www.f1scalemodels.com... specialising in 1:43 scale model cars
|
|
|
|
Archived Updates - 2014New Additions: 9 December 2014It's December once again and 2014 is fast drawing to a close with one remaining Granville swap meet left this year. As I mentioned in last month's update, several 2014 F1 cars have arrived from Minichamps and Spark. Also from Spark is the Coyote Ford that A.J. Foyt drove to victory in the 1967 Indy 500; Spark's Indy series I think will become quite popular as collectors look to broaden their focus and include cars from this iconic American race in their collection. The pick from the sportscars would be the Suzuki SX4 that won the Pikes Peak Hill Climb in 2010. The Pikes Peak series is proving to a popular addition to the Spark range as these cars have long been neglected by other model manufacturers and this Suzuki really looks the part (i.e. BIG wings). Hands down, the 1939 Delage D8-120 in a magnificent metallic blue is my favourite road car this month; a timeless beauty. Well this ends my final update for the year and I hope to see you all at Granville on 12th December. Remember the next Granville swap is on the 9th January 2015. However, the big news for 2015 is the Diecast Model Expo (DME) will be returning to Sydney and more specifically will be held at Penrith Panthers Club on 25-27 September. Also, there are discussions between DME and Collectormania for the latter to hold their swapmeet next door at the Pavilion on Sunday to coincide with the DME; sounds like it's going to be a huge weekend for model car collectors!!! I will be updating my 2015 swap meet schedule as I get the dates from the organisers. So to all my customers and readers, have a safe and relaxing festive season and always, happy collecting. Formula One / Indy 500
Le Mans / Sportscar Racing / NASCAR / Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: The Surtees TS14 Ford driven by John Surtees is an interesting model (Spark S4000) because only a very small group drivers drove cars that bore their own surname (i.e. owner/drivers). The others in this elite group of owner/drivers included Bruce McLaren, Jack Brabham and Chris Amon; there are probably others but none come readily to mind. John Surtees, 3 time 500cc motorcycle world champion and 1964 F1 champion formed the Surtees Racing Organisation in 1966 to race in the newly formed Can Am series where the team achieved considerable success. The team also participated in another new series in 1969, the Formula 5000, again with much success and these successes inspired Surtees to expand into Formula 1 in 1970. Throughout the nine season life of the team, the organisation was plagued with financial problems that forced them to employ "pay drivers" at various times. For Team Surtees 1972 was their most successful year and ironically Surtees had retired from full time driving at the end of 1971. He did however come out of retirement to race in what was to be, his last ever F1 race at Monza but had to retire from the race after 20 laps. His three full time drivers scored points throughout the 1972 season (Tim Schenken, 5th in Argentina; Andrea de Adamich, 4th in Spain and Mike Hailwood scored points in 4 races with the team's best ever finish of 2nd at the Italian GP). Sadly, unable to get sufficient money, the team left F1 after the 1978 season. New Additions: 10 November 2014I'm back on deck after a few weeks away in Europe where I spent most of my time in Italy. I got to visit some really interesting car museums and I hope to add some photos to my Motorsport Gallery soon. While I was away there were a heap of new releases from Spark and Minichamps with both releasing quite a few 2014 F1 cars which is unprecedented especially for Minichamps. I guess they finally realised they have to compete with Spark and they are going down the resin path to speed up their releases. I'm hoping to have a few more 2014 cars next month. So what are the stand out models for this month? Quite frankly there are many but the arrival of the Copersucars which have been much anticipated are sure to find a home in many F1 collections. The Talbot Lago T150 that raced at Le Mans in 1939 would have been a real head turner as it circulated the La Sarthe circuit and the sleek, timeless lines of the '68 E-type Jaguar is always a collector's favourite. Only two more Granville swap meets before Christmas so I hope to see you this Friday 14th. Happy collecting. Formula One / Indy 500
