Build and Results: Hot Wheels Datsun 510

So I've finally got around to taking pictures of my first custom painted Hot Wheels, a Datsun 510 coupe from the 2012 lineup. While I did upload one picture of the model on my Instagram yesterday (May 10) to celebrate '510 Day', I completely forgot to follow up with higher quality shots to be posted on here. What other day would have been more fitting...nevertheless here is a log documenting the rebuilding process and my thoughts along the way.

The build begins with a new paintjob. The original metallic blue paint has been stripped, and in its place is Krylon white primer, Krylon Almond Gloss for the basecoat, and finally Krylon Clear Gloss to top it all off.

Next, the grille was detailed through the following steps:

1. The original unit at the start.
2. Tamiya X-11 Chrome Silver applied to the grille slats and X-2 Gloss White on the Datsun emblem.
3. Tamiya X-7 Red and X-4 Blue painted onto the left and right hand edges of the emblem's diagonal section.
4. Tamiya X-2 Gloss White and X-8 was used to paint on the headlights and foglights respectively, using the chuck-end of a drill bit to maintain a uniform, circular shape. Also, the chin spoiler was painted XF-1 Flat Black.

Note: the particular drill bit size was chosen to expose the underlying silver paint in order to reproduce chrome headlight trim.

Vintage Japanese race cars from the 70s were the source of inspiration for decorating the interior. Their distinct styling cues were recreated with:

• Several light coats of generic flat black on the entire interior assembly,
• Yellow shoulder patches on the seat harnesses,
• Tamiya Chrome Silver on the harness buckles,
• Custom-mixed caramel-coloured paint to emulate a woodgrain steering wheel ring and shift knob, and
• Tamiya X-10 Gunmetal paint covering the rollcage that snaps on top of the interior tub.

Here, the car is temporarily assembled after the swapped wheels were painted gloss white, and the body received chrome silver drip rails and window trim, along with tailights and side markers painted in the same way the headlights were done to replicate chrome trims and bezels. In a similar fashion, flat black paint is exposed on the lowest portions of the license plate illuminators for the effect of rubber grommets installed underneath the metal units. Last but not least, both the front and rear bumpers were painted in X-10 Gunmetal to provide a contrast from all the brightwork against the light-coloured body.

The word 'temporarily' is key - I felt that the casting's lack of front turn signals under the grille (which are included in the card artwork) was hindering the effectiveness of all the other details on the car that I had spent so much time and effort on. To resolve this, pieces of Evergreen sheet styrene were carefully cut with a hobby knife and painted in a custom-mixed gloss orange color and glued into their respective places.

And with that, the custom Datsun 510 is complete. This build has taught me a lot about working on model cars, especially with which tools and supplies I absolutely cannot imagine building without, and new ways of detailing and finishing the model. To conclude this build log, here is a break from all the cellphone pictures posted so far:

Back!

Finally! I've found the time and concentration to sit down and make a post on here. A lot has happened since  my last entry and I figured today's get was the spark to lighting up this fire again. Behold: the 1987 Toyota Pickup from Hot Wheels' 2012 'Hot Ones' series.

This was a pretty surprising find as product lines outside of the usual Basic range either usually show up many months later than at retailers in the United States, or the store just decides to not stock them at all. When I first saw pictures of this model on the internet who knows how long ago, I was partial to it. But after just a glance of it in person, I knew I had to have it.

This model simply grabs your attention by the throat with its blood-red paintjob, garnished with very appropriately 80's style sunshine ray graphics that an SR5 model of this vintage would proudly wear.

The realism of this casting is astonishing. Check out the raised bolts on the fender flares, the window rain-visors, and the 2nd shifter to show that this truck is equipped with a transfer case. By now you should be convinced that the hardcore paintjob is backed up with some equally hardcore off-road capability. In theory, anyway.

To tie this short write-up all together, I grabbed an RN30 Hilux by Majorette out of storage for a side-by-side comparison at my favorite angle of these trucks. I'm a real sucker for retro design cues and the font on those tailgates just take the accuracy to the next level. I am very glad I bought this pickup today, and considering the casting awesomeness and the hefty weight to it (made by metal on metal construction), I feel it is worth every penny. And you bet I'll be snatching up a few more of these (in black) when the K-case makes it to my area!

***

As for the pictures of my custom Datsun 510 that I promised to show on here (from my Instagram): I originally had my shots ready but then I wanted to retake them after my addition of the turn signals underneath the headlights. I must have gotten sidetracked after that, but this time, they really will be up soon.

Procrastinating...

...and I changed my mind about posting my ancient C-case grabs, because this week's hauls turned out to be much more interesting. First, I started off at Wal-Mart, where I found the same 2012 mix of cars sold at different chain stores. Picked out a Furai for my friend and a 2013 SRT Viper for myself.

Just as I was about leave, a bright blue vehicle with yellow bits caught my eye among the sea of beat up 2012'ers...and it was the new blue Mad Manga, which was one of a quite a few cars that I'm wanting to pick up from the 2013 D-case. In my area they're just coming out now.

