Die-cast: Hot Wheels and Matchbox original castings from 1967-on

Some of you that follow my instagram (@dayuumden) or close friends of mine know that I have a thing for Hot Wheels - lately. Frankly, the non-HW people are all probably tired of seeing the posts, instead they rather see boobs. I really only started going gung-ho on them since December of 2012 when Neil Tjin made me hunt for him in my area. I’m not completely foreign to collecting since I’ve collected die-casts in the past, but they were usually First Editions and certain race teams, like the Target Chip-Ganassi Indy Car team when I was heavy into CART/Champ Cars.The passion for it faded when my son was born and I had boxed everything up to move. When my son was about 2, the purchase of HWs started again, they were all openers for my son, but it was an inexpensive way to direct him into manhood...haha. From then, I would pick up cars when time permitted.Several years have passed since he was born, and now he is old enough to appreciate history and what things are worth with a meaning.Not long ago, Christina C. (@xtinatouch) commented on one of my instagram posts that Nikita Esco (@nikitaesco) found a bunch of older Hot Wheels and she wasn’t sure what to do with them. Christina said I should look her up on FB to check it out. Of course, Mr. Eager beaver me, I found Nikita's fan page on FB and saw her post ,“Does anyone collect old Hot Wheels? I found a bunch 1960's - 70's.... I don't know what to do with them.” I read a bunch of comments giving her advice in 400 different directions, eBay this, eBay that. I went ahead and commented on her post anyways to let her know I was interested. The next morning I receive a message in my inbox. She sent me a link to a group of detailed pictures showing front, back, side, ¾, and bottom. They were nicely shot. But to be honest, most were in a condition that was a little beat, but then...The childhood side overcame the imperfections. I had Hot Wheels when I was really young and to this day I wished I still had them. I tell my son about them all the time but never had anything to show for. The fact that these Hot Wheels aren’t super immaculate was ok, they were played with like how they were intended to be. I could reflect back at how I would throw them up against the wall trying to destroy them, I would bury them in the dirt, play with them in a mud pit, or see how cool they looked on fire - yes, I was that type. This is what my Hot Wheels would have looked like if I still had them. The fact that they are chip, rusted, and dented, was ok, its their purpose. In the 60’s, who knew Hot Wheels would be so collectable? The set was perfect for me. I could share it with my son and even described how some of the imperfections were created.I forwarded the link to my partner-in-crime Neil (@tjinedition) and we figured out an offering price. In retrospective, I could have spent what we paid for this set in one store after cleaning up a fresh dump bin. haha. So I jumped on it with Neil’s blessing.I sent Nikita the offer and she accepted.While we were figuring out payment and shipping, she sent me a picture with the Hot Wheels on a scale to show me the weight and I was surprised to see each car wrapped! WTH! I don't even get Hot Wheels "collectors" doing that! The transactions went totally smooth and within a few hours the cars were packaged and shipped.They arrived a couple days later and most of them are 1968 first editions that had redline tires. There was also some Matchbox cars when Matchbox was made in England by Lensey. Lensey was a company that produced the original Matchbox cars in 1953 and got their name because the cars were packaged in boxes that resembled matchboxes for matches. Since then, Lensey and Matchbox was bought out by a few other companies, one being TYCO. At the time, Barbie dominated Mattel and was female specific. Hot Wheels was then created for the purpose to compete against Matchbox and to introduce a boys line for Mattel.Today, Mattel owns Matchbox and Hot Wheels as they truly dominate the 1:64 scale die-cast market. It's really an amazing sight to see these cars in its original castings in their true form.Thanks Christina for giving me the heads-up and thanks to Nikita for give making this happen.Now let's check out what cars were in the case...There were many GEMs, like this 1940 Ford 2-Door with rubber tires.Here is a Matchbox AMX Javelin from 1972 in very clean condition.This Beatnik Bandit was a collabo between Hot Wheels designer and automotive designer Harry Bentley Bradley duplicating Ed "Big Daddy" Roths custom car. Ed Roth is also known for his Rat Fink designs.This piece was actually pretty cool, its from 1977 and was called the Caravan. It features a swinging door which was controlled by a small dial underneath the chassis.Cat-A-Pult, I don't have much of a story on this, but the casting seems pretty new, 1998.This Classic 36 Ford Coupe has seen better days. Spectra-flame red with Redline tires. - 19691975 Moran's Surf Shop Express Stingray Coupe CorvetteCustom AMX from 1968 (introduced in 1969) in Spectraflame Watermelon on Redline tiresCustom Firebird convertible with Redline tires and Spectraflame Olive - 1968This Spectraflame Aqua Custom Fleetside has a tonneau that actually lifts, this casting was introduced in 1968Here is a casting from 1967 of a Volkswagen Beetle with sunroof in Spectraflame BlueThe Deora was the car that caught my eye when I first looked at this set. The fact that the surfboards where still attached was quite amazing, not to mention its in immaculate condition. The Spectraflame Green is flawless.Then here is the second version of the Deora, the Deora II.The Dune Daddy is basically a dune buggy, the casting marks are stamped 1969, but I think it was introduced later in 1973.A very rare and sweet casting features a "60" and the Ferrari emblem on the hood. This Ferrari 312P is enamel red.The Fire Chief Cruiser is sweetHeavy Chevy - Spectraflame Green - 1969, released in 1970Heavy Chevy in Chrome from the Hot Wheels Club KitFlying Color Ice-T in Yellow Enamel with olive and orange tampos on the hood. This is a rarity for this casting.Lotus TurbineMcLaren M6A - Spectraflame GoldMajorette Ryder TruckUnknownMatchbox Police LaunchYellow Enamel Porsche P-911 - 1974Python - Spectraflame Blue with white interior - 1968Python - Spectraflame Red - 1968Rash1 - 1969Red Baron - Spectraflame Red - 1969Rolls Royce Silver Shadow - 1969Screamin' Hauler - 1999Silhouette - Spectraflame RedSplittin' Image - 1968 castingSRN6 Hovercraft - 1972The Demon - 1967 castingTorero - 1968 castingVolkswagen Beetle - Blue - 1988Volkswagen Beetle - Pink - 1988, check out the wheel error on this casting, 5sp on one wheel 7sp on the others.One of my favorites is this Matchbox Volkswagen Caravette - Lensey made in England No.34