Le Mans / Sportscar Racing / NASCAR / Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: The release by Spark of the 1981 Desire Wilson Tyrrell Ford [in stock] comes at a time when two women drivers are in contention for future F1 drives (Suzie Wolff for Williams and Simona de Silvestro* for Sauber). Only a handful of women have ever competed in F1 and only one (Lella Lombardi) has scored world championship points, albeit, half a point. After winning the South African Formula Ford championships in 1975 and 76, Wilson secured the "Driver to Europe" award so in 1977 she competed in Europe where she impressed many team bosses. In 1978 Wilson was signed up to race in the Aurora AFX F1 Championship (British F1 series). In 1979 she became the first woman to lead a F1 race, eventually finishing 3rd in that race but 1980 was Wilson's big year when she raced for Theodore Racing. Again driving in the British F1 series, she won at Brands Hatch thus becoming the first woman to win a F1 race. John Macdonald of RAM Racing offered Wilson a drive at the F1 world championship round at Brands Hatch but the Williams FW07 lacked many aerodynamic modifications and Desire's lack of experience at this level meant she failed to qualify. In 1981 she accepted a drive with Tyrrell Racing for her home GP but due to the on-going FISA-FOCA war the South African GP was declared a non-championship round so only FOCA aligned teams raced. The absence of the manufacturer teams (aligned with FISA) meant all 19 cars in the South African GP were powered by Ford Cosworth engines. Wilson qualified 16th and moved as high as 6th before spinning out her Tyrrell 010 with gearbox issues. Ken Tyrrell offered Wilson further drives but a lack of sponsorship meant she was unable to take up the offer and sportcars and American single seater racing became her focus. * In October 2014 Sauber announced the team had suspended de Silvestro's driving chances due to contractual problems. Special Update: 1 September 2014:I would like to let everyone know that I will be having a break for a few weeks and I won't be attending any swap meets or shows in September and October, also I won't be able to post any models during this time as well. I will access my emails regularly and reply as soon as possible; please accept my apologies in advance if it takes a few days to get back to you. See you soon, meanwhile, happy collecting. I nearly forgot to add the All British Day scheduled for 24 August was unfortunately postponed due to extreme wet weather. However, the show has been rescheduled and is confirmed as being on 14 September. Of course I will not be able to attend. New Additions: 5 August 2014Time for another monthly update! Firstly, I must inform everyone that I will NOT be attending the Granville swap in September and October and I will also miss the Collectormania show at Penrith on 19th October. Please accept my apologies as I will be having a break, however, I will be attending three events this month; the regular Friday night swap at Granville on 8th August, the Shannons Classic on 17th and then the All British Day on 24th. Notable new additions this month include the 1976 Ensign Ford of Jacky Ickx, the Chris Amon Ensign is on it's way and may be here in time for Granville. IXO have released another Le Mans winner; the 1981 Porsche 936/78 with the most unremarkable "Jules" livery but quite memorable for this very reason. IXO have also released the 1937 Delage D8 120-S Pourtout in silver as part of their Museum collection series; great value for the quality of this series! Happy collecting. Formula 1
Le Mans/Sportscar Racing/Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: Spark have finally released their long awaited Ensign F1 cars and the wait has been well worth it. The Ensign Racing Team was one of a number of small but enthusiatic F1 teams that raced during the 70's and 80's. These low budget teams added much depth and character to the F1 grids of the day and often gave up-and-coming young drivers their first taste of F1 racing and Ensign was no exception, giving Nelson Piquet and Marc Surer an opportunity to race. Other notable drivers to have raced for the Ensign team were Chris Amon (Spark model S1830), Jacky Ickx (Spark model S1832 in stock) and Clay Regazzoni. Founded by Mo Nunn in 1973, the team used the ubiquitous Ford Cosworth DFV engine and a chassis initially designed by Nunn himself. In all, the team participated in 133 grand prix and scored 19 championship points but