General Patronage

A lot of people in my part of the woods, say it was fun to grow up in the 70’s and early 80’s. Maybe because life and expectations were simpler then: thus most were so easily pleased. At that time, pleasures can be derived out of simpler consumer goods and visual entertainment. Back then, the television was tops in home leisure. I guess by now it would be the PC/laptop/netbook/ipad or whatever one would call it; with Facebook, YouTube…and blogging constituting the shift to infotainment. But then again, that would be another story…. so back to the simpler days!

For most of us (youngster then) gear-heads, the TV was a source too of simplistic enjoyment of car-related shows. Of this genre, the Dukes of Hazzard was king of the hill! A fantastic mix of hot cars, palatable stars and car stunts made it an epic hit. Never mind that there was nary a ‘thick’ plot. With “General Lee”, Daisy, and a huge dose of wild driving week after week in it, were more than enough good reasons to waste away part of my youth in televiewing. My patronage was sealed forever!

Raw Deal

After a much needed PC upgrade,. now a DigiCam.
Been trying out shooting RAW images.
Here are some output for starters.
Life can be complex, if you wanted it that way (haha)!
I’m not sure though on the outcome. Is it better?
I’ll take a while to max the potential of RAW.

Ahh Change….

Cheers!

Clearing the cobwebs

Have you ever wondered for a moment how many miniature cars are there in your collection? I can presume there are more than a hundred of them. Some of us have thousands of these tiny cars in various scales! Honestly, I don’t have any exact inventory of mine. Got lost in the joys of collecting itself, thereby lost count of the enormity (LoL) and the extent of addiction! Weeks back, I had time to go through the ‘overlooked’ part of the collection. Cleared the dust and the cobwebs running through the display shelves. In the process, rediscovered a Spyder in there!
More precisely, the Porsche 936 Spyder chassis #001.

The 24 hours of Le Mans 1977 winner rendered in 1:43 by PMA…

driven by Hurley Haywood, Jürgen Barth and later by Ickx.

#4 is viewed as unlucky in the East…

This Porsche Spyder clearly debunks that!

And one more thing…

2 of a kind…

2 Martini 1:43’s

Whale Wonder

Whales are impressive creatures. Having said that, I feel that might be an understatement too. Enigmatic might somehow do justice to describe them. Of the vast (sadly endangered species) varieties, three famous whales have one thing in common. Their names!

Uno:
Moby-Dick, an epic 1851 literary masterpiece of Herman Melville. The novel is also known as ‘The Whale’, aptly being the center of the engaging tale revolving around the hunt for a white Sperm whale.

Dos:
Moby Dick, a 1967 adventure cartoon by Hanna-Barbera. It is part of the back to back series; ’Moby Dick and Mighty Mightor’. Of course, Moby being a white Sperm whale protagonist character. Kids (at heart) my age, saw and enjoyed the re-run decades after.

Tres:
Moby Dick, an extreme Porsche 935/78 racing behemoth. Nicknamed due, to its white color and distinctly unique long tail shape. A powerful mechanical white Sperm whale at that! A testament to its brute raw force is claiming the ‘fastest car on the straight in Le Mans’ by doing 235 mph in 1978! Earlier it won in Silverstone Circuit driven by Mass and Ickx. An imposing reminder of the glorious car racing days of pure mechanical (not bland electronically aided gizmos) dynamics.

This particular 935/78 is one of the legendary cars of the equally legendary 24 Heures du Mans .

Now, that’s a white whale of a tail!

Complex aero-bodywork, for a 911 derivative racer.

Detailing is typical of 1:43 Paul Model Art, which I have a certain fondness.

Personally, the Martini livery adds to the irresistible appeal! It’s a fav!

The real 1:1 is in the Porsche museum.

This one resides in my miniature (read: modest) museum :-)

Yellow Decadence

How time does fly!

It was like a decade has passed so fast- in reference to collecting 1:43 accurate scale car miniatures. Due to shifting interest towards much smaller scale cars and vintage (any scale) diecast, they have since been given the attention deficit. Last week though I got sick; nothing serious, just one day rest was all I needed. I was able to check my 1:43’s that day. All of a sudden, some realization nudged me and a retrospect is in order.

