Author: Joel Reyes Noche

Tomica Limited Color

I’ve been collecting Hot Wheels for a while and I’m familiar with their variations: models that are essentially the same except for some details like color, wheel type, or card. A few years ago, I was surprised to see Tomica scale models start having their own variations: one version would be a “regular color” version, and another would be a “limited color” version. The Japanese text that I’ve seen for the latter is 初回特別カラー (roughly translated by Google Translate as “initial special color”) and 初回特別仕様 (“initial special specification”). Shown below are a few pairs of models in “regular color” and in “limited color.”

The JSDF High Mobility Vehicle (No. 96) “regular color” version (TKT10257) has a covered top, while its “limited color” version (TKT10258) has the top removed and shows some seated soldiers.

I bought them for around 250 pesos each.

You can see the code number in the box with the ST logo.

The Honda CBR1000RR (No. 36) “regular color” version (TKT10239) and “limited color” version (TKT10242) both include removable plastic drivers. In the pictures shown at the links I’ve included above, the drivers are made of white plastic, but at the store where I bought these, the drivers are made of transparent plastic. Note that I have not opened the plastic covers of all the models here. I guess I’ll never find out which type of drivers I got.

They cost around 250 pesos each.

A Ford Focus RS500 “regular color” model and a Ford Focus RS “limited color” model (both No. 50) are shown below. While the four models above are recent purchases, the two below were bought a few years ago (hence the lower price of around 200 pesos each).

I don’t have much interest in the Ford Focus, and if I saw these two models today, I wouldn’t buy them.  I guess I bought these because at that time it was the first time I saw Tomica variations and I had no idea if these were rare or not.

I once asked a salesperson what the sticker saying “FREEWHEEL” was about. It seems that it was placed there to indicate that the model did not have a pullback motor.

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Matchbox mix

Here are some Matchbox scale models I’ve bought over the past few years.

This ATV 6×6 is from 2011 and is the first release. I must have thought it was pretty cute, but now I don’t really like it that much. It will be among the first to go if ever my wife and I decide to let some models go.

This Ice Cream Van is from 2011 and looks really nice. A child playing with it could think up a lot of stories with it.

I don’t like the color scheme of this Blockade Buster from 2017; the black details (on the light gray body) are too loud for a military vehicle.

This NASA S.E.V./Chariot is from 2018 and is the first release. I think it looks really funny because it looks like a truck with an upside-down cab.

This ’09 International eStar is also from 2018 and is also the first release. Although its Matchbox Cars Wiki entry says its color is white, it’s actually a very beautiful metallic white. I love the large Matchbox logo on its side. This would be a very worthy representative for Matchbox models.

New models, old cars

I consider the 1959 Cadillac Eldorado Biarritz to be one of the most beautiful cars of all time. I also love the 1963 Cadillac Miller Meteor Ambulance/Hearse. I don’t have the Matchbox hearse, but I do have two of the ambulances.

The first one is from the 2012 Beach series.

The second one is from 2016.

According to the Matchbox Cars Wiki, the models from 2013 and before had a metal roof (the base has the text “MB780”) while the models from 2015 to 2016 had a roof window (the base has the text “MB994”). I suspect the change was made to reduce costs (by reducing the amount of metal), but I have no complaints. I like the version with the roof window better because it adds play value by giving a better view of the car’s interior.

The next two Matchboxes are so beautiful, I had to buy them even if they are not the type of cars I usually collect.

The Matchbox ’59 Chevy Wagon first came out in 2017, but this one is from 2018.

The Matchbox ’51 Hudson Hornet also first came out in 2017, and this one is also from 2018.

I love their colors, especially the dark cerulean of the Chevy wagon.

Too many Treasure Hunts

I’m dedicating this blog post to the two readers of this blog (Jim Holroyd and Marc Bosworth).

