Anglia105E

Pretty good effort for your first try Rick..... and as long as you are enjoying the process of putting it all together, that what counts. David

Nice job you have done on the restoration there Roberto..... I used to own a Suzuki SJ413 Samurai hardtop, and later a soft top version also. David

Don't panic Pat !....... for the upcoming exhibition in June there will be two Hooper & Co buildings on display, one is the 1:24 scale diorama from last year's event, showing the building as it was in 1958, then the 1:43 scale diorama that shows the building as it was in 1959. The later Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud that was produced in 1960 will be positioned slightly to one side of the two main dioramas, with Osmond Rivers standing alongside the motor car. He didn't purchase this car until 1963, so I had the idea that as the CEO of the company it was conceivable that he might have visited the empty building 4 years later, assuming the building has taken 4 years to be sold. David

Welcome to MCM forum Brian...... and you will find all the help and inspiration you need here. David

The only company that produced a 1:24 kit of the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud was Minicraft of the United States, which is also available as the Revell version, and the dashboard is LHD. Most of my builds for Silver Clouds are RHD so I converted these relatively easily. Drilled a hole for the RHD steering column, filled in the hole for the LHD steering column, and a little bit of tweaking for the glove compartment and instrument panel details. Having said ' relatively easily ' this is a very basic kit, it has to be said ( 26 pieces max ). David

Just realised you have four figures working on the excavator, and not two! That is why you mentioned adding a fifth figure! David

Brilliant Charles..... and the two mechanic figures working in different areas of the diorama give the whole scene a very realistic appearance. So much to see, and so much going on ! David

Thanks for the information, Geoff of Solihull, England and I look forward to the availability of a 1:24 scale Ford Cortina MK1. Way back in 1970 the car that I passed my driving test in was a MK 1 Cortina belonging to my Dad, and he bought me a Ford Anglia 105E as my first car ever. I have a resin body for an Anglia 105E in 1:24 scale but cannot find a 1:24 Cortina anywhere, apart from the the Airtrax Lotus Cortina MK1, which is a two door body and my Dad's Cortina was a 4-door. The MMiM release sounds very interesting to me and I would love to get my hands on one if possible, later this year? David

It is 1963 and Osmond Rivers has returned to 54 St James's Street in London SW1, four years after the closure of the Hooper & Co business. As the previous Chief Draughtsman and Managing Director of the famous coachbuilders, Osmond Rivers is now tasked with the removal of any remaining documents and fittings following the sale of the Hooper building. By the end of December 1959 all of the staff and the cars had left the building so all that remains for the manager to do is to ensure that anything belonging to the reorganised company is secured. Although the showroom premises have been closed, there will be some coachbuilding work and engineering projects that will continue at the Hooper & Co factory over in Acton. Many important plan drawings and other confidential documents will go into a private collection at the Science Museum of London, while other more specific documents and photographs will go into what will be known as the Rippey-Rivers private collection across the Atlantic in Denver, Colorado and in the ownership of Arthur G. Rippey. The motor car in which Osmond Rivers has arrived to carry out his task is a 1960 Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II, finished in Mason's Black over Sand, with a cream beige for the interior upholstery. This motor car has the 6.2 litre V8 engine as opposed to the earlier 4.9 litre 6 cylinder inline engine of the Silver Cloud I. ' He stepped out of the motor car and stood for a moment looking at the building. A successful business spanning 154 years...... was no more. He gazed upon the empty showroom with more than a hint of sadness. ' David

Oh yes, that works Pat..... and it sits right on that wall too. David

Yes Gary, you are correct.... this Ford lorry was produced from 1947 to around 1958, so it fits in nicely with the Bedford coach from 1939 to 1951. David

The latest addition to the collection of 1:43 scale diecast vehicles has arrived for the Hooper & Co diorama in 1:43 scale.... this is a Ford Thames ET6 by IXO carrying a load of Calor Gas butane gas bottles, and here it is photographed alongside the Bedford OB Coach, which is also by IXO / Hachette..... David

Picked up this 1:43 scale diecast Ford Thames ET6 lorry, which has a load of Calor Gas butane bottles. The lettering will be changed to ' Watson Fuels ' for my diorama, so the spelling mistake on the front of the cab roof does not matter. David

