I recenty picked up the scarce white hub version of the Mercedes truck. I have the red hub version from when I was a child.
The Honest John bubble box was a great find and it will be for my unboxed Honest John that luckily survived in near mint shape from childhood. The missile was fired off iong ago nto oblivion so I need to get a replacement. The box is crack free too.
My mom got me the Honest John for me when I was 8 and it came from Five Corners Toy and Gift shop in Westwood NJ. Thiis store became known to me as the Dinky Store and they were also dealers for Corgi, Britains, Shinsei and Steiff. It was a lovely store that will always be remembered. Sadly it was destroyed by a fire in 1982.
Rumor has it that there will be an article on the Honest John in a forthcoming issue of the Journal :)
This will be of interest even to us non-military collectors because this popular and relatively long-lived model has a variety of small variations and boxes. I believe the bubble box for it is relatively rare and I've seen postings by collectors (on other online forums, not here!) who did not even realize that one existed.
The decline of traditional toy stores -- so many independently owned and with staffers whose lifetime career it was (rather than bored teenagers) -- is of course a big part of our nostalgia, and so sad ...
If there is to be an article on the Honest John I don' want to intrude on it but here is my late version with the plastic rear tray, plastic wheels and gray missile in a bubble box. I'm not sure if this is an unusual combination but I haven't seen another one. There is a small label on one end which says "Willis Sports Store $7.95 each". and another label on the base which says "MISSILE FIRING TOY Not recommended for children under 3 years of age". I have no idea where the Willis Sports Store is, or even which country it is in.
If the editor of the Journal wants to use these photos please go ahead.
Chris.
Hi Chris,
That is the same bubble box as mine. It also has the soon to be mandated everywhere then toy safety police decal warning childrens parents not to aim the missile at thier faces. Luckily I my parents instilled some common sense in raising me a kid then as I never aimed any of the firing toys I had at anyone.
I have never seen a gray missile like the one you have shown and I like it better than the white.
Hoi Gerrit, welkom.
Hi Gerrit, welcome to the forum! A lovely and scarce catalogue addition that is!
Looking forward to seeing more contributions of yours, vriendelijke groet, Jan
Jon & Jan
Thanks so much for your very nice Season's Greeting scenes. They sure remind me of my Christmas Days in the 1950's, when some new Dinky Toys were always under the tree. Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Best regards, Terry
Kia Ora
A very happy Christmas from New Zélande to all the DTCA members and a very healthy 2023 year.
Jacques
Jan,
Your 2CV illustration reminds me of a Christmastime nearly 40 years ago when I was living in London. My wife, mother, a family friend, and I rode in my 2CV (green, not red) to Dover and made the day trip to Calais, where we loaded the car to the gunwales with cases of beer, wine, and whatever else we could think of to enhance our holiday cheer. Unfortunately, no new Dinky Toys to be had in France any more! The return trip was cheery but definitely not speedy.
I'm glad to say that though a move sadly required giving up that car, I did own another 1:1 French Dinky later, a Renault 4L. My son was very nearly born in the Renault, but that's another story ...
Cheers,
J
With the Christmas greetimgs being posted I thought this would be a fitting photo to share.
Our daughter still enjoys the Elf on the shelf during December. With my wife recovering from surgery last week I had to take over the changing the Ekf scene nightly for the next morning so I incorporated toys, what better! Attached is a photo with my childhood Dinky Foden dump truck and Mercedes truck and trailer.
I included a second photo and its non Dinky but a fun photo with a 1959 Tonka State HI Way dragline and low bed traiiler set.
Enjoy and Merry Christmas to all!
I like it! Glad to see it made the long trip safely.
On the doorstep to 2023 I have been drawing up the collecting balance over 2022 today. Of the 45 wonderful items added in the past year, the ones shown below are my top-10. The additions 1-3 were the easiest to list, they are in very nice condition and scarce, each in its own right. The lower the rating the harder to make a difference in happiness: they are all so very nice. And that goes even more for the absent nos. 11-45! With this little Dinky Toys snow diorama I wish everyone a Happy 2023!
1. 32aj Panhard semi-remorque ‘Kodak’ (type 1, 1953-1954).
2. 27ac Tracteur Massey-Harris et remorque épandeur d’engrais (coffret cadeau, 1950-1950).
3. 980 Express Horse Van (US export issue, 1954-1957).
4. 24n Traction Avant (type 1b, 1951-1953).
5. 511 Guy 4-ton Lorry (red/grey, 1950-1952).
6. 60t Douglas DC3 Air Liner (1938-1941).
7. 171 Hudson Commodore Sedan (turquoise/red, 1956-1958).
8. 34c Loudspeaker Van (green, 1948-1950).
9. 172 Studebaker Land Cruiser (cream/beige, 1956-1958).
