model form much, apart from the period Gama version. A bid was stuck in, and I won. Prices seem to be crazy at the moment for period '90s Gama/Schuco GM dealer stuff, so I was glad to get these two for a decent price.

This GSi like other Gama models of this period is a nice weighty model, helped by the metal base. Detail might be lacking by modern standards but I just love these early '90s models.

The shape is caught really well. I've always been a big fan of the MK3 3 door styling. It's a dead ringer for J175 FHY, which was owned by a workmate of mine, back in the late 90s. The early red-top engined GSis were quite the car to have back then. Nice rendering of the turbine alloy wheels too.

Interior features 'sporty' Recaro type seats and a recognisable MK3 dash. Let down by a boggo Merit-style non airbag wheel though...

 

So I was glad to get the Astra on its own without paying a fortune. I already have this Calibra casting, albeit the updated facelift version by Schuco, so thought it'd make for an interesting comparison.

 

Another nice casting. The wheels appear to be the early 16V  'slab' alloys.

So, compared to the Schuco, obvious difference is the facelift V-grille front of the Schuco.

Main difference inside is inside, the Gama having the usual blocky front seats moulded as part of the floor, the Schuco having more realistic seats, with see through headrests. As can probably be seen, the Schuco boasts a better paint finish. Some would say the Schuco wheels look better too.

Nice early/late duo, but if anyone fancies the pre facelift Gama version for £7.50 posted, give me a shout.

[Amishtat]

1 hour ago, flat4alfa said:

Lamentably not.. Blown head gasket on the 740 has placed a brake of sorts on any diecast purchasing. Which means it was probably packed with choice morsels this morning.. 

[DoctorRetro]

Bit of a back burner 'project' was the Buick Grand National that had no front end. Littlun wanted to graft something on, so I've been hard at work making this Mercedes front end 'fit'. Nearly there.. 

[Dick Cheeseburger]

On 8/21/2020 at 8:16 PM, Datsuncog said:

Sure thing, I'll set that one aside!

What have you got left out of all your tattage over the last few weeks/months? 

[bunglebus]

36 minutes ago, TheDoctor said:

Bit of a back burner 'project' was the Buick Grand National that had no front end. Littlun wanted to graft something on, so I've been hard at work making this Mercedes front end 'fit'. Nearly there.. 

What a bitsa!

I gained a few interesting ones today, first up yet another version of the MB Sand Digger copy, and again it's the fixed wheel version that crawls down smooth surfaces.

Along with it was this - copy of the MB Mini Pickup

Along with this Tootsietoy.

There were loads of other MC/Corgi/Matchbox in the lot too

Next up, a trio of ambulances. I have the MB Superkings Merc with the stretcher etc so maybe this will become the hearse I've been itching to make

Main interest for me were this Speed Kings K-49, one of the better generic castings...

...and this tatty but unusual Norev Merc . Has almost no interior to speak of and a plastic tailgate

 

Last but not least, K-46 trailer would have been in a 3-pack behind the yellow Mercury Commuter, so now I need a K-34 Thunderclap to sit on it

[andy18s]

This has popped up for sale in BG if anyone has any interest,1959 allegedly

Around a tenner plus postage