Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2025 i Collectors Gazette

The first Wessex sale of 2025 comprised just over 500 lots and saw a good number of Hornby, Graham Farish and Bachmann boxed OO gauge trains realise over £100. A not-so-glamorous boxed Hornby Dublo 2245 3,300 HP Electric Locomotive, in blue, with attendant paperwork, realised £220, making it the most expensive single railway lot on the day. Quite a few Paul’s Art Minichamps motorcycles and helmets all sold well, with £180 winning three 1/12 Valentino Rossi Collection diecast models that included a Yamaha YZR M1 Fiat Yamaha Team MotoGP 2009 Estori, a Ducati Desmosedici Showbike 2011 and a limited edition Yamaha YZR M1 Fiat Yamaha Team MotoGP 2007 GP Australia. Anyone collecting Corgi Club models? And if so, are you banking on a shrewd investment? Well, six boxed examples, to…

When I was a kid it was cool to be in a club, and even cooler to be in several different clubs. We pinned our club badges on our school blazer with pride and if you were the first kid to discover a hip new club to join, you were certainly the talk of the playground. Well, for an hour or so I suppose. Growing up was was all so simple and innocent in those pre-computer, pre-smartphone days. Back in the 1950s and 1960s there was no shortage of children’s clubs to join. The Bridgnorth Stamp Club was always one of my favourites along with the Airfix Modellers Club and the Boy Scouts, which I suppose, you have to call a kind of club really. My Saturday mornings were almost…

The Land Rover has gained a reputation as the great workhorse with tremendous versatility. The particularly robust body and the distinctive shape make this vehicle instantly recognisable. It has remained a great favourite amongst model collectors of all scales. We begin our journey in 1950 and progress chronologically as far as possible into the 1960s. Our tour will consider some of the ways in which the Land Rover has been utilised and released as a toy, some with features and others as a basic casting. The origins of the Land Rover go back to 1947, when it was designed primarily as an export vehicle. Spencer Wilks, who was the Managing Director of Rover, together with his brother Maurice, who was Engineering Director, recognised that there was a need for a…

It wasn’t that long ago that even worn Dinky toys were still seen as having some real value. As the rule of thumb, play worn cars were around £8, Guy trucks £15 and Foden’s probably £20 a throw. This rough guide stood for quite a while. Recently however, this has all changed. I’ve seen job lots of play worn cars selling for as little as two pounds each. A lot of these had the remnants of old pricing stickers on them indicating that they were old toy fair stock. I’ve seen this numerous times in the past few years, with the offloading of toy fair stock. Even relatively good Dinkies are now not making anywhere near what they were ten years ago. Go back even further, say 30 years ago,…

A quick round-up from the last Vectis Auctions' diecast sales reveals that the diecast market remains bullish. A staggering £3,675 was the top bid on a Dinky Fiat 600D, this a rare, white-bodied example with correct "Pirelli" tyres. Its scarce "Puch" Spanish issue yellow and red carded box helped the final price. The same money secured a metallic red Opel Admiral, also with a Puch background. A Dalia (Spanish) Solido No.26 Aston Martin DB5 Vantage, finished in metallic green with a red interior, raised £514; and £465 won an unusual maroon Volvo 444 by Danish company Vilmer. Elsewhere, someone bagged a stunning, one-off Victorian scratch built wooden castle and diorama, all contained within a display case. A real talking point, this sold for £735, although Vectis noted that some restoration…