I’ve been ridiculously busy at work for the past six months and I had to stop blogging for a while. But I haven’t stopped purchasing scale models. In fact, because I haven’t blogged about some of my purchases, I forgot that I already had some of them and this led to a lot of duplicates.

For this post, I’m showing all the Treasure Hunts I’ve purchased since my last blog post. This Crate Racer is from the 2018 series.

I unintentionally bought two copies of this Rockster.

I also unintentionally bought two copies of this Hollowback.

The circle-flame logo for this Kool Kombi is on its roof.

This Ratical Racer also has its circle-flame logo on its roof.

I saw a copy of this Bump Around but I didn’t buy it because its card was damaged. It’s a good thing I didn’t because I had already bought one before.

Unlike the six Treasure Hunts above (which are all from the 2018 series), this Bazoomka is from the 2019 series.

In my previous blog posts I used an old digital camera to take pictures of my scale models. It was hard to focus on very near objects and it blurred pictures very badly when it wasn’t steady. But starting now I’m using my wife’s smart phone to take pictures of scale models. I think the improvement in quality is easily seen.

21st Philippine Mathematical Olympiad (Region 5)

Ateneo de Naga University is the Regional Testing Center for Region V of the 21st Philippine Mathematical Olympiad.

The Philippine Mathematical Olympiad, a nationwide mathematics competition open to all junior and senior high school students of the Philippines, is carried out in three stages.

The qualifying stage (to be held on October 20, 2018, Saturday) consists of a written exam administered in fourteen regional testing sites. The exam consists of fifteen multiple-choice questions worth 2 points each, ten multiple-choice questions worth 3 points each, and five answers-only questions worth 6 points each.

The area stage (to be held on November 24, 2018, Saturday) consists of a written exam administered in testing sites for the four areas (Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, and National Capital Region). The exam consists of twenty answers-only questions and three open-ended questions that require full solutions.

The national stage (to be held on January 26, 2019, Saturday) consists of a written exam and an oral exam administered in Metro Manila. The written exam consists of four open-ended questions that require full solutions to be answered in 4.5 hours. The oral exam (which is open to the public) consists of 30 questions read to the participants and to be answered within a specified time for each item.

Each school may send up to thirty participants (students with a final grade of 88% (or its equivalent) in mathematics in the previous school year). The participants with the top fifty scores in the qualifying stage per area will qualify for the area stage. The participants with the top twenty scores (national ranking) in the area stage will qualify for the national stage. The national finalists will be qualified to join the Mathematical Olympiad Summer Camp (MOSC). The representatives of the country to the International Mathematical Olympiad will be selected from the participants of the MOSC.

A Super Day

The first thought that came to my mind when I saw the “TH” logo on this 2015 Ford Mustang GT was “So that’s how it looks in real life.”

I looked at the tires, saw that they were Real Riders, and saw a gold circle flame logo on the card behind the model. (An ordinary Treasure Hunt would have a gray circle flame logo on the card.) The body has Spectraflame paint.

It was next to an “ordinary” version of the 2015 Ford Mustang GT, so I got that one too for comparison.

The wheels are plastic (and not rubber), there is no circle flame logo on the card, and the paint is not Spectraflame.

The Super Treasure Hunt doesn’t have a collector number (such as “222/365”) on top right of the front of the card. The backs of the cards are also different. The Super Treasure Hunt has a toy number “FJY37-D7C3,” a collector’s code “Z2S2L,” and a base code “K40″ (embossed on the base of the model and on the upper left of the back of the card). The ordinary model has a toy number ” FJY35-D7C3 G1,” a collector’s code “8GE25,” and a base code “L10.”

This is my first Super Treasure Hunt. I never thought I would be able to find one “in the wild.”

Edit (December 24, 2018)

After I posted this blog, I was able to get a (black) mainline version of the Super Treasure Hunt.

It has a collector number (“80/365”) on top right of the front of the card, and on the back it can be seen to have toy number “FJW44-D7C3,” collector’s code “ZB9K8,” and base code “K47.”