Hello again here are some of the 1967 Casino Royal vehicles I'm working on.
The Rolls Phantom V is a Corgi, I have Lions in the mail to go with it, The Jag is a newer Corgi with a painted Fabrri figure driving (still needs some work) The Bentley is a Minichamp, I am going to insert a Corgi John Steed driver, painted to look like David Niven.
The Bedford is in the mail...Oxford diecast, thank you again to the person that submitted the availability of this model!
I also have purchased a Renault 5 turbo and a Corgi American LaFrance, again need any help out there for the backgrounds.
Can anyone help me with the background photos, I can't seem to figure out how to get a still photo from the DVD.
Most dvd player software for your computer has a screen capture option. It's simply a question of clicking the camera icon at the right time.
That said, you have two challenges. First, the screen caps aren't always that sharp. Second, you'll have to do a bit of creative assembly with a graphics program to make it work.
One suggestion that's easy. Print your base labels on your computer. It looks like you tried to use individual decal letters. Use a regular labe. Create a text box, use a black fill and use white text inside the box. Make the box a little larger than needed, cut to size, "paint" the white edges of the label with a black marker, spray the label with a gloss varnish. Apply carefully. Make 2-3 labels in case you need a spare.
If you're really creative, it can also be done with decals (one black with clear letters, the other plain white as a backing).
Hi Arronax, thanks for the advice, I will change the labels to a print base instead of an individual letter base. My sign cutter has difficulty cutting that small, actually I'm surprised I even got close! worked pretty good on the Texron truck I need to work on the logo a bit.
As for the screen capture, i have tried that, maybe I need to upgrade my player or software...any suggestions?
As for graphics programs to play with the photo I have Corel paint, I think that will work, but of course i have not gotten that far yet!
hey Canuck007, which ackgrounds are you after - I "copied and pasted" then printed backgrounds for Little Nellie and the Goldeneye Tank from this thread that someone kindly posted ages ago !!??
Hi, Canuck007, great job on the graphics for the Texron tanker and Kenworth!
Can you tell me who produced the Kenworth model? I have found the base model for the International tanker but cannot find a matching Kenworth with the low sleeper cab in 1:43 or 1:50 ...
Hi Rainier Wolfcastle, thanks for the compliments. I believe the base model of the Kenworth was a 1:43 New Ray, it did have a tall sleeper with aerodynamic fins off the sides. I cut the roof down and removed the fins. The model came completely white with a white trailer. I cut a section of wall off the trailer and used it to form the new roof of the sleeper. I also removed the pipes and canister on the left side of the the tractor to match the movie vehicle and painted over the chrome parts.
When we go Monthly issues..does that mean they will only take one payment from Direct Debit????? -{ :007)
UPDATE: Just spoke to a lovely lady,with a Bond sounding name "Nikita" & she said that the DD will be automatically adjusted for the change to every 8 weeks issues...God!! they are fairly dragging it out now !!!...-{ :007)
"Just spoke to a lovely lady,with a Bond sounding name 'Nikita'"
You sure it wasn't some old Ukrainian guy with a tendency toward banging his shoe on the table? )
"God!! they are fairly dragging it out now !!!"
Like I said, this is typical Ixo. They need time to prepare moulds, which they do much slower than UH because they inadvertently compete against themselves as explained. Of course, I think their finished products are generally more detailed than UH and FAR closer to true 1/43 scale, so there are pros and cons.
Very sorry to hear UH have gone bust. One of my favourite 1/18s is the Renault 5 Turbo by them similar to the Turbo 2 model Fatima Blush drove in "Never say never again" funnily enough.
Hi Rainier Wolfcastle, thanks for the compliments. I believe the base model of the Kenworth was a 1:43 New Ray, it did have a tall sleeper with aerodynamic fins off the sides. I cut the roof down and removed the fins. The model came completely white with a white trailer. I cut a section of wall off the trailer and used it to form the new roof of the sleeper. I also removed the pipes and canister on the left side of the the tractor to match the movie vehicle and painted over the chrome parts.
I found the New Ray Kenworth but thought that there would be a better option for the sleeper cab. I didn't think that you cut it down as it looks pretty much like a factory job. While I have no problems with repainting and drawing decals, I am not sure that I could do the cutting and filling well enough.
