The diecast room floor circuit racing memories

[John Elwin]

Originally Posted by Gerard C

A complete Daktari set in good nick must make some money! Same thing for the Land Rover towing a Ferrari.

May be Corgi killed the competition with James Bond Aston Martin. Expensive and wonderful.

Neither are particularly expensive - you can currently buy mint boxed examples of either for about 200 euros on eBay. The Ferrari set is even in France for you!

The original Corgi James Bond Aston Martin is due-to be re-released soon. There have been several iterations over the years but none as good as the original until now.

[Aysedasi]

Originally Posted by Gerard C

A complete Daktari set in good nick must make some money! Same thing for the Land Rover towing a Ferrari.

May be Corgi killed the competition with James Bond Aston Martin. Expensive and wonderful.

I had the wonderful Corgi Ferrari Berlinetta when I was young. Lost it of course but bought it again a few years ago. Very good condition. Succumbed to the temptation of selling it for twice what I paid...... It's a very popular model - they even make repro boxes for them.....

[Lancsbreaker]

I remember "graduating" a bit from Dinky and Corgi to Spot-on models, made by Triang, which were IIRC 1:42 scale and very good models.....but only did roadgoing cars vans and trucks from what I remember - don't think any race cars.

[dwh43scale]

Being a Jim Clark fan aged 7 or 8, I had the Corgi Lotus Racing set with yellow and green Elans, F1 car and a VW pickup and trailer. The Elans had the separate chassis. I took the F1 car to school and raced it down the playground as small boys do.
Sets since seen on ebay (with box) at between £200 and £400 ...

Still got the London Sydney Hillman Hunter and a Solido Ford MKIV. The latter's products were much better replicas than Corgi or Dinky.

[chunterer]

In the mid-late 80's I had Trimoco Group A saloons, British F3, F3000, my own version of a British Open F1 series, Prodsaloons, even one or two one-make series going. Lol!!
Many of the cars were used across all categories with those little round or oblong color coded wall calendar stickers used for numbers and driver/car names.
I wrote race results down in note books, (think they were school excercise books?) along with a brief report. Perhaps my school grades would have been better if I used the exercise books for homework!
One year i think the F3 was about 40 odd rounds and european entries often entered for Brit GP supports and the finals meetings! Imagine the budgets and logistics required for that! Ditto with Group A.. top notch works and privateers from ETC, France, Germany and even Australia joining the series regulars.
All those pre season entry rumours we read in Autosport or MN that never quite happened in real life?
They did in high level bedroom floor racing lol!

[E.B]

whoops wrong thread

[E.B]

