powerrabbit

That is exactly what's doing, shining boards before a ploughing comp. However, if anyone is caught doing it on a public beach they will be prosecuted by the local Authority as it is deemed illegal. A chap I know did the same and was put infront the 'beak' and fined a heafty sum. Expensive way of cleaning up your plough, better to grease or varnish the boards after use.

Looking good Nathan. As well as shows are you going to attend the toy fairs as well like Westpoint in Exeter? I'm in contact with several local show and rally organisers down this part so If you want any dates/details I'll PM or email them to you as and when. Like you say, early days and you have to start somewhere. We will all try to help out I'm sure. The very best of luck with it.

Voted as 'tractor of the year 2009' in real life so perhaps we can expect some to come out in a special box later on. It is a super model in my opinion and the rear top link does move but might be stiff on some that makes it seem fixed. The dealer box is very smart. There are some kicking around in all grey livery harking back to the T20.

Seems like Britain's Ertl are favouring the North American market yet again with their new releases. Are they fed-up with all our negative comments and diverting their market away from the U.K and Europe? I'm sure that the Americans will soon catch up with their comments as they can be very unforgiving. Britain's Ertl, ignore us at your peril!!!

According to the latest Toy Tractor mag, Norscot has another Cat Challenger out, an MT 756B. The report slates it quite a bit for the reasons already mentioned in our posts and say that it is overpriced because of it's limitations.

The milking parlour was based on the exact same one as I used to milk with, a Gascoign 4 abreast. There were 2 versions I beleive, one was with green parts and the other red. One had Freisian cows with it, the other Guernseys. I have a boxed one somewhere buried in the heap. Just out of interest, while I'm here, has anyone got the sheep dip?

These Corgi 1412's are relatively easy to convert and are a good donor base but are a little restricted because of the odd scale that Corgi used, a sort of 'in-between' scale of about 1:48 and don't lend themselves to convert to a very wide model range. The nature of them only really allow them to be converted within the range of a 1200, 1210, 1212, 1410 and 1412. If a smaller model, such as an 880 or 780 is desired then the better donor for this is the Dinky 990. Having said all this, it's a question of availability of donor models of both the Corgy and Dinky David Browns. Both now seem to be commanding a fairly weighty price in almost any condition and you have to think of the economics of finding a donor and cutting it up. Replacement spares could be an issue as the only spares available for the Corgi one at present is the exhaust and air cleaner unit but for the Dinky white 990 diecast bonnets, plastic mudguards and rear linkage is available together with the same in red for the Implematic version, plus the decals. These are ok if you are restoring to 'original' but may not be an issue when doing a conversion. Another donor is the Ertl Implematic 990 but even they are getting harder to find at a reasonable 'choppable' price and again are restricted to what you can do with it, perhaps making a side mounted air cleaner to change to a 900 or 950. But then, with the skills that some have, anything is possible.

Did I read or hear right that it was going to be produced bi-monthly? This mag will get big.

I think some models are best left as they are even if they could be improved.

What about this then for a Challenger. I know it's in the States but that's no excuse! http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CATERPILLAR-Challenger-45-CLAAS-By-NZG-Retired_W0QQitemZ260282415103QQcmdZViewItemQQptZDiecast_Vehicles?hash=item260282415103&_trksid=p3286.m63.l1177

Yes, deffo a Cat box, yellow with CAT emblazoned all over it. I thought that it was the wrong box but when I noticed that the model limited number on the box was the same as on the model came to the conclusion that it was right. The Claas liveried and decalled Challengers were made under license from CAT and I was told that some of the very early Norscot 1:16 ones were in CAT boxes, perhaps mine is a little rarer for that.

Yes, that's the same one as my 1:16 Challenger. Bought mine through a Claas dealership as well, the only source at that time and they are now concidered quite rare. They were initially priced at £85, I paid £75 for mine but someone told me that last year a freind of a freind found one complete with box and paid £185 for it.

PDC. I take it that the one you have pictured is the 1:16 model. I have one of these as well, a Challenger 35. Each of these are individually numbered as they were limited, mine is number 460 I think, came in a yellow CAT box, the box has the same number on it as the model.

Finally, the rear veiw showing the fuel tank position. The only down-side of this model is the lack of a 3-point linkage and the drawbar being in a fixed position and a very small hole in only the lower clevice for a drawbar pin but without a corresponding upper clevice hole is pretty useless for mounting any trailed implement.

Next up, showing the opening door and the engine detail.

These pictures show the interior of the cab.

Here is my profile on the Norscot Claas Challenger 85E in 1:32 scale. I do not have a box for this one unfortunately. I will seperate it into sections as there are 8 pictures in total. Firstly, this model is a very good representation of the tractor with a relatively high detail and is mainly diecast in construction with the obligitory plastic parts such as the rear tanks, exhaust and air stack, handrail and steps, front weight, the cab (roof is diecast) and the engine. The track wheels and rollers are plastic and tracks are rubber. The tracks do go round and the left-hand door of the cab opens rearward. The cab interior is fairly well detailed but the instument panel could have been picked out a little better but all in all, a very good model seemingly now hard to find. Norscot also did variants of the Claas Challenger in 1:32 and also in the dark yellow/mustard Cat livery as Claas produced the real thing under license from Caterpillar. Also to be found in 1:16 and 1:64 scale. Left and right.

In this topic or a seperate one? I have an un-boxed 85E which is the same model apart from the decal on the door. Perhaps those of you that have different Claas Challenger models, in the 3 scales that were done, 1:64, 1:32 and 1:16 would do a 'profile' on each. Norscot were the only Company that made Challenger models I believe. Seperate topic under 'Claas' would be apropriate I think.

I think that her arms are too far apart and she's leaning forward a tad too much. Would have to have the right 'stance' to look convincing. Does it have to be a female? Don't wish to appear sexist but the chap with arms over his head in my oppinion is still the best bet and then there is the chap with the broom which I believe also came with a two-prong fork or pitch-fork, or as we call them down here, a two-prong-pick. There was a picture of this one in one issue of the Model Tractor mag a while back in W.H's article on Britain's hay making, drill a couple of holes in a Britain's bale for the fork prongs and whalla.

The green one with orange metal lades or raves and chassis was in a duck egg box first and was released around 1958 to 61 to go with the last issue of the Fordson E27N Major.

The farm girl with a round bowl under her left arm and with her right arm out was the girl feeding chicken. One figure you could use to carry a bale would be the man with his arms over his head carrying a sack. You very often find him minus the sack.

On the subject of the Amish farmers, they do grow GM crops. If you saw Jimmy's programme the other night you would have seen the interesting section on the Amish. Conflicting standards.

Made of china in the main but contain other material elements such as resin and wire. When they did 'Like Father Like Son', the one with the David Brown 780, they used my pedal tractor as a model for the 'Son' and I have a picture of it somewhere in the raw, before it was painted.

Theres a recession on!

With regard to Lord Melchets comments, he seemed to evade the issue of research into the benefits and catagorically dismissed GM as an outright no-goer so he's among the 'blinkered'. The biggest fear that seemed to come out of the programme was the affect that cross-polination from GM crops could possibly have to the wild plant species and how it could change them. As Jimmy said, and I've been saying it for years, that ever since man has been growing and cultivating crops, they have been manipulated and bred up for thousands of years and if this is not genetic engineering then what is? The difference being that up to now it's been done naturally by selection and cross-breeding instead of in the laboratory. With an ever increasing World population and no more land being made, without this type of 'experimentation' food in the future will be in very short supply long term.