Also where can I find figures that would go with some of these scenes, I saw the pics from the gentleman, I believe was from France, he has fantastic figures, does he make them himself?
The best car for figures is, I think, the YOLT Toyota Crown which contains four figures, two of them even with machine guns. So you get a diorama box and four figures with this one. The TSWLM Ford Taunus also has four figures, but this is not yet released where I live so I don't know if this is an even better option. Are there any other cars with four passengers?
Of course one can always use the Preiser figures ( www.figuren.de ) -> Katalogdownload -> Miniaturfiguren und Zubehör 0. Maßstab 1:43 - 1:45, or military 1:48. Unbemalt. Bausätze, or Miniaturfiguren. Für den Architekturmodellbau. Maßstab 1:50. There is even a fake 1:43 horse tail (well, complete with horsefront) for a scratchbuilt Octopussy trailer... But most Preisers are prepainted and therefore rather expensive for our needs.
Dear All,
Thought you might appreciate it if I dropped in to give you a little update. You're absolutely right about the reasons for the delay. Ixo have taken over production of some of the models though UH will continue to produce others. All of this has caused a few delays. It takes an enormous amount of effort to get a new car out every two weeks and after 100 issues or so we've finally reached the point where we can't keep up. Some of the delays have been caused because the cars have proved a lot harder to research. In fact, there's going to be another delay between issues 101 and 102, but after that we're pretty confident that the cars will ship every four weeks. After the Bondola we've only got a few cars left. I don't want to promise the order just yet, but there will be a couple more Rolls-Royces and some rare cars from DAF and LALD.
Hope you all enjoy them.
Dear All,
Thought you might appreciate it if I dropped in to give you a little update. You're absolutely right about the reasons for the delay. Ixo have taken over production of some of the models though UH will continue to produce others. All of this has caused a few delays. It takes an enormous amount of effort to get a new car out every two weeks and after 100 issues or so we've finally reached the point where we can't keep up. Some of the delays have been caused because the cars have proved a lot harder to research. In fact, there's going to be another delay between issues 101 and 102, but after that we're pretty confident that the cars will ship every four weeks. After the Bondola we've only got a few cars left. I don't want to promise the order just yet, but there will be a couple more Rolls-Royces and some rare cars from DAF and LALD.
Hope you all enjoy them.
Inside information eh? Perfect considering the spy movie genre!!
Looks like that Beemer bike might yet happen if UH are still at least partially involved. And maybe the GF Merc and LTK Kenworth?? S'pose we'll have to keep on guessing...... 8-)
Dear All,
Thought you might appreciate it if I dropped in to give you a little update. You're absolutely right about the reasons for the delay. Ixo have taken over production of some of the models though UH will continue to produce others. All of this has caused a few delays. It takes an enormous amount of effort to get a new car out every two weeks and after 100 issues or so we've finally reached the point where we can't keep up. Some of the delays have been caused because the cars have proved a lot harder to research. In fact, there's going to be another delay between issues 101 and 102, but after that we're pretty confident that the cars will ship every four weeks. After the Bondola we've only got a few cars left. I don't want to promise the order just yet, but there will be a couple more Rolls-Royces and some rare cars from DAF and LALD.
Hope you all enjoy them.
Inside information eh? Perfect considering the spy movie genre!!
Looks like that Beemer bike might yet happen if UH are still at least partially involved. And maybe the GF Merc and LTK Kenworth?? S'pose we'll have to keep on guessing...... 8-)
Nice to know we are being watched & possibly listened to -{ :007)
"Dear All,
Thought you might appreciate it if I dropped in to give you a little update. You're absolutely right about the reasons for the delay. Ixo have taken over production of some of the models though UH will continue to produce others. All of this has caused a few delays. It takes an enormous amount of effort to get a new car out every two weeks and after 100 issues or so we've finally reached the point where we can't keep up. Some of the delays have been caused because the cars have proved a lot harder to research. In fact, there's going to be another delay between issues 101 and 102, but after that we're pretty confident that the cars will ship every four weeks. After the Bondola we've only got a few cars left. I don't want to promise the order just yet, but there will be a couple more Rolls-Royces and some rare cars from DAF and LALD.
Hope you all enjoy them."
Thanks very much for the update! Only one question: is the Ford Country Squire still going to come out? I've been looking forward to it more than anything. My grandfather owned one in the exact same color and with the exact same trim as the one in the film.
