About Me

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No Fixed Abode, Home Counties, United Kingdom
I’m a 60-year-old Aspergic gardening CAD-Monkey. Sardonic, cynical and with the political leanings of a social reformer, I’m also a toy and model figure collector, particularly interested in the history of plastics and plastic toys. Other interests are history, current affairs, modern art, and architecture, gardening and natural history. I love plain chocolate, fireworks and trees, but I don’t hug them, I do hug kittens. I hate ignorance, when it can be avoided, so I hate the 'educational' establishment and pity the millions they’ve failed with teaching-to-test and rote 'learning' and I hate the short-sighted stupidity of the entire ruling/industrial elite, with their planet destroying fascism and added “buy-one-get-one-free”. Likewise, I also have no time for fools and little time for the false crap we're all supposed to pretend we haven't noticed, or the games we're supposed to play. I will 'bite the hand that feeds', to remind it why it feeds.

Sunday, April 7, 2019

F&G is for Hidden in Plain Sight!

Remember the F&G question posed by Collin Penn some time ago now? And remember when in the PW173 review I said "Speaking of Colin Penn, his F&G 'Crazy Clown Circus' is revealed by Michael Bonnefoy of the Plastics Historical Society to be made by . . . [Subscribe!]"?

Airfix; Circus Animals; Circus Toys; Clown Figurine; Clown Figurines; Clowning Figure; Clowns; Crazy clown Circus; Crazy Clowns; F & G; F&G; Fraser & Glass Ltd.; Fraser And Glass Limited; Morestone; Morris & Stone; Plastic Warrior 173; Plastic Warrior Magazine; PW 173; PW Issue 173; PW Magazine; PW Show; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com;
Balancers & Bouncy Balls

Well, hopefully you were tempted to subscribe (if you weren't already), and with PW174 out now (review currently in the 'short queue'), I think it's OK to reveal that the F&G was Fraser & Glass Ltd., who are further fascinating for carrying the same mounted figures as Airfix, but that's for another day, the thing was, they had been on the PHS's website all along! Like Tatra, they were hiding (from plastic figure collectors) in plain sight!

Airfix; Circus Animals; Circus Toys; Clown Figurine; Clown Figurines; Clowning Figure; Clowns; Crazy clown Circus; Crazy Clowns; F & G; F&G; Fraser & Glass Ltd.; Fraser And Glass Limited; Morestone; Morris & Stone; Plastic Warrior 173; Plastic Warrior Magazine; PW 173; PW Issue 173; PW Magazine; PW Show; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com;
Musicians & Master's of Mayhem
(the one on the bottom-right has a cellulose/celluloid
drum which is almost powder now)

Anyway, it wouldn't be right to cover all the stuff in the magazine's article, but I say the above because I've got the storage tub . . . err . . . out of storage! And as a follow-up to my own previous post, am showing the [old] newbies here while re-tagging the related, previous, posts to Fraser & Glass!

It's a satisfying conclusion, too, for those of us who were never happy with the two-horse race's favourites - Airfix or Kleeware, as the plastic wasn't really right for either. But if the mounted figures provide a link, the Airfix-plumper's will have a joint first!

Indeed, while the likes of TJF and his ilk may resent my knowledge (and try to invent their own!) it's satisfying to read my earlier musings on the maker (three years ago) and find it stands-up adequately to the recent discoveries!

Were Morestone (also 'something & something'; Morris & Stone) situated near F&G, or did they (F&G) supply Airfix with both horses/riders and clowns, or licence production to fill large Woolworth's orders? There's always another question or two!

Airfix; Circus Animals; Circus Toys; Clown Figurine; Clown Figurines; Clowning Figure; Clowns; Crazy clown Circus; Crazy Clowns; F & G; F&G; Fraser & Glass Ltd.; Fraser And Glass Limited; Morestone; Morris & Stone; Plastic Warrior 173; Plastic Warrior Magazine; PW 173; PW Issue 173; PW Magazine; PW Show; Small Scale World; smallscaleworld.blogspot.com;

The Shrapnel

The bottom of their tub contains a few bits which will be combined with the attic-lot to make-up some of the missing formations! One of them actually still has his mates head between his feet so must be from a pair formation, so I'm hoping I have a headless one in the other sample!

The piece of card (CIRCUS?) came with one lot, as did the wooden pole with a plastic finial which seems to match some of the Crazy Clown's yellow stuff? Equally it could be a non-functioning component of a 1960's washing machine, or part of a lawn-game! I've also tried various solvents on these (and the other larger, sample) and they are mostly polystyrene, only a few are cellulose or celluloid types.

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