Hot Wheels and Matchbox Customizing Thread

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"And that's a good thing because you can interpretively say that you can't distinguish it as Torque Thrusts."

Would I be correct in saying that?

In my case, yes that would be correct, (mainly because i lack knowledge of American and Hot rod style/era wheels).

Naturally for someone like Cano (Hot rod enthusiast/car guy who knows his cars, and i'll add, not just American ones). he's bound to notice they're Torque Thrusts straightaway, but to the eyes of the casual observer (me) they tend to just look like 5 spoke deep dish.
 
As soon as I got home with my recent grab of J case stuff, I started on some wheelswaps.
First though, is one of my most favorite wheelswaps to date.





Alright, now on with the new stuff:












I am terribly sorry about the color of some of those cars.
My phone couldn't quite decide on a consistent white balance setting.
Unfortunately, that is entirely automatic and I have no way around it.
The thing I hate most about my phone. :grumpy:
 
It's more so the light flooding the body that bugs me (or us).

I'm actually okay with the MC5 on the R34, though J5 works perfectly fine itself.
 
It might show up with the MC5's as a variation. I think I remember when the first photos were posted a month or two ago that it was pictured with the Y5's and some MC5's. Or maybe they were OH5's?
 
:@: Andy
My camera (or camcorder rather, as that is what I usually use for pictures like this) had only a few minutes left on its battery and the charger is an hour away at home, so I was forced to use my phone. Maybe this weekend I'll charge it and photograph those cars again, albeit freshly detailed. :D

I think what surprised me the most was how excellent MC5s looked on the Supra.

:@: Jason
I was thinking that with the MC5s, but I was convinced that they were all orange.
For your sake I suppose, I hope that variation appears in the same fashion as the Subaru from earlier this year.
 
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Was not fun! Ink kept getting rubbed off and sliding it off the paper wasn't easy either! I did a damn good coat of clear but even then the water managed to dissolve some of the ink before I even took it out. So what's this about wiggling it around until it magically came loose on it's own, huh? :grumpy:

Pulling it off the decal paper wasn't easy, especially with the dragon. It's easy and all with smaller sheets because you can pull it off one side and have the other side pinned down with your finger. This method worked easily with the trunk and roof decals, but the body was not as easy. Because of all the larger surface area, there was more friction if I was going to pull the decal off sideways and as a result, I couldn't do it without stretching one side. So I opted to slide it off upward, but the wide dimension meant an inconsistent tug resulting in wrinkles everywhere.

Then the ink started peeling off the more I tried to adjust it and soon, the edges lost its dark blue and now you see white edges :grumpy:. I'm okay with that because I'm just going to touch that up with paint, but goodness me was this not fun!

Is that the Annihilator Street Rod from Burnout Paradise? If so OH MY GOD I WOULD BUY THAT IF IT WAS A RETAIL SALE
 
The gasser Nova is sooo close to done, and I gotta say the thing looks killer, I freaking nailed the stance, wheel combo and period feeling of the decals. A bit pf paint and waiting for some epoxy to dry, and final assembly can begin, bit the mock-up looks awesome :0
 
The Nova is dooone :D the thing came out awesome and pretty authentic-looking, I'm snapping pics right now (:

EDIT: custom-finishing streak, I also rounded out a wheel donor Meyers Manx dune buggie that was repainted metallic blue. Taking pics now.
 
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Twin post because awesome, preview pic, I'm super super satisfied:

IMG_9418_zps64664c94.jpg


Today is the meeting and contest. I won't be attending sadly, but Ahmed will be taking the car on my behalf (came to pick it up yesterday at midnight, thanks bud) so we'll see how it does. I'll post the full build process soon.
 
Twin post because awesome, preview pic, I'm super super satisfied:

IMG_9418_zps64664c94.jpg


Today is the meeting and contest. I won't be attending sadly, but Ahmed will be taking the car on my behalf (came to pick it up yesterday at midnight, thanks bud) so we'll see how it does. I'll post the full build process soon.