EDIT: You mentioned multiple Rolls-Royces as opposed to the one from LTK that was expected. Does this mean there are some cars on our list that were reported to be under production that are not going to be produced?
Dear All,
Thought you might appreciate it if I dropped in to give you a little update. You're absolutely right about the reasons for the delay. Ixo have taken over production of some of the models though UH will continue to produce others. All of this has caused a few delays. It takes an enormous amount of effort to get a new car out every two weeks and after 100 issues or so we've finally reached the point where we can't keep up. Some of the delays have been caused because the cars have proved a lot harder to research. In fact, there's going to be another delay between issues 101 and 102, but after that we're pretty confident that the cars will ship every four weeks. After the Bondola we've only got a few cars left. I don't want to promise the order just yet, but there will be a couple more Rolls-Royces and some rare cars from DAF and LALD.
Hope you all enjoy them.
Inside information eh? Perfect considering the spy movie genre!!
Looks like that Beemer bike might yet happen if UH are still at least partially involved. And maybe the GF Merc and LTK Kenworth?? S'pose we'll have to keep on guessing...... 8-)
Loving it, I agree good to see somebody in the know is taking notice. Ok it looks like the collection is definitely coming to an end in ten issues but never say never again ? This collection has still got legs as long as we the subscribers continue to support it. There are a multitude of vehicles still to be had and the potential of a new Bond film also. Fingers crossed it continues beyond 110. or here is an idea what about the Prestige Collection which could include the bigger vehicles as a special order only . This collection has time on our side for new models to be developed and researched. GE Fabbri the ball is in your court , go on keep it going.
Nice to know we are being watched & possibly listened to -{ :007)
Whilst i firmly believe this collection is superb so far...... There are a few turkeys. My personal least favourite is the corvette. Any views?
The Anglia withoutadoubt, a great little car in real life but rather insignificant addition to the collection. Didn't help having a box error but then again this could be the turkey that collectors will be after in years to come , who knows. The light weight landrover just looks wrong and should not have been signed off. Other than that the recent additions have made up for tjhe short falls in the past:)
Mutilating the roof on the 1965 Ford Falcon Ranchero was criminal. I also believe Colonel Moon's car collection was pretty much totally unnecessary. Yes, the Anglia may have played a minor role, but these played virtually no role at all.
I'm torn on the Land Rover Lightweight mocked up to be a GAZ-69 or UAZ-469B (I guess??? To be honest, it's really unconvincing as any kind of Soviet vehicle.). Yes, they could have put in the GAZ-69 or UAZ-469B that it was supposed to represent (especially as Ixo has moulds for both and had moulds for both at the time the Land Rover was released), but then that would just be wrong. However, it was a significant movie vehicle, albeit a hideous and badly-done one. Why the prop guys didn't use an ARO M461/M473 (Romanian copy of the GAZ-69 that was available in the west) is really beyond me.
Whilst i firmly believe this collection is superb so far...... There are a few turkeys. My personal least favourite is the corvette. Any views?
I'd like to turn this one on its head and give a mention to the pleasant surprises in the collection. I for one thought the Bond figure driving the TND Beemer from the back seat was a great touch, also gadgets, bullet holes and damage when they've appeared on any of the vehicles makes them just that bit more special. There really are some brilliant models and dioramas in the set but overall, I think the SWLM underwater Lotus has it for the 'wow' factor. This was the first model I saw (on eBay, weeks before the launch of the series) and was blown away by how inventive it was, especially compared to Corgi & Minichamps' rather bland presentations.
Most people seem to come down hard on the GT40 as the turkey, but I wonder if there's a collective favourite here too?
Turkey opinions (seasonal ... ) First of all, I am a huge fan of the series.
- The Corvette is not the best model of the C4 ever made, but it's not terrible.
- Colonel Moon; the Diablo is a good model and part of a memorable scene, whereas the GT40 is neither.
Surely the winner of the Golden Turkey has to be the Jaguar from Quantum of Solace, as it is entirely the wrong car. It's an X350 whereas the car in the film is an X300. It's like making a model of a Mondeo when the car in the film is a Sierra. It's that wrong. This is also one of the main criticisms on Wikipedia as well. I refuse to display this car.
