Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2023 i Collectors Gazette

M &M Specialist Auctioneers last sale featured a professional One Metre Class radio controlled racing model sailing yacht, built to a Tony Abel design: this was one of the nautical highlights and was a stunning example, achieving £110. Footie fans might have liked the Manchester United signed replica shirt (Ole Gunnar Solskjaer), which made £110; or the Manchester United autobiography signed by Sir Alex Ferguson (£32). In terms of sport, however, the big money was on Formula One, with a Williams Team original (ex race) mounted steering wheel from the Williams FW23. This had been signed by Juan Pablo Montoya and presented to the late Peter Ampleford upon his 2001 retirement after 22 years service as a Williams Team toolmaker. Plenty of interest pushed the item to £1,700. Aircraft and…

SOMERVILLE (PROMOD) MODELS 1938 FORD PREFECT E493A - GREY Price: £95.00 Scale: 1/43 Release: out now The latest in Promod’s range of Somerville’s is the pre-war version of the Ford Prefect, in mid-grey, with darkish red interior. Well cast, finished and detailed. www.promod-diecast.com CORGI MODEL CLUB STUDEBAKER GOLDEN HAWK Price: £31.99 Scale: 1/49 Release: out now Replica of only the second non-British car to be modelled by Corgi, and originally introduced into the range in 1958. A beautiful addition to any collection. www.corgimodelclub.com BRITAINS JCB 3CX SITEMASTER BACKHOE LOADER Price: £37.99 Scale: 1/32 Release: out now Britains’ updated 3CX model features new decals, a revised cab and new cab interior. It has a detachable cab and steerable wheels. www.britainsfarmtoys.co.uk BBURAGO RED BULL RACING RB18 – MAX VERSTAPPEN CHAMPION 2022 Price:…

Are you a collector? It’s a question many of us ask when we meet someone. It is also a question asked by collectors in clubs like the Maidenhead Static Model Club (MSMC) when also asking what do you collect? From its beginning in 1969 the Maidenhead Static Model Club was one of the original collector’s clubs and the name was to differentiate it from the Scalextric type car racing clubs. They were also one of the earliest clubs to run swapmeets. Talking to Michael Driver, a member of the club, he said: “Today the club continues, but like many other clubs, membership has fallen and new members are thin on the ground, especially young people. Does this mean collecting is a thing of the past? Well collecting habits have changed…

PART 2 The first part of this study (October issue) showed how, in the 1960s, it was common practice for diecast cars, mostly those by British manufacturers, to be copied in plastic by Hong Kong toy makers. This has contributed to the reputation of these toys as simply being uninspired – as well as unauthorised – copies of other people’s designs. However, this is not the whole story. There are many other Hong Kong plastic cars, trucks and buses that show creativity and imagination and some are totally original conceptions. A kind of halfway stage exists between outright copies and complete originality, when the toymaker took inspiration from two different sources and brought these together in a new way. One example is the articulated Mobilgas tanker by Lucky Toys. Dinky…

My Little Pony, the candy-coloured mini horses with brushable, stylable hair, first galloped into toy stores and the hearts of little girls everywhere in the early 1980s. Now celebrating their 40th Anniversary, these toy ponies still win all the rosettes and can be a great collector’s item. The toy began as My Pretty Pony, a 10-inch hard plastic horse developed by toy giant Hasbro, coloured a dull brown in a nod to the real-life pony that little girls might have preferred to find under their Christmas tree. With a blonde mane and tail that could be brushed and plaited, My Pretty Pony’s most notable feature was a switch under her chin that made her twitch her ears, swish her tail and even wink her left eye. My Pretty Pony’s sales…

