Dinky Riley 40a

i guess this one was dipped in old paint, what a mess, but otherwise an intact model. Following the same routine of stripping repairing and re-spraying I decided to finish this in burgundy. I already have one in the standard cream finish and if it ever were necessary to revert back to the original color it would be easy to do so. I think the new color to be quite a good choice for this particular model. Made by Dinky 1947-1960 this one 1950-1952.

Dinky Riley 40a

Poorly overpainted and with hardened tires this one was ripe for restoration. Strip down was quite straightforward with 3 rivets to drill out. The axles and wheels were independent and so this saves having to break the axle. The chassis was very clean on the inside with just a slight blemish on the bottom. The original color was cream with green hubs and the chassis had small lettering and no number which probably makes this an early model. The old paint was removed and the whole body shell given a fine wire brush and wire wool finish before a coat of white primer was added. This followed by some fine filler for minor scratches and three top coats on the body, three for the wheels and two for the chassis. Pre drilled holes, made during the strip down, were tapped for screws and the model was reassembled, one minor bend in one axle was straightened. New tires and trim paint added to complete the restoration