The latest diecast and resin models of classics to collect

Mike Neale takes a look at some fantastic new diecast and resin models of classic vehicles intended for the enthusiastic collector.

BRITAINS
In 1/32 scale from Britains comes a JCB 3CX Plus Sitemaster backhoe loader, priced at £37.99. The Plus had a 4.8-litre 81kW engine, compared to the standard Sitemaster ECO’s 3.0-litre 55kW motor. It automatically switched from 4WD to 2WD when not needed to reduce tyre wear and fuel consumption, with an on-road maximum speed of 47km/h (29mph). The model’s front loader can be raised and lowered with the bucket able to tip independently as well as the rear excavator.

In the same scale is Britains’ John Deere 4450 tractor with an RRP of £32.99. The 4450 was built from 1983 to 1988, and was the best-selling model from John Deere’s 50-series range, accounting for 20% of sales. It had a 7.6-litre six-cylinder diesel engine. The Caster Action front-wheel drive system was introduced on these tractors which enabled the front wheels to angle up to 13 degrees, allowing sharper turn angles and for larger front tyres to be used.

UNIVERSAL HOBBIES
Universal Hobbies has produced a European version of the 1/32 scale Massey Ferguson 65 tractor in red and flint grey (a slightly silver shade), with an RRP of £51.99. Launched in 1958, the Massey Ferguson 65 was fitted with a 65hp Perkins diesel engine, firstly the A4-192 in the Mk.1, followed by the A4-203 in the Mk.2 of 1965. The rear wheels consisted of a centre dish bolted to an outer dish, which could be moved to alter the tractor’s width.

The company has also produced a 1/32 Massey Ferguson 2645, priced at £59.99, and limited to 1,000 pieces worldwide. Dating from 1985-86, these were fitted with a Perkins 5.8-litre, six-cylinder A6.354.4 diesel engine, with 16 forward and 12 reverse gears.

SCHUCO
In 1/43 scale is Schuco’s Volkswagen T1b Splitscreen Samba Bus in a new colour scheme of warm grey and green with a grey sunroof, which has an RRP of £38.99. The company has captured the shape of the real vehicle very well. This represents the 21-window Micro Bus Deluxe as launched in August 1963, with a wider tailgate resulting in the loss of the previous rear quarter windows (the earlier models being known as the 23-window bus).

AUTOCULT
Makers of the weird and wonderful, Autocult, has produced a 1/43 scale resin model of the Fageol TC Cargo Liner, priced at £185.99. William B Fageol and brother Frank R set up the Fageol Motors Company in 1916, in Oakland, California. They built the Fageol Safety Coach and a line of Fageol trucks. A patent for the TC Cargo Liner was filed in 1950, the idea being to design a truck with the maximum loadspace in the dimensions of a conventional truck. Is it a truck? Is it a trailer? Perhaps it’s both! It was marketed as a ‘self-propelled trailer’ with its under-floor diesel engine mounted in the middle of the vehicle and transmission that drove through a rear-drive axle, both apparently built by International Harvester. Only one was ever built, perhaps unsurprisingly.

All the models illustrated here can be found online and at various model shops, such as Hattons, Sheffield Transport Models, Flâneur Automobilia, Jacksons Models, Scale Farm, Farm Models, Brushwood Toys and Diecast Legends. See also Oxford Diecast.

This feature comes from the latest issue of Old Glory, and you can get a money-saving subscription to this magazine simply by clicking HERE