Shite in Miniature II

[Datsuncog]

34 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

And the French:

 

 

That's quite peculiar - a short essay on customization, and how Matchbox toys are part of a noble tradition spanning the Crusades, Scottish clans and Native Americans...

I wonder if there was some requirement in France at the time for printed matter aimed at children to have some educational content included - kind of like how children's TV programmes in the UK couldn't just be adverts for toy ranges, but had to contain some form of 'morally improving' dimension (paraphrasing here), which is why action cartoons such as He-Man tended to contain some sort of clunky bolt-on bit at the end about stranger danger, or saying no to drugs?

[sierraman]

I’d love a Matchbox Auto Sales. Chances of finding one that’s not broken or fifty million quid though...

Might just have to get the Plywood out and build one...

[bunglebus]

17 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

which is why action cartoons such as He-Man tended to contain some sort of clunky bolt-on bit at the end about stranger danger, or saying no to drugs

Indeed

[155V6]

10 minutes ago, sierraman said:

I’d love a Matchbox Auto Sales. Chances of finding one that’s not broken or fifty million quid though...

Might just have to get the Plywood out and build one...

I'd like one of those too,I don't think I've ever seen one in real life & I'm.quite old 😂

[sheffcortinacentre]

5 hours ago, bunglebus said:

Talking of Beetles - this one just landed.

If you haven't experienced a Galanite before, they're quite odd. They're made of a flexible plastic that always pops back into shape no matter what

I remember playing with one of these in a sandpit as a kid and being fascinated with it. Think I had one before but it's disappeared somewhere over the years. There are others but the blue Beetle was the one I really wanted, I might try and find the split bus too

Ive several MK3 cortinas obviously from the corgi one

[bezzabsa]

3 hours ago, bunglebus said:

Indeed

didn't we have something similar in the 80's over here????  Nik o teen rings a bell

[bunglebus]

I definitely remember the picture on the left

[sierraman]

So... tomorrow the Matchbox arrive at Tesco, I’ll be there on reconnaissance waiting for the boxes with ‘Mattel’ to come out. 

[flat4alfa]

14 hours ago, bezzabsa said:

didn't we have something similar in the 80's over here????  Nik o teen rings a bell

They are from over here

The Ministry of Health set up the Health Education Council in 1968 and is part of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) today

I remember the Nick O'Teen ads above. Very likely wouldn't be allowed today, in our era of political correction troublemakers

[bunglebus]

2 hours ago, sierraman said:

So... tomorrow the Matchbox arrive at Tesco, I’ll be there on reconnaissance waiting for the boxes with ‘Mattel’ to come out. 

I wouldn't put money on it, they keep putting the date back in one store, and the other doesn't have a space for them at all

[barrett]

20 hours ago, 155V6 said:

I've got these,if they look a bit wet in the pictures,it's because they live in the bathroom with the rubber ducks 🤣

The Jeep has been around for over 40 years,the rest are more recent finds.We had quite a few when we were kids as they sold them at a local toyshop(which is still there!)

A few years ago,I found a Jeep Forward Control breakdown truck in green.I didn't collect them at the time,so put it on eBay & it sold for about £90!.Apparently,it's quite rare in that colour.

I had a couple of those (or something similar) when I was a kid. One was a Bedford TK breakdown truck, and I think the other was a Renault 16(?). I always thought they were Greek in origin, but it could just be that they were bought for me in Greece by a Greek relative. I think I can vaguely remember a 60s Thunderbird too. Never really thought about them until I saw those.

 

EDIT: The Renault is apparently by Tomte-Laerdal of Norway (mine was orange)

This is the Bedford, which is a Galanite

 

 

[bunglebus]

Finally got my hands on the black Matchbox VW T3 from the Commando series. I think this means I have all the variations now

Typically two popped up on eBay at the same time, this one on its own and another in a lot - so a second one will be arriving shortly...

