Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2021 i Collectors Gazette

NEWS AUCTION REVIEW Steaming ahead Sheffield Auction Gallery’s last sale had plenty of Charlie Bears, a vast array of railway collectables and, naturally enough, some Star Wars… A Lehman LGB G gauge tank locomotive was a stand-out piece in the railway section. This chunky 0-4-0 example was finished in black and numbered 994605. Although untested it was described as running and sold for a reasonable £60. There were a number of steam engines and steam powered models sold on the day. The best of these was undoubtedly the Horizontal Steam Engine at 12 inches long: this included a 7 inch diameter flywheel with a 2 inch stroke, the whole mounted on a wooden base and contained within a Perspex cabinet. Bidding propelled it to £500. A huge £ 4 8…

AUCTION REVIEW Corgi is as cheap as chips… Lymington Auctions’ October sale comprised almost 550 lots and there was plenty to tempt the Corgi devotee. A cardboard sign of the dog was at the cheaper end (£30) whilst a 1970s wooden yellow sign with the Corgi Toys rubric and the hound sold for a paltry £5. In bronze metallic, an unboxed Hillman Imp raised £35 (and it retained its suitcase!) whilst £60 secured the Rover 2000 in maroon that sported Monte Carlo Rallye decals. Just £30 took home the Corgi 314 Ferrari Berlinetta 250 and No 330, the Porsche Carrera 6, both of which came with sound boxes. Dinky toys also got a look-in: the flatbed Foden lorry (502) in green and black was a buff box issue and made…

HOBBY NEWS New tooling from Oxford Oxford Diecast has just announced a good crop of new releases across its ranges that will delight its collecting fanbase. Covering 1/76, 1/43 and N scales, these are currently marked on the company’s website as “Future”, so expect them during 2022. Featuring the popular Land Rover Discovery 1 in not just one, but two scales – 1/43 and 1/76 – this is joined by other cars in the shape of the Land Rover Discovery 2, VW Karmann Ghia, and Austin Maestro, all at 1/76 scale. New in the 1/76 scale Oxford Omnibus range is the Duple Britannia, in an initial livery of Wallace Arnold. The final 1/76 scale new tooling announcement is a fire appliance, the Volvo FL Emergency One Pump Ladder. Rounding out…

CONTINENTAL CLASSICS IN-DEPTH The Hausser Citadel story To fully understand the Hausser Citadel range we need to first go back to the original Dutch Citadel sets of 1959. Stephen Paul Hardy tells us more. The range as introduced in the Netherlands comprised three boxed construction sets of increasing content size numbered simply Citadel1, 2 and 3. Consistent with other similar construction sets of the period the components were contained in strong cardboard boxes, compartmented up with card inserts to keep the pieces in place. The buff coloured cover of the boxes carried a label printed in black and red over white that carried the stylised name Citadel, a silhouette graphic of a (very) long castle wall and a photo a beautiful, inspirational, castle that would have taken several of the large…

THE COLLECTING ARCHIVES IN-DEPTH The magic of Dougal Ann Evans talk to a collector who has filled his home with characters from The Magic Roundabout. Photos Rob Tysall. Time for bed,’ said Zebedee. It was a catchphrase that sent millions of ‘60s children to bed every night – and had adults exchanging wry smiles. The phrase, as many will remember, comes from The Magic Roundabout, a seemingly simple five-minute BBC TV programme shown every evening just before the early evening news. With its typically ‘60s feel and a cast of weird and wonderful characters, The Magic Roundabout became a television legend with cult status. The show was created in 1965 by Frenchman Serge Danot, and was originally called Le Manège Enchanté. According to some, the characters were based around French politicians,…

IN-DEPTH Toy Stories Ed Karswell delves into muddy waters. Is imitation really the sincerest form of flattery? I only ask as a newcomer to collecting confided to me that they felt somewhat baffled at the number of re-issues and reproductions on the collector’s market. They reasoned that it muddied the waters when it came to sniffing out the repro’ from the real deal as it were. I do sympathise with this point of view. When I recently tried to buy some vintage Palitoy Action Man items I was faced with a multitude of re-issued Action Man 40th, 50th anniversary etc… all seemingly mixed in with the original stuff. I’m no expert in this particular field so had to tread very carefully so as not to make a mistake. Dinky collectors…

Modified model masterclass British Toy Auctions was pleased to offer a number of Tim Dyke modified kits recently. Extremely well detailed, a Lotus X1 Le Mans Index winner from 1957 raised £200. An Alfa Romeo 2900B Le Mans 1938 by MPH was equally stunning, and sold for the same money. Also from his talented hand came an MPH Lotus Mk9 from 1955, representing the Le Mans disqualified car (£200) and an MPH Frazer-Nash High Speed Le Mans car from 1949 that finished third that year. This was also knocked down for £200.…