Super job on that Nova, it looks awesome nice decaling job and great detailing, here is mine:

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Think we can play a good role on the contest....
 
http://lamleydlm.blogspot.ca/2013/04/the-customs-of-wandi-hussain-part-1.html?m=0

^ Tight R34 racing livery customs.


This week's lamley customs: http://lamleydlm.blogspot.ca/2013/04/as-is-custom-my-faves-for-week-ending.html?m=0

claims there are 100-150 submissions each week, which is surprising because either Lamley's the only big hot wheels blog out there (or most recognizable) or this hobby isn't as niche as I once thought.

They aren't from 100 different collectors, just that many customs sent in. As more people discover what we are doing they send in a lot of past customs. Plus Instagram blew the whole thing up. Some good stuff there...
 
Ah so it remains niche then.

It's nice to see people so enthusiastic about the hobby, but at the same time, they should strive for two different goals when submitting (in my opinion). They should either aim to present an outstanding idea, or display flawless craftsmanship. That would increase their chances of being selected and keep up the quality in the weekly posts.

I have a ton of past customs I haven't emailed you, but I chose not to do since they don't look spectacular. If it was displayed, then the perception of my craftsmanship from the perspective of the blog's audience drops. I want all my customs that get shared to be my best works so those who keep track of hobbyist names think highly of me and that will in turn build a good rep.

And it's not just me who does this. Danielmeister and Ernest Li have made a name for themselves in your blog. They made not have strived for that effort (like I mentioned) per se, but they have a consistent record based off what you've posted of oustanding-quality customs.


I guess the point I want to make is that if you really want to me your show-and-tell worth every penny when submitting to the weekly blog, do a really damn good job on one custom.

And strive to make something different now and then. We all seen enough solid black cars. :cheers:




Next order of business.



I have a question and suggestion though, jtl. Is there really a "group" in Lamley Group? By that I mean, is it only you making contributions to blog posts or is it a small team who share same access to the account? I ask because the suggestion I have is doing another timely post on customs separate from your "favourites of the week" where you pick the best of the best. Not everyone is at the same level as some of the other folks. Some have the tools to make amazing customs while others don't (decals and body fabrication versus paintjobs and wheelswaps).

So I was thinking that you could have one post for lower-level customs. Of course what makes them less "professional"/ more "amateur" is subjective and that could potentially lead to individuals feeling insulted if you put their work in said category. However, this is where you can impose restrictions such as not allowing certain works to be submitted in this post. In layman terms, anything not "super amazingly top-notch" may not be submitted here. This gives beginner-level customizing hobbyists a chance to gain exposure.

that's one idea, but while writing that I came up with a more fitting idea:


Your sunday posts contain your personal favourites. This other post (you can set to another time) will contain honourable mentions. Subjective enough people can't argue with it, the sound of the title still makes individuals feel good about themselves if they make it in. Here you may post works from anyone you feel like, regardless of how good it may be. You may choose to extend the amount of "favourites" or you can choose to let new names gain exposure. Again, you'll still need to cap off the amount you post because sharing all those photos at once defeats the purpose of honourable mentions.


What do you think?
 
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Ah so it remains niche then.

It's nice to see people so enthusiastic about the hobby, but at the same time, they should strive for two different goals when submitting (in my opinion). They should either aim to present an outstanding idea, or display flawless craftsmanship. That would increase their chances of being selected and keep up the quality in the weekly posts.

I have a ton of past customs I haven't emailed you, but I chose not to do since they don't look spectacular. If it was displayed, then the perception of my craftsmanship from the perspective of the blog's audience drops. I want all my customs that get shared to be my best works so those who keep track of hobbyist names think highly of me and that will in turn build a good rep.

And it's not just me who does this. Danielmeister and Ernest Li have made a name for themselves in your blog. They made not have strived for that effort (like I mentioned) per se, but they have a consistent record based off what you've posted of oustanding-quality customs.


I guess the point I want to make is that if you really want to me your show-and-tell worth every penny when submitting to the weekly blog, do a really damn good job on one custom.

And strive to make something different now and then. We all seen enough solid black cars. :cheers:




Next order of business.



