Shite in Miniature II

[bunglebus]

You building a BMX track in your back garden? 

When I was in the scouts we had one of those Leylands as our transport to go off to camp, ex-BT. The leaders must have liked them as the first got replaced with a slightly later one, both ex-BT going by the colour. The corner windows were such an unusual feature that always stood out to 10 year old me.

These days I think it's probably frowned upon to stick twenty odd children loose inside a box van and rattle them about at 45 MPH while gently infusing them with diesel fumes, but it didn't do us any lasting harm

[Spottedlaurel]

I'm on track to get my second kit completion done this month:

Body and chassis have since been put togther for the last time, so the only jobs left to do are attach the rear bumper/lights and side trims, and carefully drill 10 holes in the roof for the rack. I did similar on the deck inside:

Turns out a strtched '59 Cadillac is quite a bit bigger than a Honda Today:

After it'd sat in brake fluid for a few weeks to get rid of the original brush paint by a former owner, that one seems to have ended up as a current project:

Got some coats of Citroen Mediterranean Blue on the Celica last night:

It's a funny colour which flips to pale green/turquoise/gold, will be interesting to see once clearcoated and in sunlight.

Also made a bit of unphotographed progress on the '67 Impala.

I seem to be on a run of Japanese and American (and particularly GM) subjects at present. Once the Cadillac's done I think I need to start something European, will have a rummage and see what takes my fancy......

[Split_Pin]

Here's me opening up a parcel from @Datsuncog

 

 

[bunglebus]

34 minutes ago, Spottedlaurel said:

I'm afraid the temptation to stuff a blown big block Chevy in the front and some fat Micky Thompsons on Centerlines under the rear would have been too much for me!

[flat4alfa]

9 hours ago, bunglebus said:

Chevy Blazer

..is a Pick Up with an optional loading bed top cover though?

As is Buddy-L's Ford Bronco

Majorette's Chevrolet Blazer

Majorette's Chevrolet Silverado Sidestep Cab

or even Britain's Land Rover SIII and Ninety

It's possible that 'Estate' credentials for this configuration may be disallowed.  Only @Datsuncog can confirm, as he put us up to this sorry mess

[eddyramrod]

My take on it is that they can't qualify as none of them were ever made as a saloon.

[bunglebus]

2 minutes ago, eddyramrod said:

My take on it is that they can't qualify as none of them were ever made as a saloon.

So what about the Rancho, and the Range Rover? Not made as a saloon either, so what are they? Maybe the Rancho was an early attempt at an MPV, in which case Tomica's Mazda MPV should also count

However, really I agree that a true estate/wagon/shooting brake is the long roof version of something that already exists as a saloon or hatch

[Jon]

Well, there's some more Covid restrictions over here, which is likely to see me off work at least for the next week. Good job I have my trusty time machine which teleports me back to 40-odd years ago America. Let's get out of DODGE.

 

See what I did there???! 

 

Here's me forgetting the era I'm in, as I dropped by a classic car dealer and mentioned that I too, was a classic car owner. Seems they weren't that impressed, as it didn't strike a CORD (!!!!!!!!)

 

Onwards I pressed, marvelling at the prompt launch of the latest Oldsmobiles. 

 

I found a lovely rally-themed place for the night, which was a nice surprise. 

 

Then off to waste SLOTS of money at a local gaff, just up the road. At least they gave out free funbooks, though.

 

Took a trip to drown my sorrows, which helped immeasurably. 

 

The next morning, the after-effects took hold, so I needed some comfort food, to settle my guts. Luckily, the shelves of this place were rammed full of choice scroggin and turmeric teas; I'm sure we've all been there and hankered the same remedies.

 

But yeah, old margarine-digits here had a bout of the post-drink shakes and I spilt my tea and we all know how much of a nightmare it is to get rid of turmeric stains, right? Luckily, I quick visit to Bud Tuck's shop had me sorted, Fun Fact: his inexplicably paired fore and surnames paved his career; with a made-up name like that, how couldn't it?

