00 scale road vehicles from non-railway sources

[ianmacc]

Hi all

 

There is a lot of information in lots of threads about sources of road vehicles suitable for 00 scale layouts other than the made for the market varieties such as Oxford diecast.

 

I don’t think it’s anywhere in one thread so let’s use the huge collective knowledge at our disposal here! I’m not thinking of where there’s now a proper railway accessory model available particularly; more where there’s none available and therefore unusual sources would be welcomed.

Limit it to 1/72 to 1/80 please as anything else just doesn’t look right!

 

In no order and just a fraction of what I know about to get the thread started.

 

BMW E36 3 series saloon by Kentoys

Commer Walk Thru by Efsi (different version to the Oxford one)

Mercedes minibus and mobile shop by Corgi Juniors 

Commer milk float by Lesney

and so on…

 

 

 

[Johann Marsbar]

The old Matchbox Toys Catalogues used to list the scale of each of their models.

Looking at the 1966 one, the following fall within the stated range....

No.12  - Safari Land Rover 1.72

No.20  - US Taxi Cab 1.72

No.21 - Commer Milk Float 1.74

No.22 - Pontiac Grand Prix 1.72

No.24 - Hydraulic Excavator 1.75

No.28 - Mk10 Jaguar 1.72

No.31 - Lincoln Continental 1.74

No.44 - Rolls Royce 1.74

No.53 -  Mercedes Benz 220S 1.73

No.55 - US Police Car 1.73

No.59 - US Fire Chief Car 1.73

No.60 - Morris Pick up truck 1.75

No.65 -  Jaguar 3.8 Sedan 1.72

No.71 - Jeep pick up truck 1.74

 

There were about half a dozen others that were scaled to 1.71 as well.

 

Having found the other 2 catalogues from 1968 and 1969, there are a few others to add, though most of the new models were fairly random scales!

 

No.57 - Land Rover Fire Truck 1.77

No.71 - Ford Heavy Wreck Truck 1.78

 

Edited July 7, 2021 by Johann Marsbar
Extra info added

[BernardTPM]

Just cars, just diecasts, but excluding EFE, ODC, Classix and Corgi trackside. Scale range 1:74 to 1:77.

 

Citröen DS                                            1955 1962   Matchbox

Jaguar 2.4 Mk.1                                    1955 1959   Matchbox

Lancia Flaminia                                     1957 1970   Husky

Citröen DS Safari                                   1962 1967   Husky

Triumph TR3A                                         1958 1961   simple one-piece diescast, unknown make

Mercedes 220                                          1959 1965   Husky

Ford Zephyr Six Mk.3 estate                  1962 1966   Husky

Land Rover Forward Control s.11A/B   1962 1974   Husky

Rolls Royce Shadow/Corniche coupé   1966 1977   Zylmex

Mercedes C class                                     2000 2007   Cararama

Mitsubishi Shogun 3 door                     2000 2002   key ring, unknown make

Audi A4                                                    2001 2004    Joycity

Toyota Avensis estate                          2009 2015   Tomica Tomy

 

A couple of Matchbox commercials:

Matchbox Commer FC Milk Float (1960-65) and Morris  J2 pick-up (1956-67*)

 

*pick up with butresses as per Matchbox post-date the 1956 introduction, haven't yet found out when they changed to that style.

Edited July 7, 2021 by BernardTPM

[divibandit]

How about the Dublo Dinky range?

Morris Cowley pick-up, Morris Minor van, Commer van etc.

 

I remember having a Matchbox catalogue with scales in the '70s, Johann, best I've got now is the Maurice Hammond book 'Lesney Matchbox 1-75 Series Diecasts'.

 

Steve

 

 

 

[PhilJ W]

Scales quoted by Matchbox should be taken with a pinch of salt. Many of those quoted are far to large for 00 scale when placed alongside the same prototype made by Oxford and other current makers. Having said that the Morris J2 is almost spot on 00 scale as is the Thames minibus, Trojan and VW vans. The early Yesteryear Steam Roller, Traction Engine and Showmans Engine were all to 1/80 scale. The Triumph TR3 mentioned above is by Lone Star and came in a set of either 6 or 8 models that included a jeep and trailer and a Citroen DS convertible, all near to 00 scale. Mention of key rings reminded me that Universal Hobbies do various tractors and agricultural machines as key rings. most are the wrong scale but their Fordson Major is spot on and placed alongside the Oxford version it is difficult to tell them apart. They also do or did a Massey Ferguson tractor and another tractor that looks very like a 00 version of the Dinky Massey Harris tractor. Also some of the agricultural trailers although of a smaller scale do not look out of place with 00 models. Tomica made several models of American cars and commercials using a scale of 1/77 in the late 70's. They included Lincoln and Cadillac cars, a Chevrolet van and pick-up and a Cadillac ambulance. 

[ianmacc]

The matchbox modern transit is 1/76 or so as is the Mercedes 207 van. both need work to make scale looking but I know from threads on here folks have done it. 

 

 

[PhilJ W]

33 minutes ago, ianmacc said:

The matchbox modern transit is 1/76 or so as is the Mercedes 207 van. both need work to make scale looking but I know from threads on here folks have done it. 

 

 

The is an MBF member who has made a minibus model using the Matchbox one as a master. He designed it to fit on the Oxford Transit chassis.

