In the wake of Peter Golden I will add my contribution of the 10 Dinky Toys favourites. Of course it’s not a simple challenge to rate the ten favourites. In fact, should they be the ten favourites in the collection or is it about the Dinky favourites in general, regardless their presence or not in the collection? I chose for the ones in the collection, although some favourites might belong to the highly desired ones outside the collection!
In fact, virtually every Dinky Toy in the collection is very, very dear to me, so a top ten would do injustice to the many other favourites, if not all, in the collection. Some in my top ten are not stand-alones, but also represent a class of favourites.
Well, let’s have a try:

1. I start with a Dinky Toy that does not even exist, but which truly is my favourite one, if not the whole subject of non-issued Dinky Toys. This is the never-made Bedford Streamlined Articulated Bedford Tanker, represented by two fully self-made ‘mock-ups’ and one (the dark green example) other that I made of a kit delivered by Brian Salter. To this model belong the original factory drawings which I was so fortunate to acquire in 2000. I wrote about both the tanker and the non-issued models subject many times.

2. Immediately following is the no. 514 ‘S’Guy Van ‘Slumberland’, the bright red one with superb golden lettering. It is enough to refer to my article in the last issue of 2009 of the DTCA Journal, in order to underline its merits, at least in my eyes. Because excellent Guy vans are so expensive I did not succeed to obtain any of the other ones up till now. But that does not make a difference to my firm predilection to the ‘Slumberland’.

3. The no. 50 Ships of the British Navy set does in fact represent my very old love for ship models, of which Meccano made too few in my opinion. Fortunately, that makes it relatively easy to collect them all. The Tri-ang Minic Ships range of the 1960s, though on a larger scale (1:1200), are a nice supplement to them. The navy ships and passenger liners are so intriguing too because they represent a very distinct period in the history of ships, the 1930s, many of the Dinky passenger liners Blue Riband winners or competitors. More than one sunk due to hostilities and casualties during the war. Many of the models perished too, due to severe fatigue!

4. This no. 172 Studebaker Land Cruiser, this very example, marks my restart of collecting Dinky Toys in 1979. In fact, it shares this place with the equally stunning mint and boxed no. 344 Estate Car. Trembling all over I left the shop in Amsterdam, a bit embarrased of the money I apparently was willing to pay for a Dinky Toy. I did not realize then that some hundreds were to follow in the subsequent decades.

5. The no. 62g Boeing ‘Flying Fortress’ Monoplane is an icon of the American World War II air power history. This real world and history relation of all models fascinates me so much, and always triggers me to find out all about it! The model was a very accurate, exact representation of the very first examples of the B-17. But when it was re-issued post-war the basic model had not changed at all, whereas the real world Flying Fortress had become a considerably changed appearance at the end of the war. Both examples shown are virtually mint, the post-war example (left) was an amazing bargain, the pre-war boxed example the contrary (but irresistable).

6. Oh yes, the Foden! Like other models listed here, the one shown represents more than this version only. But this example of the no. 501 Foden Diesel 8-wheel Wagon is really the favourite of my few Fodens, having the very first looks, with the nice satin finished dark brick red appearance, the typical herringbone tyres and the still hook-less and perforation-less state of the chassis, including the odd clips retaining the axles. The start of a long Dinky Supertoys tradition.

7. Of course the whole 38-series of open sports cars is a monument. But the no. 38c Lagonda Sports Coupe is the most intriguing of all to me because it was the first one which I acquired of this series. That one was sold after many years, being replaced by a far better example. Not too long ago it got the company of a grey one with the nice satin dark red interior. More than the other 38s it has a certain proud dignity in its appearance, hardly a fast-looking sports car. Curious that none of them have representations of the doors! With the Jeep and the Avro York it formed the first trio of new post-war Dinky Toys, issued in spring 1946. The design was pre-war, however.

8. The no. 152 Royal Tank Corps Light Tank Set is another era marking issue. Both the real world and the Dinky world saw a renewed arms race. In 1937, the year of issue, the disaster to come was still hardly imaginable. Other sets were to follow, all of a very high modelling quality. Many, however, were to perish due to ‘fatigue’. Fortunately many separate models were re-issued post-war, made of higher quality zamac. Still, the military no. 152c Austin Seven Car in the middle was available pre-war only (as were the five boxed military gift sets), so scarce. Its driver is a replacement.

9. French Dinky Toys are under-represented in the collection. But this one is among the ones I chased for a long time. The fact that this 1930s design represented by the French Dinky was available from 1955 until 1970 underlines that I’m not the only one who liked this very nicely executed model as a favourite. Had not it been in production for a long time, then it would undoubtedly have cost a fortune by now. However, it is not extremely rare because of its long production period and with some patience it is still available for a ‘reasonable’ price nowadays. This no. 32d Delahaye fire escape also represents the fire engine range of models that I love so much. Among them my nine variants of the no. 555/955 Fire Engine with Extending Ladder.

