I only knew about this company in the very early 2000’s. Their main products was usually Figures, Gashapons and various Japanese Collectibles, with a small mix of scale model kits. I was quite happy when they opened in Mid-Valley. XL-Shop was, I think, the first such pioneers which offers on-line shopping and at one time, they promoted the Uncle Loong comic series too. Sadly, my weekly pilgrimage to this place of Wonders was reduced to monthly and eventually, years until, it was just passing by the shop with a quick glance. People change. Times also change. But sadly, the salary does not change.
Thanks to my Friend, Rey who informed me that the ThreeZero Spinner is now available at one of Malaysia’s Prominent Toy Shop. Their nearest location to me was Mid-Valley. Unfortunately, they ran out of stock but after a call to their HQ, I was allowed to purchase the ‘last’ remaining item.
It’s been ages since I entered the Shop and I was quite surprised the front facade has changed and now, with brighter lighting. There were several reasons I did not enter mainly that we have Moved and Mid-Valley is quite far. The other reason is that I would be stuck inside there for a long time and as usual, I never do have enough money…
Finally, I have a ‘fully-built’ Spinner! At first glance, I was very happy with the Cockpit interior detail. But why is the black square detail in front of the Pilot’s dash not grey?
First Glance
The Spinner’s box was sealed in a plastic bag. And it’s actual box was a nicely designed clear plastic packaging which shows the Spinner in flight. Once you take it out, the three walls will open like a half stage. If they were printed with the 2019 Los Angeles background, it would nicer.
At 3.75″ (or 9.525 cm) the Spinner looks quite big. I just can’t shake the feeling hold holding a toy car when I was a kid. The only difference is that I had to throw them onto the hard flooring to compromise the rivets… but not this one, Sir. This one costs too much.
So, this is how the ThreeZero sized up against the Fujimi and Master Replicas. By using the 12.04.1980 blueprint length of 184¼″±1½″ and compared against these little guys, I more or less got their scales (apart from Fujimi which said 1/24 on its box).
There is a small little mirror on both sides! Yay!
Both front mandibles can be manipulated independently but I hate this look. It’s like looking at a frog wearing top hats on its eyes.
The ThreeZero’s Spinner allows you to configure the Car either as Flight mode or, Car mode. This is easily done by moving the side part at front mandibles. At first, it feels tight and I though I have broken it because it did not flip as expected. Actually, the part does not pivot but was held with a ‘Z’ type mechanism.
Looking at the seats, they seemed to either be push-fit or, glued on, which I am suspecting the latter since the Pilot console had the same characteristics. If I could separate the body halves, I would be able to tell if there is space to light the interior. As for the battery and circuit board themselves, I am hoping the boot space is sufficient. How to access that, is another issue.
Just like the design itself, when the mandibles are flipped out, its front wheels would be able to touch the ground and ThreeZero’s Spinner does mimic this effect. If the mandibles are closed, you would not be able to roll the front wheels.
Lighting Possibilities
Lighting a Scale Model at this size is possible because it is plastic which is easy to work with. But for a Die-cast where most of the corners or cavities (if at all) are metal, this could be very challenging. In most 1:43 scale cars, the body halves are held with either rivets or screws. Some do come with lighting which were just static lights. I cannot, however, see how it is done, especially the battery holders, which I assume would be some clip-on covers. I would like to put in a Li-Ion battery sans charger if it does not interfere with the circuit board.
Behind this assembly, there is a small black screw, which I guessed it to make sure the whole thing does not split as the mechanism to make it movable was quite tight. It might be possible to fit a LED in there but, wiring is the issue since this part is movable.
When it comes to the Spinner, the side yellow/red lighted stripe is one of its prominent features. Because the Spinner’s body is metal, and quite small, creating a rectangular hole is not easy.
In this function, ThreeZero’s small little toy beats Master Replicas in terms of the opening Doors. The doors reveals a detailed interior and after looking at the passenger floor, I was hope to enlarge the floor window.
Underneath the chassis, you can see that the floor windows are quite thick and so, it is best to leave it alone. I still do not see any rivets or screws and maybe, here’s hoping one of the lights were used to cover them.
The red/blue light details are basically clear painted plastic (along with the exhausts) inserted into the die-cast body. Making them light up will mean drilling holes through to the parts.
If I were to light up these little ‘dimples’, there would be 13 of them and the wiring along would be cramped. Looking at the assembly, I think they are small clear (& silver painted) plastics, stuck to the Spinner. Still, there is a possibility of using the ‘stand” which is a plastic chunk or, scratch-build it.
The Spinner’s middle assembly looks like plastic but it is not transparent. So, putting a LED in there might be a challenge.
Cutting rectangular holes in a die-cast. Oh, my!
The front of the Spinner suggests the Die-Cast halves are held with glue and so, it is a very high possibility that the middle lens and the canopy is a single piece clear plastic.
