Showing posts with label Trucks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trucks. Show all posts

A Matter of Scale: Tomica Limited Vintage Suzuki Fronte SS360 and Hino KB324 Truck...


We have spent more than a few posts touting the amazing models of Tomica Limited Vintage.  True 1:64 models with amazing detail, and almost always more obscure than what we normally see in 1:64, and the majority are fantastically Japan-centric.

Today we show two that are very much Japanese, and are wonderfully detailed, but that is not why they are up today.  They are today's Models of the Day to highlight TLV's commitment to scale.

(But first, if you like what you see, or are interested in TLV in general, I highly suggest visiting the ebay store of Patocar out of Japan.  He is my favorite TLV seller on ebay, and the more you buy the more he is prone to discounting.  It never hurts to ask.)

I don't now what the scale baseline was when TLV got started, but since then they want to see when one model sits next to another, the proportions are the same as when both real vehicles are sitting next to each other on the road.

So let's start with the Hino KB324 Truck from the Tomica Limited Vintage Neo line;








It is hard not to go off on how fantastic this model is - all the detail, the structure, the great grey color - but I won't.  Plus, the photos do all the talking here.

This is about scale, so let's move on to the Suzuki Fronte SS3600:







The Fronte is what is known in Japan as a kei car.  Kei cars were so small they did not have to adhere to the tax laws and regulations that were put on their larger counterparts.  They have always been quite popular in Japan, although that is waning a bit presently.  But they remain a Japanese fixture.

So you get the Fronte is small.  How small?

Let's put it next to a TLV Datsun Wagon, the size of which many should be able to relate to:




Better yet...

Let's take some pics of the Fronte with a model you would be much more familiar with:


Yes, that is a standard Matchbox, and yes, that Suzuki is small.

So how would a real Suzuki Fronte kei car look sitting next to a real Hino Truck?

Exactly like the TLV Fronte does sitting next to the TLV Hino:





How great is that? 

That makes for different sized boxes to store the models as well:


The Tomica Limited Vintage and TLV-Neo lines are just fantastic, no matter how you look at them.  Do you see why we love collecting these?

First Look: Hot Wheels Retro Entertainment '75 Kenworth W900...


There are a few things to address with this truck.

  1. The movie the model is from.
  2. The casting itself.
  3. The real reason I like this model so much.
  4. It is going to fly off the shelves when it hits stores.

Let's start with the movie.  Smokey & The Bandit.  Never saw it.  Mainly because it was out in the late 70's and I was under five-years-old at that point.  Plus I am sure my parents would have been petrified to let me see it even if I were older.  Burt Reynolds in all his mustached glory was probably way too sexy.

I know there were sequels, I know Jackie Gleason and Sally Field were in one or all.  I know I have seen parts during a channel surf or two.  And I only associate the Firebird with it.  But there is a semi, and I am glad there is, because it prompted Hot Wheels to make a very nice version of said classic semi.

Which leads to the model.  Maybe it sits too high, but it doesn't bother me.  Maybe the wheels are not totally correct, but it doesn't bother me.  The fact is it is a classic Kenworth, which is what a truck should look like.  Not slanted like the Long Gone, not completely out of proportion like the Custom  Convoy (one of my least favorite premium models), just a behemoth, which trucks are.  Behemoths.  There are a lot of current Hot Wheels semi castings, and even more classic castings.  While I think some can legitimately argue that some classic castings are better (I don't agree), to me there is no doubt this is the best current semi casting Hot Wheels has done.  By a mile.

And why do I like so much?  Because I loved Kenworth trucks as a kid.  And the '75 W900 would have been the truck that I fell in love with.  (Yeah, I know.  Surprise.  A little boy likes trucks.  That is SOOOOOO unique John.  Here is a medal.)