 

Actually, I can't remember what I was doing here, it just looked like the kind of place that US Hirst hang out, rightfully despising those about him whilst he drank terrible coffee.

 

Then off to a local resort to leer at some young womenfolk, as it was the 1970's, so practically expected of me, especially in this car.

 

In all fairness though, I'm not very good at that lark but I am inexplicably attracted to leering at terrible old broken cars, so I went and did that instead. That beige Subaru nearing the end of its life was the highlight of the day!

 

Then another place to stay the night. Sadly, no-one here had mildy amusing names, or anything worthy of a pun or any other such tepid humour but I'd taken the photo nevertheless, so here it is.

 

Shortly after this photo, I did a massive donut and lost a wheel, resulting in me driving off into the sunset !!!!!

Tsk! What am I like, eh shiterz?!?!? 🤣😂😅😆🤪 1111

 

 

[flat4alfa]

On 2/28/2021 at 8:57 AM, Split_Pin said:

Here's me opening up a parcel from @Datsuncog

 

I saved one of those from oblivion.

An ALFA Novanta (90) that is

Never got it running, but quickly got it to a collector in Yorkshire before its imminent doomsday.  Same fella who bought my Alfa Sei (6) :

 

[bunglebus]

@Jon Think I spotted you parked up somewhere

 

[flat4alfa]

Compared to Jon's landscapes, it now looks like it's on the surface of the Moon !

That's some road trip 😎

And testament to MoPar reliability.  Probably.

[bunglebus]

Yeah unless we get nice weather and I can take pics in the garden I have to use the lunar surface, or whatever T-shirt is handy at the time. 

Still, they seem to run well even with no atmosphere

Some get the car show treatment though

But most get a plain background, that coke bottle shape doesn't need any garnish

 

[flat4alfa]

Don't you find the harsh landscape plays havoc with the suspension though?

Matchbox's Dodge Dragster has bent its axles and its only been out here ten minutes

Monogram's Dodge Charger fared worse and is stuck here until supplies arrive next Tuesday

Pioneer's effort is standing up well, surprisingly

Revell's Studebaker Avanti is advancing forward quite well too

But it's probably best left to the locals in the first place.  Dinky's War Chariot from Zygon has proven reliable in service.

[bunglebus]

That Pioneer is an interesting one - copyright avoidance?

[Datsuncog]

3 hours ago, flat4alfa said:

Only @Datsuncog can confirm, as he put us up to this sorry mess

Yup, it is indeed a thorny issue of where an estate car stops being an estate car and starts being something else...

I'd have to side with Eddy, as what I had in mind was the seemingly rare situation where a  toy manufacturer decides to produce a model of a particular car, but then goes on to model the estate version rather than the saloon/ hatch version.

I appreciate I was a little less than clear, and should have stated that it was contemporaneous toys I had  in mind rather than collectors models, though both are equally good!

So Matchbox's Citroen CX would be one of that ilk - I know Majorette and Mira both did the standard sedan in that general scale, as did a few others, but it was still a pleasantly unusual choice. Lesney did well out of the casting, which was later modified to an ambulance and harbour police vehicle.

A few others that I had within my reach, some of which have already popped up:

Corgi's very wide-looking Mercedes W124 in 300 TD form - though they also produced the similar-looking 190E saloon in tuned Cosworth format.

Didn't realise my silver version had been scrubbed of its Corgi identity, though.

More Mercedes fun with Matchbox's E-class:

Nice that Matchbox kept a Mercury station wagon in the range for a long while - Commuter, Villager, Sable.

Also odd that Matchbox did both a sedan and wagon version of the same car - can't think of another toymaker who did this.

Different number plates, too.

We've had the service vehicle Siku Passat upthread - here's the civvy version, with a flat loadbed.

Hongwell Cararama - toys or models?

Tesco sold 'em, so I'll say toys.

More into adult model territory though is Real-X's HO scale Legacy Turbo estate:

While Oxford Diecast's other estates are also aimed at modellers, but still very nice:

[flat4alfa]

On 2/28/2021 at 11:57 AM, bunglebus said:

That Pioneer is an interesting one - copyright avoidance?

