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RESTORATIONS AND RECREATIONS BY JOHN HOUGHTON
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No. 54 Cadillac Ambulance This was the first Matchbox that I modified. With a new set of wheels and a different colour scheme it looks very smart. |
No. 54 Cadillac Ambulance I got a little more adventurous with this one and made some decals for the windows. Wheels are from a Cararama Chevy truck. |
No. 75 Ferrari Berlinetta 250 Lusso I came across a photo of a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTE 2+2 that was an actual police car in Italy. So, not having the exact Ferrari, I thought this was the next best thing! Looks cool. |
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No. 20 Chevrolet Impala Started life as a taxi and now it's a police car! I fitted some superfast type wheels just for fun. |
No. 31 1956 Ford Station Wagon A real one of these was used as an Ambulance in Victoria. As this was an early restoration for me, I was not confident in doing a raised roof line like the original, so this is how mine finished up. I wasn't real happy with it, but it looks okay. |
No. 33 Ford Zodiac Mark 2 Remember Z Cars? Well, I thought it would be fun to create one from this model. Again, I wasn't real happy with the finished model. Quite boring really! |
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No. 22 Pontiac Grand Prix Convertible I am really impressed with this model! It looks sensational. I chopped the roof off, made the convertible boot cover from body filler and also converted the car to right hand drive! Added some decent looking wheels and lots of detailing around the body. Made the special custom box also. |
No. 45 Ford Corsair Crayford Convertible I always thought the Corsair was a boring little model! I thought of making a 2000 GT in silver with a black roof, but then decided to chop the roof and go with the Crayford. The interior has bucket front seats now (original model had a bench seat) and the wheels have been changed to chrome wires. Rear door markings have been filed off so it is a true 2 door. |
No. 21 Commer Bottle Truck This was an easy restoration. Just some paint and decals. There's a nice little cow decal on the front doors. The roof sign say's "Udder Milk" and along the sides the slogan says "None UDDER like it!" |
No. 57 Chevrolet Impala Convertible I cut the roof off the hardtop Chevy, then fitted the interior from the No.39 Pontiac Convertible. The convertible boot cover was made from body filler. They both look pretty cool, I think! |
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No. 30 6 Wheel Crane Truck I had a heap of these with broken booms and didn't know what to do with them. Then I came across a fire engine with a turntable ladder that was the right size. So, this is the end result! Ladder extends 18 inches. |
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No. 66 Harley Davidson and Side car As you can see this was a run down broken model to start with. I stripped it apart and cleaned the paint off, replaced the handle bars and repainted the model in pearl white. I added some detail around the engine and fitted a chrome luggage rack to the back. Looks rather impressive now! The wife loves it!! |
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No. 20 Lamborghini Marzel What an unusual car this was. Fortunately, Lamborghini only made one real version! I decided to restore this model to match the real car. |
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No. 32 Maserati Bora Fancy painting this model pink and green with yellow interior! That's what Matchbox did. My version is now Vespa blue metallic with doe skin interior. Complete with wood trim steering wheel and wood highlights on the dash, a set of chrome wheels and some detailing. A gorgeous model from an ugly duckling! |
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No. 45 Mercedes Benz 300 As you can see this green coupe was just begging to become a convertible! Now finished in Wild Violet metallic with chrome wire wheels. What a difference! |
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No. 19 MGA These are hard to find in mint boxed condition, so I decided to restore one. The driver came from a London Taxi. I fitted new grey plastic wheels and attached the base using rivets. Looks really tidy! The early MGA's came with the MGTD box so I made a replica box to suit. |
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No. 22 Pontiac Grand Prix I love this model! As you can see the original was a bit of a project. it had broken A pillars and very little paint. I decided to make the red superfast version as it is hard to find. By glueing the superfast axles under the regular wheel chassis it raises the model enough to look like a superfast version! Pretty cool. |
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No. 73 Ford Model A Coupe I found this photo of an actual police car that was used in the 1930's. So I had to make one from the Model A Coupe! Just took some paint and a siren/red light fitted to the front bumper. Some decals on the doors and there we have a Police car! |
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No. 25 Volkswagen 1200 Sedan When I saw this badly repainted little gem, I just had to restore it back to it's former glory! Then of course I had to make a box. Now it looks like it did back in 1960! |
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No. 38 Model A Ford Tow Truck I was in my workshop one day looking for something to do and saw a heap of Matchbox #38 Model A Vans and a No.13c Thames Tow Truck boom. Out came the Dremel and an hour later I had created this beaut little tow truck. I then made some decals using the name of the local garage down the road from where I lived in Christchurch when I was a youngster. |
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No. 35 Snow Trac I just love this model. The first one I restored as a Police version. I was really impressed with the finished model. Then one day I was reading about The British Antarctic Expedition by Robert Scott in 1901. So I decided to make a Centenary Version of the Snow Trac. It's complete with a map of Antarctica on the roof. I made 25 of these, complete with a numbered certificate detailing the expedition. |
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© 2008 Moko Lesney Matchbox |
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