What are model cars made of?

Do you know what the model car in your collection is made of? Well, my guess is only a few collectors know the material used to manufacture that precious model car they have collected. This is because most would only think of two common materials which are metal alloy and plastic.

Model cars are usually made of plastic and metal alloys. The model cars that used metal alloys in the manufacturing process are also known as diecasts. But, there are other model cars that are made of Balsa wood, Resin, and other metal such as bismuth and copper.

It is important to know the material used in the manufacturing process because it has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. For example, they can differ in price, sturdiness, quality, and so much more.

In this blog post, you’ll learn what model cars are made of, including Diecast, Plastic, Resin, wood, and metal. You’ll find this blog post useful you were searching to know what is used to manufacture model cars.

1. Plastic

Advantages	Disadvantages
Cheaper	Bad for the Environment
Easy to find	Fragile
Easy to Assemble or Custom

The first and common material used to manufacture model cars is plastics.

Almost all the models you find in the market today are made of plastics. But do you know the kind of plastic used to manufacture model cars?

To be specific, it is polystyrene plastic that is used to manufacture plastic model cars.

It is hard to avoid manufacturing model cars today not using plastics since it is cheap, easy to form, and readily accessible.

The manufacture that uses plastics as the main component has to purchase in bulk then mold the plastics.

The manufacture can choose which color of plastics to use, and also the pigments can be added during the melting process.

The use of plastics to manufacture dates back to the 19^th century, but how they are used in the 21^st century is different from how they were used.

Manufacturers are attracted to use plastics to manufacture model cars, selling them at an affordable price.

Other factors which make manufacture refer to plastic include ease of molding, ability to produce complex forms, etc.

The use of plastic has been discouraged, and manufacturers using plastics recommended using bio gradable plastics.

For this reason, attempts are being made to achieve a balance between development and the environment.

New formulations with biodegradable materials that are more environmentally friendly are being studied, among other things.

In finding the best brands for plastic or model kits, I actually have an article that can help you. Here is the link: Which are the best company that makes model car kits?

2. Balsa wood

Advantage	Disadvantage
Premium Price	Fragile
Beautiful Finish	Rare

Another material used to manufacture model cars in the 21^st century is balsa wood.

Balsa wood is a hardwood used to make a detailed model car equal to one made using plastics.

Nevertheless, few brands use wood to manufacture their model cars.

However, several brands manufacture modeling kits that you can use to model a model car.

Manufacturers prefer to use balsa wood for several reasons.

Among them is balsa wood is light and easy to cut with a craft knife; it is ideal for making models or whittling.

As this wood is less densely than cork, it is applied in additional applications where its small density is useful – as the core in many surfboards or wind turbine blades.

It is usually laminated with something like a glass-reinforced plastic in each of these uses because, despite its strength for its weight, it is still a very delicate and fragile material.

Take note that using wood for modeling is not actually common for cars but quite common on ship or boat models.

3. Resin

Advantages	Disadvantages
Better Detail	Hard to batch produce
Low Startup Cost	Expensive Labor Cost
Sturdy

Resin is another material used to manufacture model cars.

Resins are organic compounds that are made up of a noncrystalline or viscous liquid material.

Natural resins are combustible and fusible organic compounds that are transparent or translucent and range from yellowish to brown.

Resin is produced by plants and is soluble in a variety of organic liquids but not in water.

Synthetic resins are a broad category of synthetic compounds that share some physical characteristics with natural resins but differ chemically.

During the model cars manufacturing, the resin undergoes the resin casting process, thus leading to the production of the collectible model car featuring real vehicles.

Resin model cars are typically formed in small amounts, from tens to a few hundred copies, compared to several thousands of injection-molded plastic figures.

The casting of resin is more labor-intensive than injection molding, and every cast wears down the soft molds utilized.

The low start-up cost for casting resin implies that individual hobbyists can make tiny batches, for example, for their use, while companies can use it to produce small runs for public sale.

The quality of both original masters and resin castings varies due to creative ability and casting methods.

One of the first model manufacturers that used the Resin diecasting technique is Spark. You can find more information about Spark models in my other article. Here is the link: Everything you need to know about Spark Models

4. Die-cast

Advantages	Disadvantages
Cheap	Some Diecast Models use Lead
Sturdy	Large Parts are Hard to Cast
Good Detail

Die-cast is among the most used material to manufacture model cars.

The die-cast material here is a metal like zinc alloy or aluminum.

After choosing which die-cast material to use, a die-casting process leads to the production of accurate, smooth, and defined model cars.

The die-cast process involves forcing molten metal under high pressure, and then it codifies to the target shape of the car.

The process is sometimes regarded as the shortest distance to the end product. In order to characterize the finished part is the use of the term “die casting.”

A plum alloy (early used) and Zamak and an alloy of zinc with a little alumina and copper are the metals used for die-casting.

When alloys are based more on plum or iron, the names white metal or pot metal are also used.

If you are concerned about lead, there is actually a lead safety guideline that car model manufacturers adhere to when producing their models.

In fact, they are doing regular checks to make sure that the model cars have zero to very low levels of lead levels.

You can find more information on diecasts including the lead safety guidelines here: Where does the term diecast come from

5. Metal

The last model is made of is metal.

This is different from diecasting which uses metal alloys like aluminum and zinc.

The use of metal in the manufacturing of model cars started with toy soldiers being cast into ‘white metal’.

It is an all-out name for different alloys such as plaster, tin, and a range of other metals like copper and bismuth.

They also only use metals that have quite low melting points.

These metals were once cheap, but the price for the most advantageous, especially for the tin, has rapidly increased in recent years, making it less desirable.

Thus, diecast is now more popular because it has cheaper raw materials offering almost the same sturdiness or tensile strength.

In the metal manufacturing process, the metal sculptures in circular, vulcanized rubber molds are centrifugally cast.

In a casting machine, the circular molds are spun.

Molten metal is pumped into a central feed and is forced into the mold cavities by the spinning movement.

There are various reasons why the manufacturer prefers metal.

Among them, the metal mold is flexible.

The figure can be peeled around, allowing the details of the “undercuts” around the figure.

Furthermore, the turnaround time of producing metal models is quite fast.

After the rubber molds are correctly prepared, they can “run,” generating hundreds of figures every day, over and over again in a rather continual rotation.

Care and skill are still necessary to prevent or harm molds.

Sources

• British Plastic Federation | Biodegradable Polymers
• Institute of Making | Balsa Wood