Runner up has to be the Aston Martin V8 "Volante" (my inverted commas) open top version from The Living Daylights. The hardtop model is in my top 10 favourites from the collection, but the convertible is some nighmarish vision from a parallel universe. What is going on with the bootlid? It is flat on the real car, but on the model it somehow retains the slope of the coupe bootlid. I refuse to display this model as well.
The TND BMW 750il is not bad, but the rear lights are completely wrong. The orange part is in the middle of the unit on the model, whereas on the real car it is at the top. Hard to understand how they managed to get this so wrong. It is the only model I have gone to the trouble of correcting.
The Triumph Stag is not very good. The ride height is too high, the wheels too small and the general look of the car is too pinched and narrow. The BMW Z8 exhibits some of these shortcomings as well.
As another poster has mentioned before on this board, the Living Daylights Audi 200 is a strange hybrid of the V8 Saloon and the 200. It certainly looks like a late 80s - early 90s Audi ... but which one is it?
That's is for me. Only three cars I think are absolute rubbish in the entire series - QOS Jaguar, V8 Volante and GT40. I think with that sort of hit rate I can be considered very happy with the collection.
"but I wonder if there's a collective favourite here too?"
I do have a clear cut favorite, but I really need to name a top ten afterward because SO many came close.
Favorite: 1939 La Salle Miller Combination Coach (a.k.a. the La Salle Hearse). But then, I'm a sucker for La Salles (horrendous 1930's pun intended...the La Salle's thin grille was occassionally described as "puckering" or "sucking a lemon" long before the Edsel was described in the same way). Also love...
2. The 1958 Ford Fairlane Skyliner Hardtop Convertible driven by Count Lippe (Yes folks, that's a CONVERTIBLE, not a coupe. Google "Ford Fairlane Skyliner" or better yet, put it into youtube and let your jaw hit the floor.).
3. The 1975 AMC Matador Coupe (I'm a big AMC fan and while the Hornet never did TOO much for me, I always hoped somebody would do a Matador Coupe in 1/43)
4. The 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible (Despite the huge amount of 1957 Chevys floating around, you literally had to buy a Brooklin to get a correctly-scaled convertible [there is a correctly detailed Nomad station wagon for a reasonable price] until this model came out. HUGE props to whoever made this.)
5. The 1968 Cadillac Superior Sovereign Landau Hearse (A correctly-made, modern, affordable hearse in PERFECT 1/43.)
6. The Rolls-Royce Phantom III (Absolutely beautiful. Add to the fact that you can open this one up to put a figure in the back, as I did.)
7. Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II (A masterwork as a model car, if a disaster as a diorama.)
8. Mercedes-Benz Binz Europ 1100 Ambulance (Possibly the nicest car-based ambulance currently on the market in 1/43 scale. I docked some points for lack of affiliation with any hospital, although you could order them like this from the factory.)
9. 1965 Ford Thunderbird Convertible (I'm adding this one because I believe the '64-'67 T-Bird to be the best T-Bird ever made and this model to the best model of that T-Bird.)
10. 1960-1962 series ZAZ-965A "Zaporozhets" (Because I love Soviet cars and this model was very well done, scaled, etc. The only strike against it is that the movie's car had long lost its glossy finish, yet the model did not. Matte blue would've boosted this one WAY up the list.)
Honorable mentions:
-The Sunbeam Alpine (SUPERB model only knocked down the list because there have been SO many done.)
-Renault Traction Avant 7CV (The one featured in FRWL was an 11CV, though ironically, Soviet intelligence would've had far easier access to the 7CV, since complete knock-down kits had been sold in Bulgaria, Romania, and Yugoslavia.)
-The GAZ-31029 Volga (The wheels look a little weird, although the car has never been modelled)
-The 1964 Toyopet/Toyota Crown (Should have had whitewall tires like the real one.)
-The Bentley 3 1/2 Litre (WAY out of scale, but a beautiful model of a rarely-done car.)
-The AMC Hornet X (Not really a fan of the Hornet, but it's nice to see one in 1/43.)
-Brazilian Chevrolet C-10 Ambulance (Really nicely done model of a car I'm not in general all that crazy about.)
"2. The 1958 Ford Fairlane Skyliner Hardtop Convertible driven by Count Lippe (Yes folks, that's a CONVERTIBLE, not a coupe. Google "Ford Fairlane Skyliner" or better yet, put it into youtube and let your jaw hit the floor.)"