But I did, and in pure kid fashion, I arbitrarily picked Kenworth as my favorite.  And according to my parents, I did it at a very young age.  In the grand old days of the 70's family vacation, I apparently stood (yes, stood) in between my father (who was driving) and mother in the station wagon and pointed out every truck that would be heading the opposite way.  And I got especially excited when I saw the Kenworth badge sitting right on the truck's nose.  When I was tiny, I made sure to single out every truck by pointing at it and yelling "TRUCK!" "TRUCK!", only using "f" in place of "tr" was apparently a lot easier.  My clean-mouthed parents apparently got quite the kick out of my foul-mouthed toddler-hood.  I probably said more f-words before I was 3 than I did from 4 to 18.  I loved fu...uh...er...trucks.

And the fact that a 2-your-old Sam Kinison grew up to be me is the main reason I love this truck.  It may have hauled beer for Burt, but even better, it made me cuss in front of my parents.  Happy times...

(Find the Hot Wheels Kenworth on ebay and at Wheel Collectors...)


Hot Wheels '75 Kenworth W900 (2013 Retro Entertainment):







First Look: 2013 Matchbox Ford F-550 Super Duty Mini Pumper...


I really like this model.

Hard to say why.  Not that I can't come up with a reason.  There are many models I can appreciate, but not necessarily like enough to put in the collection.  Many Hot Wheels collectors go bonkers for the Drag Bus.  I can appreciate that model.  I wouldn't say I am a fan though.

So there are many reason to appreciate the Ford F550 Super Duty.  That isn't hard to do.  What is hard to pinpoint is why I like it so much.  Here is what I can come up with:



1. It fills a niche in the Matchbox line.  Lots of fire trucks, not a lot of small brush fire trucks.   We have seen the International and Ford Superlift brush trucks in the last couple of years, and this one fits nicely with those.  Doesn't seem like the most compelling reason for liking it though, does it?  So scratch "it fills a niche."

2. It looks good, and it has been done in a nice variety of decos, including my favorite, the National Parks livery.  While the National Parks livery Matchbox uses is unlicensed, it looks a lot like the vehicles you see while visiting a National Park here in the US.  So we are closer with reason #2.  I really like the National Parks livery, so any model sporting it goes into the collection.  But that doesn't mean I collect all other version of said models.  But I do collect all the F550's.  So out the window it goes.

3. It reminds me of National Parks and living in the West.  Yep, that is probably it.  Born in the Bay Area of San Francisco, reared by way of stints in Idaho, central California near the Sierra Nevadas, Arizona, and now Utah.  Hmmmmm, that means I have lived near Yellowstone, Yosemite, the Grand Canyon, Zion, and Arches.  It also means I have lived in two of the four Four Corner states.  Put it simply, you cannot live in those areas and not have a deep appreciation for the land you live on.  It is impossible.  The F-550 looks like a National Parks vehicle.  A vehicle used to protect the land I love.  I really like this model.

I think I've got it.  It may have a hunk of plastic.  The latest version may sport a red grill.  It may be too light.  I don't care.  I really like this model...

(Find the F-550 Super Duty on ebay...)


Matchbox Ford F-550 Super Duty Mini Pumper (2013 Mainline):





The family:

2011 Basic

2011 Basic recolor

2011 10-pack

2012 5-pack

2012 Basic bright yellow green

2012 Basic correct color

2013 Basic

First Look: Hot Wheels Boulevard Long Gone...


Well, Hot Wheels collectors love their trucks.  Well, so do Matchbox collectors.  So, let me rephrase...

Well, diecast collectors love their trucks.

On the Hot Wheels side, the Hiway Hauler and Custom Convoy are always hits, no matter what lineup they appear in, and it appears the Long Gone is joining the club.  This is the second version of the Long Gone, which is essentially a retool of the Long Shot, which was released back in the early 1980's.  The first version was part of last year's Hot Ones series, and the name was appropriate, as most collectors who hit stores found the model exactly that...long gone.

So I assume the same will happen to the Boulevard version.  And after this release, I can see the casting staying out of the mainline (too much metal), but becoming a regular member of the RLC and other premium lines.  Wherever it settles, it will be popular...

(Hot Wheels Long Gone and Long Shot for sale...)


Hot Wheels Long Gone (2013 Boulevard):








Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...