In the "Raw": Greenlight Motor World Army 5-pack chase



Nothing gets the spirits of collectors fired up than finding that special piece, whether it's a casting that they've been looking for a long time or a special chase versions.  Different companies market their chase models, from Hot Wheels Treasure Hunts to Auto World's Ultra Red and M2's gold-trimmed chase, but now some companies are letting loose even more harder-to-find chase models that have no paint at all, called raw castings.  M2 Machines, Auto World, and Greenlight currently have these limited editions, and I was lucky to find a Greenlight version in the recent Army 5-pack.  Let's take a look.




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The US Army has served our great country for many years even as it has subsided to the more elite US Marines.  The Army still serves its duties on the battlefield, but now it ventures out more into other areas that include disaster relief and training.  The Army also uses a fleet of vehicles outside the Humvee's and large trucks and troop carriers: they also use staff vehicles.  This 5-pack starts with two 1967 staff vehicles, two modern day staff vehicles, and one Jeep, of course.  The original color is green on all of them (and you can still see evidence of the color on non-metal surfaces).  All five castings have been reviewed here before and range from great to ok.  First up is the new 1995 Jeep Wrangler that sports a removable tan top to show off the tan and black interior two-tone also shared with the Bronco.  The front grille and  (somewhat mismatched) fenders still retain the green color, but the rest of the body is in bare metal.  The windshield also retains the green, while the rollbars still don't attach properly to the windshield.  The stars and US army badges still remain despite being invisible against the silver bare metal, and the wheels are 5-spoke sport instead of the blacked-out green steel wheels and green rubber tires.




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The Bronco has gotten lots of use since its introduction and comes in lifted off-road or standard setup, the latter used here with a fixated green top and green front and rear bumpers the only green on the car remaining while the body is in bare metal.  Oh, and the tires are green on black steel wheels.  The doors have US Army lettering on the doors and the hood opens to reveal the V8 motor, but the hood poorly fits to the rest of the body.  The Bronco looks like a natural fit to this set, as does the 1967 Biscayne sitting to its right.  On this version the bare metal shows off more and with fewer green trim showing as well.   The only painted area is the white roof that sports the single rotating siren light.  Another nice touch is the red high beam lamps in the front grille area, as are the gray steel wheels that match the bare metal paint with chrome caps and green tires.  The doors have the military police lettering, while the interior has seating for four in a roomy cabin.  The taillight panel is Biscayne-unique with different taillights than the Impala versions that I've reviewed here before.  The hood opens much wider than the Bronco to show off the V8 motor and does a nice job fitting flush with the body.




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The final two are modern Chevy's that look right at home in today's US Army Bases.  The Silverado is the only vehicle here to sport the camo look and tends the hide the bare metal more than the others.  The grille still retains the green look and headlight details, and as a surprise the front and rear bumpers are black (something that the Police package Silverado's need).  It's the only truck in the group and has room to not only carry cargo but people as well.  However, it's the lamest vehicle of the 5-pack set.  Finally, it's a first for the Chevy Cruze: a police car.  Sporting the Fort Bragg police decals on the side this is the first Cruze police car that gains clear roof flashers and a front push bar.  Only the exterior mirrors show off the white paint as the rest of the metal body bares it all.  Also it uses the Dart's silver 5-spokes for the wheels on green rubber tires.  Not the most exciting car it is an interesting choice as a police car; unlike the larger police or highway patrol offices the US Army, like a downtown urban department, prefers a smaller police car over a large, powerful one, so hence the Cruze.




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While the bare metal and green tires look awkward on some models, it somehow has a nice connection with the Army set as even without the famous olive green paint these 5 still look ready for the army base.


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Comments

  1. How many u.s. army raw chases were made. How do you find #. I'm new to collecting but found raw chase.just wondering what # it was. Thanks

    ReplyDelete
  2. How many u.s. army raw chases were made. How do you find #. I'm new to collecting but found raw chase.just wondering what # it was. Thanks

    ReplyDelete

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