NEW RELEASES THIS MONTH WHITEBOX OPEL KADETT B RALLYE Price: £39.99 Scale: 1/24 Release: out now Excellent value model of this classic Opel. Lovely finish all over with the added bonus of opening doors. Nicely detailed throughout. ›› www.ayrey.co.uk WIKING CLAAS XERION 4500 TRAC VC TRACTOR Price: £99.95 Scale: 1/32 Release: out now Wiking’s wheeled Xerion features a reversible cab, all-wheel steering, opening door and working linkages front and rear. It has good levels of detailing. ›› www.wiking.de KING AND COUNTRY SITTING PANZER GRENADIERS Price: $199.99 Release: mid-November A set of 4 x seated Panzer Grenadier Infantry, 3 with rifles and 1 x NCO with an MP40 submachine pistol. ›› www.kingandcountry.com IXO HYUNDAI I2 R5 #36 WRC RALLYE ESTONIA 2020 G.MUNSTER/L.LOUKA Price: £43.99 Scale: 1/43 Release: out now Another in…

NEWS HOBBY NEWS New shop opens It is always good to hear about collectors who have been able to use their knowledge and enthusiasm to 'live the dream' and have a second career devoted to collecting, modelling and meeting other collectors - well, Gerry McAllister has done just that. His new shop, Mr McAllister’s Amazing Toy Soldier Emporium, is now open in Modbury, near Plymouth. He currently caters for collectors of 54mm figures and vehicles but plans to expand his range of figures in the near future. As a former wargamer, he is very much aware of the interest in other scales besides 54mm. His favourite time in history is the Napoleonic period, which is covered by a variety of figures and ranges, including action figures - the shop window display…

RAILWAY COLLECTABLES IN-DEPTH Tri-ang Transcontinental - gateway to the world Mark Nolan surveys the toy trains that straddled continents. If you took a classroom of boys in the 1960s, you could be pretty sure that most of them would be interested in model trains. If you asked them which trains, 29 of them would say “British trains”. But there would always be one weirdo who would vote for continental or North American trains. Those boys probably went on to have very interesting careers, designing props for sci-fi films or writing computer games. The rest of us scattered to the four winds and to this day still prefer the British trains we knew and loved. But never say never, as now those rejected “furrin” trains are starting to pique our interest. Of…

KNOW YOUR HOBBY IN-DEPTH 10 minute TOY EXPERT! Bassett-Lowke It is often said that in every grown man there is a small boy crying to get out. This perhaps, goes some way to explaining the perennial popularity of model train sets often purchased by adults for their children, but sometimes secretly intended for their own amusement! Within a few years of the first full-size steam locomotive having hissed and puffed its way along a track, the urge to build scale models of these revolutionary new machines emerged. While it was Britain that gave birth to the steam locomotive, it was Germany that quickly cornered the market in model toy trains. Much of this industry centred around the industrial city of Nuremburg which lay close to tin mines and already had an…

YOUR COLLECTION PRICE GUIDE ebuys From collectables of the future to old favourites, eBay always manages to produce some amazing finds… and even more amazing prices! Item: Palitoy Star Wars Boba Fett Condition: Mint on card, UKG 90% Sold for: £1810 (23 bids) Item: G1 Transformers Autobot Air Guardian Jetfire Condition: In good condition, original box and with all pieces included Sold for: £840 (62 bids) Item: Britains industrial tractor and dump trailer Condition: In good condition for age, slight scuffs and minor creases. Original paint work Sold for: £1005 (28 bids) Item: Horikawa (SH) Japan Tin Dino Robot Condition: Near mint with only very minimal signs of play wear. Full working order Sold for: £1335 (31 bids) Item: Rainbow Toys Thundercats Lion-O action figure, red hair variant Condition: Mint on original…

OUT & ABOUT COLLECTIONS Happy faces at Miniatura Ann Evans visits the Autumn Miniatura Show in Stoneleigh. Photos: Rob Tysall. There were smiles all round at the Miniatura Show at the beginning of October. Finally, after 18 months of postponements and disappointments as regular shows were cancelled due to Covid, the Autumn Miniatura Show went ahead. To say the atmosphere was joyful was an understatement. Exhibitors were delighted to meet up with old friends and colleagues, and visitors just couldn’t wait to see what their favourite miniaturists had been making. As for the team at Miniatura and organiser Andy Hopwood, they were quite emotional to see their exhibitors and dolls house enthusiasts still supporting them after 18 months away. Miniatura began back in 1983, set up by Andy Hopwood’s parents, Bob…

NEWS AUCTION REVIEW D-Day arrives at Vectis sale D’ that is, for Dinky, when some pretty impressive closing bids were logged. A pre-war 156 Mechanised Army Set containing the Medium Tank, Transport Wagon, Cooker Trailer, Water Tank Trailer, a Light Tank, Reconnaissance Car, Austin Seven Car and a Searchlight Lorry and Anti-Aircraft Gun, together with a Light Dragon and Quick Firing Field Gun, was an eyeful. Billed as Good to Good Plus, the set came with a generally good box with lift-off lid. The upper estimate of £1,000 was doubled, the set making £2,640. A Dinky pre-war (22c) Motor Truck finished in gloss green with smooth hubs would have probably been part of a trade pack with various other colours. This extremely rare issue sold for £744, such was the level…