no podium finishes. Their best result was 4th at the 1981 Brazilian GP. After the 1982 season the team merged with Teddy Yip's Theodore operation. New Additions: 8 July 2014Welcome to my July update. I'd like to thank all those who dropped by my stand at the Hawkesbury Model and Hobby Show last weekend and welcome to those who are visiting my website for the first time. Also thanks to all the hard-working organisers who always manage to put on a great show at Hawkesbury. A reminder that Granville is on this Friday (11th) and Penrith on Sunday (13th). Just a handful of new models this month; the highlight being 4 classic 60's Honda F1 cars from Ebbro and the unusual 1956 Russian ZIS 112 from DIP. Happy collecting. Formula 1
Le Mans/Sportscar Racing/Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: With the arrival of some 1960's Honda F1 cars into my stock, I thought I'd reflect a little on Honda's history in F1. Honda first entered F1 as a constructor and engine supplier in 1964 with American Ronnie Bucknum driving the RA271 in 3 races and scoring no points (Ebbro model in stock). In 1965 Honda raced the RA272 with Richie Ginther joining Bucknum and between them, they raced in 8 out of ten races and scored a total of 11 points (Ebbro, RBA and Quartzo models available). But significantly Ginther won the Mexican GP for Honda's first victory. The RA273 was introduced in 1966 again with Bucknum and Ginther as drivers but the team scored only a 4th place and competed in only 3 races (Ebbro model available). Honda persevered with the RA273 for most of the 1967 season with John Surtees replacing the American drivers. For the last two races in '67 Surtees drove the RA300 and scored Honda's 2nd win on the cars' race debut. In all, 20 points were scored in '67 with Surtees and Honda coming 4th in the driver's and constructors championship respectively. In 1968 Honda used the RA300, 301 and 302, again with Surtees as the team driver with Jo Schlesser and David Hobbs driving a race each. Surtees scored all the team's 12 points. The RA302 appeared in only the French GP where unfortunately Schlesser had a fatal crash; his car catching fire with the magnesium chassis contributing to the inferno. His death prompted Honda to withdraw from F1 at the end of the '68 season. Honda returned to F1 in 1983 as an engine supplier to the Spirit team (Reve Model available) and remained until the end of 1992, at various times teaming with Williams (1984-87), Lotus (1987-88), McLaren (1988-92) and Tyrrell (1991). By the end of the '92 season, Honda powered cars had won 71 Grand Prix. From 1993 - 98 Honda's only presence in F1 was as an engine supplier through their independent partner, Mugen Motorsport who supplied engines to Footwork, Lotus, Ligier, Prost and Jordan. Honda returned yet again in 2000 supplying engines to the BAR team and also to Jordan in 2001 and 2002. In 2003 Honda dropped Jordan to supply BAR exclusively and in 2004 purchased 45% of BAR. In 2005 Honda purchased the remaining 55% share of BAR and from 2006 the team was renamed Honda Racing F1 team with Jensen Button and Rubens Barichello as drivers. 2006 was a mediocre year with the RA106 chassis and the 2.4 V8 engine suffering poor reliability, the only highlight being the Hungarian GP where Button scored his maiden GP win (Minichamps model in stock). Honda introduced the RA107 for 2007 with little success; Button scoring only 6 points all season while Barichello score none (Minichamp model available). The RA108 chassis used for 2008 faired a little better; Barichello scoring 11 points, Button just 3 points. Honda decided to end the pain and withdrew from F1 at the end of 2008, with the team being saved by a management buy-out led by team principal Ross Brawn. Thus Brawn GP was born and entered F1 folklore by winning the 2009 World Championship with Mercedes engines. Honda's "satellite" team, Super Aguri (2006-08) failed to see out the 2008 season (Minichamps model in stock). In 2015 Honda plan to return as an engine supplier to the McLaren team. Special Update: 22 June 2014Just a reminder that the annual Hawkesbury Model and Hobby Show is on during the weekend of 5th/6th July. Check out their website for more information: www.hmhs.org.au Come and see me at stand 18. Also on the following Friday (11th July) will be the monthly Granville Model Car Swapmeet and then on the Sunday (13th July) will be the Collectormania Show at Penrith. It's going to be a busy 10 days for me and