The precise scale models replicate the cars that powered George Russell and Lewis Hamilton’s to a 1-2 victory in São Paulo
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Bristol, UK, 12th of July 2023
Amalgam Collection, creators of the finest large-scale models in the world, today shared the first images of their most recent Formula 1 project at 1:8 scale: the Mercedes-AMG F1 W13 E Performance, as raced by George Russell and Lewis Hamilton in the Formula 1 Heineken Grande Prêmio de São Paulo at Autódromo José Carlos Pace. The Bristol-based artisans have precisely captured every detail of the cars that delivered the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team a much needed 1-2 victory during a challenging season.
Amalgam’s model at 1:8 scale perfectly recreates every aspect of the W13’s complex aerodynamics and radical sidepod-free design. Every W13 model is hand-built and assembled by small teams of craftspeople across the company’s global workshops in collaboration with the Memento Group and with the assistance of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team. Working from CAD data supplied directly by the team, Amalgam’s engineers developed a pattern for each component of the model, utilising the team’s data to ensure that the details were accurately reflected at an eighth of the real car size. The master patterns were created for each piece of the complex assembly using 3D printing, followed by meticulous hand finishing. Moulds were then taken from each pattern and used to create a small batch of cast components, each one fettled and fitted to make a complete set, before painting, finishing and assembly.
The edition of W13 models, strictly limited to just 50 pieces for each driver, necessitated over 2500 hours of development and the resulting prototype only received the approval of the designers and engineers at Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team once they were fully satisfied with its accuracy of representation. Measuring over 69 centimetres (27 inches) long, each subsequent model took 250 hours to cast, fit, fettle, paint and assemble, as Amalgam’s team of artisans focused on ensuring that every minute detail was accurately depicted. Each model has then undergone detailed scrutiny by the team and is delivered mounted on a carbon fibre base with a polished metal plaque, covered by an acrylic dust cover. Every model comes with its own numbered and signed certificate of authenticity.
The W13 project continues an ongoing collaboration between Amalgam Collection and the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team that has been in place since the team re-entered the sport in 2010. The joint projects have centred particularly around the Formula 1 team’s dominant performances during the hybrid era, though Amalgam first constructed replicas of the WO1 driven by Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher in that first season. The most recent Formula 1 collaboration saw Amalgam recreate the domineering W11 EQ Performance driven to double Championship success by Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas and George Russell in 2020 at 1:8 scale. Most recently, Amalgam released a 1:8 scale of the Mercedes-AMG ONE, the world’s first commercially available vehicle with both an F1 hybrid powertrain and road-legal approval. Sandy Copeman, Director of Brand at Amalgam, said “Our relationship with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team has flourished over the last decade, and the W13 is the most recent in a line of models at 1:8 scale celebrating their success. We’ve enjoyed the opportunity to celebrate the latest victory of a team that has enjoyed such unprecedented levels of accomplishment during the hybrid era, and the maiden career victory of a promising British Formula 1 driver in George Russell.”
Qualifying in São Paulo did not go well for the Mercedes-AMG duo as Russell span into the gravel during qualifying, but a strong performance in the final sprint race of the year saw the duo lock out the front row for the main event on the Sunday. A smooth race start was swiftly followed by a similarly slick restart, after an early safety car, before Russell began to pull away from the pack. Hamilton survived an incident with Max Verstappen, at the sacrifice of several positions, but swiftly recovered to P4 before the first round of pits stops. Russell continued to extend his lead over second place Sergio Pérez, whilst Hamilton, to the crowd’s delight, made his move for second on lap 45 at Turn 1. Jeopardy reared its head during the second round of stops, as a full safety car allowed the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz a cheap pit stop. However, at the restart, the Mercedes duo pulled ahead, and Russell led Hamilton to the chequered flag, claiming his maiden Grand Prix victory and Mercedes’ first 1-2 of the season.
The Mercedes-AMG F1 W13 E Performance at 1:8 scale is available from www.amalgamcollection.com and has been crafted under licence from Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Limited.
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High resolution images can be found here >
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ABOUT AMALGAM COLLECTION AND THEIR HISTORY
- Amalgam are recognised worldwide as makers of the finest hand-made large-scale models. Their work is unique in its attention to detail, with a focus on creating models that truly capture the style and spirit of each car. They have dedicated all their skill and passion to achieving a level of excellence that raises the impact and value of each finished piece to a level far above anything previously created.
- For owners of cars they have already modelled at 1:8 in a limited edition, for which the tooling already exists, they offer a tailormade service, customising a model to perfectly match the specification of the real car.
- For owners of unique very high value cars, Amalgam Collection offer an even bigger 1:5 or 1:4 ‘one-off’ model build from their UK workshops in Bristol, England. They will digitally scan the car wherever it is in the world and take up to a thousand pictures of every detail, allowing them to perfectly and accurately replicate everything at scale. Given the significant number of hours required to develop a unique model the costs are high, so the model is built at a very large scale to maximise the impact and detail, and to deliver the ultimate finished piece.
