Cars/Trucks/Vehicles size suggestions

tomustang

Has Entered.
I know since the dawn of hot wheels and matchbox (which are the same company now) people have been using them insted of the cheap plastic cars usually found for the board setups, but now there's so many more options from Model Power and others which you can pick up from wal-mart now

So..



Who uses the average 1/64 size hot wheels? and how do you think they look?

Who converted to the actual 1:87 detailed cars? and how do you think they look?

The people for HO scale look more like a fitment for the 1/64 models and can fit easily in convertibles

Opinions?
 

Trainiac77

Member
Never used Matchbox cars, always thought they looked too big. Been buying the Walmart cars for the past couple of years, but they don't make enough 1940's-1950's cars...You can only have so many different colored "woodies" on your layout!
 

tomustang

Has Entered.
Never used Matchbox cars, always thought they looked too big. Been buying the Walmart cars for the past couple of years, but they don't make enough 1940's-1950's cars...You can only have so many different colored "woodies" on your layout!

Ain't that the truth! It's either woody's or sports cars, they need to make more coupe models too almost every car is a vert
 
I think the 1/64 cars look too big, and most of the cars are not really scaled to the prototypes, anyway. Usually, the tires are way oversized.

The 1/84 true HO scale vehicles look way better.
 

doctorwayne

Active Member
Who converted to the actual 1:87 detailed cars? and how do you think they look?

I model the mid-to-late'30s, and the majority of suitable vehicles were styrene kits from Jordan. Sylvan is now making some resin vehicle kits which are also suitable, but both types are fairly pricey for what is essentially scenery. I'm waiting for the Greg's Garage line of cast resin vehicles to come back into production, so that I can have some low-priced background cars and trucks.
I think that the ones that I've got look pretty good, and I'm sure that someone with more skill could really make something of these kits.
Sylvan 1937 Maple Leaf (Chev):
2007-01-10_540.jpg


Jordan Model A pick-up:
2007-01-10_5481.jpg


Jordan Mack dump truck:
2007-01-10_542.jpg


A couple of Jordan Model As:
2007-01-10_481.jpg


Jordan 1926 Essex:
Latest_proto_foe-toes_045.jpg


Williams Bros. Ford coupe:
2007-01-10_480.jpg


Sylvan '30s sedan:
Layout_views_etc_1-041B.jpg


The people for HO scale look more like a fitment for the 1/64 models and can fit easily in convertibles

Opinions?

Most figures, even those in convertibles, can be made to fit with a little X-Acto surgery, usually leg amputations will do the trick, or sometimes something more drastic. :twisted: The Sylvan vehicles each come with a driver "torso". ;) (There's one in that green sedan, above.)
I had a package of 100 unpainted "seated figures" that I use for drivers and passengers in my vehicles. Here's a few in a Jordan bus:
Layout_views_etc_1-026B.jpg


However, most are destined to ride forever, looking for their lost limbs. :p
Layout_views_etc_1-034B.jpg

Whaddaya mean "Step on it!", lady?

Wayne
 

DeckRoid

Member
Tom - I hit this spot for looking for models. Not that I have bought any yet. I model Fall 1955 and I find it hard to locate vehicles too. Well, let me re-phrase that... hard to locate affordable vehicles. 20 bucks for a '48 coupe?!?

Doc - No wonder these folks have lost their limbs... when their loved ones "pass on" they have to pay the Evil...err, Evell Casket Company their prices! Come to think of it, I have yet to see young 'uns on your layout too... does Evell offer their premium package in exchange for the 1st born?

George
 
I read in a recent issue of Model Railroad News that Malibu International (the Wal Mart cars) was going to come out with a number of different models this coming year. These are the same cars that used to be sold as Model Power a few years ago at three times the price.
 

myltlpny

Member
I don't use any of the Matchbox cars. They're just too big to my eye. I prefer Busch, Wiking, & Herpa, but I also have a smattering of the cheaper Walmart cars. Boley makes some reasonably priced vehicles as well. My favorites are the Ricko cars, and I recently picked up a couple of the new Redline cars which are absolutely amazing. But talk about pricey. I can buy a 1/18 scale diecast car for the price of one of the Redline 1/87 cars.
 

eightyeightfan1

Now I'm AMP'd
Been buying the Walmart cars for the past couple of years, but they don't make enough 1940's-1950's cars...You can only have so many different colored "woodies" on your layout!

I model the modern era, and it seems like I can't find anything in the cheap Wal-Mart cars except for the 2000 Pontiac, Thunderbird, and a bunch of foriegn cars, which would be great if I was modeling Europe. One or two would be OK, but I'd like more choices in American brand cars. It would look kinda funny with a town filled with the Atlas's Taurus and F-150 also.
 