[155V6]

17 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

Finally got my hands on the black Matchbox VW T3 from the Commando series. I think this means I have all the variations now

Typically two popped up on eBay at the same time, this one on its own and another in a lot - so a second one will be arriving shortly...

How many variations are there?.I've got 4 different ambulances,I know about the Graffic Traffic version & this one.Are there any more?

[Jon]

Wotcha Shite pickers!

NZ's still in lockdown measures so I've decided to hop in the old Trans-Pacific time travel box for a quick break in the olden days.

 

Yep, back in the old US of Stateside and I picked up an out and out sports coop to get me about the place.  If I'm going to do this, I might as well do it dreadfully.

 

What's not advertised in the time travel box literature is the side effects of such activities: namely, it doesn't half make you famished. Dropped in to the catchily titled Father's Also for a sammich and a Coors. Parked the steed out by the window, so I could gaze at its coherent styling whilst I dined on a deep fried hummus and sundried tomato sub. Classic American vegan dining at its best.

 

A little down the road, I encountered a sugar parlour, so what better way to celebrate 8 untroubled miles than to stop in and try some wares?

 

Talking about wares...... wares my tires* gone?!!? But let's ignore that mere detail for a moment and instead, enjoy a photo of the T-Bird BASKING in the sun shine. 

 

Luckily, the second establishment visited that day with a large chicken on their sign proved just as welcoming as the first one. Initially, Norm tried to palm me off with a set of used tires(*) but little did he know that I was a patron of a yet to be invented motoring forum for powerfully built gents, so in the end I opted for a set of Michelin Pilot Sport 4s.  Luckily, he had a set of prototypes in stock.

 

As the evening drew to a close, I ventured forth towards the cultural hub, a hallowed land where you can rest awhile, day or night. And penguins pump gas.

TBC..

[bunglebus]

23 minutes ago, 155V6 said:

How many variations are there?.I've got 4 different ambulances,I know about the Graffic Traffic version & this one.Are there any more?

I think this is it:

I have this with blue glass too

I'm going to have to paint that Graffic Traffic. Is there a forth white ambulance I've missed

[155V6]

Not sure how clear this will be,but the the markings on the right hand one are orange,rather than the red on the one you have

 

[bunglebus]

You have the two different glass colours too. I'll keep an eye out for that one.

[155V6]

I've got this other one with the orange markings,yours for the price of postage if you want it?

[Datsuncog]

22 hours ago, Datsuncog said:

I had quite a few of those at one point - including that Beetle sedan, and also a police Beetle which was a completely different moulding, despite being the same thing only with a roof lamp and a wing-mounted siren added. I also had a T1 pick-up in the same range.

Other Galanite toys I had included a Renault Floride, Peugeot 403 Convertible, Land Rover S1 (with driver and dog) and a Morris Mini which was similar but in green, and branded Tomte-Laerdahl.

I got rid of them a while back, but I'll see if I can find some pics...

I found some pics, though not all...

Galanite Police Beetle and 403 Cab

Regular Beetle and S1 Land Rover.

Galanite VW Type 1 Transporter.

Tomte-Laerdahl Mini.

Not sure why I've no pics of the Floride - sheer disorganisation, I guess.

[D.E]

Driver didn't wear the seatbelt and smashed his head through the windshield? Gruesome!

Schuco reused the polizei baseplate for this taxi. I'm pretty sure a German taxi would usually be a 200D or 240D instead of a 200.

[bunglebus]

26 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Galanite VW Type 1 Transporter.

I'd like to find one of those

[Datsuncog]

^^ I thought you might.

😉

[flat4alfa]

Galanite VW Golf Mk1

 

Thats all I can bring to the Galanite party

[155V6]

I just found this picture

There's  a lot of Corgi copies,not seen the Marina Coupe before 😎

[flat4alfa]

WHO DID IT WORSE?

The Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III Mulliner Park Ward fixed head coupé in 1:43 scale

In the left corner: Polistil 

In the right corner: Dinky.  In true Polistil form, something has fallen off.