Several days later at another Wal-Mart, I found another on a worse condition card. Naturally this is what happened:

Based loosely off of a C230 Laurel, the Mad Manga shows off the staples of a typical Zokusha build: sharknose front, external oil cooler, cat eyes, bolt-on overfenders, ducktail spoiler, and some crazy paintjob to top it all off. Speaking of which, it seems like the designers went with a 90's Dayglo theme for this release, as opposed to the stars and lightning bolts on the original.

Can't forget the brightly-coloured takeyari exhaust either.

This car is easily my favorite one ever made by Hot Wheels. It's cool to see this large part of Japanese car culture included in the lineup, and I can't wait for more recolors or even...a Mad Manga II?

Dear readers,

Happy New Year! Hope everyone will enjoy the hauls and releases that 2013 and beyond has in store.

(I have some serious writer’s block right now, so I’ll just let this picture serve as the transition into the rest of the post)

Jada versus Hot Wheels

I am so glad to finally have the AE86 Corolla in my possession, all thanks to my friend who found it on a wall of rummaged pegs at a Toys R Us about 3 weeks ago. I didn't have much luck finding the Corolla until about a week after, when I stumbled upon a couple of C-cases set up at a supermarket.

Although I was never a big fan of Hot Wheel’s casting for this car, I couldn't pass up one with the “Hi-Tech Two Tone” paint scheme. There’s just some sort of charm or novelty in seeing Hot Wheels release an import presented with such authenticity.

Aside from its slightly-off proportions, I’m not particularly fond of the painting method either. Using tampos to simulate the two-tone and panel lines hasn't worked out for most of the AE86s I've seen on- and offline. It’s incredibly difficult to find one with the white paint even remotely aligned to the rest of the car.

I suppose Mattel runs their tampo equipment quickly and doesn't calibrate them very often, but this is understandable seeing as they have to maintain a decent profit margin on an item meant to be sold at a dollar apiece. Time is money!

Also, I came across this recolor of the car. It seems like a quick and easy job for a more realistic two-tone; just remove the black tampo paint while leaving the white basecoat intact, and then repaint the lower half of the car and the bolt-on flares yourself.

That's it for now! Next post I will put up some pictures of C-case cars I got from the supermarket mentioned earlier. Feel free to check out my Instagram (blistercards) in the meantime. Thanks for reading!

Whoa.

Can't believe my last post was almost a full month ago. Since then, the car I was planning to talk about - the Fast Fish - has just started to show up on the pegs all over the United States.

I was going to post up leaked pictures of the car (I found 2 or 3 that popped on Google), but I refrained from doing so after some consideration. Why? People get incredibly pissy about photo borrowing, even if the original source is linked and the image has not been altered in any way.

So basically, from now on, all images posted on this blog will be my original shots.

Anyways, I'm really looking forward to picking up a few of them. The Gulf livery was an instant "HELL YEAH, I WANT THAT" from me, but the casting that was used just made the deal sweeter. However, after hanging out on the forums when the 4th TH was leaked, the majority of people thought it was a disgrace by all definitions of the term.

Not a single damn would be given by me, because I love my futuristic cars and retro-styling cues. The Fast Fish's design checks those boxes, and has been on my mind since I first became aware of it while looking for the Krogers exclusive Mazda RX7.

***

While I don't have pictures of the TH Fast Fish to share, I do have something else:

My first 'green stripe', which were phased out by the end of the 2012 MY.

I found it sitting front and center on the pegs, and it was after a father with his son on his shoulders were checking the cars out when I got there.

The feeling of finding one of these in the wild is kind of like seeing Bigfoot in person. It's what keeps me from buying the cars I'm desperately looking for from ePay.

Back to the car: I would've bought the damn thing even if it weren't a TH. The history behind the P34 and just the overall design would be enough for me to snatch it up. It's another great job by HW designer Jun Imai (some examples of other favorite works by him are the classic Skylines and the AMC Javelin).

The detailing on the casting is amazing. Just look at those 8 shiny velocity stacks standing tall on top of the Cosworth powerplant. I'm also glad they used the grey base for the radiator instead of moulding it into the metal body fairings.

Oh, and I love the micro 5SP wheels...just as much as I love lettered tires.

But the show doesn't end there; the swooping exhaust manifolds are elegantly tucked behind the undercarriage/footwork.

Well, that's the end to my brief look at the car. I really hope there is another release in 2013. But preferably not as a TH - I want a decent chance of finding one!

First post!

Welcome to my blog!

I used to collect diecast cars in general as a kid, until around 13 or 14 years old.


As prices rose and selection dwindled, I became disinterested in the hobby and eventually stopped collecting actively.

The beginning of July 2012 marked my return to collecting, and collecting Hot Wheels in particular. The cars that drew me back into the hobby were the Skylines from 2011 (C10 and C110, the former being one that I am still struggling to find at a reasonable price) and the 'zokusha' Mad Manga of 2012. This is partially due to my new-found appreciation for nostalgic J-tin (shout out to Japanese Nostalgic Car!).