RAILWAY RESULTS…

At a recent Vectis sale, Dinky swept the board, with an astonishing £5,145 bid on a pre-war No.66 Camouflage Aeroplane Set. This included a 66a Heavy Bomber; a 66b Dive Bomber Fighter; a 66c Two-seater Fighter; a 66d Torpedo Dive Bomber and a 66e Medium Bomber finished in two-tone camouflage, together with a silver 66f Autogiro. Helpfully, the box was also sound. Another star lot was the Paul Forsyth Gauge 1 10mm 4-6-0 Loco and Tender (Highland Railway), lined green, of the Castle Class and named Skibo Castle No.146. This live steam example was in excellent condition and working, and made £2,695. Other collectables included a Star Wars 1977 pre-Oscars restored linen backed British Quad poster; this sold for £3,062. And for the girls, how about the Flair Model Toys…

C and T Auctions’ last single owner sale didn’t disappoint the diecast faithful: with over 1,110 lots, there was, literally, something for every collector. One quirk of the sale was the presence of multiple sealed Corgi packs: a trade pack of two Land Rover and Pony sets raised £170 while four Chopper Squad Surf Rescue sets netted £200. Elsewhere, a pair of Matra Rancho cars with motorcycles sold for £180; six 158 Lotus Climax racing cars sold for £320 and six David Brown 1412 Tractors were knocked down for £240. There were several other lots of this genre, too. One rarity amongst all the Corgi toys was No.299, the Ford 2.3 Sierra Ghia vacuum gold plated promotional model. This originally went to car dealerships and was in mint boxed original…

The biggest news this year concerned that of the planet’s future. Political shenanigans between the US and Russia culminated in the US siting nuclear missiles in Turkey and Italy; the USSR responded by installing its own deterrents in Cuba. Tensions rose but were, fortunately, ultimately defused. Inventions were changing the face of the world. In July, the first communications satellite was launched: Telstar 1 effectively paved the way for more refined space technology, allowing the international transmission of images. John Glenn made history as the first astronaut to orbit the earth and consumers, too, were benefitting, for this same year saw the introduction of frozen bread, powdered butter (yes, really) and exotic Hawaiian pizza. Homegrown crisp manufacturer Golden Wonder went out on a limb when it introduced Cheese ‘n’ Onion…

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I first sat at the wheel of an Austin Junior Forty pedal car way back in the summer of 1958 and still remember how great it felt to take control of that wonderful big boy’s car. To me, it was ‘just like Dad’s’! My sister loved the car too and named her ‘Tootles’ after the taxi in her new Ladybird book. The J40, however, was much heavier and harder for her to pedal when compared to our other flimsy little Tri-ang pedal car. The J40 was handed down to us by a kind relative and boy did we give that car a hammering! She coped extremely well, however, and despite Tootles tyres being extremely worn and flat, her handbrake broken and her pedals very wonky she was still good enough…

The threat and eventual onset of war in the late 1930s made many toy and model manufacturers think along military lines. Not surprisingly, any suitable existing civilian model might be pushed into service, but Dinky look to have been comparatively slow in this respect as they had a pretty good Mechanised Army range to do battle. In those darkening days, the 25 series of six different bodied wagons did however produce a few in olive green. The Market Gardener’s Van (No.25f) looks to the writer to be a strange choice, but is by no means uncommon. Unlike the aircraft range, the change in livery to a war footing was never noted in sales literature, with just one exception. ‘Pool’ Petrol Tank Wagon, No. 25d, was announced as a new introduction…

I buy and sell a lot of models on eBay and have become almost paranoid when it comes to packing. It is also a cause for concern when purchasing too. Sending pre-war Dinky toys through the post in a jiffy bag should of course be an obvious ‘no no’, but I have heard of people receiving delicate tin toys in the aforementioned bags. The word ‘incredulous’ can reasonably sum up this behaviour. Although you can purchase ready made boxes from the Post Office, I rely on my two cats to keep me supplied with a steady stream of containers. Once the foil sachets inside have all been consumed then the sturdy outer box is put to good use when posting off models. My other half thinks I’m being a bit…