Russ Bellinis

Active Member
I model the modern era, and it seems like I can't find anything in the cheap Wal-Mart cars except for the 2000 Pontiac, Thunderbird, and a bunch of foriegn cars, which would be great if I was modeling Europe. One or two would be OK, but I'd like more choices in American brand cars. It would look kinda funny with a town filled with the Atlas's Taurus and F-150 also.

I don't know it seems like 75% of the pick ups on the road are F150's. At one time the Taurus was one of the most common cars on the road, but now it seems to be the Toyota Camry.
 

doctorwayne

Active Member
Doc - No wonder these folks have lost their limbs... when their loved ones "pass on" they have to pay the Evil...err, Evell Casket Company their prices! Come to think of it, I have yet to see young 'uns on your layout too... does Evell offer their premium package in exchange for the 1st born?

George

Other than the package of seated people, which my wife got at a garage sale for a quarter, the only people are leftovers from some old Revell kits, and a small set of workman that my brother got for me in Japan. I'll eventually get around to painting people.
George, the Evell Casket Company was an actual factory in Hamilton, Ontario. It's long since been torn down, but even as a little kid, I thought that it was a neat building, and the name seemed so appropriate. :twisted:

Wayne
 

tomustang

Has Entered.
I think that the ones that I've got look pretty good, and I'm sure that someone with more skill could really make something of these kits.
However, most are destined to ride forever, looking for their lost limbs. :p
Layout_views_etc_1-034B.jpg

Whaddaya mean "Step on it!", lady?

Wayne
sign1 hilarious

Those look awesome, and better than what's out there for modercars when it comes to sizing

I just can see the People and the Cars being anywhere close to size with the trains on the modern layouts, maybe I'm just too picky :cry:
 

Glen Haasdyk

Active Member
Most of my vehicles have been collected over the past 10-15 years. I have several of the Malibu cars sold at wal mart as well as Roco (converted military trucks) some of the older Walthers resin cars, Alloy forms, praline, and others. The ones that weren't picked up at Wal-mart were bought from other modelers and picked up at swap meets.
 

kokoracer

New Member
The only Matchbox vehicles I use are some of the trucks and construction equipment. Most of their stuff has the scale moulded into the chassis. I recently picked up a 63 Caddy hearse and a double decker bus which looked decently close. I did buy some of their fire engines but stopped when they went to the big wheels on everything. John
 

Jim Krause

Active Member
One of our club members has 1/64 vehicles on his module and they are too big for HO. Also the road width required to make them look correct is out of scale. Lets face it, scale modeling by definition, is scale modeling from one end to the other.
 

tomustang

Has Entered.
I just picked up one of the 5 car malibu 1:87 sets at walmart, the guys are hard to put in, had to do alot of shaving on the guy to get him in, but he's not snug
 
The deciding factor in scaling matchbox models was making them fit the box.

Also as they were originally made in the UK, if there was a choice, they would be scaled to fit OO rather than HO
 

tomustang

Has Entered.
This is going to be more of a spotting for models since there are deals out there and other people should know about them :thumb:



K-Mart has Norscot Construction vehicles in case for $2.19, and Caterpillar 1:87 models a few bucks cheaper
 

MasonJar

It's not rocket surgery
A couple of other points...

For any given year or era you are modelling, you can have vehicles that pre-date that period by up to two decades. That means that in the mid-fifties, there were likely still some vehicles (although relatively few) from the 1930s. This may be more true of trucks and other "industrial" vehicles than personal cars, but can help you generate a bit more traffic.

Another "source" for differing vehicles can be the kit(s) themselves. With the injection moulded plastic (Jordan) or resin (Sylvan) kits, modification is very possible. Trucks can have different loads. Cars may or may not have spare tires visible (see doctorwayne's pictures), windows can be rolled up or down, and vehicles can be (re)finished in a number of different colours and degrees of weathering and rust. Also, involving the vehicles in different scenes can make them seem different, even if they are not. E.g. view one from the front, one from the side, one from the rear. Partially block the view of a vehicle by parking it behind a building. Duplication is really noticable if you line them all up on the "main drag" or fill a parking lot with them.

One last source for different vehicles the military line offered by a few manufacturers. Roco in particular offers a ww2-era Russian military truck that makes a very passable 1920s 5-ton. Comes with a "canvas" roof for the bed, which means that two different variations are "instantly" available! ;)

Andrew
 
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