1/18 news

Pedro, thanks for posting. I guess that's from some toy fair? Do you have any info on that? Thanks.

 

The Porsche 936 on the left is said to be released this December and was first shown at Nuremberg earlier this year. But it's always a crapshoot with releases. So I'm always patient

 

By the way is that a 275 GTB/C "GTO 65" (the grey car with white stripe)?

https://scontent-amt2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/22046089_894823127335170_4504845734784792425_n.jpg?oh=0ffa1f8da517d11e4762ed7234e24228&oe=5A87ED42

 

No only a GTO

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the 375 MM was shown at the Hobby model Expo in Novegro ( near Milan Italy )
BBR is there every year with a stand to sell models and show some prototypes
the 375 MM was the only unknown model to me
to buy the model you still have to wait around 2 years
the best thing here is that both owners are at the stand and have time for some smalltalk

thank you Mr Balestrini



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no I did not ask
Mr Balestrini was alone when I was at the stand
I had to ask some questions about the model I bought
there is always a check-out with "bad-selling" models for a good price
and some not perfect models and one offs where there to

 

I don't get Tecnomodel... Why do they continue to put huge diameter wheels on all their vintage cars. This new and coming 1/18th T33/2 1967 has wheels that scale out around 18 inches. Otherwise the model would be pretty good. It has shiny paint and the shape is pretty good

The wheels are also wrong, more like the 1970 T33/3 wheels. Just poor research and planning.

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So I got two models in the past couple of weeks. One is great, the other a let down. I did a few quick pics so apologies for the low quality.

First the 158 F1 by Looksmart. I'm really happy with this model. Nice detail, especially the suspension parts. Some chrome missing on one exhaust header but nothing a bit of paint can't fix. Even the driver figure is nice. It's comparable to Exoto quality so not cartoonish (even though the flash might make it look that way).

The other is the 365 P2/3 by Tecnomodel. At first glance this is a nice model. Shapes are fine so is the paint. But the let down is in the details. Either lack thereof, like the suspension of the choice of materials. The tail picture is a good example. The vents in the rear fenders are closed. The tail pipes lack depth and for some reason Tecnomodel decided to use chromed parts behind the grill (they look orange in the picture because of the reflection). The same chrome is used everywhere in the interior. Overall very toy like and below the level of Hot Wheels.
I got it at a discount but certainly not worth the retail price.

I also almost bought the 512S longtail and the 512M but when I examined them more closely the same issues are apparent. The rear of the 512M is very iconic with the fat tires and open tail, which should give you a nice look at the suspension and engine detail. But Tecnomodel is worse than a Hot Wheels in that area. So I'm going to save up for the GMP 512M.

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Thanks for the review. Looksmart 1/18 product is kind of hit and miss. I would recommend the BBR option if it is available.

-F

 

I agree but for the money Looksmart does make a complete model, with good paint and details but sometimes the shape can be a little off, see my comparison of the Looksmart and BBR 288 GTO I posted here a while ago.

Tecnomodel is comparable to MG Models with probably a little better in shape and a little less in detail. Compared to MG it's much cheaper but you can get better models with makes like CMF, CMR and KK-Scale.

I'm not complaining though. I view each model on their own merit and I'm not chained to one make. I'll be keeping the Tecnomodel 365 P2/3 because I like the shape of the model as well as in real life. I'll probably going to correct a few details, mainly toning down the chrome parts.

 

CMF Ferrari 212 Inter LHD 0267


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MATRIX Ferrari 212 Inter RHD 0257

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Better than the CMF piece, and might be nice, but I can see windshield trim attachment problems, which is unfortunately typical of models from Matrix and many others made in China.