Polfi Toys of Greece

Polfi Toys are made in Greece in the 1970s. Many believed that some of their cars are copies of Matchbox. The build quality oppose directly to Matchbox although some Polfi like the Renault 17 here look similar to the one Matchbox has. Most Polfi has the problem of uneven gaps and low quality paint on them. I will still continue to collect Polfi if I find any in future.

Polfi are packaged in blister like the above.

I do not know if this is rescuse car or ambulance. A Mercedes 450 for this job?

A Renault 17 Coupe as taxi? I can't recall if there are any countries using coupes as taxi, not to mention 3 doors hatchback.

Recent Tomica Haul

I bought these first day cover August released Tomica for Japan domestic market during my recent trip. These are heavy little toys and many more maybe be ship in soon from Japan soon.

I have also bought these first colour edition Lamborghini Reventon of July release.

I have more white Reventon than Type R now especially the white ones. I have lost count on the exact number. I am hoping to continue with next purchase of Kobleco crane of July release. Anyone who is interested in these Tomica (outside Singapore) may contact me at bonu@starhub.net.sg.

Clearing For Space Sales

I have sort out some items I do not want to hold anymore or spares which I am letting go. I will ship free to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines and Brunei. Buyers from rest of the world who purchase more than $50.00 will get 5% less from total. I am not able to make any comments on my blog which I don't understand why. Any queries, please send email to bonu@starhub.net.sg. All currencies mentioned on this post is in Singapore dollars and all transactions mentioned are to be paid by Paypal. Self collection to transact in cash.

Tomica Lamborghini Reventon First Colour: $12.00
Tomica Lamborghini Reventon Regular Colour: $8.00
Multiples of each available

Euro Short Card Matchbox, some models in multiples, please enquire.
Cars without price tag at $5.00 each.

Normal card Matchbox, one of each. Cars without price tag are at $5.00 each.

Euro card Hotwheels. Multiples available for some cars.

Japanese card Hotwheels. Only last 3 pcs.

Bandai Chara Hotwheels. Multiples available only on $10.00 bike.

Some cars might have multiples, need to check.

Have multiples of all models of the above. Any 3 pcs for $10.00.

Hotwheels Treasure Hunt at $10.00 each.

Siku to let go. Selling individually or all 3 for $20.00.

Series #3 - Siku German Coupe

I discovered that new Siku are quite nice to display compared to many other die cast in the market. I will do a post on Siku in near future as I have taken many photos but have no time to post them here. All cars reviewed today are coincidentally red. I find that Siku look fabulous in this colour so I couln't help buying red cars from Siku. All Siku are made to a standard scale of 1/55. Are they to scale? Let's check it out.

Mercedes SLS AMG

Real Dimensions: 4638mm x 1939mm x 1262mm

Measured Dimensions: 84.20mm x 35.40mm

Blown-up Dimensions: 4631mm x 1947mm

Percentage Difference: L (-0.15%), W (+0.41%)

Verdict: Right on Target!

Volkswagen Scirocco

Real Dimensions: 4256mm x 1810mm x 1404mm

Measured Dimensions: 77.80mm x 32.30mm

Blown-up Dimenisons: 4279mm x 1777mm

Percentage Difference: L (+0.54%), (-1.82%)

Verdict: Still within tolerance

Porsche Cayman S

Real Dimensions: 4347mm x 1801mm x 1306mm

Measured Dimensions: 78.55mm x 31.30mm

Blown-up Dimensions: 4320mm x 1722mm

Percentage Difference: L (-0.62%), W (-4.39%)

Verdict: Is it me or the car? Still looks good though

Overall results are quite impressive especially the Mercedes. Width is quite subjective as it depends on where the reference point is taken. All cars managed to get a radius within the 1% range in the length department.

Maruka - Japanese Patrol Cars

Maruka, you might be much familiar with the Drive Town series which Maruka made today. If that doesn't ring a bell, think Choro-Q being blown up to about 1/40. I think they look much better than Choro-Q although I do not really fancy these either brands. These Maruka I am sharing today are made in Japan in the 1970s.

They are packaged in blisters and the clear plastic is stapled. See those 40 year old stapler bullets still intact?