I hope you can make it to at least one show! New Additions: 9 June 2014Another month and nearly half the year has already gone by; welcome to my June update. I will be attending one swap meet this month which is Granville on Friday 13th and I have a swag of new and interesting models (by the way, Collectormania will be hosting fairs at Newcastle, Wollongong and Gold Coast in June but I will not be attending these events). The 1976 March Ford 761 that Ronnie Petersen drove for Theodore Racing at the USGP West is the standout F1 car this month mainly because the 70's is probably my favourite decade for Formula 1. In the sportscar section, the 2002 Vertigo made by the Belgium auto maker Gillet, is a stunning car and I believe this car once held the record as the fastest accelerating road car (3.1 sec for 0-100kph). The current record is held by an Ariel Atom V8 at 2.3 seconds but I'm happy to be corrected. The absolutely stylish 1937 Delage V12 Labourette is the stand out road car this month; it has a timeless beauty and hard to believe it was designed nearly 80 years ago. Ok that's it for this month but a reminder that Le Mans in on 14/15th June (go Webber). Just finished watching the Canadian GP - what an exciting race and congratulations to Dan Ricciardo on his first GP victory!! Happy collecting. Formula 1
Le Mans/Sportscars/Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: Just after posting last month's update, I received an interesting email from Robert from Sydney who added some poignant facts relating to the 1968 South African GP in which Basil Van Rooyen participated. Robert wrote that it was Jim Clark's last GP (and his last GP victory) and it was also Mike Spence's last GP, as he was killed in practice for the Indy 500. It was also the last GP that didn't feature unrestricted sponsorship; the Lotus 49's appeared in Gold Leaf Team colours at the next GP in Spain. Thanks Robert for your input. One interesting car (amongst many) received this month is the McLaren M1A Oldsmobile, raced by Bruce McLaren to second place in the 1964 Nassau Trophy race. The Bahamas (Nassau is its capital) does not have a rich motor racing pedigree yet it was able to attract the cream of European and North American drivers to its annual Bahamas International Speed Week Event held from 1954 until 1966. Billed as a relaxed end of season racing carnival in the sun, the first event was held in1954 on an old airfield and the Nassau Trophy race was won by Masten Gregory in a Ferrari 375MM. In 1957 the event was transferred to the Oakes Field Airport where a 4.5 mile course was laid out and Stirling Moss was victorious in a Ferrari 290MM. The last race was held in 1966 as the motorsport world was changing with many championships now extending into the winter months. The last Trophy Race was won by Mark Donohue in a Lola T70. However in 2011 the event was "revived" as an event for historic sports cars and the Annual Bahamas Speed Week Revival is still running today. New Additions: 6 May 2014Welcome to another monthly update. As you probably know I'm a great fan of Spark model cars and I try to stock a wide range of these high quality resin models. Unfortunately I've heard that Spark are about to increase their prices but I'm not sure by how much. As always I'll try to keep my prices as competitively as possible. This month there are two swap meets in Sydney; the regular monthly Granville swap (9th May) and a new one by Collectormania at Hornsby on 11th May (see Swap link for details). Unfortunately as the two are so close together, I will only be attending the Granville swap. So what are the highlights of this month's additions? Spark are intending to release a number of Indy 500 winners and three are now available; the Lola is a particularly stunning car. Sebastien Loeb smashed the Pikes Peak Hill Climb record last year in a Peugeot 208 and Spark have done an excellent job in replicating this amazing car. Also worthy of mention is the re-release by IXO of the 1951 and 57 Jaguars that won at Le Mans; these have been unavailable for some time. Hope to see you at Granville, happy collecting. Formula 1 / Indy 500
