Lesney Matchbox time has returned. Today we take a look at Lesney Matchbox 38b, the Vauxhall Victor Estate Car. This casting entered the range in 1963, remaining until 1967, and is just the kind of casting that I enjoy:
That being a model of an everyday car, the kind of car one would see in traffic on any street, the kind of car one's parents or teacher or neighbor would drive. I've always enjoyed models of cars that aren't exotic or fantasies, this adds to the realism. This casting is from what I see as a middle period in regular wheels models, where advanced features such as glazing, interiors, and opening parts became common - this model has all three features, and fine line casting detail went to another level. Scale is in the mid-upper 1:60s in my estimation, maybe marginally smaller than the standard for small scale, many castings of this era seem just a little small, but not too much. From all angles, one can imagine this normal ordinary car doing anything from the daily commute to a supermarket run to a vacation haul:
Front and rear have ample detail, with mask painted silver trim at front being a nice touch, and the tow hook adds play value:
Speaking of nice touches, this model has a moving part, the rear door/hatch (which opens more than shown in the pics, as it does not stay open at the highest angle) - no doubt this added much interest and play value at a time when such features were uncommon:
The base contains maker and model data and shows off the silver plastic wheels:
This model is fortunate enough to live its clean original Type D2 box, indicating likely production in 1963-64:
I'm more than happy to have this model in my collection, although this model is not rare, it is less common with silver or grey wheels. Pictured with an old dime for scale:
Image of a similar car from deviantart.com:
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