These are the 2 models I have seen so far. Anyone knows what other cars they produced? I have seen road car of the Skyline but not sure if they are repainted or custom as the one I saw is quite beat up.

Maruka Toyota Crown MS60 Patrol, Scale: 1/65

Maruka Nissan Kenmeri Skyline C110 Patrol, Scale: 1/62

Series #2 - Tomica New Generation

I do not know if anyone realised that Tomica has shrunk a little to sizes similar to the 70s and early 80s. They have tuned to this direction since the release of Nissan Juke which is a good move in my opinion. Don't you think that Tomica are huge like Siku for some models for the last decade? You may argue that cars today have grown longer, fatter and heavier but some models produced some time back are really oversize. I do agree that the WRX 4 door released in Feburary 2011 is a tad too small. 1/64 might do the car more justice rather than 1/67. I hardly seen a compact sedan been made at this scale, 1/67 should have been for a car whose length from tip to tip measures around 5 metres instead. I have decided the priority goes to the WRX if I were to do a posting on new generation Tomica.

Nissan Juke, Scale: 1/64

Real Dimensions: 4135mm x 1765mm x 1570mm

Measured Dimension: 64.30mm x 27.70mm

Blown-up Dimensions: 4115mm x 1773mm

Percentage Difference: L (-0.48%), W (+0.45%)

Verdict: Quite precise for this Nissan!

Subaru Impreza WRX, Scale: 1/67

Real Dimensions: 4580mm x 1740mm x 1475mm

Measured Dimensions: 68.60mm x 27.10mm

Blown-Up Dimensions: 4596mm x 1816mm

Percentage Difference: L (+0.35%), W (+4.37%)

Verdict: Might be the fat wheel arch.

Suzuki Swift, Scale: 1/64

Real Dimensions: 3850mm x 1695mm x 1510mm

Measured Dimensions: 60.43mm x 27.66mm

Blown-Up Dimensions: 3868mm x 1770mm
Percentage Difference: L (+0.47mm), W (+4.42%)
Verdict: Why smaller cars always appear fat?

Tomica vs Realtoy - Nissan Skyline GT-R R35

The Godzilla Skyline was released some years ago and my comparo came some years later. Maybe it is due to no worthy contenders then. I was in TRU last week searching for Tomica new release of the Reventons. They did arrive early this time but they have been totally swept by the usual Hotwheels and "fast car fans" scalpers again. Yes, both first colour and regular Reventon, all gone! Darn! To my disappointment, I turn to the buy 2 get 1 free Realtoy instead. So, I found these.

Realtoy are kind of underrated in the die cast world. They do look quite ugly a decade ago but they have improve quite a fair bit in recent years. They have made quite interesting road cars especially 4 doors sedans but mostly are European (especially German) cars. It will be a great idea if they can consider making Japanese 4 doors.

Realtoy do come in all kinds of packing like the Fast Lane series in TRU. Tesco do have their own packing too and I believe that there are many more Realtoy contracted to different departmental stores. It is similar to what GM has done to Daewoo and some of other makes under their umbrella. There's another edition which is packed in a clear plastic display and they are selling at Tomica prices which I don't think I will buy them. I will rather buy a spare Tomica at that kind of pricing.

My first impression when seeing both Realtoy and Tomica side by side. The Realtoy looked really impressive as it look really proportional if you were to compared to the Hotwheels version. The Tomica is in right proportion but instead of using a set of 20" sports rims, it is using something much suitable for a Nissan March so it looked a little out of place. Well, this can be forgiven by a Tomica lover as this is Tomica tradition of using either button or dish wheels. If you asked me, I still have a slight preference of the Tomica over the Realtoy.

