CMC is the maker to look at if you want to open a bonnet. Its models are 1:18 classics, assembled by hand from metal parts, and the House holds more than 90 of them.
Who CMC is
CMC stands for Classic Model Cars. The company grew out of a model car business in Stuttgart run by Herbert Nickerl and Shuxiao Jia. In 1995 they decided to make their own models, and the first CMC model, a 1:24 Mercedes-Benz SSK, appeared that year. Today the models are developed in Germany, at Fellbach near Stuttgart, and built in CMC's own factory in China.
How the models are made
Development starts with a real car. CMC measures surviving cars with its own 3D scanning system, then breaks the model down into separate parts, much as the car itself is built. The parts are made in zinc, stainless steel, aluminium, copper and brass, with woven fabric and real leather for the interiors. CMC paints the parts by hand and assembles each model by hand. The spokes of its wire wheels are stainless steel wire, threaded by hand.
The part counts are what set CMC apart. The maker says its models have up to almost 2,000 individual parts.
| Model at 1:18 | Parts, by CMC's count |
|---|---|
| Ferrari 250 GTO | 1,841, of which 1,215 are metal |
| Bugatti Type 35 Grand Prix | 926 |
In the hand, this means weight, and parts that work. Doors, bonnets and boots are hinged, and under them the engine and frame are made of separate pieces.
The cars CMC is known for
CMC's subject is European racing and sports cars from the 1920s to the 1960s. The CMC pieces at the House follow that closely. Ferrari leads with 29 pieces, then Mercedes-Benz with 21, Bugatti with 12, Alfa Romeo with 10 and Porsche with 9, with Maserati, Jaguar, Talbot-Lago and Auto Union also here.
| Car | Pieces at the House |
|---|---|
| Ferrari 250 GTO | 13 |
| Bugatti Type 35 Grand Prix | 12 |
| Ferrari 250 LM | 10 |
| Porsche 904 Carrera GTS | 9 |
| Alfa Romeo P3 Tipo B | 8 |
| Mercedes-Benz 300 SL | 6 |
| Mercedes-Benz W25, W125 and W154 | 6 |
| Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR | 5 |
| Maserati Tipo 61 Birdcage | 5 |
| Jaguar C-Type | 4 |
These counts include the chassis and framed pieces described further down. Many are a particular car at a particular race. The Ferrari 250 GTO from the 1962 Goodwood TT is one, and the 250 LM is here in its Le Mans, Reims, Monza and Nassau liveries. The Bugatti Type 35 comes in the racing colours of ten countries, among them Monaco. Nine pieces are weathered versions, finished with the dirt and wear of a race.
The road cars include the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster, the 600 Pullman Landaulet and the 300 SLR Uhlenhaut Coupé. There are also three Fiat 642 RN2 Bartoletti racing transporters and a Mercedes-Benz Lo 2750 truck. One piece, an Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B, is 1:12. Nearly all the others are 1:18.
Models that show how they are made
Five of the CMC pieces are objects, not finished cars. The 300 SLR rolling chassis is shown as an exploded display, with its parts held apart so each can be seen. There is also a Maserati Birdcage spaceframe, and three framed model art pieces based on the 250 LM, the 904 and the Birdcage. The exploded chassis is the quickest way to understand what a thousand parts means.
Editions
CMC says it often produces only a few hundred of each variant, and that variants are usually individually numbered. On the pieces at the House where the edition is recorded, sizes run from 300 to 2,200. The Jaguar C-Type in gold is an edition of 300. Several of the Type 35 colours are editions of 500, and most of the 250 GTO race versions are editions of 2,200.
Seeing them
These are models to look at closely, and photographs only go so far. The CMC pieces are on show at the House in Al Quoz 3, Dubai, open 10am to 10pm every day and 4pm to 10pm on Fridays.