Its a given that I am a massive fan of classic Hot Wheels. The Silhouette was my second purchase as a kid and one of the original 'sweet sixteen' which Mattel rolled out as their flagship line in the sixties. The gorgeous spectraflame paintwork, red stripe wheels and radical styling were streets ahead of the competition and an immediate hit. As is usual with a successful design, copies would be made and Zylemex, the die cast toy maker, seems to have led the way. Its small hot rod range released a near identical moulding called simply 'Bubble', differing from its Mattel progenitor by the simple addition of some chrome plastic pipes on the bonnet. Not content to stop there, Zylemex produced a much larger scale model called The Brute. This is a Dinky size car, which although handicapped by Zylemex low production values, is a lovely vehicle. I have managed to find two examples so far, one with a damaged bubble that supplied missing chrome detailing for a second, much better condition version, allowing me to complete a good example from the two.