Very interesting thoughts there! Here's a link to one of the Skyliner movies on YouTube:
Only problem I had on this model was a small clear glazing panel left at the base of each of the rear roof quarters where I assume there should be 'Skyliner' badges. Is this the same on everybody else's models or did I get a rogue one?? 8-)
Comments
The Rolls Phantom V is a Corgi, I have Lions in the mail to go with it, The Jag is a newer Corgi with a painted Fabrri figure driving (still needs some work) The Bentley is a Minichamp, I am going to insert a Corgi John Steed driver, painted to look like David Niven.
The Bedford is in the mail...Oxford diecast, thank you again to the person that submitted the availability of this model!
I also have purchased a Renault 5 turbo and a Corgi American LaFrance, again need any help out there for the backgrounds.
Thanks
Brett
Does anyone have any other models in mind to add to this collection? Vehicles that exist that could be turned into the world of Bond!
That said, you have two challenges. First, the screen caps aren't always that sharp. Second, you'll have to do a bit of creative assembly with a graphics program to make it work.
One suggestion that's easy. Print your base labels on your computer. It looks like you tried to use individual decal letters. Use a regular labe. Create a text box, use a black fill and use white text inside the box. Make the box a little larger than needed, cut to size, "paint" the white edges of the label with a black marker, spray the label with a gloss varnish. Apply carefully. Make 2-3 labels in case you need a spare.
If you're really creative, it can also be done with decals (one black with clear letters, the other plain white as a backing).
As for the screen capture, i have tried that, maybe I need to upgrade my player or software...any suggestions?
As for graphics programs to play with the photo I have Corel paint, I think that will work, but of course i have not gotten that far yet!
All help is appreciated
Brett
Very nice Canuck007!
I think I might paint the GoldenEye tank, as it is just one green colour, but in the picture given to subscribers it is much different.
Thanks Leijo007, I will try to download VLC right now!
I am looking for any scene that will work with the models I have sent pics of:
1967 Casino Royale, Milk truck, Bentley, e-type Jag...these could be all as one scene, Phantom V
Casino Royale, Gas truck and New Holland loader
OHMSS Rolls convertible
FRWL Rolls silver wraith
Thanks again
Can you tell me who produced the Kenworth model? I have found the base model for the International tanker but cannot find a matching Kenworth with the low sleeper cab in 1:43 or 1:50 ...
UPDATE: Just spoke to a lovely lady,with a Bond sounding name "Nikita" & she said that the DD will be automatically adjusted for the change to every 8 weeks issues...God!! they are fairly dragging it out now !!!...-{ :007)
You sure it wasn't some old Ukrainian guy with a tendency toward banging his shoe on the table?
"God!! they are fairly dragging it out now !!!"
Like I said, this is typical Ixo. They need time to prepare moulds, which they do much slower than UH because they inadvertently compete against themselves as explained. Of course, I think their finished products are generally more detailed than UH and FAR closer to true 1/43 scale, so there are pros and cons.
Oh, no, sorry if I gave you that impression. Universal Hobbies has not gone bust. What's gone bust is their contract with G.E. Fabbri.
I found the New Ray Kenworth but thought that there would be a better option for the sleeper cab. I didn't think that you cut it down as it looks pretty much like a factory job. While I have no problems with repainting and drawing decals, I am not sure that I could do the cutting and filling well enough.
The best car for figures is, I think, the YOLT Toyota Crown which contains four figures, two of them even with machine guns. So you get a diorama box and four figures with this one. The TSWLM Ford Taunus also has four figures, but this is not yet released where I live so I don't know if this is an even better option. Are there any other cars with four passengers?
Of course one can always use the Preiser figures ( www.figuren.de ) -> Katalogdownload -> Miniaturfiguren und Zubehör 0. Maßstab 1:43 - 1:45, or military 1:48. Unbemalt. Bausätze, or Miniaturfiguren. Für den Architekturmodellbau. Maßstab 1:50. There is even a fake 1:43 horse tail (well, complete with horsefront) for a scratchbuilt Octopussy trailer... But most Preisers are prepainted and therefore rather expensive for our needs.
