Die-cast Model Cars

[schmenke]

I remember a previous thread that indicated a few posters who collected die-cast model cars. I haven’t acquired anything recently in my collection but was browsing the ‘net and found a few manufacturers which I have never experienced (most of my collection is by Minichamps). Does anyone have experience in either of the following? I’m curious how the quality (workmanship and decals) compare with Minichamps:

Spark
True-Scale
Hot Wheels (I’ve seen a few of these in local shops but don’t have any first hand experience).

Thanks and feel free to PM!

[RallyRules]

In my experience, Spark makes good stuff. Comparable to Minichamps, I'd say. I've never had a True-Scale. Hot Wheels... The ones I have are from the late '90's - early 2000's. They weren't bad. I'd say somewhere between a toy and a true collectible like Minichamps/Spark.

[wmcot]

Spark and True Scale are very nice (Spark is better than Minichamps right now in my opinion). HotWheels is hit-and-miss, their 1977 Lauda Ferrari was right on, but their 1980 Ferrari 312T5 was horribly mis-shapen and lacked detail (the "engine" was only the back half protruding from flat plastic.)

Personally, I allow myself one splurge each year and I will buy a Ferrari from Kane & Co., Tameo or BBR. They are expensive, but make all others look like toys.

[Jag_Warrior]

I'm still in recovery for my diecast addiction. The 12 step program is going well... taking it one day at a time and all that. But I don't guess it hurts to talk about them. As was said above, Spark tends to have very good quality and attention to detail. Most of the prototype and sports car diecasts I have are made by Spark. Most of the F1 stuff is Minichamps. Most of the CART stuff is by Action or Minichamps. The only real junk I have is by Onyx. I think I have only one diecast made by Hot Wheels - the Jaguar R1 with Eddie Irvine. I was hesitant to buy a proper diecast from a toy manufacturer, but it's nice enough. Though if I ever fall off the wagon, I think I'd return to Minichamps as my poison of choice, at least for F1 diecasts.

On one of the old forums (7th Gear, I think), someone posted a picture of a display shelf system he'd built. It was really, really nice! I'm not sure if the shelves were glass or plexiglass/Lexan. But it was mirrored and backlit with low intensity lighting. That's what I need to get working on. When I built this house, I actually built a room to be mainly used as a diecast and racing memorabilia room. My girlfriend says it would make a nice nursery. So help your old friend figure out how to get some snazzy (permanent!!!) shelves in there... soon... please.

[schmenke]

I too was on about the 11th step of that recovery program until I recently fell off the wagon .

I agree, Onyx is inferior quality, but I’ll be sure to check out Spark.

Most of my collection is 1/43 scale with perhaps a dozen 1/18th. Like you Jag, I really have no convenient way to display them. Mostly they’re just haphazardly strewn on bookshelves, basically wherever I can find room. A snazzy display case would be nice but I haven’t the foggiest on how to go about either building, purchasing or commissioning one .

[wmcot]

You could display them in something like this:

Diecast display Case 54 Car 1/43 Scale from Carney Plastics

I have two of these on my wall and they hold more than 54 1/43 scale F1 cars.

[airshifter]

Somewhere around here we have a NASCAR diecast that is signed by Kasey Kahne. I'll have to find it and see what type it is....

[Jag_Warrior]

I too was on about the 11th step of that recovery program until I recently fell off the wagon .

I agree, Onyx is inferior quality, but I’ll be sure to check out Spark.

Most of my collection is 1/43 scale with perhaps a dozen 1/18th. Like you Jag, I really have no convenient way to display them. Mostly they’re just haphazardly strewn on bookshelves, basically wherever I can find room. A snazzy display case would be nice but I haven’t the foggiest on how to go about either building, purchasing or commissioning one .

Me too. They're everywhere. Some have never been out of the boxes they were shipped to me in. Some are even still stored in the house where I used to live - 8 years ago. I don't even know what I have (haven't found the time to catalog them), so I've accidentally bought some of them twice. I do have one wooden and glass display case that's got low intensity lighting installed. But it's totally devoted to my Senna collection... which doesn't put a dent in the rest of my stuff - and I haven't even got all the Senna stuff in there. When I built that "memorabilia room," I made sure I had a blank wall that was out of direct sun light. And I put two outlets down low and in the corners. The problem was, I wasn't sure what sort of display I would/could build. What I want is something like what that guy on 7th Gear had. I was thinking about smoked mirror backing (against the wall), low intensity/low heat lighting, plexiglass/Lexan shelves and doors (every 2 feet or so) and covering a space of about 7 feet wide and 6 feet high. Maybe when I retire, a week or two before I die, I might get it properly designed and built.

You could display them in something like this:

Diecast display Case 54 Car 1/43 Scale from Carney Plastics

I have two of these on my wall and they hold more than 54 1/43 scale F1 cars.

Thanks. That would work! I can't even say how many diecasts I have (some were bought when I was in a diecast induced haze... cup of coffee in one hand, Ebay on my computer screen and a credit card in the other hand - we call those the "bad days"), but a good many are 1/18 - probably 30-40 plus. I like that scale. But it can be a tough size to display in volume. A handful of the old CART models are 1/24. A lot of the diecats, the majority, are 1/43 though (over 150, I'd say). So yeah, that would work for a good many of them. The price isn't bad. I'll definitely look into that.