I grew up in West Africa in fairly remote parts, so no TV or normal things for entertainment..... but there was a shop in a nearby town that sold Dinky and Corgi toys, I was already into motor racing.... something to do with Dad getting Motorsport Magazine delivered via Banana Boat from the UK every month (he was an engineer with Fyffes Bananas!) So I had all the Dinky and Corgi racing cars.... they were all I ever wanted as presents. I certainly remember the Talbot Lago, an Alfa Romeo and Maserati plus the one I used to enjoy most I cant remember quite what it was but it was a light green colour. It wasn't one of the main makes but what it was escapes me.
Our house was built on stilts and the ground level was a big slab of concrete where the Land Rover lived along with tables and chairs for socialising. It made a great surface for diecast cars.
Then c1959 I got a small Scalextric set for Christmas. It had just been released and again came by Banana Boat from the UK. That I soon realised was as much for Dad to use than me! Anyway we used to play it for hours and over the years it was added to, track and cars, at every Birthday and Xmas. Cars I remember were a Vanwall, BRM P25, Lotus 21 (blue!), Cooper (Red), Jaguar D Type and Lister Jag. The electrical connections were dreadful and often the metal contacts would break and the car in that lane would stop.
I remember being very upset when at 8yo I was despatched to boarding school in the UK and not allowed to take it.
Dad was transferred back to London in the late sixties, and the house we lived in soon had the loft boarded up and quite a large Scalextric set was assembled. The track had evolved from the original, had became plexitrac then or similar, and had to use special adaptors to join old and new types of track.
I joined a local slot car club in Hampton Court with some school friends (I had become a dayboy) and we started making scratch built cars from brass plate and piano wire. I got quite handy with the soldering iron. We used transverse motors with re-wound armatures (I think the term was 'side-winders' but we had 'angle-winders' as well, which were 45degrees mounted) and the track was 6 lane, made from plywood board and with copper tape. Just plug in your controller and away you go. The car bodies we bought as clear plastic flimsy things which we would paint on the inside and mount to the chassis with pins. Every Friday night Dad's Taxi would drop me off there and pick me up later. My first home build was a Chaparral and that made may for a McLaren M8B.
Which led me to my first motor sport competition. Said school friends and I decided to enter as a team at a 24hour race in Southend. Wonderland Raceway IIRC. Before I was old enough to drive so our Mums and Dads took us. Quite an eye opener as we found ourselves up against teams of adults, some from Holland I remember. All with huge boxes of equipment We finished, albeit last but one, a few thousand laps off the pace. I got my first ever motor racing trophy! I think it was an encouragement award!
Funnily enough I couldn't get die cast cars out of my head.... when I started working my first 'proper' job was with Mettoy (Corgi Toys). One of my first projects was to evaluate the then new market for radio control toys. I would spend my day in the car park 'evaluating' different remote control cars!
I then went on to work for Dinky Toys as Product Development Manager, before moving to Airfix, (who by then had bought Dinky)..... and then Airfix went bust. Then after I moved to Australia I ended up working for Mattel looking after their boy's toys for a few years!
I had over the years through work collected quite a lot of die-cast samples which I still have in a box somewhere.
It was quite sad when Airfix went down.... All sorts of stuff went into the skip. I managed to save the original Dinky Toy engineers drawings plus a few samples in development. Several years later they ended up being flogged off at auction in the UK where I had left most of it with Mum and Dad. Paid for a large part of my divorce settlement.
I still have a few little gems.... a pre-production Dinky Granada Ghia which never went into production. Unpainted and complete with the interior and wheels, albeit all unassembled. I also have an MRRC slot car set, still in its box unopened which includes an M23 and a 312T, plus 'several' cars boxed and unused, all from the 70's.
Anyway this has meandered away from the die-cast loungeroom GP memories.

[Lancsbreaker]

It may have meandered, but a great tale, nonetheless

[Gerard C]

Wont comment your moving post Chris, we know each other, do we?

Après ce moment de pure émotion, may be its time to congratulate Mike Powell and his brilliant idea of thread.
Sun is shining, bistrots are to reopen… cheers!

[John Elwin]

Originally Posted by E.B

I grew up in West Africa in fairly remote parts, so no TV or normal things for entertainment..... but there was a shop in a nearby town that sold Dinky and Corgi toys, I was already into motor racing.... something to do with Dad getting Motorsport Magazine delivered via Banana Boat from the UK every month (he was an engineer with Fyffes Bananas!) So I had all the Dinky and Corgi racing cars.... they were all I ever wanted as presents. I certainly remember the Talbot Lago, an Alfa Romeo and Maserati plus the one I used to enjoy most I cant remember quite what it was but it was a light green colour. It wasn't one of the main makes but what it was escapes me.
Our house was built on stilts and the ground level was a big slab of concrete where the Land Rover lived along with tables and chairs for socialising. It made a great surface for diecast cars.
Then c1959 I got a small Scalextric set for Christmas. It had just been released and again came by Banana Boat from the UK. That I soon realised was as much for Dad to use than me! Anyway we used to play it for hours and over the years it was added to, track and cars, at every Birthday and Xmas. Cars I remember were a Vanwall, BRM P25, Lotus 21 (blue!), Cooper (Red), Jaguar D Type and Lister Jag. The electrical connections were dreadful and often the metal contacts would break and the car in that lane would stop.
I remember being very upset when at 8yo I was despatched to boarding school in the UK and not allowed to take it.
Dad was transferred back to London in the late sixties, and the house we lived in soon had the loft boarded up and quite a large Scalextric set was assembled. The track had evolved from the original, had became plexitrac then or similar, and had to use special adaptors to join old and new types of track.
I joined a local slot car club in Hampton Court with some school friends (I had become a dayboy) and we started making scratch built cars from brass plate and piano wire. I got quite handy with the soldering iron. We used transverse motors with re-wound armatures (I think the term was 'side-winders' but we had 'angle-winders' as well, which were 45degrees mounted) and the track was 6 lane, made from plywood board and with copper tape. Just plug in your controller and away you go. The car bodies we bought as clear plastic flimsy things which we would paint on the inside and mount to the chassis with pins. Every Friday night Dad's Taxi would drop me off there and pick me up later. My first home build was a Chaparral and that made may for a McLaren M8B.
Which led me to my first motor sport competition. Said school friends and I decided to enter as a team at a 24hour race in Southend. Wonderland Raceway IIRC. Before I was old enough to drive so our Mums and Dads took us. Quite an eye opener as we found ourselves up against teams of adults, some from Holland I remember. All with huge boxes of equipment We finished, albeit last but one, a few thousand laps off the pace. I got my first ever motor racing trophy! I think it was an encouragement award!
Funnily enough I couldn't get die cast cars out of my head.... when I started working my first 'proper' job was with Mettoy (Corgi Toys). One of my first projects was to evaluate the then new market for radio control toys. I would spend my day in the car park 'evaluating' different remote control cars!
I then went on to work for Dinky Toys as Product Development Manager, before moving to Airfix, (who by then had bought Dinky)..... and then Airfix went bust. Then after I moved to Australia I ended up working for Mattel looking after their boy's toys for a few years!
I had over the years through work collected quite a lot of die-cast samples which I still have in a box somewhere.
It was quite sad when Airfix went down.... All sorts of stuff went into the skip. I managed to save the original Dinky Toy engineers drawings plus a few samples in development. Several years later they ended up being flogged off at auction in the UK where I had left most of it with Mum and Dad. Paid for a large part of my divorce settlement.
I still have a few little gems.... a pre-production Dinky Granada Ghia which never went into production. Unpainted and complete with the interior and wheels, albeit all unassembled. I also have an MRRC slot car set, still in its box unopened which includes an M23 and a 312T, plus 'several' cars boxed and unused, all from the 70's.
Anyway this has meandered away from the die-cast loungeroom GP memories.

