[Diecast, Carded] Capitalizing on 87 cents!

I'd be stocking up on donor cars but I already have a ton so unfortunately this opportunity just can't be taken. However, I have found some goodies I kept carded and some new loose to added to the collection.

Upon updating the spreadsheets via Google Drive, I've found more cars to actually take out of the collection to save me storage space and to make some money back for my foolish compulsiveness. I've broke the 250-car limit a few weeks ago and am sad to say I'm ashamed of my lack of commitment. I'll see how far I can shrink the collection though this will require me breaking open the picture frames that have yet to be hung.


Beginning with the cards. I visited a Toys R Us that probably isn't inhabited by a lot of collectors because other than finding 2 Hot Ones Toyota Hilux '87 Trucks, I also found these:

[Boulevard] 

Fangula

Never thought I'd ever see one again. Definite staple for me in the Boulevard series.

[Matchbox 60th Anniversary]
Aston Martin DBS Volante

After the VW Bus I never saw any other cases, but I was wrong.

[Matchbox 60th Anniversary]
Land Rover Defender 110

Can't go wrong with a Defender. Will accept without a second thought.

[2013 Mainline]
Ferrari 458 Challenge

Was asked to pick this up for someone but then no longer wanted it. Great. More to sell I suppose.













Moving onto loose additions. Let's begin with the Flea Market grabs.

Porsche 930

Never seen it online before so I was willing to pay $2 for this. Will remove the tampos and change the wheels soon enough.

Cadillac LMP

Again, never seen it in this colour. 

Shelby Cobra 427 S/C

 Somewhat lame with those wheels. I'll be swapping those eventually.

'59 Chevy Impala

 

Vendor wanted $4 for it, which I'd normally say no to, but in doing the math, it works out to be cheaper than buying it online since there's no shipping to pay for.

Other Grabs:

Prototype H-24

 Latest recolour of the casting. I'm in all honesty very taken by this fantasy design. The profile of it is just damn cool. Also found out about 3 weeks later it's a Treasure Hunt. Woo!

Renault 5 Turbo

 2013 Boulevard casting. There is still hope the GTA will receive a case or two!

Subaru Impreza GRB (PR5 variation)

Found three; sold one, and half a year later, I open one with a bent card. It's not like that crease is going to make it any more valuable.

Toyota Land Cruiser FJ40

 Acquired from a trade. I also have the purple casting but sent those all off to be modified. The parameters still have not been set.

2013 Ferrari 5-Pack:

512M

After being saturated with the Garage series, PR5 wheels just feel lackluster.

FF

 Simple decal, yet bold, hip and cool. Maybe I'll adapt some elements of this into the Illustrious styling.

FXX

 While the FXX is an unusual favourite, the casting is pretty admittedly awful; worst of the five. Reason being is that its ground clearance is ridiculously high much like the castings of the Enzo and F50. I'd lower it, but there's already almost no room for suspension travel so it won't be possible to get the ride height lower without a slammed appearance.

P4

 Black and gold. Can't go wrong with a timeless classy colour choice.

Adjustments were made to the "template" I follow for documentation photos, though it's still in trial mode. I may just revert back to the previous low-profile shots since those seemed to capture the beauty of form and perspective whereas these don't, even with the cars being rotated.

Your thoughts on this are more than welcome. I'm all ears.

[Carded] More Visits, More Cards.

Seems like Walmart is slowly getting back on track with updating their toy car inventory. Here's some new grabs.

 

The presentation of the card is neat and as such, I have no intentions of uncarding these. I have plans on selling these in the next decade or two though. Wonder how much I can get back from it 10 years from now.

[Carded] More Cards, More Money

Maybe not the last bit, but it's possible.



The Camaro has transparent wheels. A variation, but not rare by any means. The 911 on the other hand is lesser known and is likely more harder to find. The original sports orange wheels of the same type.

[Diecast] Cars Owed & Trade Successful

I come home from class and am welcomed with 3 small parcels.

