Ron’s model spot

Words: Ron Ford

Land Rovers were part of my early working life, and so I became sort of an expert — at getting them stuck!

Land Rover Series 1 109"

The first Landy this month is a Series 1 109-inch open back. It is part of the Oxford Commercials range in 1:43 scale (cat. No. LAN1109008).

The overall shape has been captured reasonably well by Oxford. Like the real vehicle, there is nothing fancy about its modelling. The brightwork is painted silver, which is quite appropriate to represent the galvanized items such as the window frames and reinforcements around the body. The grille is a separate part. The headlights are glazed, with the rest of the lights being painted.

The interior is suitably spartan, with the simple squab seats and not much else. The steering wheel looks a little too upright. The underside detail gives an impression of the running gear, the offset drivetrain with the exhaust pipe making its way from the left-hand side of the motor to exit at the back right. The wheels are well detailed but perhaps a bit small, as the model sits very low.

This version of the Landy is painted grey with a hint of green and lettered for a Ferguson tractor agent in Stockport. The cab casting is plastic (presumably clear to give the windows a flush glazed look) and the painted areas do not quite match the shade of the body. The price in New Zealand is $39.90, with an identical 1:76 version at $13.90 (cat. No. 76LAN1109008).

Land Rover Series 3 ambulance

The second Land Rover this month is by Cararama (distributed by Oxford Diecast). It represents a Series 3 with a specialized ambulance body, although other versions are available in this 1:43 series.

The model is quite lightweight in its construction, but that does not detract too much from its realism. Detailing of the body is good, with a separate grille, glazed headlights, and so on. The front doors open to reveal some good detailing, with the steering wheel being at a better angle than it is in the Oxford Series 1. I don’t think the ambulance section has any detailing, as it is hard to see through the small windows.

The underside detail is much better than that of the Oxford, with nice features such as full running gear and spring detail, all achieved by separate casting. Cararama has even gone to the trouble of a different rear casting for the chassis to accommodate the wider rear track, and it has front-wheel steering with very limited lock — just like the real Landy.

The ambulance Land Rover is in military olive, with the

Renault 4CV

Currently, there is a partwork magazine available in New Zealand called Legendary Cars, with a 1:43-scale diecast replica of the feature car included in the package (cost $14.95 each). There are some interesting models available, such as the Renault 4CV shown here.

While the model is reasonably cast with good detailing, it is quite a lightweight casting (as are all the other models in the range). As an example, the baseplate of the Renault has snapped ahead of the rear wheels because of the screw that anchors the model to the box base.

New Zealand seems to be at the tail end of the distribution for such part works, and it may have already been out and back in some other market.