I have a question and suggestion though, jtl. Is there really a "group" in Lamley Group? By that I mean, is it only you making contributions to blog posts or is it a small team who share same access to the account? I ask because the suggestion I have is doing another timely post on customs separate from your "favourites of the week" where you pick the best of the best. Not everyone is at the same level as some of the other folks. Some have the tools to make amazing customs while others don't (decals and body fabrication versus paintjobs and wheelswaps).

So I was thinking that you could have one post for lower-level customs. Of course what makes them less "professional"/ more "amateur" is subjective and that could potentially lead to individuals feeling insulted if you put their work in said category. However, this is where you can impose restrictions such as not allowing certain works to be submitted in this post. In layman terms, anything not "super amazingly top-notch" may not be submitted here. This gives beginner-level customizing hobbyists a chance to gain exposure.

that's one idea, but while writing that I came up with a more fitting idea:


Your sunday posts contain your personal favourites. This other post (you can set to another time) will contain honourable mentions. Subjective enough people can't argue with it, the sound of the title still makes individuals feel good about themselves if they make it in. Here you may post works from anyone you feel like, regardless of how good it may be. You may choose to extend the amount of "favourites" or you can choose to let new names gain exposure. Again, you'll still need to cap off the amount you post because sharing all those photos at once defeats the purpose of honourable mentions.


What do you think?


I appreciate the feedback. The custom posts have completely taken on a life of their own, and now it becomes what I can do based on the time I have. I start with everything submitted, and then go from there. I could just call it the thread "As is the Custom" and leave off the faves part, but I just keep it as is. There are just so many, at many different levels of craftmanship, and I prefer to keep them together for simplicity's sake.

The contest is altogether different. We are learning a lot as we go along on the BMW contest. We separated them into categories, and the judges considered both idea and execution. We will be doing it a bit different for the next one, and will go over that when we announce it.

And even besides ideas and execution, photo quality has to be considered. We don't have the models in hand, so we go on what we see. That hopefully motivates folks to take good pics, a la you folks here.

So, alas, it started with "let's show a few customs each weekend" and has turned into a showcase that is one of our most popular features. I like that it shows customs from all skill levels, and sometimes a simple wheel swap can have a lot of impact. It may not win a custom contest, but it could get you on the blog. You would be shocked to see what gets sent in, both good and bad. I have actually had one custom that made me nauseous it was so bad, and that is not an exaggeration. I felt like it came from Buffalo Bill's basement lair...
 
Pretty much expected that. Didn't have the motivation to do more than what I did. Car came out great though for just a detail/wheel swap, so I'm happy with it anyway.
 
http://lamleydlm.blogspot.ca/2013/04/the-lamley-custom-contest-announcing.html

Category B (i.e. repaints, wheel swaps, mild mods) of the BMW M3 Lamley Contest winners announced.

I told you! I told you replicas would take top standings!

Congratulations to Jason making top 8 and Ahmed making top 4.

Category A will be announced tomorrow. I got my fingers crossed hoping not many went to town with fabrication.

I'm very pleased with the results, the top 3 are just awesome, the art car is amazing. Congratulations Jason for the 8th place you car looks great, and nice job to all the other contenders

Best of the luck AOS!!
 
I thought mine was way better than a couple in front of me, even without repainting it. But it's not up to me. :P

I figure there will be a lot of disagreement on a few, especially when we post all of them, but that comes with the territory. That is why we asked a diverse group of folks to judge, and I stayed out of it. All that said I would have picked the Art Car first as well.

Tomorrow's will be very fun show as well.

And one thing about yours, Jason. It was the only one that wasn't painted that made it into the Top 10, and it was on a very high number of judge's Top 10's. Trust me, that is a fantastic finish for an unpainted car. Almost all the others were completely ignored.
 
Congrats Jason and Ahmed on your M3s! :D:tup:

The details were nice, but Ahmed's E30 and Cano's E30 takes the cake in the details department. And Jason's E30 was a good choice with the wheels, it does the car justice with the lowered springs.

And the Hancook Tires M3, Art M3, the orange M3 and then the Japanese dragon E30 with a touch of JDM and Euro Tuner all together. 👍
 
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