NEWS AUCTION REVIEW More Milestones reached In October, Milestone Auctions recorded its highest-grossing antique toy auction to date, thanks to the US$768,000 sale of a single-owner collection, with a few select additions from other consignors. The big story of the day was toy motorcycles. Two Marx prototype motorcycles tied for toplot honours, with each selling for US$22,800 against an individual estimate of US$6,000-8,000. Strong prices were also realised for German wind-up and flywheel toys, including an amazing 86 examples made by Lehmann. A fine (circa 1900) Lehmann "Boxer Rebellion" toy fared best, though, selling for US$17,400. That said, one of the sale’s most admired lots also produced an unexpected price. A 17 inch long German hand-painted composition cat skittles set (estimated at US$1,000-1,500) was pounced on, with a winning bid…

THE POWER OF MARKETING IN-DEPTH Norev: Masters of Marketing The French Norev company was not only good at making model cars; it was a pioneer of innovative ways of marketing them too. Andrew Ralston explains why… The French Norev company had been making plastic novelty items, like toy watches, for some time before it launched a range of plastic cars in 1953. Within just three years the Norev name (which is the surname of founder Joseph Veron spelt backwards) had become as familiar in French toy shops as other, much longer established, brands and had won the coveted “Oscar du Jouet”. This was partly down to the appeal of the products: a series of 1/43 scale cars which looked realistic but could undercut diecasts like Dinky Toys in price. But it…

AT THE MOVIES IN-DEPTH Famous Faces: THUNDERBIRDS - FAB 1 Remembering collectables that found fame through the silver screen. One of the most attractive cars designed for a science fiction or TV series has to be Gerry Anderson’s creation of Lady Penelope’s Rolls Royce, known affectionately as FAB 1, because of the registration number. Thunderbirds was first shown on television in September 1965, so we have to consider Gerry Anderson and his team’s creations from that period. Rolls Royce was possibly the most luxurious car in the world at the time, with models such as the Phantom Vl and the Silver Shadow as the top of the range. The distinctive frontage of the car was a style icon with the grill and flying lady being a wellprotected copyrighted symbol. Gerry Anderson…

YOUR COLLECTION PRICE GUIDE This month we review the latest toy sales at East Bristol Auctions, Vectis, Special Auction Services and Hanson’s Auctioneers. Dinky No 273 Mini “RAC Road Service” Van, blue including roof box and rear opening plastic doors, red interior, silver trim, chrome spun hubs, silver base. Good plus, unboxed. Sold for £60, Vectis, October. Dinky Toys No 581 Horse Box, maroon including hubs with black treaded tyres, silver trim, “Express Horse Box Hire Service British Railways” to sides. Good plus to excellent in good box, complete with inner packing pieces. Sold for £80, Vectis, October. French Dinky Supertoys No 889 Autobus Parisien, two-tone green, pale grey, concave hubs with black treaded tyres, silver trim, brown interior. Excellent plus in good to good plus lift off lid blue…

TREASURE HUNTING IN-DEPTH Obsolete Oz Our monthly gaze into the weird but wonderful world of collector/dealer Obsolete Oz. Buying and selling since the 1970s, Oz has developed a great knack for unearthing some amazing finds from flea markets, antique fairs, car boot sales, rubbish skips and even the local tip. Hi folks! I had a call from an old friend a few weeks back. We were at art college together back in late 1970s where she was fondly known as the ‘Posh Bird.’ She strutted around the art studio in here posh blue Kickers when the rest of us made do with tatty Dunlop Green Flash or cheap desert boots! She said she was clearing out some junk for yet another loft extension and wondered if I wanted the old clobber…

CLASSIFIEDS RETAILERS DEVON KINGSBRIDGE ANTIQUES & CRAFT CENTRE - As seen on Antiques Road Trip, Kingsbridge Antiques & Craft Centre on the corner of Church Street & Ebrington Street, TQ7 1DE, just 5 minutes walk from the Quay Car Park and the Bus Station. An ever changing stock of Diecast Toys, Model Railway, Books, Militaria and Railwayana. Open Monday to Saturday. Tel: 01548 856002 Web: www.kingsbridgeantiques.co.uk KENT KIT KRAZY Largest selection of plastic kits in UK from 1950s to date, plus much more. Collections bought or swapped. 303 The Broadway, Bexleyheath, Kent, DA6 8DT. T/F: 020 8298 7177 NORTHERN IRELAND MY OLD TOYBOX For collectable diecast and kits, Matchbox, Dinky, Corgi, Action Man, Star Wars, sci-fi, Subbuteo, etc. The Old Toybox, Unit 14, Smithfield Market, Belfast BT1 1JE. Tel: 07719 100483 Email: james1gilliland@hotmail.com…