I would think the pale green racing Dinky racing car was an HWM.

[E.B]

Originally Posted by John Elwin

I would think the pale green racing Dinky racing car was an HWM.

Thanks John.... with your info I looked it up online and that is indeed the one.
In fact I found one online for sale.
https://www.vectis.co.uk/lot/dinky-2...ing-car_759555

Ironically it is up for auction with Vectis, who are the very organisation I used when I put my collectible die-cast stuff mentioned in my post up for sale (by auction). A fine job they did too considering it was all pre internet, back in the 1990's. I still have the catalogues in my study from the sales my stuff was in.

[John Elwin]

Originally Posted by E.B

Thanks John.... with your info I looked it up online and that is indeed the one.
In fact I found one online for sale.
https://www.vectis.co.uk/lot/dinky-2...ing-car_759555

Ironically it is up for auction with Vectis, who are the very organisation I used when I put my collectible die-cast stuff mentioned in my post up for sale (by auction). A fine job they did too considering it was all pre internet, back in the 1990's. I still have the catalogues in my study from the sales my stuff was in.

Oh dear, now I might have to buy myself a birthday present!

We lived in Hersham before coming here, so I have a passing interest in HWM, which still exists in name.

I too sold quite a lot of stuff through Vectis a few years ago, but it was a bit of a tale of two halves.. They were split over two auctions; the first one did well, the second one they lumped rather unrelated things together in lots & as a consequence did not sell well.

[VIVA GT]