10. 24xt Taxi ‘Vedette’ (1956-1960).
What a wonderful scene to end up our year with! You had a very successful year in collecting, and you've added so many beautiful models.......and I love your display here. I want to wish you and your family a very Happy and Prosperous New Year!
Best regards,
Terry
That's a wonderful collection, Jan.
Wishing you and all DTCA members successful collecting in 2023.
John
Very nice Jan. Happy New Year!
Jan, thank you for the lovely New Year's scene and the wishes for 2023, which I entirely reciprocate.
I managed to add quite a few models this year, despite running out of space. I could not have done so except that I wa able to add three factory displays to my "toy store" -- two 48-car carousels and one 24-car carousel. All are now full (and I have no more space!). It is a little tinged with sadness because the displays and many of my new models came from the collection of a longtime friend who has fallen on hard times and needed to sell them.
I acquired three or four models during December, but I will not photograph them because they have already been squeezed into displays, from which extraction would be perilous. In addition to the snow plough recently pictured, they are: a 175 Cadillac Eldorado in the pretty, less common blue; a 1401 Alfa Romeo Rallye car; and a 935 Leyland Octopus truck (green version). The latter two are lovely models whose prices, however, have been hit hard by the Atlas replicas.
Almost forgot -- I also obtained a 754 starter unit. Its model number is the same as my DTCA membership number, hence my new picture ...
My recent new arrivals. I have wanted but avoided purchasing a regular issue Brinks truck for years due to the often chipped and very poor condition of the water slide decals and, melted wheels if you find a blue wheel version.. This example was on ebay and its decals are near perfect. The more common grey wheels were also on the real trucks whereas the blue ones were not.
The Brinks company USA promotional was a welcome find as well and I have avoided purchasing one due to the often high price but this one didnt go that high.
The big Foden dump truck with white hubs is a scarce late run version and it came from Germany. Its pictured with the usual yellow wheel version that was purchased for me by my mom in 1978 through the mail order section of the AVA run USA Dinky Toys collectors club newsletter. I was a member of the club as a child until it folded around 1981ish. It was fun to send away for models through the club and anxiously await the day the UPS or mail truck pulled up to drop them off.
I found an original box which is pictured behind. The truck survived my childhood remarkbly well and it hasnt had a box in 45 years. Both trucks look real nice together and I need to dig out by Atlas excavator to pose with them. As a child in the 1970's the big size/scale of Dinky toys was the only size I knew and I lioved it. They were big, well made and heavy just like a diecast toy should be!
Though I will admit thier size and heft does lead to display issues in my limited space. No wonder why Dinky/AVA redesigned the retailer display case in 1974 to be so big and heavy as it had to accomodate these large models. Ask Jon he will tell you how massive those cases are.
Thanks for your post, Mark. You have managed to raise a number of interesting points.
I was not aware of the different wheels on the Foden, but then I don't have this model at all. These larger later models are wonderful toys (some collectors who denigrate them forget that this is what they were meant to be -- toys) but their size does mean it is hard to house many of them. I sure would not be without the Foden tanker in its Burmah and (slightly rarer) Shell versions!
Regarding the Brinks truck, I hope I will be excused for being pedantic about this model since it is an all-time favorite of mine. The initial Brinks promo version has darker grey doors, a brighter blue base, and the wheels are black, not blue (though it is true that they are shown as blue on the box).
It is the one with lighter wheels and doors, plus a darker base, that was sold in stores, although the promo version is not hard to find. Obviously Brinks had many made and gave them out freely to employees -- my own sample was purchased from a Brinks guard -- and customers.
There were no later promotional versions, by which I mean that the later models distributed by Brinks were just the same as the ones sold in stores. Only the white box itself is special.
There is also, of course, the Mexican "Panamerico" version. Because of the unfortunate combination of plastic tires and plastic wheels, these suffer the melting problem most grievously. I actually did not realize that the earlier black-wheeled version can have this problem too. I will have to haul my armored cars out this week and hopefully contribute some improved photographs to the Brinks Truck thread here.
Regarding the massive AVA displays I have, as well as a smaller countertop display I am aware of, pilferage was obviously seen as a more important concern for U.S. shopkeepers than it was in the U.K. The AVA displays were designed to keep models behind glass, under lock and key, so a customer would have to get help from an assistant if they wanted to purchase a toy. In contrast -- this is my impression, at least, and recollection from occasional visits to newsagents and the like -- UK retailers simply displayed the later large models on open shelves for self-service.
The "newest" display I have in my collection that was actually supplied by Binns Road is a rotating 48-car display that does have the post-1971 Dinky logo along with the orange/black colors. Ironically its cubbyholes are too small to hold many of the larger models that were being introduced at that time. I am not aware of any later "factory" displays (except for a wire rack offered in 1980 for the 1/64-scale "Dinky" miniatures Airfix sourced from Hong Kong), but would love to be made aware of such ...