Amalgam Collection’s design, management and development heart is in England, with extraordinarily skilled and dedicated teams producing the bigger editions in Hungary and China. They are a multinational, multicultural team of crafts-men and women, dedicated to creating the world’s most precise, beautiful and exclusive models. Inspired by the F1 teams and iconic luxury car marques of England and Italy that they serve and partner with, they take huge pride in their mission to perfectly capture the designs, and honour the designers, drivers and creators of the automotive art they love.
Originally a partnership of four talented model-makers formed in 1985, from the start Amalgam created finely tuned models for the most important UK and German designers and architects. Working closely with Norman Foster’s team on the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank and on the Hong Kong Airport project was a fast, steep learning curve which quickly opened their eyes to subtle aesthetics and refined engineering. Working with such gifted architects their passion and desire to model the very best designs was ignited, which in due course led them to Williams F1 and Adrian Newey who were dominating the F1 championship in 1995, then on to Maranello and to the massively important design heritage of Enzo Ferrari in 1999, and latterly to the works of Pininfarina and Ettore Bugatti.
The seminal performance and luxury car designers of the early to mid-20th century were obsessed with achieving ever higher speeds, lighter and more powerful engines, more streamlined bodies, an impassioned quest that inevitably resulted in elegant and beautiful solutions as a consequence of stretching the supreme excellence of the craftsmanship and engineering to the very limits of what could be achieved at the time.
The companies that today bear these iconic names continue to be inspired, and their creativity is still fuelled, by the extraordinary passion and genius of their founders. Amalgam Collection too find inspiration in the creations of the founders and their companies who continue to design and create automotive artworks.
Recognising the beauty and importance of these designs Amalgam Collection have utterly dedicated their energy and passion to modelling these cars to a level of accuracy, precision and excellence that raises the finished replica to a level far beyond anything previously created. Amalgam have chosen to work at a scale of 1:8 which is widely acknowledged to be the most satisfying scale to comprehend the entirety of a car’s design at a glance, whilst in addition showing the most minute details.
To create perfect scale replicas of modern cars they use original CAD data supplied by the manufacturer and work closely with the design team to perfect their rendition of the interior and exterior finishes.
With regard to classics, in their quest for supreme accuracy and authenticity Amalgam’s team goes to great lengths to locate the best examples of original cars and digitally scans them to capture the precise shape and proportions of every part of the car including the chassis, engine and drive train. In addition, 600 to 800 photographs of every aspect and detail of each car are shot, to ensure a complete understanding of the finishes and detailing. The resulting models beautifully and precisely capture the entirety of the original and are impossible to discern from a real car in photographs.
Amalgam is the only maker of model cars in the world that can be considered alongside a maker of luxury watches like Richard Mille or Hublot. In fact, Richard Mille is an Amalgam patron who recognising a shared passion for engineering detail and perfection has commissioned from Amalgam Collection many unique models of his own cars and those he sponsors.
HOW THE MODELS ARE CREATED
- The patterns are created using original CAD from the manufacturer, or extraordinarily accurate digital scans and hundreds of photographs of an original classic car.
- The patterns are used to create silicon rubber moulds that capture every detail.
- Prototyping resin is used to cast the parts from the silicon moulds. Around 20 to 30 parts can be cast from each mould and then a new one must be made.
- Each model is built from thousands of parts: castings, photo-etchings and CNC machined metal components.
- Genuine car paints and manufacturer or archive colour references are used to spray the bodywork.
- It takes between 2,500 and 4,500 hours to develop the tooling for each model.
- It takes between 250 and 450 hours to cast, fit, fettle, paint and build each model.
Every Amalgam Fine Model Car is made entirely by hand from thousands of parts. Detailed original CAD data is supplied by the car's manufacturer or the race team of the car to be modelled. The process of developing each model and creating the master patterns takes between 2,500 and 4,500 hours of skilled work depending on the complexity of the car, with classic cars taking the longest.
In the case of the classic cars an extremely accurate digital scan is made of the car, and hundreds of photographs of all the details of a carefully selected original car are taken, to ensure complete accuracy and adherence to the authentic finishes and materials. Many parts of the model are machined from metal with the major components hand cast from prototyping resin. Each model is individually assembled by a small team of highly skilled model-makers. In total the time taken to machine, cast, hand fettle, paint, polish and assemble each model is between 250 and 450 hours of highly skilled work depending on the complexity of the car.
The finished model is a very precise scale replica of the original car with every detail perfectly and authentically represented at an 8th of the original size. This is modelling elevated to such a high level that it becomes an art form.
Since 1995 Amalgam have been admired and hugely respected by leading designers and engineers in the European automotive industry, as well as F1 designers, drivers and team principals. Amalgam's models appear on the desks of CEOs and presidents of the world's most important car companies. Due to the extreme accuracy and authenticity of Amalgam's creations, made in small limited editions, they are also much sought after by devoted collectors of fine handmade objects across Europe and in the USA.
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