[BernardTPM]

2 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

The Triumph TR3 mentioned above is by Lone Star and came in a set of either 6 or 8 models that included a jeep and trailer and a Citroen DS convertible, all near to 00 scale.

No, that's not the model I was referring to. The one I was thinking of came in a blister pack of largely US cars, all with one-piece bodies. A bit crude, but by luck the TR3 is 4mm scale and being an open sports car pretty much worked in one piece (all the closed cars had no interiors, of course).

The OP said "I’m not thinking of where there’s now a proper railway accessory model available" so Dublo Dinky and Tri-ang's MINIX ranges would come under that exclusion as would Lima's Capri and (rare) Fiat 131.

Edited July 7, 2021 by BernardTPM

[PhilJ W]

Micro machines made a few motorcycles that are near to 00 scale, also a snowmobile and a quad bike. They also made an Isetta bubble car.

[BernardTPM]

But there's no such thing as a quad bike. A bike has two wheels and a quad has four.

[PhilJ W]

That is how its described.

[phil_sutters]

2 wheels. bike, 3 wheels trike, 4 wheels quike? although that would do for 5 wheels as well. Quadke? The connection to the cycle family would seem to be the use of handlebars to steer with. 

Although having handlebars did not always classify a vehicle in the cycle family.

[phil_sutters]

WD Models of Bangor make highly detailed kits of 1/76th WW1 vehicles, including tiny motorcycles, some of which would have passed into civilian use in the years after the war. http://www.wdmodels.com/

Edited July 8, 2021 by phil_sutters

[BernardTPM]

1 hour ago, PhilJ W said:

That is how its described.

Erroneously.

[petethemole]

"All Terrain Quadricycle" would probably be a correct  description, I can see why "Quad bike" is preferred.

[BernardTPM]

I don't see the oxymoronic inclusion of 'bike' at all. Quad on it's own is adequate. It's not like quad is used as a description for many other 4 wheel vehicles.

Edited July 8, 2021 by BernardTPM

[phil_sutters]

Quad doesn't tell you anything except that it has or is something with four components or entities - as in quadruplets or quadrangle. Both of those are regularly referred to as quads, but would be recognized by the context - 'She is a quad' or 'I went for a walk around the quad.' I suppose 'I am nipping up to the top field on the quad' is probably more likely to be said than ...on the quad-bike. It just depends how obvious the context is.

Are these quad bikes?

Sorry I have included some railway elements in a non-railway thread!

 

Edited July 8, 2021 by phil_sutters

[PhilJ W]

This is also a quad.

[ianmacc]

Haha I see I have started a debate.

 

I’m more interested in the original topic though of 4mm scale vehicles from non railway modelling sources so as Bernard has alluded to Dublo Dinky, Minix etc are excluded. 
 

I would like quicksilver to notice this as he has quite a few such conversions in his fleet.

[ianmacc]

The matchbox Dodge Commando is 1/77 “scale”

 

I acknowledge that as mainly toys most  of the vehicles in this thread will require work.

[PhilJ W]

The Spanish Eko company produced HO scale plastic models of vehicles in the 1970's. However one model, the Jeep Waggoner was made to or very close to 1/76 scale.

[ianmacc]

1/77

 

matchbox gmc terradyne

tomica Cadillac fleetwood brougham

matchbox Mercedes Benz 1600 tractor

tomica Cadillac superior ambulance

tomica Ford continental mark 4

tomica Chevrolet stepside

 

1/78

tomica Chevrolet panel van

shinsei snorkel fire engine 

tomica rolls Royce phantom

tomica Nissan ambulance 

tomica Isuzu elf various bodies

 

1/75 - watch here as a lot of matchbox are described as 1/75 scale when that’s actually the range numbering!

 

matchbox kenworth truck

matchbox Ford F-150 1997

matchbox Cadillac sedan de ville 1969

matchbox snow groomer snowplough 

[BernardTPM]

3 hours ago, phil_sutters said:

Quad doesn't tell you anything except that it has or is something with four components or entities - as in quadruplets or quadrangle. Both of those are regularly referred to as quads, but would be recognized by the context - 'She is a quad' or 'I went for a walk around the quad.' I suppose 'I am nipping up to the top field on the quad' is probably more likely to be said than ...on the quad-bike. It just depends how obvious the context is.

Are these quad bikes?

 

No, four wheels on the front one, three on the rear one (plus trailer). Can't be bikes. The rear one is a trike though.

"Quad doesn't tell you anything except that it has or is something with four components or entities" - it does tell you it doesn't have two wheels though, so can't be a bike.

 

3 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

This is also a quad.

Yes, and all terrain - or is it the gun that's a quad?

 

By co-incidence, four boats forming the bridge too.

Edited July 8, 2021 by BernardTPM

[BernardTPM]

7 hours ago, phil_sutters said:

2 wheels. bike, 3 wheels trike, 4 wheels quike? although that would do for 5 wheels as well.

Rare, but with five wheels a pentacycle.

[petethemole]

23 minutes ago, BernardTPM said:

Yes, and all terrain - or is it the gun that's a quad?

 

The tractor is the Quad, official name Morris Commercial C8 FAT (Field Artillery Tractor).  Similar vehicles were built by Guy Motors and in Canada by Ford and Chevrolet, all called Quads.  The gun is a 25 pounder.