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Mudge's
Diecast Customs |
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Welcome to Mudge's Diecast Customs, the biggest single-collector gallery and showroom for 1/64th-scale diecast customs since 2003, now featuring nearly 1,000 different custom 1/64th-scale diecasts. These are nearly all pieces that you can make with virtually no skill or experience, presented with quality photography and inside tips on how to do the job quickly and properly with the least risk and effort. The accent here is on Hot Wheels, but you'll also find unique takes on the prettiest regular-issue Matchbox and Johnny Lightning cars, as well as a few from Corgi, Yatming, Majorette, Tomy, Jada, Racing Champions and other makers.
 Mudge's
Custom Shop |
A
large and growing gallery of 1/64th diecast customs Dozens and dozens of unique Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Johnny Lightnings and more. No fancy paint jobs or airbrushed graphics here...these are all customs anyone can make. Or buy...some for as little as a couple of bucks. |
 The
Strip Club |
Old
favorites with brand-new looks that you can create yourself A massive gallery of literally hundreds of Hot Wheels, Matchbox, Johnny Lightning and more, carefully stripped of their "kiddie" graphics to reveal the quality collectibles (or worthless scrap metal...they can't all be winners) underneath. Use these as templates for your own collection of "strippers", learn how to Tampo-strip your own pieces, or buy them ready-stripped, many for less than the value of the labor involved. |
| Want to know how to build these no-talent-needed customs yourself? I host a very thorough Tampo-stripping tutorial at this link, that should give you a flying start. When it comes to part-swapping and disassembly, I suggest learning from the real artists. Some of the best beginner-level customizing how-to's ever to grace the web (I know because I've been looking for quality tutorials since '02) are now being built at Dad's Custom Hot Wheels...look for the Custom How To's link under the banner, and stick around to browse some of the finest custom 1/64ths anywhere. |
| The
Tech Bench |
Think
you could do better? Here's the help you need to prove it. Everything you need to know to duplicate - or even improve upon - the results you'll see in these pages. This section only contains a couple of articles; I recommend Hot World Customs as your first source for tech tips and customizing how-to's. |
| Mudge's
Mantle Candy |
Look
but don't touch: here's where we keep the "expensive stuff" Most of the pieces here are one-of-a-kind creations done exclusively for my personal collection. But money talks and there's always sooo much out there worth owning, so nearly everything you see here is for sale. Prices start at a measly $2 for many of the "strippers", and I also sell on eBay, so if you don't feel comfortable about ordering from a website, e-mail me about arranging a special eBay lot just for you. |
| South Texas Diecast Collectors hosts a Hot Wheels "price guide" listing virtually every Hot Wheels ever made. In the process, they've also built one of the most complete Hot Wheels photo galleries on the web, and an online catalogue rivalling Tomart's Guide. If you collect Hot Wheels, this may soon become your most-visited site. If quality photos are more your thing (STDC hosts mainly blister shots), the Hot Wheels Wiki is a user-built photo database with surprising scope and depth, and it's growing all the time. |
| Tale
Lights |
Die-cast
sights and stories A handful of diecast "fish stories" and other adult-child confessions, including a lost-treasure story involving a genuine rear-loader Beach Bomb that might still be waiting to be discovered. You've heard the "kooky Canadian" jokes at collector events; now get the story directly from Mudge himself |
| The
Junk Bin |
Downloads,
free stuff, image licensing, and whatever else that ain't tied down Here's a brief selection of diecast downloads (mostly JPEG images) and detailed info. on licensing and reuse of the pics on this site. I'm continuing the tradition begun with the original "Strippers Gallery" in 2003, and allowing free copying and use of all of my gallery photos...provided, of course, that you assume liability for misuse and don't claim them as your own. This section also includes info. about linking and rights-of-use for the image content here.. |
| Serious about Matchbox? Then no single site is likely to provide everything you need. But the Bay Area Matchbox Collectors' Association hosts a wonderful (and fast) picture catalogue, and Areh's Matchjbox Picture Dictionary is a remarkably complete reference for identifying unusual variations. |
| Mudge's
Junkyard (currently offline) |
Junk
parts (mostly axle sets) bought and sold I need a constant stream of new wheels and donor cars for my customs, so I'm always on the lookout for closeout lots of cars that meet my needs. I pay better-than-dealer prices for several types of vehicles...here's a list of what I'm currently hunting for, and how much I'm willing to pay for it. This is also the place to find out whether I've got batches of wheel sets of my own to sell, and how to order them. |
Site News:
JUNE 2011: As most of you know, I decided in 2009 not to post a complete how-to section, and limit the tutorials here to Tampo-stripping. I've finally found a site with customizing tutorials which I'm willing to recommend to those whose lack of talent matches my own: Dad's Custom Hot Wheels (look for the Custom How-To's link). The tutorial section is still under construction, but the pages posted to this point offer just the level of detail and consideration for beginners that I've been looking for. So if you want to learn how to duplicate my work here (and probably with better results!), then take your mother's advice and go to Dad.
MAY 2011: I've added two batches of new customs this year, raising the total number of customs shown in The Custom Shop to over 350. The Strippers section has had to suffer, but a ton of new strippers should be posted by late summer to bring that section up-to-date.
NOV 25/10: "Strippers" section updated: 40 newly-presented 2003 mainlines "strippers" are now featured in the new page style, including a dozen-plus very sweet new looks you can create yourself with a few Q-tips and some nail polish remover.
eBAY SALE UPDATE Nov. 24/10: The first month of sales out of my private collection went...well...shall we say, less well than expected. Most of my redlines went for a fraction of what I paid for them not more than a year or two ago. But my customs were a surprise hit! In just one month, more than a dozen of my nicest pieces sold at fixed prices out of 30 offered for sale, including the blue and green '67 Shelby's, the Pretty **itty Kitty, the red Matchbox E-Type, the blinged-up Maisto H2 and the British-racing-green Triumph TR6. My planned eBay sales end in December, but if there's anything here you'd like to own, I'm more than willing to make it available on eBay or The Toy Peddler.
Old News:
NEWS FLASH [Oct. 16/10]: Big eBay sale begins today; runs through November. (Link connects to page listing my full eBay inventory.) I don't do this often, so when I go eBay, I go eBig with over 1,000 diecasts on offer in over 200 different lots, including redlines, customs, blisters, Lesney's, and one of the most unusual mixes of 1/64th diecast you're likely to see from a private collector. This is mostly my best stuff...I've gotten bored with my collection, and it's time to liquidate and revitalize my interest with a fistful of cash and a hunger for new stuff. Dozens of auctions, hundreds of items on fixed-price offer to help make the shipping costs that much more worth your while, and perhaps best of all, the only sale I plan for the next year on my customs. Most of the customs currently listed on eBay are on Buy-It-Now offer at one-third to one-half off the price shown on the car's corresponding gallery page. Once this is over, I don't plan another batch of eBay lots until next fall.
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