Originally Posted by E.B

I grew up in West Africa in fairly remote parts, so no TV or normal things for entertainment..... but there was a shop in a nearby town that sold Dinky and Corgi toys, I was already into motor racing.... something to do with Dad getting Motorsport Magazine delivered via Banana Boat from the UK every month (he was an engineer with Fyffes Bananas!) So I had all the Dinky and Corgi racing cars.... they were all I ever wanted as presents. I certainly remember the Talbot Lago, an Alfa Romeo and Maserati plus the one I used to enjoy most I cant remember quite what it was but it was a light green colour. It wasn't one of the main makes but what it was escapes me.
Our house was built on stilts and the ground level was a big slab of concrete where the Land Rover lived along with tables and chairs for socialising. It made a great surface for diecast cars.
Then c1959 I got a small Scalextric set for Christmas. It had just been released and again came by Banana Boat from the UK. That I soon realised was as much for Dad to use than me! Anyway we used to play it for hours and over the years it was added to, track and cars, at every Birthday and Xmas. Cars I remember were a Vanwall, BRM P25, Lotus 21 (blue!), Cooper (Red), Jaguar D Type and Lister Jag. The electrical connections were dreadful and often the metal contacts would break and the car in that lane would stop.
I remember being very upset when at 8yo I was despatched to boarding school in the UK and not allowed to take it.
Dad was transferred back to London in the late sixties, and the house we lived in soon had the loft boarded up and quite a large Scalextric set was assembled. The track had evolved from the original, had became plexitrac then or similar, and had to use special adaptors to join old and new types of track.
I joined a local slot car club in Hampton Court with some school friends (I had become a dayboy) and we started making scratch built cars from brass plate and piano wire. I got quite handy with the soldering iron. We used transverse motors with re-wound armatures (I think the term was 'side-winders' but we had 'angle-winders' as well, which were 45degrees mounted) and the track was 6 lane, made from plywood board and with copper tape. Just plug in your controller and away you go. The car bodies we bought as clear plastic flimsy things which we would paint on the inside and mount to the chassis with pins. Every Friday night Dad's Taxi would drop me off there and pick me up later. My first home build was a Chaparral and that made may for a McLaren M8B.
Which led me to my first motor sport competition. Said school friends and I decided to enter as a team at a 24hour race in Southend. Wonderland Raceway IIRC. Before I was old enough to drive so our Mums and Dads took us. Quite an eye opener as we found ourselves up against teams of adults, some from Holland I remember. All with huge boxes of equipment We finished, albeit last but one, a few thousand laps off the pace. I got my first ever motor racing trophy! I think it was an encouragement award!
Funnily enough I couldn't get die cast cars out of my head.... when I started working my first 'proper' job was with Mettoy (Corgi Toys). One of my first projects was to evaluate the then new market for radio control toys. I would spend my day in the car park 'evaluating' different remote control cars!
I then went on to work for Dinky Toys as Product Development Manager, before moving to Airfix, (who by then had bought Dinky)..... and then Airfix went bust. Then after I moved to Australia I ended up working for Mattel looking after their boy's toys for a few years!
I had over the years through work collected quite a lot of die-cast samples which I still have in a box somewhere.
It was quite sad when Airfix went down.... All sorts of stuff went into the skip. I managed to save the original Dinky Toy engineers drawings plus a few samples in development. Several years later they ended up being flogged off at auction in the UK where I had left most of it with Mum and Dad. Paid for a large part of my divorce settlement.
I still have a few little gems.... a pre-production Dinky Granada Ghia which never went into production. Unpainted and complete with the interior and wheels, albeit all unassembled. I also have an MRRC slot car set, still in its box unopened which includes an M23 and a 312T, plus 'several' cars boxed and unused, all from the 70's.
Anyway this has meandered away from the die-cast loungeroom GP memories.

Blimey E.B, we must be of a similar age!
Corgi toys were always my favourites (I thought they looked more life-like than the Dinky Toys) and as a youngster I was an easy choice for Birthday & Christmas presents. I tried to keep them immaculate, so often wouldn't let anyone else play with them (especially my sister!).
Dad bought us a Scalextric set when it first came out (well, he said it was for us!) and this supplanted the Hornby Double-O train set I'd adored up until then. The original track was rubbish, often pulling apart and rarely making full contact on both lanes all the way around the track. We too upgraded to the newer version of the track as soon as it was released and also had the adaptors to connect it to the old style track too. (I don't know why as it still suffered with pulling apart and not making connections).
Through his work-mates (Dad was an engineer) he joined a local slot-car racing club (there were two in Leicester) and I used to go with him on a (Monday?) evening initially helping building the track (yes, out of hardboard and with copper tape stuck on for the contacts) and although there were some serious races, I was often allowed to 'have a go' with some of the other guys cars. The cars in these days were often just Scalextric models, some with 'better' motors installed. In my teens I joined the other Leicester club and by now the cars had become the far more elaborate brass plate & piano wire constructions. This was all great fun but eventually my interest started to fizzle out and I think the same thing was happening throughout the club as the numbers at the meetings got smaller & smaller.
Wow, what a great subject, this has brought back a load of memories!

