Corgi 340 Sunbeam Imp / 328 Hilman Imp

[cabrioletman]

Hillman Imp

DSC_0595.JPG (1.99 MiB) Viewed 2636 times

Sunbeam Imp

DSC_0519.JPG (2.19 MiB) Viewed 2636 times

Guys,

I hope someone out there can help identify the mysterious stripes on my 2 rally Imps. See attached pictures. I obtained these cars from completely different sources, but the stripes you see on each are identical in origin, and have in each case, been on the model a very long time! Any ideas on where the stripes might have come from?

[GHOSTHUNTER]

I have resized your Two images for better viewing.

cabrio image, 1.JPG (110.65 KiB) Viewed 2625 times

cabrio image, 2.JPG (105.96 KiB) Viewed 2625 times

Ghosthunter.

[cabrioletman]

Many thanks - much better!

[GHOSTHUNTER]

As for the models, what are the stripes made of and how are they attached.

Ghosthunter.

[cabrioletman]

They appear to be waterslide transfers, have been very carefully applied in each case, and seem to have been there some long time. As I think I mentioned in my initial post, I obtained these from independent sources so the fact that the stripes are so similar must be more than just coincidence.

[GHOSTHUNTER]

As you probably know, Corgi rarely if ever offered any water slide decals as after market accessories. They do remind me of the types of decal you could buy in packets hanging up in every Town's model shop. These were for general moddeling purposes, but would have been very useful for the slot car hobby of which I was a part of during the late 70' into the mid-80's. Those packets of decals were nearly A5 size sheets and you just cut off what you needed. Given time I would not be surprised to find some within my own vast Scalextric collection!

Ghosthunter.

[cabrioletman]

Certainly it's fair to say the 'real' cars didn't have stripes like these. Could well have been taken from a generic set as you say. Interesting though that the number 77 on the bonnet is a single number, not 2 separate 7s. Must've been a big set!

[toysnz]

These Imps seem to be representations of actual cars raced or rallied - Hillman entered up to 8 vehicls in some rallies - refer to http://www.imps4ever.info/racing/rallies/compete.html for details.

My guess is they use aftermarket decal sets sold so enthusiasts could have a model of their favourite driver's car...

Ian