Repainting a 1963 Ice Cream Van
Making a Worn Out Toy Like New Again?
From quite some time I have been a big fan of Marty’s Matchbox Makeovers, The Belgian Diecast Restorer and Paul the Restorer over on YouTube. They specialise in recovering old and dilapidated diecast model cars and trucks and getting them back to a nearly new condition.
I find the whole process involved with stripping down, repairing and then rebuilding the models fascinating, so when I came across some old Matchbox models at a local charity store I thought I’d have a go at repainting a couple.
I picked a couple of examples that weren’t in too bad condition, just to ease me into the hobby. They weren’t too damaged so there was practically no repair work to do, just badly chipped and paint and missing decals.
The Rebuilds
My first attempt at a restoration was the Matchbox No. 47B Commercial Ice Cream ‘Canteen’ Van. According to Charlie Mack's wonderful Encyclopaedia of Matchbox Toys that my wife bought me this model was introduced in 1963 and came in blue or white. I found a blue version and because it is a pretty common Matchbox model and not a valued collectors piece I decided it would make a good revamping project.
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I videoed the complete rebuild, but broke the video into two parts as I am trying to keep these ‘short project’ YouTube videos to between 15 to 30 minutes long (if I can) as that seems to be the sweet point for viewers.
Conclusion
This was a pretty easy build and was quite straight forward - thanks to the example of folk like Marty, et al - and I only had one frustration, which was the cracked ‘glass’ component (but I may go back at some point and replace this if I can source a pristine part online). Otherwise, it was an enjoyable and relaxing process...
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| Above: I found a replacement window unit. A bit late now but something I might consider retrofitting later if I am ordering other replacement parts. |
I guess - as usual - the one stressful bit was the detailed painting of the grill as my old wobbly hand issue raised its ugly head again. But, by now, I am used to this and have work arounds in the form of taking things *very* slowly, taking lots of breaks and utilising the magic of video editing to make things look less problematic! 😄
The one short cut I di take was that I did not - like Marty, etc - choose to remove the axles from the chassis. I kinda fudged this part as this was my first go and left the axels and wheels in place for painting. In the future - if I can assemble a suitable set of tools - I might try the more involved technique of cutting these off and replacing them with new rods and then recapping the wheels again (watch one of Marty’s videos to see this in action).
The other thing I’d like to have a go at at some point in the future is making my own decals. I was lucky with both of the Matchbox models that I bought that replacement decals were available from Black Square Decals, but I not that not every model is likewise featured on their wonderful website. And besides, this adds an extra creative element to the build which I would find satisfying.
In the end I was very pleased with my restoration. While not perfect it makes for a very attractive display piece, it doesn’t add any value to the model (in fact modern restorations of this sort actually devalue the model as *some* people try - foolishly - to pass these off as originals) but I love the ‘new’ looking scheme. It’s a bit of nostalgia that harkens back to my childhood.
What Next?
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Well, I have the second of my purchases - a Commer Milk Float - to do next, but I have also put some thought in the direction I would like to go. I’d really like to restore some of the old Matchbox, Dinky and Corgi military vehicles that I had as a kid.
I often see these army vehicles in pretty poor states in junk shops and charity shops and I may try to pick up a couple over the bank holiday. But I will also keep my eyes out for some attractive looking civvy Matchbox models that might make good subjects for restoration.
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