While I only contribute when I have time to whip something up, those with a keen memory will recall that I often talk about the scope of collecting for me. I’ve tried, and occasionally failed, to contain my habits to models I truly enjoy. Whether it be particular castings, or series, I do my absolute best to not color outside the lines to avoid adding more clutter to the organized chaos that is my garage. In a recent Daily, I talked about not knowing what to do with a freshly opened piece, as it didn’t really have a place in my current collection. A reader suggested I play with it. Thanks.
So during a recent trip to Wally, I was once again faced with collecting creep. The new Lamborghini 5-Pack found its way into my cart, but that was a no-brainer for the Murcielago SV alone. And for some reason, I always find myself sifting through the Mystery Models, searching for that gold or silver prize. 2020’s Series 2 is done up in a Miami Vice beach theme, and with only the first three of 12 models being licensed castings it should have been easy to pass over, right?
Check out the complete 2020 Mystery Models Series 2 set.
One by one, I lifted the flap and checked the number. First one I turned showed it was the Viper. Sweet. The blue Beach Patrol livery makes it such an unusual release that I couldn’t pass it up.
A short while later I thought I had struck gold – the magenta ’55 Chevy. Once back to my car, I decided to release the Bel Air from its pillow pouch since it was just a silhouette on the package and I hadn’t a clue what it looked like. The ’55 Chevy is one of those castings that looks good no matter what it’s covered in. A Larry Wood design, it was released in 2006 and was literal years ahead of the ’55 that debuted in 1982. Besides wearing Spectraflame on its debut release, it was a Super Treasure Hunt, store exclusives, and a multipack champion. My favorite is 2010’s Hot Auctions in red. It just looks so sharp.
Anyway, back to striking gold – or Fool’s Gold, rather. What I thought was a ‘1’ turned out to be an unhealthily skinny eight, as you can see in the above image. Which is…let me check…the Dieselboy? This is certainly a casting I don’t collect, although as it sits on my desk, it’s strangely starting to grow on me.
So what is the Dieselboy? From the mind of Jun Imai, the RHD fantasy fuelie first rolled coal onto the scene as a 2006 First Edition. But it only took two years for the tooling to be tampered with to include less metal. In 2008, while part of Team: Rat Rods series, the Dieselboy underwent some midseason plastic surgery in which the metal engine and side pieces were replaced with composite panels. That cost-cutting nip and tuck changed the side profile and the overall look. There is no longer a floating frontend and it appears as if they laid a spinal cord atop the diesel V10.
Beyond all that, the colorway and tampo combination work really together. The white paint is complemented by a yellow and green design reminiscent of an ancient Polynesian horseshoe crab. It fits in the Mystery Model beach theme swimmingly. The yellow OH5 wheels, in staggered sizes, match well with the green base/engine/interior.
However, just as I mentioned with the Real Rider Peterbilt, I truly have no place for this in my collection. Thus, it will be rehomed to my daughter’s bucket of cars. She’s already taken it from my desk twice, so I’m sure she’ll be delighted to find it there. As for the ’55 Chevy I was originally after, through all this typing I think I’ve talked myself out of buying it. For now.
It also went under a 3rd change where the metal base was replaced with plastic.
Thanks. I wasn’t sure if the base was ever metal.
I only look at the Mystery Bags if I have extra time. I recently did while waiting for the Wally Pharmacy. There were 8 boxes of these M Bags. 4 of them looked as if they could have been new. No #1s, 2s or 3s. One Bone Shaker which I bought. (It’s rather blah.) I also bought a Rivited. I like the Palm Trees on it, but this thing is plastic junk. And when I say “junk”, I mean it has a pit-mark in it. A “pit-mark” in a Hot Wheels model. Mattel must be so proud.
That’s a lot of mystery pillow packs to go through! And what do you mean by a pit mark? The deco is pretty neat, but the silver blob of plastic that is the front end and engine is a bit of a turnoff.
Can you not “feel” the shape of the car by holding the package? I thought that would be an easier way to determine the car inside if the numbering failed.
You know, I’m sure you can get an idea by touch. And there’s also a little window (think a clear hole punch). But for some reason I never utilized the backup identifiers. I will certainly be more mindful in the future, ha.