WSI MODELS IVECO TORPEDO RALLY TRUCK ‘BOSS MACHINERY TEAM DE ROOY FPT’ Scale: 1/50 Price: €124 Ref: €124 A Iveco Torpedo rally truck which is faithfully modelled on the Boss Machinery Team De Rooy FPT design. The print work alone is certainly eye-catching. ›› www.wsi-models.com DIECAST MASTERS CATERPILLAR D8T TRACK-TYPE TRACTOR Scale: 1/50 Price: €215.99 Ref: 85299BSC A second limited edition release in the Brent Scarbrough & Company decoration, this time finished in a white base coat with striking graphics on the blade/body. ›› www.diecastconstruction.co.uk UNIVERSAL HOBBIES FENDT 618 VARIO TRACTOR WITH CARGO 5.90 FRONT LOADER, Scale: 1/32 Price: £107.87 Ref: X991024004000 Equipped with a 2100 material bucket the loader detaches from the tractor and has good levels of detailing. It lifts smoothly on two support rams. ›› shop.fendt.com UNIVERSAL…

If Action Man was late for the party (GI Joe was already on the buffet), it’s nonetheless the former who has built up a devoted following these days. Vectis recently handled the Bob Brechin Collection, which featured as part of a wider auction and that included items from the personal collection of Palitoy’s chief designer. Highlights included the Action Force metal prototype Deep Sea Diver figure that was used on the display diorama at the 1982 British Toy Fair. This figure was sculpted in clay from which a rubber mould was taken. This made £490. A similar Action Force metal prototype, this time for the Australian Jungle Fighter Series 1 figure, was also used on the display diorama at the 1982 British Toy Fair. Plenty of interest saw its estimate…

This year was notable for a Reader’s Digest survey: those who took part were asked to name their favourite car and perhaps unsurprisingly, Jaguar’s E-type was voted car of the year. Not many would ever aspire to ownership of the legendary vehicle, of course, but for the man in the street, Ford’s stalwart Consul was launched. In the charts, the Americans continued to dominate. The Shirelles were wanting to know If you will love me tomorrow whilst Roy Orbison was suffering a bout of Crying. However, a little known British quartet gave their first performance in the Cavern Club in Liverpool… In the world of soccer in the UK hosted the 80th Cup Final at Wembley: Tottenham Hotspur faced Leicester City and the London side took the honours with a…

In this article covering the first half of 1965, again we have a great variety of Corgi figures: military, ice cream vendors, the Saint, farm hands and Beach Boys. • Commer U.S. Army Military Ambulance, 354, January 1965, 99,000• Commer U.S. Army Military Police Truck, 355, January 1965, 63,000• Volkswagen U.S. Army Military Personnel Carrier, 356, January 1965, 95,000• Oldsmobile 88 US Army H.Q. Staff Car, 358, January 1965, 121,000• Karrier Bantam US Army Field Kitchen, 359, January 1965, 80,000• Bedford US Army Heavy Equipment Transporter, 1135, January 1965, 28,000 In January 1965 Corgi suddenly released a flow of US Army military models. Possibly a revival of the successful Rocket Age models from the end of the fifties, now aimed at the US market? According to Marcel van Cleemput these…

The Bedford Van was a vehicle that Corgi used a great deal right from the very start in 1956. All the Corgi toys had windows, of course, and these models only vary in terms of colour, theme, base, and number of windows. The early vans had either a tinplate base with no interior, or a diecast base to accommodate a mechanical flywheel motor. Some of the vans had side windows depending upon the theme of the model. The early vans had a split screen, with a single screen being introduced in 1960 onwards. Inevitably, there are certain models listed with both types of screen and or both types of hub, no doubt during the changeover period. I have chosen to feature models with and without side windows, as well as…

Item: Tekno Ford Transit Tivoli Condition: mint model in original outer box Sold for: £620 (10 bids) Item: battery operated Batman Batmobile Condition: excellent and in full working order, with original 1970s outer box Sold for: £530 (27 bids) Item: WSI Fox Group Scania Vlastuin 770S T can and tipper trailer Condition: as new, complete with limited edition certificate, all parts are factory fitted Sold for: £275 (30 bids) Item: Kenner Star Wars Farmboy Luke Skywalker Condition: stunning, very rare figure, freshly graded and still in the plastic bag Sold for: £1510 (18 bids) Item: Matchbox Superfast Carry Case, with 48 Superfast Cars Condition: carry case and cars all excellent and showing no signs of play wear Sold for: £327.77 (12 bids) Item: ALPS Japanese tinplate TV spaceman Condition: very…

