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| Number 212 - English version dated 23.02.2023 - © Axel Gerstl |
Befana meeting of the Fiat 500 Club Italia
Building Fiat 500-themed dioramas
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Follow-Up Report: Befana Meeting of the Fiat 500 Club Italia / Handmade Fiat 500 Dioramas Dear customers, dear friends of the Fiat 500, Fiat 126 and Fiat 600, The very beginning of 2023 was marked by the first Fiat 500 meeting of the Roma Litorale (Roman coastal region) section of the Fiat 500 Club Italia – this time held as part of the Befana festival, the highlight of Christmas celebrations in Italy. Click here to read what our colleague Andreas experienced during the “Parade of Witches” in their Fiat 500s in Italy. We will also share with you a very special contribution to our ongoing “Fiat of the Month” competition that caused great excitement among our team: handmade and beautifully detailed Fiat 500 dioramas by Pierre Schenk. Read here how these little works of art came into being. And of course, we are also proud to present the "Fiat of the month February" along with some interesting current offers and news concerning the Fiat 500, Fiat 126 and Fiat 600. We hope you enjoy reading this month's newsletter! The Axel Gerstl team |
| > The “Befana“ meeting of the Fiat 500 Club Italia at Roma Litorale on 6 January 2023 |
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More than a hundred Fiat 500s celebrate “Befana” in Rome In many European countries, Christmas presents are given to the children by the Christ Child, Santa Claus or St. Nicholas of Myra – this is different in Italy where this task is traditionally taken over by the witch Befana. The old legend has it that immediately after hearing from the shepherds about the birth of the Infant Jesus, Befana set off in search of the newborn Saviour. But unlike the Three Magi, all she found was an empty stable. Since then, she has been flying restlessly from house to house in Italy, giving generous gifts every year on the night of 5 to 6 January. 2023 was the sixth time that the Roma Litorale section of the Fiat 500 Club Italia celebrated the Befana festival together with their little Fiat 500s. And having met chief organiser Andrea Prudenzi and the club section members already during his visit in the summer of 2022 (we reported on this in our Newsletter 205), our colleague Andreas took the opportunity and accepted the invitation of his friends to visit them on the occasion of the Befana festival. Andreas was especially looking forward to seeing Andrea Prudenzi, his wife Simona and their daughter Aurora again, after having been welcomed warmly by the family on his first visit. To Andreas, this clearly demonstrated at that time that Andrea was and still is a true Fiduciario (= leader and liaison man of the club section). Indeed, Fiat 500 Club Italia members like our colleague Andreas should always have the possibility to turn to the Fiduciario of a region, even when just passing through or in case of problems, even other than a breakdown of their Fiat 500. Right at 7 a.m. they all left for the venue, an area specially reserved for Fiat 500 drivers on the premises of the Parco 51 shopping centre in Pomezia, south of Rome. Andreas assisted the organising team around Andrea, Simona, Antonio and Mauro to the best of his ability with the last preparations, before registration began at 9 a.m. when and the first of finally more than one hundred Fiat 500s started to come in. Besides, there were once again numerous creative feats to marvel at: The club members had decorated their little 500s with figures and scenes from the mythological world in keeping with the occasion, and even the odd “real” witch mingled with the crowd. “Those who felt like it could take part in the indoor electric go kart competition (Trofeo Piston Cup 2023) or just have a couple of laps for themselves – this was really good fun!” Andreas told us. Then, it was time for the highlight of the meeting: the big Parade of Witches as part of a Fiat 500 car convoy, driving around the shopping centre, where the witches generously gave sweets to the children they passed on their way. “It was – and I can justifiably say so: as always – a great experience,” Andreas told us delighted. P.S.: Click here to see more photos and videos from the Befana meeting of the Fiat 500 Club Italia at Roma Litorale! 
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| > Handmade Fiat 500 dioramas by Pierre Schenk |
Diorama A
Diorama A
Diorama B
Diorama B
Diorama C
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Building Fiat 500-themed dioramas When we found Pierre Schenk’s contribution to our ongoing “Fiat of the Month” competition in our email inbox some days ago, the entire Axel Gerstl team were pretty astonished: It took a second, very close look to realise that it was by no means an ordinary repair shop photo we had been sent. No, it was rather a little masterpiece, whose beautiful details immediately fascinated us: a a Fiat 500 in a miniature garage featuring even a lovingly designed miniature parcel with the Axel Gerstl logo – as if a new parts delivery had just arrived! And it did not stop there with this diorama, as “the creator” Pierre Schenk told us. The idea had come to Pierre Schenk during the Covid-19 stay-at-home order when he found two unused wall racks while cleaning out the attic. He soon decided to build a miniature garage for his Fiat 500 L model, which would offer a great nostalgic ambience. “This sparked off my new bad weather hobby,” Pierre Schenk told us. In the meantime, he has built three different dioramas: Diorama A is themed “Repair shop in a half-timbered building with a small platform accessible via stairs”, featuring a red Fiat 500 L model, scale 1:24. “Here, all elements have been attached to the rack; the walls and floor are made of plaster,” Pierre Schenk explained. “The LED lighting is powered by batteries located in the ‘air tank’ at the top right of the landing.” Diorama B is themed “Repair shop in the countryside in wooden construction with a large window”. It shows a white Fiat 500 L model, scale 1:24, “repainted outside and inside according to the original”. The diorama has interchangeable window motifs (repair shop in Germany, the USA, or Tuscany). It has a double rear wall so that the interior is a removable module. “In the cavity behind, an LED light source to simulate daylight, and the battery holder and the electronics for a motion detector are hidden,” explained Pierre Schenk. The ventilation pipe at the ceiling above the workbench serves as a holder for the motion detector. Diorama C is themed “Repair shop in a half-timbered building with office desk on the landing, accessible via stairs”. It presents a Fiat 500 L model in red, scale 1:24 (alternatively a Ferrari model). “I converted the lower shelf of a simple bathroom cabinet in the guest bathroom into an eye-catcher,” said Pierre Schenk. Here, too, the interior is designed as a module and can be removed. The LED lighting gets its power from the bathroom cabinet. Pierre Schenk made the building parts, furniture and other objects in the dioramas from plywood, pine strips, balsa strips or using a 3D printer. For the colour elements, he used acrylic paint, brushes and an airbrush. He found the wall decoration on the Internet and printed it. Yet, Pierre Schenk still would not consider his dioramas a “finished project”: “My dioramas are actually never finished and I regularly embellish them with minor details. Sometimes I add a pallet, sometimes a box, sometimes a can, etc.” We hope that Pierre Schenk can enjoy his dioramas for a long time to come – and that he might create some more dioramas for us to enjoy! P.S.: Click here to see more photos! 
Diorama C
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| > Photo Album: Fiat of the Month February |
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Fiat of the Month February If you want to present your Fiat 500, Fiat 126 or Fiat 600 to our readers, please send a photo to service. There’s no special motto, no limitation. And if you’re lucky, your Fiat will become Fiat of the month! To all previous participants: Your photo is still active and can still become Fiat of the Month in the next months. Click here to find the previous “Fiats of the month”. |
| > New items in our online shop* |
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for example Clutch shaft
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for example Magnet
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| > Offers* |
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for example Convertible top
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for example Set of engine gaskets
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for example Front panel
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| > Please note |
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Subject to change, errors excepted. |
| > Contact |
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Company Axel Gerstl
Telephone: +49 - 8141/53 48 6-0
E-Mail: service |
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