Both are near identical in size and scale, and the very same opening things too!

The bonnets don't sit too well on the Polistil, the castings look like they need a trim to seat properly when shut ; while the Dinky doesn't allow quite the same opening height and would need to be forced, with inevitable regret.  'Jewelled' headlight fitted to the Dinky.

Engine detailed in both, casting markings spoil the Polistil and the plastic wheels are not nice

The front seats tip on the Dinky, the wheels are of the turned alloy type

The Polistil has a bare plastic dashboard with a few dial details.  The (LHD) steering wheel has fallen off this example.  Handy.

Dinky took a good step further with a faux-woodgain sticker effort, although the steering wheel angle might induce backache.

Plastic base on the Polistil, but it is screwed home.  Both axle rods are too long though, as seen here at the rear and at the front in the first photo above.  Perfect opportunity for @bunglebus to adapt an example into a custom*

Both have separate 'rubber' tyres.  Not sure of the original price-points, but pretty likely the Dinky cost much more to produce and dates from an earlier time.  The Polistil has evident casting flaws and ill-fitting parts, but nothing a bit of effort wouldn't help with when restoring one and on the open UK market worth considerably less than the Dinky

[bunglebus]

25 minutes ago, flat4alfa said:

WHO DID IT WORSE?

In that comparison - Polistil. Those huge red tail lights are awful if nothing else - but then Dinky, as well as Corgi and Spot-on of this era are pretty hard to beat for a balance of great detail and still being a toy, not a model with delicate bits to fall off if you look at it funny

[Split_Pin]

18 minutes ago, bunglebus said:

delicate bits to fall off if you look at it funny

100% the case with every toy car made in Italy 1970 -2005

[bunglebus]

44 minutes ago, Split_Pin said:

100% the case with every toy car made in Italy 1970 -2005

FTFY

[Conan]

 

Ottomobile 1/18 Resin Model. wrong colour innit m8

[Datsuncog]

On 10/1/2021 at 12:43 PM, Datsuncog said:

 I did happen to pick this up, as requested by @155V6:

Yup, it's the snappily-named Siku #3411 Flugfeldlöschfahrzeug, apparently based on a Metz-Faun design.

It's quite a bit older than I thought it might be - the back of the box still showcases quite a few seventies Siku models, like the Mk1 Granada estate:

Side of the box is marked 'Made in W. Germany', so it's likely to be pre-unification - minimum of 30 years old, then?

The box is a little bashed-up, it's true:

Still, some fresh cellophane could improve it a bit.

The model itself looks to be a minter, though:

It's really heavy, too.

Opening side storage cabinets reveal removable hoses in sliding carriers, which probably didn't last five minutes under normal play conditions:

Plus multi-directional swivelling foam lances:

And teeny-tiny opening hatches on the roof, which are nice and all, but I'm not sure what play value they add...

It's a brilliant model, and in terms of sheer heft and engineering, demonstrates why Siku always commanded such a premium over their competitors.

I'm sure this would have cost more new than the tenner paid today - certainly when inflation's factored in - so hopefully you're happy enough with this one, dude! Sure PM me with your current address whenever you want it sent over.

A happy Friday to you all, gentle miniShiters.

 

On 10/1/2021 at 1:24 PM, Split_Pin said:

I think the Granada was made into the 1980s. Those other models are old though, especially the yellow Magirus. No sign of any forward control Volvo Trucks like the F10 or even the F7 just the N10 which looks to have quad round lights so definitely not even mid 1980s. I'd have a stab and say it's about 1981.

1981 sounds broadly correct - I flicked through my (incomplete) collection of Siku catalogues last night, and the latest catalogue in which I can find this big airport crash truck featuring is the 1982/83 year range. So it's most probably getting on for 40 years old...

I'd somehow thought it was a late '90s model when I clocked it the other week - possibly because Siku kept their packaging so consistent over the years, but also because it seemed so shiny and new-looking. Well well well.