Le Mans/Sportscars/Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: Just on the subject of Spark models, this manufacturer ought to be congratulated for releasing models that were not only driven by famous drivers but also by the not so well known steerers. A case in point is the McLaren M7A driven by Basil Van Rooyen (model just in stock); Basil who, you might ask? Surprisingly, Van Rooyen has an Australian connection. A native South African, he raced in two South African GPs in non-works cars; 1968 in a Cooper Climax and 1969 in the McLaren, in both races he qualified comfortably but retired with mechanical problems. And that Australian connection? Van Rooyen now lives in Sydney. [Back to Top]New Additions: April 2014Welcome to my update for April. Firstly, Collectormania, the guys that runs shows at Penrith have finally got their website up and running, check it out at http://collectormaniafairs.com.au/ Did you catch the Bahrain F1 race last weekend? Some close racing and overtaking for a change; especially between team mates! Some exciting new models for April including some more McLaren Ford M7A cars, the 85' Gebhardt Cosworth that raced at Le Mans and a 67' Chev Impala Coupe in a beautiful blue body. Only one swap meet this month at Granville on 11th, hope to see you there, happy collecting. Formula 1
Le Mans/Sportscars/Rally
ATCC Cars
Road Cars
New Additions: 4 March 2014March is always an exciting month; besides the two swap meets this month, the F1 season starts in Melbourne and it appears to be the most open season in ages with all the technical and engine changes. Getting back to the swap meets, the Collectormania Penrith Toy and Hobby Fair is on 9th March and the regular Granville swap in on 14th March; I will be attending both events with some exciting new models. For F1 collectors there is the 1968 McLaren Ford M7A which Bruce McLaren drove to victory in the non-championship Race of Champions at Brands Hatch; I only managed to get one model this time so I don't expect this one to last. Also in stock are some interesting GT40's from 1965-66 which I've never seen before from Bizarre and Minichamps. The 1967 Chevrolet Impala Coupe is stunning in white and it's massive even at 1:43 scale. Happy collecting. Formula 1 Cars
Le Mans/Sportscars/Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: As I alluded to above, the 2014 F1 season appears to be wide open. The recent Bahrain tests shows the two Mercedes topping the timesheets, followed by the two McLarens, then Hulkenberg's Force India and then the two Ferraris. The Red Bulls were no where. The test revealed some interesting statistics: Mercedes powered cars completed the most laps with Williams-Mercedes lapping the most of all the teams (323 laps). Lotus, who missed the first test at Jerez could only manage 111 laps with Murussia the only other team to do less. So, time for some bold predictions for 2014: first points for Caterham with Kobayashi, first win for Force India with Hulkenberg and Lewis Hamilton to win the World Championship! [Back to Top]New Additions: 4 February 2014Happy new year to everyone again, that is, happy Chinese new year; do you believe it's February already! This month we have three swap meets, the first one was the Collectormania Fair in Newcastle which was held on the 2nd (which I did not attend), the next is the APCS Toy Fair at Penrith on the 9th (which I will be attending) and of course Granville on 14th. Some interesting models have arrived in time for Penrith; Kimi Raikkonen's 2013 Lotus Renault E21 will be a popular car with collectors. The Nissan Delta Wing has such a distinctive shape and has so much potential to be a winner but alas has yet to realise it; this silver 2013 version managed only 10 laps at the Sebring 12 hour. Spark has released the 2013 Le Mans winning Audi meanwhile IXO have just managed to bring out the 2012 car. Hope to see you sometime in February, happy collecting. Formula 1 Cars
Le Mans/Sportscars/Rally
Road Cars
After thoughts: There have been quite a few technical and sporting regulation changes made to F1 for the 2014 season. One sporting change which lacked any controversy is that drivers can now choose their racing number which they keep for their entire F1 career. Number 27, made famous by Gilles Villeneuve and others has been taken by Hulkenberg, 99 will be used by Sutil, Maldonado will race with lucky 13 on his sidepod and Ricciardo has chosen number 3. The reigning world champion can choose to race with no.1 if he so choses and Vettel has done so, but he has reserved no.5 should he not be champion again. Previously racing numbers were allocated according to the team's finishing position in the Constructor's Championship. But prior to 1969 cars were allocated racing numbers on a race-by-race basis by lottery or