10. So many more could have occupied this tenth place, but I had to choose, so the legendary no. 23m Captain G.E.T. Eyston’s Thunderbolt was to be number 10. It started with the box, which a friend of mine donated to me. Some years later I could actually add the very fine, fatigue-less model, a bargain on Ebay. Also one of those representations of an era, the record accomplishments of which Meccano knew the little boys (and their fathers) were following in the news. The Silk Mill Museum in Derby (which unfortunately seems to close its doors by now) owns one of its two Rolls Royce aero engines and has a nice photo of Eyston, sitting in his Thunderbolt, on display.

Kind regards, Jan Werner

I am also contributing to this thread in the wake of David B. and The Journal. Unfortunately, pictures will have to wait a little longer...
To make such a list is very hard, a little like asking a parent which child he loves most...
Nevertheless, I took the "sentimental way": Which DT, in the shop window, I dreamed of most, until I had enough pocket money to buy them. I also included those who have a special personnal meaning.
1. 889 Coles crane truck
2. 24 O Studebaker: It all started with this one: I was 5...
3. 23H Talbot-Lago : I was unbeatable in the school yard.
4. 32D Delahaye Fire Engine
5. 34A Berliet Benne Carriere: Endless hours of moving stones.
6. 39A Unic porte-voitures
7. 24C DS 19: real car fascinated me beyond belief: I was 12...
8. 586 Citroen Laitier: Sheer beauty of the model.
9. 930 + 14c : DT Bedford + CC Fork lift: I played with them, my children played with them, my grand-children are playing with them for endless hours...
10. 666 + 667 Corporal truck + service Platform.
David, you may consider this list for your leader board as well.

Many thanks for the three Top 10 lists which have been posted on here. I also have received a further three by e-mail or post.

Here are the current standings:

We now have a clear leader in the 972 Coles Lorry Mounted Crane.

I now have six to put into The Journal, I will try to put three into July and three into October.

Please keep your list coming; either on here, by e-mail or by the post, although that is starting to get expensive now!!!!!

I would say that my favorite Dinky Toys are all aircraft, especially the flying boats.
Starting with the Shetland.

Monograph below courtesy of http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2117254
SHETLAND
Short Brothers, which was contributing greatly during the war manufacturing flying boats such as the Sunderland, was also developing a new generation of long-range reconnaissance aircraft flying boats for the postwar period. The British Air Ministry also recognized this need and allowed the Short Shetland I proposal to proceed. The first prototype, an armed reconnaissance and anti submarine version, flew by the end of 1944. Later, the need for a long range transport was recognized and changes were made to the Shetland program. Unfortunately, during testing this aircraft was destroyed by fire at its moorings. The second prototype, now called the Shetland II, was completed as a transport and designed to carry 70 passengers and cargo over 4400 miles at 260 miles an hour. This aircraft finally flew in 1947 but by then advantages of a flying boat had been double trumped, first by the numerous wartime airfields that were now operational around the world and second by a variety of new, high performance, long-range, land-based aircraft built to use them. By 1949 the Short Shetland had failed to find any commercial interest and was scrapped.
Shetland No. 701. Scale 1/194.1947-1948
The Dinky Toys choice of a new flying boat casting had some logic in that the British Empire had been serviced by flying boats since the 1930s and Dinky made many toys of these different aircraft. The Dinky Shetland was released as catalog number 701 by October 1947 as the first ‘SUPERTOYS’ in a simple cardboard box design with a red and white label illustrating the aircraft. It was marked 'DINKY SUPERTOYS - SHETLAND - MADE IN ENGLAND - MECCANO LTD' without the number. It carried the same registration letters as the short prototype, G– AGVD, and was finished in all silver with a blued cockpit area. Some later versions were produced without cockpit bluing. The Shetland lacked any type of a roller hidden in the hull for playability. Because of this or perhaps due to its massive weight of over a half a pound, or the aircraft's failure to attract airiine interest and media coverage, the toy was not a success. It is not an easy model to find today. It can even be found in the collections of the most ‘hard core’ prewar Dinky aircraft collectors who have made an exception in their tight focus for this unusual toy.

Here is my number two

Monograph courtesy of www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2117254
Atlantic Flying Boat No. 60x. Scale 1/222. 1937-1939
Another version of the principal casting of the Empire issued in November 1937 was the exceptionally rare Atlantic Flying Boat. The cast-in markings were ‘DINKY TOYS - ATLANTIC FLYING BOAT - MADE IN ENGLAND BY MECCANO LTD’. This model was finished in a range of bright colors with different fictitious names and registrations all unrelated to actual aircraft. Most Atlantics had the gliding hole but examples of the Valorous and Dauntless have been found with it filled in.

