CMC Classic Model Cars: No toys - But works of art

CMC Classic Model Cars. In order to turn such a rare piece into a model true to the original, it takes extraordinary skill and years and years of experience – at CMC, they have both in abundance. In cases like these, when maybe not even the original construction blueprints have survived, CMC will search the world over for original cars, if still in existence, will take photographs from all possible angles – including technical details, the interior, and all items which will later make the model so unique. They research books, magazines, and other published works of the time, and wherever possible, contemporary photographs are used as a guideline.

More than 1,000 individual parts. Once all the data have been gathered, work starts with the hand mold, a sort of pre-model, which is submitted to the manufacturer for approval. Once it has been approved, the hand mold is used as “blueprint” for the construction proper. For this purpose, a detailed construction drawing is made up, because each model consists of more than 1,000 individual parts – in this case about 1,800, even though the finished 1:18 model is not even 10 inches long and weighs less than 1,090 grams!

In order to manufacture all the individual parts, first of all special tools have to be made, which need to be manufactured individually for each model. Likewise, each and every individual model part needs specific manufacturing techniques and a lot of skill, so that the model car itself can be produced true to the original and with the desired degree of precision.

The tools are used to manufacture the parts, which are then painted and printed on. This, too, is a science in itself, because some racing cars carrying historical sponsor stickers sometimes have to undergo up to 30 different print runs. Shining parts like window frames or brand logos get a chrome effect by using metal foil, and even those parts which are not visible from the outside, like the engine, are artfully painted by hand.