by the order in which team entries were received so it was not uncommon for several drivers to have number 1 on their cars at different races. [Back to Top]New Additions: 7 January 2014Happy new year to everyone and I hope you all had a safe and relaxing holiday. I can't believe we are already into another year and the first swap meet is nearly upon us. The regular monthly swap at Granville is on this Friday 10th January; so what are the highlights this month? There is something really appealing about the long straight lines, the large flat surfaces and the sharp edges of the Ford Galaxie 500; the shiny dark red metallic paintwork just sets this big car apart. But if a sexy, curvaceous body is more your liking then you can't go pass the Jaguar XJR14 driven by David Brabham to victory in the '91 Sugo 500 mile race. In the histroy of F1 there are only a handful of cars that stand out from the rest for their radical design, the Tyrrell P34 is one of those and another is the Brabham Alfa BT46B "Fan car". In 1978 Niki Lauda won the Swedish GP in the ground effects "Fan Car" and soon after the authorities banned it having only raced once. TSM have just released this iconic model. Also over the holiday break I've added a link to some websites that I've found useful and I've also added another race meeting (Porsche Rennsport) to my Motorsport Gallery. Hope to see you on Friday, in the mean time happy collecting. Formula 1 Cars
Le Mans/Sportscar/Rally
Road Cars
ATCC Cars
After thoughts: "Can Modern Racers keep on running?" I just love historic race cars and I try to get to as many Historic Car Race meetings as I can. So I was quite alarmed when I read an interesting article in a motor sport magazine which asked whether the race cars of today could ever be preserved so they can take part in historic racing in 25, 50 or even 100 years from now. With the modern car's dependence on electronic technology and in the age of instant obsolesence this becomes a particular area of concern. The computer hardware and software that makes these cars run will quickly become obsolete and unobtainable so they need to be preserved but how is this to be done? You can't simply get one made up in a workshop like some mechanical parts. And on the mechanical side, the durability of modern alloys being used in some racing engines is unknown. Also the ultra-violet degradation of exposed carbon composite components will have to be addressed if we are to preserve these modern racers for future generations to enjoy. Special Update: 23 December 2013 "The Swap Meet Wars"An interesting development has occurred which will affect the swap meets held at the Penrith Pavilion in 2014. There will now be two separate organisations holding "Toy and Hobby" fairs at the Penrith venue next year; the first one is to be held on February 9 and the next soon after on March 9. So how did this situation arise? Firstly some background information. For the last couple of years or so, the "APCS Collectormania" Toy and Hobby Fair had been operating at the Penrith venue and they quite deservedly billed the event as NSW #1 hobby fair. This event was run in partnership by Lyndsey, who owns the "Collectormania" name and Sonny, who owns the Australia Premier Collectables Show (APCS) trade name. After the last show in October 2013, Lyndsey decided to end the partnership and strike out alone running under the "Collectormania" banner. He booked the Penrith venue for 9th March. Sonny has since decided to continue running at Penrith under his "APCS" name, calling his show the Penrith Toy and Hobby Fair with the first event being scheduled for 9th February. So what does this mean for you the collector? There will be more shows to attend but you will not get the variety of traders as you would have under the combined banner. Some traders will only attend Sonny's event and others will only attend Lyndsey's show, while some traders will attend both. At this stage I've decided to attend both shows. However I don't believe the Sydney model car market is large enough to sustain two major events going head to head at Penrith which is a very large venue. Eventually I think one organiser will have to downsize to a smaller venue leaving one to continue at Penrith; my worst fear is that both may have to leave Penrith. Only time will tell. I will keep you posted as more news becomes available. All the best for Xmas and the new year. [Back to Top]
|
This Web Page Created with PageBreeze Free HTML Editor