BTW, I have made matching lettering for the bases of self-made dioramas in the correct font (Eurostile bold, I used 9.5pt):
http://img703.imageshack.us/i/jbccbeschriftung.jpg/
Thought you might appreciate it if I dropped in to give you a little update. You're absolutely right about the reasons for the delay. Ixo have taken over production of some of the models though UH will continue to produce others. All of this has caused a few delays. It takes an enormous amount of effort to get a new car out every two weeks and after 100 issues or so we've finally reached the point where we can't keep up. Some of the delays have been caused because the cars have proved a lot harder to research. In fact, there's going to be another delay between issues 101 and 102, but after that we're pretty confident that the cars will ship every four weeks. After the Bondola we've only got a few cars left. I don't want to promise the order just yet, but there will be a couple more Rolls-Royces and some rare cars from DAF and LALD.
Hope you all enjoy them.
Inside information eh? Perfect considering the spy movie genre!!
Looks like that Beemer bike might yet happen if UH are still at least partially involved. And maybe the GF Merc and LTK Kenworth?? S'pose we'll have to keep on guessing...... 8-)
Nice to know we are being watched & possibly listened to -{ :007)
Thought you might appreciate it if I dropped in to give you a little update. You're absolutely right about the reasons for the delay. Ixo have taken over production of some of the models though UH will continue to produce others. All of this has caused a few delays. It takes an enormous amount of effort to get a new car out every two weeks and after 100 issues or so we've finally reached the point where we can't keep up. Some of the delays have been caused because the cars have proved a lot harder to research. In fact, there's going to be another delay between issues 101 and 102, but after that we're pretty confident that the cars will ship every four weeks. After the Bondola we've only got a few cars left. I don't want to promise the order just yet, but there will be a couple more Rolls-Royces and some rare cars from DAF and LALD.
Hope you all enjoy them."
Thanks very much for the update! Only one question: is the Ford Country Squire still going to come out? I've been looking forward to it more than anything. My grandfather owned one in the exact same color and with the exact same trim as the one in the film.
EDIT: You mentioned multiple Rolls-Royces as opposed to the one from LTK that was expected. Does this mean there are some cars on our list that were reported to be under production that are not going to be produced?
The Anglia withoutadoubt, a great little car in real life but rather insignificant addition to the collection. Didn't help having a box error but then again this could be the turkey that collectors will be after in years to come , who knows. The light weight landrover just looks wrong and should not have been signed off. Other than that the recent additions have made up for tjhe short falls in the past:)
Mutilating the roof on the 1965 Ford Falcon Ranchero was criminal. I also believe Colonel Moon's car collection was pretty much totally unnecessary. Yes, the Anglia may have played a minor role, but these played virtually no role at all.
I'm torn on the Land Rover Lightweight mocked up to be a GAZ-69 or UAZ-469B (I guess??? To be honest, it's really unconvincing as any kind of Soviet vehicle.). Yes, they could have put in the GAZ-69 or UAZ-469B that it was supposed to represent (especially as Ixo has moulds for both and had moulds for both at the time the Land Rover was released), but then that would just be wrong. However, it was a significant movie vehicle, albeit a hideous and badly-done one. Why the prop guys didn't use an ARO M461/M473 (Romanian copy of the GAZ-69 that was available in the west) is really beyond me.
I'd like to turn this one on its head and give a mention to the pleasant surprises in the collection. I for one thought the Bond figure driving the TND Beemer from the back seat was a great touch, also gadgets, bullet holes and damage when they've appeared on any of the vehicles makes them just that bit more special. There really are some brilliant models and dioramas in the set but overall, I think the SWLM underwater Lotus has it for the 'wow' factor. This was the first model I saw (on eBay, weeks before the launch of the series) and was blown away by how inventive it was, especially compared to Corgi & Minichamps' rather bland presentations.
Most people seem to come down hard on the GT40 as the turkey, but I wonder if there's a collective favourite here too?
- The Corvette is not the best model of the C4 ever made, but it's not terrible.
- Colonel Moon; the Diablo is a good model and part of a memorable scene, whereas the GT40 is neither.
Surely the winner of the Golden Turkey has to be the Jaguar from Quantum of Solace, as it is entirely the wrong car. It's an X350 whereas the car in the film is an X300. It's like making a model of a Mondeo when the car in the film is a Sierra. It's that wrong. This is also one of the main criticisms on Wikipedia as well. I refuse to display this car.
