#1024 TOMICA – TV TRUCK (Nr. 75 or Nr. 29-75) (1974)

I haven´t shown any die-cast made by this brand since a long time. (Almost) All cars I had in my collection have been shown already in this blog, but this one was my last acquisition. I bought it in my city and collected it directly from the seller. It was not very expensive, and since it is my first and only carded or boxed vintage Tomica, I decided to buy it.

I love it, it is a nice TV van, based on an Isuzu van. The cast shows several doors and compartments on both sides of the vehicle and a practicable rear door, but there are no other details (such as antennas) that would help identify the car more properly, except for the stickers on the sides of the vehicle, which, by the way, can be red “NHK COLOR TV” or blue “TV TRUCK”. (NHK is the Japanese national broadcasting company)

My toy was released in the Pocket Cars series, which, as you know, it was intended for foreign markets (these are all marked “TV TRUCK”. They are not so sought-for as the Japanese releases (“NHK COLOR TV”) in the standard black box, and there is a earlier variant with another type of wheels. In particular, this one is partially written in German, and includes a backcatalogue with several Tomica references of the same series.

There are several  alternative decorations in the same colours, but with alternative tampographies on the sides: “Minicar Shop Open” in green, “East Land” in red, or even both at the same time (I have spotted one model carrying both tampographies).

In 1979 the same cast was also used in reference nr. 8, Isuzu Blood Bank Car, in white and green. Many years later, it was reissued in white and blue, but with a darker shade of blue.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: TV TRUCK (Nr. 75)
• Scale: 1:122
• Year: 1974
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: 6 cms

#838 TOYS FROM THE PAST - MUSEUM

Since I want to take some holidays, this month I will publish 11 entries (as I always do), but without much text. Each entry will show pictures of some display, shelves or cabinets I have and in which I display toys. Many of these toys have already appeared in this blog, others still not.

Personally I love watching how other people display their toys and I hope you also enjoy these pictures. If you cannot recognize this or that toy, or if you would like more information about any item on display, just leave a message.

See more of these entries here: http://toysfromthepast.blogspot.com/search/label/TFTP

See you next month!

Important notice: The items on display are NOT for sale.

 

#829 TOMICA – CITROEM SM, LOTUS ELITE and BMW 320i (F34, F47 and F28) (1977, 1978 and 1993)

Three more Tomica models. In this case, I put them together because there are all three European, a French Citroën, a British Lotus and a German BMW.

The first two are very old, I got them in the 80s as a kid, while the third one was bought in the late 90s and belongs to the late series known as “British line”. The first two are made in Japan, the third is Made in China.

As it is usual for Tomicas, models come in different scales, all of them very close to 1:64.

Citroën SM in green – F34 – 1:66 – 1977
Lotus Elite in white/cream – F47 – 1:63 – 1978
BMW 320i in dark blue – F28 – 1:62 – Around 1993 (original release “Made in Japan” ~1977)

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: CITROEM SM, LOTUS ELITE and BMW 320i (F34, F47 and F28) ()
• Scale: 1:66, 1:63 and 1:62
• Year: 1977, 1978 and 1993
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: approx. 6 cm

#783 TOMICA - MISUOKA OROCHI, RENAULT MÉGANE SPORT GENDARMERIE and VOLKSWAGEN POLO (Nr. 25, 44 and 109) (2007, 2013 and 2014)

These are three Tomica models from the last years that I bought several months ago during a trip to Singapore. We could say, they are some kind of souvenir. I was there in two toy stores and was amazed by the care Tomica takes presenting its models, with a display that includes several drawers (in which the boxes are ordered by number) and small windows in which the actual car is inside, so you can see exactly what you buy.

There were hundreds of models available, and despite I do not collect such modern toys, I had to buy a few from them, as I said before, as a souvenir, and also some kind of nostalgic action to remember when I received some Tomica models from my father 30 years ago.

I had a look at so many models, and from the ordinary series, I picked up these three. The Misuoka was the most impressive I could found, and the other two are two European cars that are quite common here: the VW Polo and the Renault Mégane Sport, although this last one has a peculiar decoration. European cars were actually an exception, but they appealed to me more than all Toyotas, Daihatsus, Nissans and rest of Japanese models, most of which are not available in Europe.

