A lot of you suspected the red one. The paint wasn’t up to scratch, no decals, some didn’t even like the wheels. But the truth is, this is a real F-Series Tomica. And it is Made in Japan to boot. So much for the rumour that these are always superior.
Then there were those who didn’t like the gold one. Casting lines too visible, windows a bit crooked. But that one is a real Tomica too, though Made in China.
That leaves the blue one - a 100% fake. Mind you, as far as fakes go, it is pretty good. The paint is easily the best one of all three, and the metal of the base is the shiniest. Truth be told, it is probably too well made in these regards to be an old Tomica - they did have their flaws.
And the 1000 Internet points for the best answer go to...the Shop Teacher. He was the first one with the correct answer and backed it up with a correct observation as to why.
There are two quick ways to spot a fake Tomica Beetle. One is the area the shop teacher pointed out, the front fender has too large a gap. The other is the front trunk handle - it is missing on the fake, the originals have a small bump there.
Unfortunately, with every following fake, these guys got only better. Check this out - the untrained eye won’t have a chance on this one:
http://www.planetdiecast.com/index.php?opti…
The Land Cruisers are even tougher to tell apart.