I'm not going to tell you what I may or may not have done with or to one of my dad's Bachmann locomotives about 35 years ago. It's never too late to incriminate yourself and suffer the wrath of Dad!
Toys you had as a kid and that you kept
- Thread starter vavavroom
- Start date
Firecrackers, smoke bombs?? I may have once tried to recreate a train strafing movie I saw....ahh to be young and imaginative!I'm not going to tell you what I may or may not have done with or to one of my dad's Bachmann locomotives about 35 years ago. It's never too late to incriminate yourself and suffer the wrath of Dad!
I put the chemistry set my uncle had given me for Christmas to good use. I like to think Dad was a little proud of me despite the destroyed locomotive and the slightly singed parquet flooring.
Here is one of my old toys, a Field Car (unbranded/generic Scout) made by Matchbox in England in 1969. I presume it was passed down to me by an older cousin ca 1980 like many of my old toy cars. This model has finger steering that allows you to steer the car by pushing down on the right front to steer right and vice versa. At 5 years old this upset me because I knew the toy was leaning the wrong way in curves. I actually fought with other kids over this important physics issue.
I built the red variant probably around 1988 when I was too old to play with toy cars but I enjoyed model building and modifying models. That's also when I started collecting models. The red version started out looking exactly like the yellow one. I had to remove the metal structure that was under the plastic roof and I added a rollbar. I had to build a new window frame into which I could fit a window, a feature the original model lacked. I also made metal wheels and stainless steel axles with brass hubs. I stripped the yellow finish and painted the model red and cream. The tires are Buna N )-rings. I'm happy to see the model has survived about 35 years in storage.
I have shown and mentioned both of these models in another thread but here I have added a bit more backstory.
Previous post
You can see two brass studs and nuts protruding from the baseplate near the rear bumper. The baseplate was originally attached to the body with three rivets. I replaced the rivets with threaded studs, washers, and nuts. I always raided Dad's H0 train model building parts bin for those fastenbers. "Dad, we are out of nuts again!"
I built the red variant probably around 1988 when I was too old to play with toy cars but I enjoyed model building and modifying models. That's also when I started collecting models. The red version started out looking exactly like the yellow one. I had to remove the metal structure that was under the plastic roof and I added a rollbar. I had to build a new window frame into which I could fit a window, a feature the original model lacked. I also made metal wheels and stainless steel axles with brass hubs. I stripped the yellow finish and painted the model red and cream. The tires are Buna N )-rings. I'm happy to see the model has survived about 35 years in storage.
I have shown and mentioned both of these models in another thread but here I have added a bit more backstory.
Previous post
You can see two brass studs and nuts protruding from the baseplate near the rear bumper. The baseplate was originally attached to the body with three rivets. I replaced the rivets with threaded studs, washers, and nuts. I always raided Dad's H0 train model building parts bin for those fastenbers. "Dad, we are out of nuts again!"
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Tonka truck that my great grandpa (my middle name is also his first name) gave me, along with several of the bigger yellow dump trucks. I always kept this one nice and couldn't bring myself to drag it around the yard and leave it in the sun. It holds my extra cash now and sits on a shelf View attachment 182137
Grandpa Johnson died when I was like 1, so I don't remember him.
Grandpa Johnson died when I was like 1, so I don't remember him.
Nice. One of my sandbox buddies had all the construction vehicles. A couple of dump trucks, and excavator, a dozer, and my favorite, the articulated wheel loader in screaming yellow. I always liked that the steel toys started rusting like real equipment. Then I learned about tetanus ("titnuts").
I found one of my all-time favorite toy models. A 1/72 scale Ford Transit Caravan (1st Gen 1965-1977) made by Husky (later called Corgi Junior). I have no idea why this has always been one of my favorites. It's a camper version and it's neither a particularly well-done casting nor a special model. It has an elusive quality I have always found very attractive. This toy used to go on family trips to Canada, both coasts, the UK, and France - it's a globetrotter. I got it when I was three and it remained in use for probably six years. I remember once building a very rickety and narrow bridge across a small creek to get this vehicle across. This model held upon well. It has a metal bottom plate, unlike many other Husky models that have plastic bottom plates.
Interestingly, the real van had two sliding doors, probably because most of them were built as delivery vans. The sliding door details are present.
The rear door does fold up and it locks in place to stay open. The model has a pretty good suspension.
Interestingly, the real van had two sliding doors, probably because most of them were built as delivery vans. The sliding door details are present.
The rear door does fold up and it locks in place to stay open. The model has a pretty good suspension.
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In a recent post in anotehr subforum, I recently showed a 1948 Ford F1 P/U that I modified in the late '90s. It was not a toy but a collector's item. I actually put two identical ones together. They had custom metal grilles, custom metal wheels, custom brass headlights with resin lenses, and Nitrile O-rings for tires. Red and pristine.