To date 6 different versions have been confirmed most with cream wings, black registrations and with names only on the right side of the fuselage nose. The 6 confirmed variants are: Dauntless G-AZBP with light blue fuselage, Endeavour G-AZBQ with black fuselage, Enterprise G-AZBR with dark blue fuselage, Swiftsure G-AZBU with yellow orange fuselage, Valorous G-AZBS with red fuselage, and Whirlwind G-AZBT with green fuselage. There has been an unconfirmed report of another variation, Dreadnought G-AZBV with a black fuselage. The later versions had the hollowed out hull modification. The Atlantic is frequently afflicted with metal degradation problems and very few complete examples of this colorful toy have survived.
John Beugels adds, "The Atlantics never had individual boxes and were sold out of trade boxes".

My third selection is probably not an French Dinky Toy at all.
courtesy of Monograph courtesy of www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2117254

but.........read on
French aircraft firms such as Nieuport, Latecoere, Nord, Potez, Breguet, Lioré et Olivier { Léo}, and Farman had been active since World War I producing increasingly advanced flying boats. It is therefore quite surprising to some that the French Dinky Toys firm did not produce any French seaplanes. Perhaps they were satisfied with distributing the British ones such as the very popular British Dinky Empire Flying Boat. Eventually three seaplanes were put into consideration and even given catalog numbers. The three were No. 64E for a Potez 161, No. 64F for the Léo 47, and No. 64G for the Léo 246. A Meccano pricelist dated October 1940 has been found that listed these seaplanes. But this effort proved to be too late and they were not produced before France was over run.

When the French Bobigny factory was commandeered by the invading Germans, it was put to use making parts for the Nazi war effort as well as for the production of toy vehicles for the German market.
There is a remarkable Märklin 1/200 scale die cast toy of the DO-18 seaplane which so very closely resembles other French Dinky Toys aircraft in style and finish {it even used similar three bladed Dinky style propellers and pins} that it was at first thought to have been produced at the Dinky Toys’s Bobigny factory under German occupaiton.

Unlike the British who eventually banned toy production outright after 1941, the Germans continually supported toy production for the morale of its young citizens almost to the very end of the war. The story was even more conceivable when it became known that Dinky Toys collaborated with Märklin in the 1930s. However, quite recently a 1939 Dutch Märklin store catalog has been found by collector Christian Lell showing the Do-18 Flying Boat {the only die cast airplane ever distributed by Märklin}, well before the German take-over of the Dinky Toys factory. This discovery puts to rest the speculation about toy’s origins during the German occupation, but it does not exclude some form of French Dinky Toys/ Märklin collaboration on the DO-18 earlier in the 1930s.

Here is the Dutch catalog illustration from 1939.

My fourth choice is similar to the early post, the Dinky Toys Flying Fortress, actually the early B-17 B which did not see combat. The C model did thought but it eliminated the bombardiers window station under the front nose of the fuselage. The postwar issue was identical except for the elimination of the gliding hole and a name change in the casting to 'LONG RANGE BOMBER. It even used exactly the same transfer decals which were the early USAAC prewar ones.
5th place The Empire Flying Boat
6th- The Clipper III
7th- The Four Engined Flying Boat
8th- The Singapore Flying Boat
9th- The Bell helicopter in Army markings {Only issued in 1979 as part of the commando set}
10th- JU-90 Heavy Bomber

Very nice selection and presentation.
Please note: the catalogue isn't Dutch, it's German!

You are, of course correct, I posted the wrong clipping, the other one looks the same but was in Dutch.

here is the one I should have posted, in dutch.

I am confused about your third choice.

Is this a Dinky Toy or a French Dinky Toy?

Thanks Dave B

It was thought for a time to have been manufactured by Dinky Toys France during WW II, but this was found to be incorrect. It may have been the result of a collaboration between Märklin and Dinky Toys in 1938-1939 but there is no proof at this point. If so it was only distributed by Märklin, not Dinky Toys..

As it is Marklin and not Dinky I'm afraid I can't include it in a Dinky Top 10.

Do you want to give me an additional one that will now be number 10.

Thanks Dave

Ok, I would place a rare variant of the Bell Helicopter in 10th place, mainly because I flew one for years.
The standard Bell Police Helicopter No. 732 { Scale 1/60. 1973-1979} is primarily plastic with a stamped metal white tail boom frame work with an orange plastic upper trim and skids. It was usually produced with a blue pilot. Sue Richardson reports that were various substituted pilots were used in 1974. Later production included a green, oxygen masked, jet pilot. This toy was always issued with a Police sticker on the tail boom and blister packed with a traffic panel and cones in various colored plastics. It appeared much later in a sleeve box with a police car called the Crash Squad.

But my favorite one is the Bell Army Helicopter variant. Only 1979. It was issued very briefly in 1979 in Army olive drab color with an Army label, marked underneath as above, only in Commando set No. 303. This variant is the best and most realistic variant of the toy. The Commando set is an extremely rare find today. The same variant was considered for a M.A.S.H. set with a M.A.S.H. sticker but was not issued.

Thanks very much.

I will get these into the list, I am including them in the upcoming Journals in the order I receive them, there are a few before yours will appear.

Thanks again Dave