I recently started my diecast Corvette Collection with the purchase of two inexpensive and one Franklin mint car for a grand total of 3 cars. I want to collect more but am unsure of the ins&outs of diecast collecting. What are the desireable manufacturers? I am focusing on 1/18th only at this time. If any seasoned collectors can point me in the right direction for info, I would appreciate it.

TIA

Don

 

Have you gone to the diecast section of this forum and asked this question? I have collected all the Franklin Mint 1:24 Corvette models, except the pewter ones which were entirely tooooooo expensive. I also have 1:18 scale Ertl, Mira and Burago models. All are acceptable quality for the price IMHO. I also have a slew of 1:64 (matchbox) scale. The diecast zone is a good web site for information (http://www.diecast.org). Good luck in your search. It is a fun hobby, but can get expensive :eek:

Perry :seeya

 

The Diecast Cars section of the Corvette Forum is the mall. No questions and answers there, unless I'm missing something. Thanks for the info though.

 

You are missing a lot. There is an entire section just about diecasts. see if this link will work. http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zeroforum?id=69

 

Moving this to the "Diecast" section

 

Don, you could almost write a book on this one. Briefly, in 1/24, the entire Franklin Mint and Danbury mint line are pretty good; with FM, the quality jumps around a lot, but overall they are most impressive when viewed together. The DM '68 L88 roadster is a must have, exquisite. In 1/18, Ertl's 61-62 C1 mold is pretty good. I never liked their '63-67 mold much, but its subjective. The Exoto Motorbox line is decent for the '67. The new Maisto C2 '65 Fuelie coupe is very nice for almost no money, $9.99 at Costco or similar outlets.The Revell '69 L89 roadster, recently re-released at WalMart stores is also quite nice, also for no money, $9.99.The UT 78/79 C3's are very nice, especially the '78 IPC version(discontinued, but available here and there); the UT C5 cars are also very good and reasonable. If you like competion cars, the now discontinued Carousel 1 68/69 race versions are fantastic, and very cheap depending on where you find them. Manufacturer basically dropped the series and dumped them. The Exoto '63/64 Grand Sports are exquisite, but very pricey. The Autoart Stingray race car and SS are beauties, and fairly reasonable. Generally, Ertls are more toy like, then everything moves up from there. I would check out various on line dealers for availability and pricing, look at as many as you can in person, then make your choices. Its a wonderful hobby, can be addictive and expensive, so take your time and BUY WHAT YOU LIKE. Good luck!

 

Thanks for the info - I will print it out and keep an eye on those cars you have mentioned. BTW - Nice Vert

 

Lots of diecasts on Ebay too

 

Read most of the posts on here for reviews of cars, info on others, prices from around the country, where to find what and lots of other info. A few of us on here have lots of cars due to the obsessive nature of collecting anything. Others just want a version of their own car. I collect every version of every corvette I can find and afford. Don't worry about future value, you'd make more money on T-bills as an investment. Buy what appeals to you since it is your collection to look at.
Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

 

I agree with all the above, UT 78's are great and so are their C-5's by Auto Art (Same company) The Auto Art 82 Collector Edition is one of my favorites.
As far as the 67's go I have all of the Ertls except the Green roadster and think they are fairly good but Exoto has done some fabulous 67's. Note that even the out of production models can still be purchased at very reasonable prices by checking around.I just got the 67 roadster and 67 427 Coupe for less than $50 from http://www.shiremodels.com and they are bringing over $100 on E-bay. Check around on prices by going to the Tools Button at top of page then click on Corvette Links then go to the diecast section, Lots of good places to shop on line and compare prices.
As said above it can be very addicting, I started about 8 month ago and now have 112 1:18 scale Corvettes, my wife hates when the UPS man comes around.
Good Luck on collecting. Any questions you may have on any particular model, Just post here and you will get alot of help. :yesnod:

 

bobcal pretty much covered it. The only thing I would add are AUTOart's C5-Rs. They're great, way better than the more expensive Action versions.

Also, check out http://www.scale18.com. They have a message board that will occasionally gravitate to Corvettes (usually Euro and Japanese cars though). They also have a search engine with nearly every 1:18 car made. It believe the Corvette count is at 417.