No it's a based on a real car.  Apparently, General Grant’s horn plays Hymn of the Republic and not Yankee Doodle as you may expect

Pioneer added it to their range of Chargers

Black, Gold, White and dirty/weathered variations were released too, so copyright must be a bit grey for the UK, or cheap to obtain

[bunglebus]

I'm avoiding the real world for a few hours, as that's going to involve trying to sort out the FIL's A-class, so scanned up the 1978 Matchbox catalogue including the ever-elusive white Gus's Gulper. Catalogue is clearly an American edition if that makes any difference.

Anyone got the K-14 Heavy Breakdown Truck?

 

[155V6]

Am I too late for the estate car party?

Siku Audi A6,Astra & Merc 300T

Schuco Passat & Russian-made Moskvitch

Matchbox Super Kings Mercury & Dinky Mini

Minichamps Citroen CX,well it's the same shape as a normal estate

Various 1/87 cars,the Escort on the truck was like that when I got it,honest 😁

[bunglebus]

I forgot the Mini as I didn't look through my resto/custom pics.

That Schuco Passat is rather lovely

[andrew e]

Bunglebus if your after a K14 I have one (and a K2)  that’s for rehoming or swapping.

 

[flat4alfa]

1 hour ago, bunglebus said:

Catalogue is clearly an American edition if that makes any difference.

Odd they struck-off K-44 Bazooka and replaced it with a Surtees F1.  For the US market, surely one of those would be more identifyable and sellable?

[flat4alfa]

1 hour ago, bunglebus said:

Anyone got the K-14 Heavy Breakdown Truck?

Answering your question, no. 

Just a BattleKings tractor unit in same stylee, hauling a Corgi Dougal.

It passes through every Monday.

[bunglebus]

Two new 9 packs spotted in Tesco. Nothing that excited me enough to make a purchase though

[sierraman]

2 hours ago, flat4alfa said:

Answering your question, no. 

Just a BattleKings tractor unit in same stylee, hauling a Corgi Dougal.

It passes through every Monday.

I’ve a K14 recovery wagon, not a bad model tbh, just a shame it doesn’t have something like a Foden cab. I’ve also the above recovery wagon, I’d had the tractor unit years, then by chance acquired the trailer at a car boot sale last year. 

[flat4alfa]

2 hours ago, sierraman said:

I’ve a K14 recovery wagon, not a bad model tbh, just a shame it doesn’t have something like a Foden cab

I wonder if a Foden cab might have been too dull for 1974, when the K-14 cab style was released?

I can see that to a young lad it didn't look quite so beefy, or even speedy at all

I mean, just look at it: hunking down on its shoulders, razor-edge styling, chunky wheels in the air.  And that massive air intake!

Maybe that was the market, as 'Heavy Breakdown Truck' would be better understandable to a young child, over the word 'Heavy Recovery', which was something Mum did after the valium.

[flat4alfa]

1974 saw the first of the style, as K-106 Tank Transporter tractor unit and K-4 Big Tipper, though little was shared as the tipper did not have the extended cab.

It seems that the Big Tipper main casting was utilised again for K-14 Heavy Breakdown Truck by adding the rear deck weight and boom.  Notice the roof was changed, having a similar roof hatch detail on the passenger side seen on the K-106 tractor unit casting.  Also notice that across the range, all were RHD.

There was a later matt olive green recolouring of K-106 and K-14 for inclusion in the BattleKings range, whilst retaining their product numbers.

Odd then that the K-10 Car Transporter tractor unit was completely different, when they could have used K-106.  K-10 doing a similar low-loader hauling job as can be seen here

This unit design never saw any other use.  Probably because of the din from the pair of enormous supercharged engines right behind the driver and passenger. 

Oh and the fuel mileage might have been a headache for hauliers.

