Shite in Miniature II

[eddyramrod]

Astra mk2?  As modelled by Corgi  and Matchbox, at the very least?

[sierraman]

As a kid my neighbours had one of those Astra 3 door estates, a white base 1.6D. Presumably they are extinct now

[Split_Pin]

That Kadett is HOT STUFF man!

[Datsuncog]

8 hours ago, eddyramrod said:

Astra mk2?  As modelled by Corgi  and Matchbox, at the very least?

Indeed - Kadett E/ Mk2 Astra, in post-1988 facelift guise. Matchbox modelled the GTE in police, rally and (rarer?) road versions for their 1-75 range, while Corgi produced a so-so 1/36 in rally colours for the Mobil promo range, but strangely never sold it through their mainline collection.

I say it's so-so; I've seen a couple that have been given some additional detailing and they look much better for it - the casting's not half bad, though the wheels look a bit small, perhaps.

One that I really ought to make a point of finding!

I also have a Vanguards Astra SR version squirrelled away somewhere, so should probably set up a head to head 1/43 photoshoot sometime soon!

2 hours ago, sierraman said:

As a kid my neighbours had one of those Astra 3 door estates, a white base 1.6D. Presumably they are extinct now

They do seem to be pretty thin on the ground these days - the last one I saw on the road was about ten years ago!

37 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

That Kadett is HOT STUFF man!

It's absolutely gorgeous, I can't put it down!

Interior, wheeltrims, roof rails - it all looks and feels like a much more expensive model. Yet another from the Jumajo box (I'm still rationing myself - I've taken to opening one on a Friday once I've put the work laptop away).

 

Oh, and in case anyone else needs a set, this is where I got the triangular bits from:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Triangular-Bits-Set-4-in-1-1-4-Inch-Hex-Shank-Magnetic-TA18-20-23-27-Screwdriver-/362740112497?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49292

They took ten days to arrive, which is still pretty good going.

I'd previously had some success using a small flathead screwdriver to force those triangular head screws, but the Kadett wasn't having any of it. One of those little things I've been meaning to buy for years!

[eddyramrod]

22 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

 Corgi produced a so-so 1/36 in rally colours for the Mobil promo range,

Yes, I remember it.  Was it a rally car though, or John Cleland's 1989 BTCC winner?

 

I can see myself ordering some of those triangular bits!

[RoadworkUK]

Man, if these weren't munny, I would be facing a significant spacial crisis right now.

https://ck-modelcars.de/en/l/t-suche/a-18/?s=road+kings

[bunglebus]

Got a little job lot given to me for my birfday

Nothing too exciting in there, a few Zylmex I haven't seen before - Porsche is usually missing its spoiler, might make a nice custom

So might the non-Growlers version of the Porsche 917

 

[flat4alfa]

Post Lady has been

She brought one of these:  Corgi Ford Mustang Mach I

It's all Eddy's fault for getting me interested

Never had one and had a yearning

But had to be an early wheels one

And I like that green and it had to be complete

Ah well, box ticked

I had assumed Whizzwheels were the later one-piece items

[flat4alfa]

From same 'bay charity shop was this

Matchbox K-60 Ford Mustang II

I blame Bunglebus for this one

Never had one and had forgotten they existed until recently

Had to be an early one in the eye-searing colour scheme to match the other eye-searing colour schemes

Having reasonably decent decals was a bonus

The idea to use the spare Milligan's Mill chassis to turn one into a Funny Car idea might need some more thought though, as the wheelbases are different

Never mind, it has met its similar friends from the catalogue pages and they got along well

[bunglebus]

Funny you should picture it with the AMX Javelin - I'm on the trail of yet another colour variation I've spotted. I'll have to have a tot-up of the ones I've found so far

[bunglebus]

But first, the Mustangs. I think there are only three versions

The red should be the rarest as it only came on the back of the K-2 recovery vehicles, but I'd say the blue is less common - unless you count the pink colour trial

 

[bunglebus]

The K-54 AMX Javelin is a bit more complex. Black seems uncommon, although a handful have popped up on eBay lately. Somehow I ended up with a tan and a white interior, I can't find a lot of references to the colours produced so hard to say which was made in greater numbers

Red, white stripe "24" with yellow interior

Red, "24" but without the white stripes

Pink, multi-coloured stripes "7", yellow interior

Got this boxed one with less decals, don't know if they've been removed as they are only paper

I know the red striped car also comes with a white interior and clear glass, that's what I'm after. There may be more.