Over the Pond, Hake’s had the opportunity of disposing of an important collection of tinplate vehicles early this year. An esteemed heart surgeon, hobby farmer, philanthropist and South Dakota Hall of Fame inductee, Dr Reynolds had many interests, toys amongst them. Buddy L tinplate trucks were a passion, and the sale attracted many aficionados of the marque. The only known example of a Buddy ‘L’ Insurance Patrol, fitted with headlights and a bumper, complete with factory prototype tag, was the sale highlight. All original, with its pull cord and near mint paint and decals, this model never actually saw production. The 27 inch long truck came with its original box and was knocked down for US$64,350. Another coveted toy was an outstanding all original 1938 Buddy ‘L’ International Shell Truck…

Slightly under 400 lots comprised the January auction at Wallis and Wallis and one rarity, that sold for £200, was the Autoart 1/18 scale “The Green Hornet” Black Beauty. Representing the customised 1966 Chrysler Crown Imperial, as used in the American mid 1960s Green Hornet television series, it was finished in gloss black with a satin black roof, and had opening doors and bonnet. Large scale Racing Legends also did well: a pair of GT 40s realised £190 and £220, with a Cobra hitting £200. As for sci-fi, how about a scarce plastic Angel Interceptor toy by JR21 J Rosenthal Toys, dating from 1967? The model appeared unused and was fitted with a separate friction drive motor, missiles, front wheel mount and instruction sheet. Aside from a replacement nose cone…

Take a carnival, a zoo, a stunt riding display and a slapstick vaudeville show. Mix them together and what do you get? The sort of event which everyone knows about, everyone’s been to (once) and no one particularly wants to repeat. Trying to find anyone who admits to liking circuses is surprisingly difficult. Yet according to the Association of Circus Proprietors Great Britain, there are over 20 touring circuses visiting cities, towns and villages every year, giving communities the opportunity to experience good old fashioned analogue entertainment. You can even do a degree in Circus Arts, where you can “challenge perceptions of what circus is, and explore ways of approaching creative work”. Talk about students clowning around! When you think about it, the Beatles’ seminal Sergeant Pepper album is highly…

What scares you? What lingers in the darkest and most terrifying depths of your imagination, crawling out of the mental woodwork when your head hits the pillow? Is it snakes? Maybe spiders? Possibly clowns, German art house cinema or commitment? If you’re a child of the mid 1980s, though, there’s one thing that definitely won’t faze you: just like the Ghostbusters, we ain’t afraid of no ghosts. Ghostbusters burst onto movie screens in June 1984 with wild success: produced on a budget of just £25 million, it brought in a whopping £300 million at the global box office. The film tells the story of parapsychology professors (played by Saturday Night Live alumni Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd, alongside Caddyshack director Harold Ramis) who establish New York’s first paranormal investigation and…

Matchbox Regular Wheels 1d Aveling Barford Diesel Road Roller Stannard Code 2, green body, type B base with hole, red plastic rollers, non-riveted base. Near mint in excellent crisp type D4 box, some small marks to one picture face. Sold for £35, Vectis Auctions, January. MatchboxRegular Wheels 2c Muir Hill Dumper “Laing”, dark red, green bucket, type B body, thin front axle supports, with hole to base, silver grille, 11.5mm front black plastic wheels. Near mint in excellent plus type “New Model” D1 box printed by Pembroke Abbey. Sold for £35, Vectis Auctions, January. Matchbox Regular Wheels 3b Bedford TK Tipper Truck Stannard Code 3, light grey cab and chassis with silver trim, 3 exhaust braces, maroon tipper body without base block, gloss black base, 11.5 x 24-tread black plastic wheels. Excellent…