There were also "special" editions which costed much more than these. I had bought an Optimus Prime truck (from the Transformers series) if it had been available, but it wasn´t.

The Misuoka was I think the only unit available, it had probably remain hidden for a few years, until I found it in the drawer and took it home, because at the time, it was already an old model, not present in the "window", and already replaced by the next Nr.25 reference.

The other two were very very recent.

Misuoka Orochi Nr.25 1/63 2007
Renault Mégane Sport Gendarmerie Nr.44 1/62 2014
Volkswagen Polo N.109 1/62 2013

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: MISUOKA OROCHI, RENAUL MÉGANE SPORT GENDARMERIE and VOLKSWAGEN POLO (Nr. 25, 44 and 109)
• Scale: 1:63, 1:62 and 1:62
• Year: 2007, 2013 and 2014
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: approx. 7 cm

#702 TOMICA – OHARA SNOW TIGER, CITROEN H TRUCK and LOTUS 79 FORD (Nr. 84, F17 and F36) (1978 and 1979)

I am running out of Tomica models to show, the next three do not have anything in common, they are three completely different vehicles: A snow vehicle, a transport van and a Formula 1.

They date from more or less the same age, I got them when I was maybe 6, and I have kept ever since. The Snow Tiger caterpillars have sadly dried and are broke, an as far as I know, there are no replacement for that. I loved it as a kid, it looks great in red, I wish I had seen a real one in the snow at least once.

Ohara Snow Tiger SM30 Nr. 84, Scale 1:78 © 1978

This Citroen van is quite an icon of the French carmaker and also an icon of France itself. I love this truck, that has not been made in this scale by any other toy manufacturer I know of (at least on the old days). It is made in a bright blue colour. It has practicable doors on the rear part.

Citroën H Truck Nr. F17 Scale 1:71 © 1979

And the third model today is a great formula one from the latest 70s. The black "John Player Special" decoration is really impressive, and the car driven by Mario Andretti from the U.S. (with race number 5) was also World Champion in 1978. That´s why the car became so famous that year. The year after that, the car was not so competitive.

Lotus 79 Ford F36 Scale 1:59 © 1978

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: OHARA SNOW TIGER, CITROEN H TRUCK and LOTUS 79 FORD
• Scale: 1:78, 1:71 and 1:59 respectively
• Year: 1978, 1979 and 1978, respectively
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: approx. 5-6 cm

#664 CF HONG-KONG - FIAT X1-9 and JAGUAR XJ-S (TOMICA KNOCK-OFFs) (Around 1995)

MONTH OF THE BOOTLEG AND THE KNOCK-OFF AT TOYS FROM THE PAST!

Here is a die-cast car copied from a Tomica cast. Although the detail level is not that high, the manufacturer, CF, decided to put a pull-back motor inside, so the toy is more interesting for children. The wheels are bigger and come with chromed hubcaps. This makes the car a bit higher and less realistic, but it has to be like that because of the pull-back motor.

Nothing is know about CF, I could only found a few notes and a few pictures in the internet. All models available (which are 6) are Tomica copies:

• Audi 5000 in dark blue (#301)
• Nissan Bluebird in dark red (#302)
• Porsche 930 in bright red (#303)
• Jaguar XJS in green (#304)
• Fiat X1-9 in light blue (#305)
• Toyota Corolla Levins in bright yellow (#306)

Some of this notes (found in gogotomica.blogspot.com or gasolinealleyantiques.com) argue that these cars are probably made by Faie, maybe because Faie made other Tomica copies before.

CF cars were available in cheap blistercards. I don´t know when were these released, but I would say the style of the blister card is around 1995 o 1996, not so old, but a very interesting a rare sample.

This two pictures are taken from eBay - Seller: tresorduweb

 

UPDATE1 (Dec/2021) The Jaguar XJ-S was acquired a few months ago. Nice!