 

Edit: at least one more

[flat4alfa]

On 9/29/2020 at 5:57 PM, flat4alfa said:

Dinky 1979 Trade Catalogue

Had assumed the Customised Range Rover was stillborn

But no - two have appeared with same seller locally for £26 offers

 

[Lord Sterling]

Today I decided to dig out my 1/24 Gama Vauxhall Senator:

Before I bought it, it appears to have been modified and repainted. The black paint on the roof was  definately a later addition. There is dried epoxy glue on the underside of the interior when the bottom plate is removed, not sure why as the interior stays in place Ok.  I decided today to cackhandedly tackle the low back as the back wheels didn't run very freely. The back of the interior on which the wheel axle sits doesn't appear to have been affected by any previous modification so maybe it's just a bad design. I did however manage to sort this eventually but in doing so, I accidently broke one of the front interior parts on which the fron axle sits on. I glued it back together and runs a bit freer now plus it looks better with a slighly lifted up back.

BMW 740i 1/24 (Minichamps/Pauls Model Art)

I think pretty much from when I bought this years ago, its BMW badges were always missing. I'd  always had a spare tiny BMW roundel stuck on the screen of a cheap 1/24 X5 I got years ago too which may have originally come frlm the 740i so decided to return the badge to this and rob one off another 1/24 Z4 for the bonnet badge.

When I got the car, it had its full passenger side door frame but broken off from the top.  Since being in storage, the door frame as well as the mirror have gone awol.  It wasn't in the box it was stored in, so I'm going to have to find or knock up some sort of solution to this because it really is a nice model and very rare from what I see.

1/18 Porsche 911 Carerra

The right-hand side front wheel suspension had a plastic retaining leg that had snapped off between the plastic interior which again, acted as a bump-stop and the 'suspension' of the wheel held on by a plastic pin, as this piece had long snapped off putting pressure on that side acted like there was no suspension but the wheel was otherside held on properly and steered as it was supposed to. It seemded a bit of an elaborate set-up for a model car but there ya go.

I found an old piece of redundant plastic. I bore a couple of retaining holes so it could sit in place between wheel holder and suspension and cut the piece of plastic down to the smallest size I could get away with with retaining its strength. You can see it underneath the lower arm in the middle of the wheel of the last picture. It works very well and now pressure can be put on that wheel without it disappearing into the arch!

1/18 Lincoln Limousine:

I finally got one! After the debacle of the original one I bought going awol in the post (how ?) and trying to sort this through much of December, January and some of February, I went and bid and won another one quite cheaply on eBay whilst dealing with the missing one and hoping to get a refund. I was pissed off and bloody minded despite the fact that I honestly thought I'd never get a 1/18 Lincoln Limo being as they seem rare and the next one I had on a watch list was £90+. 

This one popped up on a random eBay search so I just hit the bid button, bid up to near enough the cost of the one already on my watchlist and hoped for the best, thankfully I managed to win it for about £38 delivered. After nearly 3 months after my original purchase I did get a refund so in a way it worked out, albeit rather slowly.

It's not a bad model, has some good weight to it. The front doors and bonnet open well but the back doors don't seem to open wide enough.  I repaired the missing sunroof with some cardboard and black tape. Seems to hold up well. The boot, oddly enough doesn't open and was never made to. I placed my 1/18 Abarth 595 next to it for comparison. 

[Split_Pin]

Love the 740, must be a really late one as Gama stopped making 1/24 cars in the mid 1990s. Not seen it before.  I have the earlier 7 series from that maker in the same scale but the later models like yours are much nicer.  

I really like these late Gama 1/24s, I have a Mercedes W140 and BMW E36 Cabriolet. Lovely fit and finish with lots of separate details.

I've got the Monza in 1/24 scale  as well.

[bunglebus]

1 hour ago, flat4alfa said:

Had assumed the Customised Range Rover was stillborn

I have one. I bought a better one but it mysteriously got damaged/lost or some other excuse by the seller

Never seen the Land Rover but it does exist 

[Lord Sterling]

36 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

Love the 740, must be a really late one as Gama stopped making 1/24 cars in the mid 1990s. Not seen it before.  I have the earlier 7 series from that maker in the same scale but the later models like yours are much nicer.  

I really like these late Gama 1/24s, I have a Mercedes W140 and BMW E36 Cabriolet. Lovely fit and finish with lots of separate details.

I've got the Monza in 1/24 scale  as well.