2 of which are items owed from an eBay purchase. One seller forgot to put in one of my cars, and the other gave me the wrong car altogether. Hah. Freebie for me. The last parcel is from a trade with an individual from the forum where this hobby began.

I also finally decided to change the overly-dramatic camera angle. It was cool at first, but it only works on cars with a vertical facade. So I stopped. I decided to work with the plaque this time and settled with a profile shot even though it's the exact same view we see looking at cards. I tried putting the car at a 3/4 view and it just didn't have the artsy flow. In fact, it just looked like a generic cut and paste out of a page from a crappy car ad.

 

 This Land Rover Defender was completely missing from my parcel. Good thing I do feedback ratings on all items on eBay, because I use it as a checklist to see if everything is here.

 

This '70 Dodge HEMI Challenger (Garage series) was mistaken with a Plymouth HEMI Cuda (Garage Series).

These were from a trade established with a6m5 from GTPlanet.

They consist mostly of Garage Series cars and a single Boulevard.

 

Boulevard Ferrari F40

Glad he was willing to trade one up. The one Walmart here had the cases that contained them, but someone keeps hoarding them all.

 Chevy Corvette Stingray Concept

I have the white one as well, but this blue is lovely. 

 Ford GT40

Zamac Finish - Plymouth Hemi Cuda

They're new this year but I had the feeling I would never see one here, just like the Dan Weldon race car. Zamac if you never heard of it is, the type of metal hot wheel castings are made from. Referring to the finish as such simply means that the body never received any paint, so whenever Mattel releases any cars like this, it's generally considered special to collectors.

'10 Shelby GT-500

You know you like a car when you'll accept a paint defect! There's some paint loss on the roof, but lucky for me you guys can't see it in this photo.

Lastly, I was also sent a Garage Series Ferrari Dino 246, but I already have 2 so I didn't need a new photo. Thanks for the cars, Shinji! that's not his real name by the way

[Diecast] Found a Closing Zellers! Found Something Neat!

It's not too too awesome, but I did find myself another one of these guys that are fairly scarce in Canada and even more scarce in the States:

This isn't the first one I've got my hands on though.

Because of the closing sale, it was 50% off so I paid only $3 for this. Pretty damn good deal. Other than that, I got hold of a half-torn Matchbox Lotus Europa in a colour I don't have yet. 

The first 2009 Europa casting released.

It's not that special to collectors but considering how I started collecting 2 years ago, finding an '09 car means it's a pretty lucky find for me. It's not the oldest matchbox I've ever found in stores. I snagged this one for 79 cents. Never thought I'd ever be able to buy single cars for less than a dollar ever again. 

The oldest Matchbox car I did ever find by luck was a 2001-release Audi TT (and the TT Roadster). Very close to it was the 2002-release Beetle 4x4. They're no longer the oldest Matchbox cars I have anymore. eBay is the one to blame. I'll show them off another time.

[Customs] Renaissance Series' First Release!

It took a while, Mohammad, but I've finally completed the very first car! 

Formerly known as the Red Series, I had picked out the most prettiest red Dupli-Color spray paint I could find in the car paint aisle at a local Canadian Tire. This colour in particular is a Dark Cherry Red and its name struck home immediately as my favourite yogurt flavour when I was little was Dark Cherry! The price tag wasn't easy to swallow, but after the first few coats I sprayed on, I really didn't mind. The spray nozzle shoots the paint out at a narrower range and the paint comes out much thinner and consistent than a regular aerosol can such as Krylon.

I hadn't primed the body after stripping the original paint, so the finish came out a few shades darker. The base plate was also painted the same colour for consistency. If you're familiar with the orange casting - which is what I used for this, recall that the interior is coloured entirely chrome. It's flashy but doesn't sit right with me. I've painted it tan for a more luxurious impression.

I'm actually very happy with how the paint turned out despite the unexpected results. Reason being is that now the chrome wheels and trim contrast greatly with the darker body. A few individuals told me that the default wheels were "as best as it could get". I somewhat agree, but I love my choice a lot more. What do you think?