[bunglebus]

It's just slipped under my radar up until now for some reason. Maybe as it's a generic casting, but it works better for me as the breakdown truck than the others

[flat4alfa]

As a BattleKings it's forgettable.  But in the civilian red and white it stands out

So you know what I'm going to have to do now you're taking @andrew e's one...

[bunglebus]

ANYWAY. I've been off down another die cast internet rabbit hole. It all started because someone on a Zylmex/obscure Chinese/Hong Kong Facebook page is compiling a really nice photographic guide to all the Zylmex vehicles. I got chatting to him on messenger and mentioned I had a handful of their catalogues which I'd scanned. While sending him images, I noticed this in the 1979 edition

The reason I noticed is this turned up recently

Clearly the same casting, although there's nothing on the base to suggest it's a Zylmex. Looking in the 1980 catalogue for the R652 shows that is a flat nose Porsche 935, and no sign of the 911 shown in the 1979 catalogue. Google also shows the flat nose 935 casting.

So, off to Google. Base says Porsche Turbo 1/37 scale Made in Hong Kong. That brings up a few pictures of the car I have, mostly unboxed or in generic packaging

But one says "Shinsei Jet Machines". Googling that reveals

Quote

Shinsei was a brand name of Shinsei Kogyo Co Ltd, based in Japan. This company made diecast models in many different scales ranging in size from 1:38 to 1:87 scale

Quote

They also offered a friction pull back series called "Jet Machines LTD". There were described as having a patented powerfully fast engine mechanism that could not be over wound. These were distributed by a Korean company called Clover in window box packages.

So WTF is going on? Did a different brand car accidentally get included in the 1979 catalogue? Was it proposed but then the casting passed on to another manufacturer? I will probably never know, although Mr. Facebook Zylmex man reckons castings were often made without brand names to be sold by the likes of Sears and Walmart to sell as their own line, much like MC Toys cars sold as Tesco products

There's a red one that hasn't lost it's spoiler on eBay. Same base

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rare-Vintage-made-in-Hong-Kong-332-Porsche-911-Turbo-Martini-1-37/313277073688?hash=item48f0c4c918:g:WSAAAOSwv7peeH4o

And moving further afield

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SHINSEI-Japan-JET-MACHINES-MINI-POWER-1-37-PORSCHE-911-TURBO-70s-2-/254354388925

Base of the Shinsei one:

Base of mine

So the Zylmex catalogue car and the Shinsei are clearly one and the same. 

[Datsuncog]

Rounding off Estate Car Weekend (as I've all of a sudden decided to call it, retrospectively), here's a couple of other tailgate-equipped bits and bobs from the depths of the DC vaults...

I was quite surprised when Vanguards' take on ADO16 turned out to be the estate version.

They did do a very decent job of it; I think I expected that a saloon version would appear soon after though, but twenty or so years on, I'm still waiting.

We had the cracking Aeroflot GAZ  24 Volga estate upthread; here's the same thing but in a rather more sober shade.

This is an eight-seater with a third row of seats in the boot; fun fact being that back in the USSR, you needed a special permit to be allowed to buy one of these.

Into the nineties now...

This Minichamps Mondeo Estate dates from about 1994, so it was pretty up to date when I got it.

Compared to the Corgi Classics and Matchbox Dinky that I was also collecting at the time, this seemed like light years ahead in terms of detail. 

I loved the fact this was an estate; so few of my other toy cars were.

Weirdly though, this hasn't worn too well with the tyres going pale and powdery and the windows on one side turning slightly milky.

I haven't had this one out on display for over twenty years, so I'm not sure what's happened.

And keeping with Fords, and with different models, there's not much more shite than the unloved 'wide mouth frog' Scorpio.

Also by Minichamps, the navy blue estate was cheap because no-one in their right mind wanted it. Except me. I think it cost me a fiver in 1997.

The saloon was even cheaper as it was unboxed on the tat stall a year or two ago.

Detail on these is stupendous, with interior decoration especially good.

I really like being able to compare the saloon and estate versions like this; and look forward to maybe tracking down a few more wagons before long...

Cheers for all your input, it's been good to see some load-luggin' love over the past few days!