The 740 is actually one of those 'Pauls Model Art' (aka: Minchamps?) They have this car in 1.24 scale from the James Bond movie 'Tomorrow Never Dies' which is what I was originally looking for but ended up buying this one as this seemed much rarer and it didn't (iirc) attract any bids as it showed the damage. Bearing in mind this was about 10/15 years ago.

[bunglebus]

On 8/8/2020 at 7:24 PM, bunglebus said:

 

20200808_184027 by RS, on Flickr

20200808_183939 by RS, on Flickr

Here it is

[Split_Pin]

40 minutes ago, Lord Sterling said:

The 740 is actually one of those 'Pauls Model Art' (aka: Minchamps?) They have this car in 1.24 scale from the James Bond movie 'Tomorrow Never Dies' which is what I was originally looking for but ended up buying this one as this seemed much rarer and it didn't (iirc) attract any bids as it showed the damage. Bearing in mind this was about 10/15 years ago.

Ah right that explains it, I wonder if that's what Gama morphed into?

I bought a Mondeo in 1994 which was labeled Pauls Model Art and I'm 99% sure they became Minichamps.

[Lord Sterling]

2 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

I bought a Mondeo in 1994 which was labeled Pauls Model Art and I'm 99% sure they became Minichamps.

Minichamps with 'Pauls Model Art' on the back in white writing 😁

[Split_Pin]

Now, I might not have been entirely wrong in my assumption:

Is yours in any way similar to this Schuco example:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164596373140

What originally made me think yours was Gama was your description of the domed gel BMW badges. Those appear on all my Gama 1/24 BMWs  regardless of age and indeed they also appear on my similarly scaled Schuco  E36 M3. I'm almost certain that this is simply a rebounded Gama. A tenuous link but a link nonetheless!

[Split_Pin]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/154360113515

It turns out I was right about it being a rebranded Gama. 

 

[Lord Sterling]

15 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

Now, I might not have been entirely wrong in my assumption:

Is yours in any way similar to this Schuco example:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/164596373140

What originally made me think yours was Gama was your description of the domed gel BMW badges. Those appear on all my Gama 1/24 BMWs  regardless of age and indeed they also appear on my similarly scaled Schuco  E36 M3. I'm almost certain that this is simply a rebounded Gama. A tenuous link but a link nonetheless!

Hmmm. Interesting. The badges are not domed gel badges, they are just tiny stickers hence why I was able to rob one off another BMW model.

But I do have domed gel badges on the X5 which is actually a cheapy one, quite crude in some places. I found a tiny BMW sticker and stuck it on the X5s window. Obviously many years later I stuck it back on the 740i as that might be where it originally came from.

The bonnet badge on the 740i has a tiny silver frame to it which indicates (to me) that it came from the 1/24 Z4.

Interesting how that BMW 740i you put up in the link is sold as a 'Schuco'. It is indeed the exact same car albeit a differsnt colour and wheels but the same build. 

[bunglebus]

I wish I could share the Facebook videos, this guy puts dozens of LEDs in Matchbox SpeedKings that flash in various patterns, crazy stuff

 

[flat4alfa]

No need to go onto FB

[bunglebus]

On 3/20/2021 at 9:53 AM, Datsuncog said:

Indeed - Kadett E/ Mk2 Astra, in post-1988 facelift guise. Matchbox modelled the GTE in police, rally and (rarer?) road versions for their 1-75 range

 

[RoadworkUK]

That GTE (along with the Sterling) is from what I regard as absolute peak Matchbox era. They were just such gorgeously weighty, beautifully observed things in the second half of  the 80s.

[155V6]

1 hour ago, bunglebus said:

 

Interesting* fact time,the livery on the middle one is based on the John Welch Rallycross car.I can see his yard from my girlfriend's house,where I'm standing right now,behind the fence in the middle of the picture

[AndyW201]

Almost certain Gama did morph into Schuco, I've got the Calibra from both and the casting is identical, the Schuco has better wheels and interior and has the facelift V-grille though.

[bunglebus]

1 hour ago, RoadworkUK said:

That GTE (along with the Sterling) is from what I regard as absolute peak Matchbox era. They were just such gorgeously weighty, beautifully observed things in the second half of  the 80s.

I like the last of the standard wheel cars right up to the end of the 80s. The Tyco era cars felt decidedly cheap in comparison. There have been a few good ones since then, but it's only very recently that they've started making really nice cars again