Runner up has to be the Aston Martin V8 "Volante" (my inverted commas) open top version from The Living Daylights. The hardtop model is in my top 10 favourites from the collection, but the convertible is some nighmarish vision from a parallel universe. What is going on with the bootlid? It is flat on the real car, but on the model it somehow retains the slope of the coupe bootlid. I refuse to display this model as well.
The TND BMW 750il is not bad, but the rear lights are completely wrong. The orange part is in the middle of the unit on the model, whereas on the real car it is at the top. Hard to understand how they managed to get this so wrong. It is the only model I have gone to the trouble of correcting.
The Triumph Stag is not very good. The ride height is too high, the wheels too small and the general look of the car is too pinched and narrow. The BMW Z8 exhibits some of these shortcomings as well.
As another poster has mentioned before on this board, the Living Daylights Audi 200 is a strange hybrid of the V8 Saloon and the 200. It certainly looks like a late 80s - early 90s Audi ... but which one is it?
That's is for me. Only three cars I think are absolute rubbish in the entire series - QOS Jaguar, V8 Volante and GT40. I think with that sort of hit rate I can be considered very happy with the collection.
Happy Collecting!
I do have a clear cut favorite, but I really need to name a top ten afterward because SO many came close.
Favorite: 1939 La Salle Miller Combination Coach (a.k.a. the La Salle Hearse). But then, I'm a sucker for La Salles (horrendous 1930's pun intended...the La Salle's thin grille was occassionally described as "puckering" or "sucking a lemon" long before the Edsel was described in the same way). Also love...
2. The 1958 Ford Fairlane Skyliner Hardtop Convertible driven by Count Lippe (Yes folks, that's a CONVERTIBLE, not a coupe. Google "Ford Fairlane Skyliner" or better yet, put it into youtube and let your jaw hit the floor.).
3. The 1975 AMC Matador Coupe (I'm a big AMC fan and while the Hornet never did TOO much for me, I always hoped somebody would do a Matador Coupe in 1/43)
4. The 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible (Despite the huge amount of 1957 Chevys floating around, you literally had to buy a Brooklin to get a correctly-scaled convertible [there is a correctly detailed Nomad station wagon for a reasonable price] until this model came out. HUGE props to whoever made this.)
5. The 1968 Cadillac Superior Sovereign Landau Hearse (A correctly-made, modern, affordable hearse in PERFECT 1/43.)
6. The Rolls-Royce Phantom III (Absolutely beautiful. Add to the fact that you can open this one up to put a figure in the back, as I did.)
7. Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II (A masterwork as a model car, if a disaster as a diorama.)
8. Mercedes-Benz Binz Europ 1100 Ambulance (Possibly the nicest car-based ambulance currently on the market in 1/43 scale. I docked some points for lack of affiliation with any hospital, although you could order them like this from the factory.)
9. 1965 Ford Thunderbird Convertible (I'm adding this one because I believe the '64-'67 T-Bird to be the best T-Bird ever made and this model to the best model of that T-Bird.)
10. 1960-1962 series ZAZ-965A "Zaporozhets" (Because I love Soviet cars and this model was very well done, scaled, etc. The only strike against it is that the movie's car had long lost its glossy finish, yet the model did not. Matte blue would've boosted this one WAY up the list.)
Honorable mentions:
-The Sunbeam Alpine (SUPERB model only knocked down the list because there have been SO many done.)
-Renault Traction Avant 7CV (The one featured in FRWL was an 11CV, though ironically, Soviet intelligence would've had far easier access to the 7CV, since complete knock-down kits had been sold in Bulgaria, Romania, and Yugoslavia.)
-The GAZ-31029 Volga (The wheels look a little weird, although the car has never been modelled)
-The 1964 Toyopet/Toyota Crown (Should have had whitewall tires like the real one.)
-The Bentley 3 1/2 Litre (WAY out of scale, but a beautiful model of a rarely-done car.)
-The AMC Hornet X (Not really a fan of the Hornet, but it's nice to see one in 1/43.)
-Brazilian Chevrolet C-10 Ambulance (Really nicely done model of a car I'm not in general all that crazy about.)
Probably missed at least two...
Very interesting thoughts there! Here's a link to one of the Skyliner movies on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rb5xXcPjWSI&feature=fvw
Only problem I had on this model was a small clear glazing panel left at the base of each of the rear roof quarters where I assume there should be 'Skyliner' badges. Is this the same on everybody else's models or did I get a rogue one?? 8-)