[Gerard C]

After die-cast models an Scalex' tracks my interest went towards static plane models. I started to speak Airfix, Monogram and Humbrol almost fluently (far better that my english!). I took me ages to learn how to properly glue a canopy to a Mosquito, Spit' or Focke Wulf! Waiting for the paint to be dry was not for me…

My favorite model all time all scales together remains the 1/8 Corvette by Monogram. Is it a sheer coincidence that decades later I raced a real one or should I ask my shrink? Strange too, after having raced a Caterham I bought a Lotus Seven… made by Tamiya! Human beings…

[Mike_Powell]

Originally Posted by Gerard C

After die-cast models an Scalex' tracks my interest went towards static plane models. I started to speak Airfix, Monogram and Humbrol almost fluently (far better that my english!). I took me ages to learn how to properly glue a canopy to a Mosquito, Spit' or Focke Wulf! Waiting for the paint to be dry was not for me…

My favorite model all time all scales together remains the 1/8 Corvette by Monogram. Is it a sheer coincidence that decades later I raced a real one or should I ask my shrink? Strange too, after having raced a Caterham I bought a Lotus Seven… made by Tamiya! Human beings…

So going on that Gerard, please may I have a flight in the Mosquito when you get one !

[Gerard C]

Be my guest, Mike! I seem to remember my flying licence was valid for twin-engine aircraft with props. Its no more valid atm and I have to find it first. But where are my glasses… SpecSavers please! What about practicing parachute first?

[Lancsbreaker]

I think I too had the HWM, back in the day Can't really remember what happened to all of mine as I became teenaged - probably passed on to younger cousins, or maybe just junked.....mind mine were all well "played with", often repainted, so even had I kept them they wouldn't have been worth much


This thread has prompted me to delve into the loft where I found my box of slot-car bits......photos attached of two chassis - the one with the skew drive motor being a little warped and four bodyshells - the Cortina and Mk3 Zodiac being Airfix, and the Galaxie and (very tatty ) Capri being clear moulded shells. The Capri in particular looks to have had a hard life - arches cut about to clear bigger wheels, and having been at least 3 colours before its current tatty black. The group shot has a rather odd fore-shortening effect - the Galaxie of course is bigger than the others.....

[chunterer]

Christ you lot are making even me feel old!
Did you fellas have your own scale racing teams too?

I has a a multi category prep outfit running cars in touring car racing. I was naturally a benefactor of underfunded talents in single seaters though...

[Belmondo]

Lancsbreaker, your inline chassis on the left, next to the Cortina shell, was made by a company called RIKO. My brother and I had several. They came as kits with a variety of clear lexan shells.

[midgetman]

>>>>>Waiting for the paint to be dry was not for me…

Me neither, Gerard, me neither. It's the reason the mechanic does not let me anywhere near a kart...



Sent from my AC2003 using Tapatalk

[chunterer]

Originally Posted by Lancsbreaker

I think I too had the HWM, back in the day Can't really remember what happened to all of mine as I became teenaged - probably passed on to younger cousins, or maybe just junked.....mind mine were all well "played with", often repainted, so even had I kept them they wouldn't have been worth much


This thread has prompted me to delve into the loft where I found my box of slot-car bits......photos attached of two chassis - the one with the skew drive motor being a little warped and four bodyshells - the Cortina and Mk3 Zodiac being Airfix, and the Galaxie and (very tatty ) Capri being clear moulded shells. The Capri in particular looks to have had a hard life - arches cut about to clear bigger wheels, and having been at least 3 colours before its current tatty black. The group shot has a rather odd fore-shortening effect - the Galaxie of course is bigger than the others.....

The Capri story sounds like what many examples of the real ones went through!!

[Gerard C]

Originally Posted by chunterer

I was naturally a benefactor of underfunded talents in single seaters though...

Dont tell me about, I myself discovered his Majesty Mazessspin of Scalex von Track!

@ Max: delivered brand new I had absolutely no patience at all which is sometimes a real nightmare if not a torture. It's may be the part of my temperament I had to work on the harder (together with grudge). Tough but it pays… With some patience!

So the glue for the canopy with no footprint was a challenge and the damn Humbrol paint dry and immaculate too. You know those days I presume…

[Gerard C]

Any one found a big kite with a long string, south west coast? I ask fo a friend who "launched" his near Le Touquet. Was may be 1962 the price tag must be present to attest the purchase at Cabine de la Plage. You never know…

[John Elwin]

Originally Posted by midgetman

>>>>>Waiting for the paint to be dry was not for me…

Me neither, Gerard, me neither. It's the reason the mechanic does not let me anywhere near a kart...



Sent from my AC2003 using Tapatalk

You must surely know that a car with wet, sticky paint would have more drag & thus not so quick as a nice dry shiny one.

Peeling all the flies off afterwards would be a pain too...

[John Elwin]

Originally Posted by chunterer

The Capri story sounds like what many examples of the real ones went through!!

I thought the Capri was a model of Bill Cox's (?) car.