Proportions:

Realtoy: 4.0 / 5.0

Tomica: 3.5 / 5.0

Casting:

Realtoy: 3.8 / 5.0

Tomica: 4.0 / 5.0

If you were to ask me to describe Realtoy, I would say that it is a great alternative to Matchbox (current day) if you are not accessible to Matchbox. We had this problem in Singapore too. Matchbox are scarce almost everywhere. Realtoy and Matchbox share almost the same scale and they produce road cars rather than cars that are imaginary. If there is a die cast Top Gear TV show, I bet Jeremy Clarkson will name Realtoy as the reasonably priced car. Only exception that Stig will not be able to race in it. I must say that the decals and detailing used on Realtoy are above expectations. It is even better than those used on Matchbox. I wouldn't recommend Tomica to go into the same direction because I like Tomica the way it used to make Tomica. I just can't accept detailing by decals although this is the trend now. I know I am a little stubborn in this. I just felt that the making of the casting if much more important. I don't need decals to tell me that it is a Nissan or a Skyline.

Detailing:

Realtoy: 4.5 / 5.0

Tomica: 4.0 / 5.0

The downside of Realtoy is that it doesn't equipped with suspension like Tomica did. Suspension means a lot to me as I always had lots of fun on toy cars that comes with suspensions when I was young. Tomica also did come with opening doors. The Realtoy had nothing but it doesn't really matter if nothing opens. I do understand that some kids or even adults do appreciate doors that opens because they think it has much better play value.

Play Value:

Realtoy: 3.0 / 5.0

Tomica: 4.0 / 5.0

General quality of Realtoy is above average, some models can be term as good but definitely not excellent. If you asked me if I will consider buying more Realtoy, my answer will be positive if there is a promotion of buy 2 get 1 free. I am actually thinking of going to TRU tomorrow while writing my post. I wanted to buy more Realtoy mainly because they made nice road cars. Paint quality of Realtoy is close to Tomica quality. Tomica felt more mass when you hold it comparing to Realtoy which felt a little "hollow". Worth mentioning is that Tomica uses clear plastic in its headlights which is a nice touch. Realtoy beat Tomica in the interior department which I think Realtoy spend a little more effort which Tomica lags these day. Realtoy had "blink blink" wheels in some of their cars which is a total turn off. The wheels in the white and gray Realtoy doesn't look attractive to me too. I still prefer Tomica wheels even though they are a little smaller.

Overall Quality:

Realtoy: 3.5 / 5.0

Tomica: 4.0 / 5.0

What Realtoy should do in order to be a Tomica and Matchbox beater. Get some suspensions and change the design in the wheels. I would suggest laser wheels used in some Matchbox. They look great in any cars. Let's check if the cars are made to scale. Realtoy is scaled down to 1/60 while Tomica to 1/61. I got the real car measurements as 4655mm (L) x 1895mm (W).

Realtoy 1/60:

77.70mm (L) x 32.00mm (W)

After Blown Up: 4662mm (L) x 1920mm (W)

Difference: +0.01 (L) x +1.32% (W)

Score: 4.9 / 5.0

Tomica 1/61:

75.69mm (L) x 31.03mm (W)

After Blown Up: 4617mm (L) x 1893mm (W)

Difference: -0.82% (L) x -0.11% (W)

Score: 4.9 / 5.0

It's a surprise that Realtoy are build so close to scale. Tomica are also close to the real thing but it's kind of within expectation as Tomica is a Japanese mini car specialist. I gave both cars the same score since the results are almost neck to neck.

Verdict:

Total scores for Realtoy: 23.7 / 30.0 = 79.00%

Total scores for Tomica: 24.4 / 30.0 = 81.33%

The results is almost on par which I say no real winners. It's just a matter of perference but kudos to Realtoy which is not expect to excel. Although they are priced below Hotwheels, Matchbox and Tomica but certainly give a good run of money in terms of value and quality.

Conrad - Mercedes Benz S Class

I been waiting patiently on these Conrads. Wanted more of these as they are really nice little cars. Anyone willing to let go of their W123 Wagons?

I got a red and a silver one. The wheels looked a little Tomica and Polistil RJ.

Although it was scaled at 1/66, it has many openings. Small car, big features.

Just an idea to show you the size of this car by placing it besides its Germany counterpart, a Siku Mercedes Benz SLS which has 1/55 scale.

Base is good for people who have fetish for metals.

Spares cars available but for circulation in Singapore only. Only to let to serious collectors in Singapore.

I do not know why I couldn't leave comment in my own blog, please contact me via my email in future.

bonu@starhub.net.sg