Jon,
Thank you for the imformative commentary and its always welcome. I knew you would like this pair as I think the Brinks truck is perhaps your favorite.
Interesting you should mention the Foden tankers. This Burmah version was also was a new addition over the past month and it has the scarce red wheels instead of the usual white which I have never seen. Another big heavy Dinky of the late 1970's.
I have the Shell and Burmah pair with the usual white wheels but they are at my moms and, havent seen the light of day for 30 years. I acquired them around 1989 and they are still somewhat of a tough find in the USA. I rarely saw these tankers at shows or in the stores when I was a teenager whereas many other Dinky toys were still in the stores into the 1980's.
Mark
I like those red wheels a lot. I wasn't aware of that variant, and my Burmah and Shell tankers both have white wheels.
I never saw either of the tankers in U.S. shops, if I remember correctly. I imagine they were but I obviously wasn't looking during the brief period they would have been on sale. However I got it, the Burmah version was a relatively easy find, but the Shell was more elusive. I think I got mine from Keith Harvie.
The Burmah tanker has also been made with yellow hubs.
Congratulations, Mark, with these new accessions of yours. I am less familiar with these later issues, but they certainly look fine!
Some new arrivals of this January, provisionally presented in a corner of a new display cabinet in the making. The orange French no. 898 Tracteur Berliet et remorque surbaissée porte-transformateur (1961-1965) was the Grand Prize of this month. I paid half the price that one might reasonably expect at this moment because the transformer was missing. For the rest both model and box are very near perfect. I bought it on eBay France but immediately started searching for the single transformer, which I quickly found on eBay UK – be it a DAN-Toys replica, which will well do as a stand-in until I will have found a ‘real’ one. Of course this low loader is the civilian version of the French Berliet Tank Transporter, and the counterpart of the Mighty Antar with Transformer.
Another fine accession is the Massey-Harris Manure Spreader, the intermediate one with red plastic wheels, a real bargain from the UK, but nowadays, with all import costs added, not a bargain in the end. Now I have the three main versions in my collection, which should be enough …
And finally a very fine French 1954 Meccano – Trains Hornby – Dinky Toys catalogue. The combined catalogue often offers a more attractive display of Dinky Toys than the regular single Dinky Toys catalogues. A very much appreciated addition!
I have been waiting for weeks now for a grey Loudspeaker Van with black speakers and wheels. It is on its way from England, but patience is a virtue these days. Kind regards, Jan
Hi Jan,
Thank you for your compliments. I see you have been busy too with new addtions. The Dinky 898 Berliet in orange is one of my favorites French Dinky toys and the orange color is very pleasing. There was a mint/noxed original transformer on eBay on Friday and was sold quickly, hopefully it was you.
Your other items are very nice as well and the catalog is a great find. Thank you for sharing.
Mark
Very few people know that Berliet got an order from China for sixty of these prime movers with special semi-trailers. The trailers were sub-contracted to Fruehauf France and appeared to be missile launchers / erectors. The trailers have been made and delivered to Berliet. I have not seen any pictures of this trailer, some code 3 makers would certainly be interested.
By the way, this is the new cabinet I'm working on, as mentioned above. It is meant to be used for display of some gift sets. I converted a simple narrow Ikea book case by closing the back, closing the fronts of each section with a glass plate (still standing in the lower right corner) and covering the bases with classy red velvet (like all bases of my display cabinets).
Jan--What a great idea, and that narrow cabinet looks to be a perfect fit for those gift sets you can proudly show. And, as usual, your expert craftsmanship is on full display.....very nicely done!
Best regards, Terry
Trailer Caravans
Austin Van 470
Meccano Liverpool pricelist French F.A.S. Tarif Exportation 1957
2024 AGM
2024 AGM
2024 AGM
2024 AGM
-274 - A.A. Mini van
Dinky Toys books
2024 AGM
--40h and 254 Austin FX3 Taxi (1952-59)
--40h and 254 Austin FX3 Taxi (1952-59)
-066 Bedford Flat Truck (1957-60)
-066 Bedford Flat Truck (1957-60)
--40h and 254 Austin FX3 Taxi (1952-59)
--40h and 254 Austin FX3 Taxi (1952-59)
--40h and 254 Austin FX3 Taxi (1952-59)
--40h and 254 Austin FX3 Taxi (1952-59)
DTCAwebsite upgrade 2023
DTCAwebsite upgrade 2023
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
DTCAwebsite upgrade 2023
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
--30p and 440 Studebaker Petrol Tanker 'Mobilgas' (1952-61)
DTCAwebsite upgrade 2023
DTCAwebsite upgrade 2023
DTCAwebsite upgrade 2023
DTCAwebsite upgrade 2023