Wessex Auction Rooms’ last sale turned up some interesting collectables in the shape of kits: lots of cars from Provence Moulage, FDS, Automodelli, Western Models and Grand Prix Models went under the hammer in unmade format. Larger scale built model cars, from Auto Art, CMR and CMC also sold well, with a 1/18 CMC Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B making £300 and a gorgeous Maserati Renntransporter Typ Fiat 6422 RN2 Bartoletti, from 1957, nudging £1,000. On the traditional diecast front, a boxed Chad Valley Fordson Major Tractor in blue was playworn but still made £110; while the same money took home the Corgi Lotus Gift Set No.37, complete but with a tatty box. A slightly unusual contender was the French Dinky Berliet Heavy Transporter with transformer load: exhibiting some chipping, this…

Just like cups of tea, the Royal Family, Big Ben and red telephone boxes, there is one thing that typifies good old Blighty… particularly to our friends over in America. The bright red AEC Routemaster double decker bus has become a staple image of Great Britain with numerous appearances in TV shows and films since it was first introduced in 1954 - it was even turned into a cartoon character called Topper Deckington III in Disney’s Cars 2. So, as the red wonder celebrates nearly 70 years on the road, let’s take a brief glimpse at the bus’ history and the numerous Corgi replicas inspired by it. The Routemaster was created in a partnership between London Transport, Associated Equipment Company (AEC) and Park Royal Vehicles. Work began on designing the…

From the iconic opening title sequence, featuring the booming voice of actor Peter Dyneley as he says “Five, four, three, two, one… Thunderbirds are go!”, Gerry Anderson’s Thunderbirds has become one of the most famous TV shows in history. First broadcast on 30th September 1965, it’s incrediblee to think that only 32 episodess were made and the series came to end in December the following year. Yet despite this short run, it has been repeated numerous times on television and spawned a series called Thunderbirds Are Go! in 2015. Set in the year 2065 (most of Anderson’s shows tended to take place 100 years into the future), Thunderbirds tells the adventures of International Rescue, a heroic group of brothers who travel the world to help those in need. Created by…

Item: Fallout Fusion Flea in lime green Condition: excellent, with box, limited edition number 153 of 250 Sold for: £1519 (2 bids) Item: Corgi Toys Gift Set No.48 Ford Transporter and 6 cars Condition: excellent, complete with all original cars, accessories and spare decals Sold for: £659.99 (3 bids) Item: Minichamps 1/18 Williams Renault FW14 Senna/Mansell 1991 Condition: excellent, signed by Nigel Mansell, one of 750 examples made Sold for: £590 (27 bids) Item: Britains 50099C Anglo Zulu War 24th Foot Colour Sergeant Condition: excellent, only available at the 2019 Collectors Club event in London Sold for: £380 (67 bids) Item: Minichamps 1/18 Andy Warhol BMW M1 Art Car Group 4 Condition: like new with original box and art book, Perspex case has some blemishes Sold for: £605 (2 bids)…

In February 2024 the Leicester Model Railway Group (LMRG) will celebrate its 75th anniversary. The group began on 15 February 1949 when 18 model rail enthusiasts met up in the Martyrs Church Hall, Leicester. They elected a committee, shortly afterwards took part in their first event at the Leicester Society of Model Engineers exhibition (with ‘O’ and ‘OO’ gauge stands and a static 16ft stand) and decided to look for a club room of their own. Over the ensuing years, membership steadily grew, and the group’s activities expanded to hold exhibitions, competitions, visits to other shows and places of interest, as well as holding film shows in their own clubhouse which for many years was in a variety of different church halls – and at one point even in a…

Hi folks! Well, here we are marching quickly back into winter as the leaves begin to fall and the days get shorter. While the car boot sales are tailing off, I’m still looking forward to some great fairs and flea markets over the coming months. It’s so often the case in the collecting world that things turn up in two’s, just like the age-old waiting for a bus scenario! This was certainly the case at the recent Runway Monday fair held near Newark where I bagged a brace of Roy Rogers items in the space of five minutes. First was a cowboy annual with a great Walt Howarth illustration of Roy and Trigger on the cover which cost me a fiver and the second was a really neat little Roy…