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Junkman

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Everything posted by Junkman

  1. Hornby is currently in a bit of a right karfuffle, innitt?
  2. Yes, they are Monogram repops. No, nothing has changed. Not really, at least.
  3. Despite wearing similar corporate styling, the GM H-body Vega/Monza and Opel Ascona/Manta are not technically related and share no parts. The Mantas are also significantly smaller than their transcontinental relatives. Contrary to the Manta A, the Manta B was also never officially available in the US. The Manta 400 was designed in cooperation with noted Opel tuner Irmscher and launched at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1981 as the successor of the Ascona 400. It was actually a pure race car, but at least 200 vehicles had to be made commercially available in order to meet the homologation requirement for FIA Group B. Powered by a 144 hp 2.4-liter 4 cylinder engine with a Cosworth developed light alloy cylinder head, four valves per cylinder and two overhead camshafts, it only weighed 960 kg in street trim. Depending on the area of operation, rally versions could initially have up to the 275 hp limit set by FIA regulations in force back then. Once this limit was lifted for 1982, examples with power in excess of 350 hp - still naturally aspirated - were known. The Manta 400 was built until 1984 and altogether 245 examples were made, but in reality very few of them were sold to Johnny Public, most of them were shipped to Opel affiliated tuners, like Irmscher, Steinmetz, Mantzel, Lexmaul, etc., who usually prepared them for privateers, utilising an extensive arsenal of go faster hardware offered by the factory. Consequently non raced examples are scarce, to the tune of a mere dozen or so survivors. However, there are probably more clones out there today than there ever were originals. In theory, buyers even had the choice of 'wide body' or 'narrow body', so there could be 400s that lack the GRP wheelarches and the aero kit. Talk about wolves in sheep clothing! Sadly no 'narrow body' survivors are known to exist.
  4. Siku F500 now has new rhinestone headlights: And this Siku Ford Transit arrived today:
  5. Everything is molded individually. You could build a completely empty HLF.
  6. The Tofu they can eat themselves, but there is also a Dango shop. Now those are decidedly nom nom stuff.
  7. Thanks for providing the source! Sadly they speak of a "bygone era". Last time I was in Japan, this kind of shops were still abundant, enabling one to eat well on a very modest budget.
  8. You can't have enough sources of good reference pics. Thanks for posting this.
  9. I have finished several models a late friend of mine had started, because he told me to do so. I also 'inherited' his unbuilt big scale kit collection and he told me to build them as I please.
  10. That tofu shop is just delightful (pun intended). What scale is it?
  11. All I know is that you can't get bugger all for Granadas. I'm struggling to get a fuel distributor, a windscreen and a set of bumpers for mine. Honestly, old Euro Fords are worse catered for than old Japanese chod and that isn't well catered for. Let me know what you need and I'll see what I can dig up.
  12. You are very welcome. I realize that these German fire engines are relatively unspectacular looking compared with what some American fire stations are able to display on open doors day, but you have to consider, that the requirements are very different indeed. In Germany, the emphasis is on versatility and maneuverability. In a densely populated country with good infrastructure, big tanks aren't necessary, because there are hydrants everywhere, unless there is a lake/pond/river nearby to deploy the submersible pumps. The vehicles have to be relatively small to be able to be driven on the narrow streets of old towns as well as narrow twisty roads in mountainous or rural areas. The 15/16 ton max mass is due to being able to cross even smaller bridges. And the standardization of the vehicles is not due to a genetic German obsession for it, it has a very practical background. In case of big disasters, like the recent train wreck for example, rescue crews from numerous surrounding stations respond. Due to the standardization, all crews can operate each others apparatus, thus crews can team up to handle the most imminent rescue tasks without facing unfamiliar equipment.
  13. Diecast, yes. It's 1:60 scale and made by Siku.
  14. Can I have the Hello Kitty Edition, please?
  15. The '68 also had a more pointed grille and divided taillights. The front running lights (on non-RS models) were also changed from circular to oval. With the Astro Ventilation that allowed the omission of the vent windows came a revised dashboard containing - well - air vents. The seat pattern was also changed.
  16. Don't paint the black parts that are supposed to be rubber or plastic on the real thing. The frame and headlight bowl, which are metal painted black on the real thing, need to be painted on the model, too.
  17. AFAIK it used to be the most expensive one when new, but it isn't nearly as rare as a MKI coupe or MKII Injection.
  18. How's that for authentically replicating a real Alfa Romeo? Tamiya, huh?
  19. Click: http://www.modelcarsmag.com/forums/topic/110634-1962-dodge-dart-440-hardtop-jo-han-c-4162-usa-oldies-series/
  20. Please note that all four of my 1962 Dodge hardtop, as well as both of my 1962 Dodge convertible kits, contain this incorrect dashboard:
  21. I question the overall usefulness of warfare in general. Obviously I'm the only one.
  22. You have to replace all the tubing that comes with the kit. It's totally out of scale. Also, in my previous 1:8 scale motorcycle builds, I always cut off the pins intended to hold a tube, drilled a 0.8mm hole, and inserted a cut length of clothes pin. Not sure what to make of tyres made from two halves, but if they are one piece, always use a suitable O-ring inside for reinforcement. It's best to leave the 'rubber' and 'vinyl' parts molded in black unpainted. You can give them a very realistic slightly used look by rolling them in a bit of tile cement. From there, it is entirely up to you how far you want to go with your detailing/mods. This is what legendary bike modeller Kinichi Karube made from the Heller Honda kit (don't even try...): In contrast, this is a more or less out of the box build of the Airfix (=MPC) kit: I would assume your and my result would be somewhere in between those two. I'm definitely going to replace the spokes with real wire on mine.
  23. One of those was dug in my granny's garden near Munich. I played in it when I was a kid.
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