 

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: FIAT X1-9 and JAGUAR XJ-S (#305 & #304)
• Scale: 1:64
• Year: Around 1995
• Company: CF (Hong Kong) / Maybe Faie (Hong Kong)
• Size: 8 cm

#626 TOMICA - SHIDEN 77 BMW, ALPINE RENAULT A442 and PORSCHE 936 TURBO (1978)

These are three more old Tomicas, two of them belong to the foreign (F) series, while the third one belongs to the normal series.

NºF48 – Renault Alpine A442 – Scale 1:57 – 1978 – Original car from 1975
This car was available in yellow only, but counted with two decorations. It is made in Japan, but belong to the Foreign series “F” (read more about this series here #423)

Nº71 – Shiden 77 BMW – Scale 1:62 – 1978 – Original car from 1977Also known as Mooncraft Shiden 77 Coupé, it was a Japanese sport prototype, so I guess this one became really popular in the late 70s, and it was a best-seller among all Tomicas. Although it was bought in Europe, it does not marked as a model form the European series, the reference number is 71, without an F. This car was also available in orange and in white

No T22 - Porsche 936 Turbo – Scale 1:59 – 1978 – Original car from 1977
This car was already presented in entry #334, but it is repeated here, because it fits very well with the other two models. It is one of the "Made in China" reeditions from the early 1990s, also known as the “British Line”.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: SHIDEN 77 BMW, ALPINE RENAULT A442 and PORSCHE 936 TURBO (Nrs. 71, F48 and T22)
• Scale: 1:62, 1:57, 1:59 (respectively)
• Year: 1978
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: approx. 6 cm

#548 TOMICA – NISSAN FAIRLADY Z 300 ZX, CHEVROLET CORVETTE and CHEVROLET CAMARO Z28 (Nrs. 15, F21 and F34) (1982, 1977 and 1983)

These are three more old Tomicas, two of them belong to the foreign (F) series, while the third one belongs to the normal series.

Nº15 – Nissan Fairlady Z 300ZX – Scale 1:61 – 1982 (original car 1981)

NºF21 – Chevrolet Corvette – Scale 1:64 - 1977
A newer version of this model was shown here, the yellow model is made in Japan, while the white one is made in China, and is part of the so-called "British Line".

NºF34 – Chevrolet Camaro Z28 – Scale 1:66 – 1983 (original car 1982)

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: NISSAN FAIRLADY Z 300 ZX, CHEVROLET CORVETTE and CHEVROLET CAMARO Z28 (Nrs. 15, F21 and F34)
• Scale: 1:61, 1:64, 1:66 (respectively)
• Year: 1982, 1977 and 1983 (respectively)
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: approx. 6 cm

#485 TOMICA - NISSAN CABALL (No. 54), ISUZU ELF (No. 35, 36, 37), MITSUBISHI FUSO BUS (No. 41) and GREYHOUND BUS (No. F49, 222) (1975, 1971, 1979 and 1974)

Until now, all entries dealing with Tomica showed cars, but Tomica always had in its catalogues many other types of vehicles. In this entry we will check 2 Buses and 2 trucks. One of each type were bought in the mid 80s, and the other two have been bought in the last 4 or 5 years in different flea markets.

 

 

 

The first truck is a Nissan Caball in orange. It has a telescopic ladder with a small container on the front (known as "cherry picker"). This truck had several versions with different reference numbers. This one is the "Power Company Service", which is identical to the "Telephone Truck" and "Utility Truck", except for the colour. Available between 1975 and 1988. Scale: 1:68.

 

 

The second truck is a Isuzu Elf catering truck for JAL (Japan Air Lines) and has a movable container, that can be lifted. Both this truck and the previous one are based in Japanese models, so for Europeans, they are quite exotic. The Isuzu Elf had several versions, as we can deduct from having three reference numbers. The Catering truck was first released in 1971 and last in 1997, although those last versions seem to represent a newer version of the Isuzu model. Scale: 1:67.