Around 2007 my son was fascinated by the old rusty pickup trucks we saw during pumpkin season. So we converted one of my PRISTINE models into a rusty jalopy you might find in Farmer Jed's field. This was a two-day project and I showed my son how to chip paint, how to dry brush, and how to use colored chalk and Fuller's Earth for dirtying up and aging a model. This is mostly his work. My son was six at the time.
Today I took these pictures.
Around 2007 my son was fascinated by the old rusty pickup trucks we saw during pumpkin season. So we converted one of my PRISTINE models into a rusty jalopy you might find in Farmer Jed's field. This was a two-day project and I showed my son how to chip paint, how to dry brush, and how to use colored chalk and Fuller's Earth for dirtying up and aging a model. This is mostly his work. My son was six at the time.
Today I took these pictures.
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Between my brother and I we basically destroyed everything.
One Christmas I got a new ninja turtles van and broke it that day because my brother pushed it down the stairs.
One Christmas I got a new ninja turtles van and broke it that day because my brother pushed it down the stairs.
Yeah, I went through a destructive phase as a tween. Air rifle, slingshot, fire crackers, lighter fluid, potassium chlorate, and powdered aluminum were all deployed in toy destruction. I didn't want to get into trouble with my parents so I blew up my friends' toys in a discrete and secretive manner.
Two E-Types. The dark red one is a Husky and the orange one is a Matchbox, both in ca 1/64. Both were made in England in the late '60s and were passed on to me probably around 1980. Both are in great shape with little paint loss. I was a careful toy operator, at least with my own toys. Note how on these old models the body gaps are simulated with raised lines.
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wemay
Site Donor 2023
Now i remember! I even took these to Panama (the country) on Summer vacation on the Grandparent's farm.
MASKATRON
SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN
MASKATRON
SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN
Dad knew STEM is good for me and "space" Lego doesn't limit my imagination like other themes, so I get a small set like these every year till I enter middle school.
Is the burgundy (opalescent maroon?) one a 2+2?? If so, very cool. Cool either way, but a die cast 2+2 is probably an uncommon bird.Two E-Types. The dark red one is a Husky and the orange one is a Matchbox, both in ca 1/64. Both were made in England in the late '60s and were passed on to me probably around 1980. Both are in great shape with little paint loss. I was a careful toy operator, at least with my own toys. Note how on these old models the body gaps are simulated with raised lines.
Apologies for the late reply. I missed your post. Yes, the Husky is a 2+2. Long wheelbase and all.
I found these three models but I think there should also be a silver Fiat somewhere. These three models are made by Penny, or Polistil (aka Politoys) of Italy. All three are in 1/66 scale.
The police car on the left is a Alfa Romeo Bertone 2600 Sport (1962-1968). The dark silver car is a Maserati 3500 GT (1957-1964). The red car is a Lancia Flavia Zagato Sport (1961 -1975). I think this particular one is a late '60s model.
The police car on the left is a Alfa Romeo Bertone 2600 Sport (1962-1968). The dark silver car is a Maserati 3500 GT (1957-1964). The red car is a Lancia Flavia Zagato Sport (1961 -1975). I think this particular one is a late '60s model.
My focus in this thread is on toy cars because I have those readily accessible while other things are mostly stored off-site. Anyway, here are a few more of my old models.
I found the Penny Fiat I mentioned in my previous post. It has jeweled headlights, similar to many Corgi and Siku models of the era. It's a Fiat 850 coupé, probably a Series I variant ca 1868.
Two Japanese-made Tomica models, ca 1/64 scale.
The orange one is a Datsun/Nissan Cherry X-1 (1970) in 168 and the blue one is a Datsun/Nissan Sunny Excellent 1400 GX (mid '70s) in 1/59. They have superfast wheels and axles and good suspension.
And two Schuco models. A silver Scirocco MKI (1974-1981) in 1/66 and an Audi 100 LS (1968-1976) in baby poop color. The Schuco models also have superfast wheels and axles.
I found the Penny Fiat I mentioned in my previous post. It has jeweled headlights, similar to many Corgi and Siku models of the era. It's a Fiat 850 coupé, probably a Series I variant ca 1868.
Two Japanese-made Tomica models, ca 1/64 scale.
The orange one is a Datsun/Nissan Cherry X-1 (1970) in 168 and the blue one is a Datsun/Nissan Sunny Excellent 1400 GX (mid '70s) in 1/59. They have superfast wheels and axles and good suspension.
And two Schuco models. A silver Scirocco MKI (1974-1981) in 1/66 and an Audi 100 LS (1968-1976) in baby poop color. The Schuco models also have superfast wheels and axles.
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Looks like Lindsey Wagner punched Majors in the face.
A Ferrari Berlinetta 275 made by Siku in the '70s, This model is ca 1/60 scale. The wheels and tires are not original. Shooting toy cars is tricky because of the short shooting distance. I usually have to take two shots, one focused near the front and one focused near the rear of the vehicle, then I cobble the two images together. I didn't get to shoot outside so you get badly done composite shots with a fake background. These are just reference shots, so that's okay.
Fake sky bleeding into the vehicle.
Fake sky bleeding into the vehicle.
How do the wheels attach?