For one, the ‘accurate’ connotation needs a bit of re-assessment. “Back then” standards (of mine) were easily pleased by the Porsche 911 GT2 model subject. I was then awed by the detail, the livery decoration and presentation case. Decades later, examining and seeing it again, made me realize the rather crudeness of the detailing. Taking macro photos of it was the culprit. From just the naked eye (unassisted) everything is well enough. One lesson is thus learned; never macro-examine an old ‘accurate then’ stuff.
The other realization is that things, yellow with age. Occurrence often glaring with this phenomenon afflicts white paint, paper, bare white plastic and clear ones. Checking the GT2, the decal decorations have shown its yellowing state. It’s like decay! I don’t mind this happening to a period toy car or vintage diecast, as a yellowed decal or sticker adds to its old world charm and authenticity. This doesn’t apply to an accurate scale car though in my opinion; yellowed decor detracts from the overall look of perceived accurateness. Another lesson learned; choose tampo decoration over decal!

Case in point: I got this Vitesse Porsche 911 GT2 in Singapore late 90’s.

Albeit the macro scrutiny, I feel the model still has some appeal.

Maybe because- it serves as a reminder of my yearly tradeshow visits to Singapore. A memento of a bygone era. Now tradeshows (I’ve attended) have shifted mainly to Shanghai, Beijing or Guangdong.

A parallel is the Paul Model’s Art GT2 received from my friend last year.

The signs of yellow ageing are apparent.

Of course, since this came from a good friend, elevates this to ‘priceless’ category. RAOK, gifts received…I hold with great personal value!

Macro photos won’t flatter the GT2 details…
…but pulling back a bit and brighter light could get the eye fooled :-)

…or B&W, maybe…

Brazilian Beauty!

The best 2010 HotWheels so far, IMHO.
Kudos to Mattel for making this in miniature. Great decision!
A very first in small scale, of a Brazilian VW SP2!

The proportions are well captured.

Great detailing...logo tampo is way cool!

The gas cap receives detailing as well. Nice touch!

I do hope more VW Brazil cars are done in 3” scale, like the Karmann TC and Puma.

Wouldn’t it be great, having a 1:1 of the VW SP2 someday? I’ll keep on dreaming :-)

Lift me up

A bit stretched out these (August) days, pertaining to time and schedules! Aren’t we all? Usually during the rainy season, building related construction activity is traditionally on the lean side. This year though is one of the exceptions for our company! Certainly, I can’t complain as this is good for business! Nevertheless, one needs to get something to ease the hectic pace, as at times it can be downright exhausting.

Fortunately, this hobby offers the breather and is indeed therapeutic. :-) by way of the ‘lift related business’ on commercial vehicles by Siku promotional. A backgrounder on the tampos would be in order. ABUS is a company specializing in lift hoist and cranes. STILL, an intra-logistic firm doing forklifts.

The ABUS vehicle Volkswagen LT28 is very hard to find in this part of the world.

Much thanks to my good friend for this ‘Made in West Germany’ marked, Siku VW LT28!

Getting the ABUS van surely lifts me in high spirits! Such great timing on its arrival :-)

STILL vehicle Volkswagen T4 was available locally for some years back.

Have to note that the actual STILL vans have them forklift atop them.

My Preferred Prancing Horse…

…is this Lancia :-)
A precursor to this beauty is of course, the legendary 1956 Lancia-Ferrari of Juan Manuel Fangio. Soon after Lancia racing team was integrated with Ferrari in the 50’s, came the takeover of Fiat in the late 60’s. In the 70’s, Lancia needed another shot of Italian DNA to bring it back to legendary form. This time around the great designer Marcello Gandini’s penned the desirable wedge-shaped Stratos, which I feel is the best Lancia of all. A Ferrari powered Lancia at that!

Of the small scale versions, the Tomicas are my preference.

This Tomy pair depicts the two famous Lancia Stratos!

1976 Lancia Stratos HF 1976 Monte Carlo Rally Winner #10


1977 Lancia Stratos TURBO Gr.5 Giro d'Italia Race Winner #539

Two shots of Martini

I definitely will confess!
I admit it. I’m addicted to this…
…in multiple takes of…
…Martini …
I meant the racing livery!

A few precious hours of sunray in this dreaded rainy season made it possible. A quickie transformation of a bone stock casting was the order of the day. Employing the ‘lazy custom’ approach, the Matchbox Golf GTI V was transformed into another Martini racing livery VW.

The Matchbox make-over was a little bit on the tame side.

Subtle as a MB ought to be.

The HotWheels variant, I’ve done previously, is on the wild side.

As a HW should be; flamboyant and extrovert!

Now, I have a pair of GTI V Martinis.