Clearly expressed, JC...... and I agree with you entirely. Scratch building, using all sorts of ordinary objects and especially those that would have been thrown away, is very rewarding. Mostly because we are working in plastic, it means that something like a 2 litre plastic Coke bottle can suddenly provide many 1:24 scale windscreens ( windshields ) and in fact the thickness of the screen is more accurate to scale than the kit plastic usually. From glueing a kit supplied windscreen to the inside of a Rolls-Royce body shell, I suddenly realised that the Coke bottle plastic when glued to the outside of the body shell looks far more realistic, and also has a nice curve to it. David

Thanks very much JC...... I don't think I could possibly sculpt a 1:4 scale motor car model out of a rectangular lump of clay, not that I have tried it. Your ideas are always intriguing JC, and when I see a topic posted by you, I just know it's going to be something off the wall and unusual. You must have a unique creative mind. David

That is an interesting effect, JC..... especially the stars in the blackness of outer space. Shows what can be done with 2 bowls ! David

I can only repeat what others have said...... it is the water that caught my eye...... extremely realistic ( and not resin ) Your paddle steamer looks really good now that the water has been added. David

This workshop of yours is already coming to life...... I look forward to following your progress, David. David

I look forward to each new addition to your wonderful diorama, Pat. David

Liking this one Anders...... this is my favourite version of the Porsche 911 Turbo and also my favourite colour for this car is black. Myself, I always use Meguiars Carnauba Wax deep shine polish over Zero Paints, which I find is much nicer than clearcoat. You have done an excellent job on this Tamiya build, and the paint finish is top class ! David

If this is any help to you..... I always use what they call ' Best Blue ' masking tape these days, rather than regular masking tape. I used to leave the best blue tape on for 24 hours and then remove it very slowly and very gently. Seemed to work fine but more recently I remove the tape less than 12 hours after applying the second paint colour. Just the other day I applied a two-tone paint scheme to a 1:24 scale Rolls-Royce and the line between the two paint colours came out fine. With regular tape you get the bleeding effect under the edge of the tape like your photos show, whereas the best blue tape doesn't suffer from this problem. Here in UK they sell the best blue masking tape at Wilko and also at Halfords which is an automotive supplies store. This type of tape doesn't cost much more than the regular tape. The blue tape also seems to bend nicely around curved lines, such as over a wheel arch for example. You could probably remove the tape after 15 - 20 minutes as others have said on here. David

Thanks a lot Gary...... the most common scale they worked in was quarter scale...... so 1:4 in clay. Not all those models in the photo are 1:4, so maybe 1:8 ? David

Today I received confirmation by phone that I have been allocated exhibition space on a trade stand at the 2019 RREC Annual Rally, Burghley House in Stamford for my two Hooper dioramas. This is excellent news and gives me 48 days to prepare all the models, as well as the logistics of transporting both dioramas to this prestigious venue. The Annual Rally is the largest event in the world for Rolls-Royce and Bentley motor cars, so around 2,000 cars will be attending from most countries. The event organiser has given me a prime location in the main marquee, as indeed she did last year, and this will be an exciting opportunity to display the two Hooper buildings and all the cars in both 1:24 and 1:43 scales. Already I have booked my hotel for the 5 day trip in June, and it is time to brush the dust off the model cars that are stored in boxes. At the moment am building a 1:24 scale Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud II which is a 1960 car that was once owned by Osmond Rivers, the Chief Draughtsman and Managing Director of Hooper & Co. The 1960 car does not fit into the 1958 diorama of course, as it was purchased by Mr Rivers after the company closed at the end of 1959, so it will be displayed alongside the main exhibit. Here is an interesting photograph of the styling department for Rolls-Royce at their re-located premises in Crewe, which shows the designer of the Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud, John Blatchley and his two colleagues working on 1:4 size clay models of the new designs at the time. Each design had a code name to keep the design a secret before releasing the new model to the press at large. David

All your dioramas are interesting JC, and I particularly like the Barn with Stutz - Fermenting....... the water effect for your fishing vessel is excellent. David

I have always liked the Datsun 240Z since the 1970's and that is a nicely turned out diecast model. I picked up these two models in 1:43 recently..... one is the diecast Bedford OB Coach by IXO/ Hatchette, and the other is a resin Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith Hooper Empress by BoS ( Best of Show ). David