 

 

The first bus is the Greyhound Bus MC-8 in grey (Nr. 222-F49) ad 1:156 scale. It has a very nice design, so were the busses in the 70s! (the model is copyrighted in 1979). As a child, I can remember, this was my least favorite Tomica toy, since I couldn´t tell the front from the back, and I never knew if I was pushing it in the right direction or in "reverse". Scale 1:156.

 

 

The second bus is older than the first one (it is copyrighted 1974), and it is marked Mitsubishi Fuso Bus, and it´s the only Tomica I own with that kind of wheels. It is a Japanese bus decorated in orange and white with the inscription "Airport Bus Service". This same model was reissued in a "Bus set" recently, but with other kind of wheels. I think it might be a rare model, since there are no pictures on google of this model with these wheels, and my Tomica list it is not listed. Scale 1:156.

 

 

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: NISSAN CABALL (No. 54), ISUZU ELF (No. 35, 36, 37), MITSUBISHI FUSO BUS (No. 41) and Greyhound Bus (No. F49, 222)
• Scale: 1:67, 1:68 and 1:156 (Buses)
• Year: 1975, 1971, 1979 and 1974 (respectively)
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: approx. 6 cm 

#423 TOMICA - ROLLS ROYCE PHANTOM VI, MERCEDES-BENZ 300 SL, MORGAN PLUS 8, PACKARD COUPE ROADSTER and OLDSMOBILE TORONADO XSR (1976, 1977 and 1978)

TOMICA FOREIGN SERIES

All Tomica models I keep from the early 80s belong to the foreign series. I think I have already told this before, but most of them were bought by my father in Portugal, I think it was in Faro (Southern Portugal).

I cannot remember the boxes in which they were sold, because these were probably thrown away right after I got the car out of them, but they should actually be a white and blue one with a flag on it.

Picture taken from the great blog: http://toyingwithtomicas.files.wordpress.com

The flag of course indicates the land in which the real car was manufactured, for example, in the Mercedes above, it was Germany, for the Rolls Royce it was the United Kingdom, and so on. Other flags present on Tomica boxes were: USA, Italy and France.

The production of these models started in 1974 and ended in 1988, and there were 70 models made, all numbered with an "F" (Foreign) plus a number between 1 and 70, that's F1 to F70. After 1988, the foreign series was merged into the standard series. The new reference was the old number plus 80, for example, Rolls Royce Phantom VI was number F6, passed to 086. Those standard references (from 81 on) seem to be rare, since they were discontinued very quickly, and therefore only available for a short period of time.

(Information obtained from: http://toyingwithtomicas.files.wordpress.com)

The cars shown in this entry are:

ROLLS ROYCE PHANTOM VI (No. F6) in 1:78 scale from 1976
Colour: dark red
Practicable doors

MERCEDES-BENZ 300 SL (No. F19) in 1:63 scale
Colour: silver metallic
Practicable doors

OLDSMOBILE TORONADO XSR (No. F54) in 1:78 scale from 1978
Colour: white
Practicable doors

MORGAN PLUS 8 (No. F26) in 1:57 scale from 1977
Colour: red
No practicable parts
PACKARD COUPE ROADSTER (No. F52) in 1:72 scale from 1978
Colour: red
Practicable trunk (or is it an extra seat?)

You can see more Tomica from the foreign series in the following entries:

#259 TOMICA – VOLKS WAGEN, BLMC MINI COOPER S (MK-III) and VOLKS WAGEN PUTICA DISNEY (Nrs. F20, F8 and PD6) (1977, 1979 and ~1990) 

#282 TOMICA – MASERATI MERAK SS, LAMBORGHINI COUNTACH LP500S, DETOMASO PANTERA GTS and FERRARI BB 512 (1976, 1978, 1979 and 1993)

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: ROLLS ROYCE PHANTOM VI, MERCEDES-BENZ 300 SL, MORGAN PLUS 8, PACKARD COUPE ROADSTER and OLDSMOBILE TORONADO XSR (Nrs. F6, F19, F26, F52, F54)
• Scale: 1:78, 1:63, 1:78, 1:57 and 1:72 (respectively)
• Year: 1976, -, 1978, 1977 and 1978 (respectively)
• Company: Tomica (Japan)
• Size: approx. 6 cm