Danbury Mint 1953 Buick

As I sit here pondering what I plan to write in my review of the DM 1953 Buick Estate wagon I keep asking myself, "where do I begin"? In the past, I would write a little about the history of the automobile, to familiarize our readers with the car in question. I don't think I will do that this time; everyone seems to be familiar with the car, lets delve right in to the review.

Being partial to green, I was thrilled when I opened the box and viewed a well thought-out color combination. I love the Terrace Green paint along with wood-grain trim, it screams '50's, the epitome of my youth. Although the paint seemed somewhat dull, a little Meguiar's "Final Inspection" took care of that problem in a jiffy.

The finish is glass like with no noticeable flaws. The metallic flake is perfect in appearance and scale. What I am referring to is the flake is not exaggerated or oversized in any way. Since I received email specifically asking my opinion of what was perceived as to much or exaggerated flake in the paint, I would like to make it clear that it is scaled perfectly, not overbearing in any regard.

Let me address another concern that some collectors perceived as a plastic look to the wood trim. I assure you the wood trim is perfect in appearance, even textured, giving the appearance of real wood, very realistic "bling", which we took into consideration when ranking his replica. For those collector's unaware of the history of the '53 Buick Estate Wagon this was the last woodie to use a real wood on the exterior, Danbury nailed the look perfectly.

Fit on the other hand could have been held to tighter tolerances, specifically around the doors. I suspect the new door hinge design played a part in those gaps?

Speaking of hinge design, the best way to describe it is being spring-loaded. This assures that there are no sagging doors, and always a positive close. That said, there is no middle ground, either the door is all the way open, or it is closed; the spring mechanism sees to that. Personally, I favor this design, because of the positive "click" close. If you like to display your models with doors partially opened you will have an issue with this new hinge.

The trim on the Buick is fantastic, no jagged edges, smoothly following the twist and turns of the body, very well executed. The teardrop headlights and the toothy grille, which are the hallmark of this automobile, are executed perfectly. The front fenders sport four portholes on each side, which are indicative of the Roadmaster. The Super on the other hand had three portholes and could possibly be a companion to this model in the future.

Viewing the tailgate mechanism made the 'ole "bling" meter redline while setting my heart to pounding. What fantastic execution of design! The hinges on both the window and tailgate raised the bar another notch with superior execution and realism. Take note, both the upper and lower panels are tightly closed, don't be tempted to pull on the window handle to open the top half, or you could possibly break it off. The rear doors also use a "click" to close, have some patience when attempting to open them or you may damage or break parts.

I suggest if you do not have the proper tools such as a "Hobby Pal", which is a suction cup, to open the panels take a business card and slide it between the upper and lower doors to aid in opening the back. Once open, enjoy the realistic hinges, and marvel at the skill and forethought that went into recreating them to scale. While peering into the back of the wagon note the floor panel lifts up, it functions on realistic hinges also, lift it to reveal the spare tire nestled below.

Remember this is a '53 Buick; it wouldn't be complete with out wide whitewalls and wire wheels, the icing on the cake, so to speak. Danbury Mint made sure that the icing was included with spectacular wire wheels and fat whites "bling".

With V8 engines gaining popularity in 1953 it was quite natural that Buick celebrated its golden anniversary by introducing a modern overhead-valve V8. Remarkably, in addition to the V8 engine it was the first use of a 12-volt electrical system.

Before you get too excited about what may lie underneath the hood, let me mention viewing is limited due to the fact the hood doesn't open very high. This is not a fault of model design rather the design of the 1:1. However, I found the engine detail to be rather sparse. It lacked robust detail but had enough to arouse my interest, although I was left with a feeling that something was missing, I wanted more, and I had hoped to see lots of "bling", I didn't.

The interior of this model is where it really shines; it is loaded with mind numbing detail such as a rear-folding seat. Nobody and I mean nobody does gauges as well as Danbury Mint and those found in this Buick are no exception. The door panels are very well executed along with the seats. The material and style of the seats are superb. Viewing the ashtray on the back of the front seat I had to laugh to myself as I recalled all the arguments I had with my brother and sister over who would empty all the candy wrappers out of the one in our car. Memories, that to me are what makes collecting so enjoyable, this replica is full of them.

Before I close I would like to mention that the antenna, which is packaged separately and installed by the collector fits loosely into its base, I suggest a drop of glue, or do as I did, and place a small piece of double stick tape on it. The tape was the size of a grain of salt and did the trick; I won't loose the antenna now.

Try as I may, I could not pose the front wheels. Before I broke something I decided to leave them posed as-is. Maybe later I will loosen some of the linkage screws and see if that will free up the front end for posing. I suggest you don't try forcing the wheels to a new pose position or you will surely snap something off.

In conclusion I found myself smiling at every little feature incorporated into the many nooks and crannies found on this model. Memories of my youth, and the time spent with my siblings kept perpetrating my thoughts. I love what Danbury Mint accomplished with this model. I rank it a must have...

As a reviewer I feel it is my obligation to point out all attributes of a model in a sincere and honest fashion, that is what I hope I accomplished here, good and bad. The new technology incorporated into this tool makes it a keeper; the price of $115 makes it a steal. Bottom line this replica deserves a place on your mantel, clear a spot for it today.