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.

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

B is for Best Toy Ever . . . Again!

Some best-toys win on features or playability (the Tri-Ang Battle Game), others win on sheer quality (The Britains Land Rover), but when I awarded the Britains Land Rover BTE status, I hadn't seen today's entrant, which trumps the Land Rover by a country-mile, making it look all a bit cheap and placky!

1936 Mercedes; Arnold; Bing; Bing Tin Plate; Bub Tin-plate; Carl Bub; Elastolin Hausser; Elastolin Sports Coupe; Elastolin Sportscar; Elastolin Toy Soldiers; Hausser Elastiolin; Hausser Sports Coupe; Hitler; Hitler Figure; Hitler Model; Karl Bub; Limousine; Lineol; Märklin; Marklin; Mercedes Benz; Mercedes Tourer; Nazi Figures; Nazi Limousine; Nazi Playthings; Nazi Soldiers; Sports Tourer; Tin Plate Toys; Tin Toy; Tin-Plate Mercedes Benz; Tin-Plate Novelties;
It's the gonad-challenged leader of the 4,000-odd-day Reich; Herr Adolf Hitler, in his Mercedes tourer, with straight-backed driver at the controls. Shot two years ago at the then September Sandown Park show, this has been sat in Picasa ever since, but two years is about par for the stuff in the queue! Adrian Little of Mercator (link) is to thank for allowing me to photograph it.

1936 Mercedes; Arnold; Bing; Bing Tin Plate; Bub Tin-plate; Carl Bub; Elastolin Hausser; Elastolin Sports Coupe; Elastolin Sportscar; Elastolin Toy Soldiers; Hausser Elastiolin; Hausser Sports Coupe; Hitler; Hitler Figure; Hitler Model; Karl Bub; Limousine; Lineol; Märklin; Marklin; Mercedes Benz; Mercedes Tourer; Nazi Figures; Nazi Limousine; Nazi Playthings; Nazi Soldiers; Sports Tourer; Tin Plate Toys; Tin Toy; Tin-Plate Mercedes Benz; Tin-Plate Novelties;
I can't remember if Adrian said if it was Elastolin or Lineol, but it has a porcelain-head Hitler so it could be Elastolin, although other people bought-in the figures for their vehicles; Arnold, Bing and Karl Bub, for instance, so I stand to be corrected.

1936 Mercedes; Arnold; Bing; Bing Tin Plate; Bub Tin-plate; Carl Bub; Elastolin Hausser; Elastolin Sports Coupe; Elastolin Sportscar; Elastolin Toy Soldiers; Hausser Elastiolin; Hausser Sports Coupe; Hitler; Hitler Figure; Hitler Model; Karl Bub; Limousine; Lineol; Märklin; Marklin; Mercedes Benz; Mercedes Tourer; Nazi Figures; Nazi Limousine; Nazi Playthings; Nazi Soldiers; Sports Tourer; Tin Plate Toys; Tin Toy; Tin-Plate Mercedes Benz; Tin-Plate Novelties;
The detail of the model is on a par with modern, similarly scaled (and unnecessarily expensive) 'executive desk toy' type limited edition things, and compared with my Land Rover, is in a different league.

The main construction is tin-plate, but much use is made of die-cast and white-metal parts, down to the little door-handles! The wheels are almost scale replicas with rubber tyres, steel rims and cast hubs on rod-axles.

If one thing lets it down it's the steering-wheel which is a simple tin-stamping which doesn't look right next to all the other, finer detailing? The Fuhrer also has a moveable arm so he can do his flicky-little Nazi salute, or madly wave at his granny!

1936 Mercedes; Arnold; Bing; Bing Tin Plate; Bub Tin-plate; Carl Bub; Elastolin Hausser; Elastolin Sports Coupe; Elastolin Sportscar; Elastolin Toy Soldiers; Hausser Elastiolin; Hausser Sports Coupe; Hitler; Hitler Figure; Hitler Model; Karl Bub; Limousine; Lineol; Märklin; Marklin; Mercedes Benz; Mercedes Tourer; Nazi Figures; Nazi Limousine; Nazi Playthings; Nazi Soldiers; Sports Tourer; Tin Plate Toys; Tin Toy; Tin-Plate Mercedes Benz; Tin-Plate Novelties;
I can't remember where this came from; it's cropped out of a larger (but un-watermarked) image, from somewhere - auction catalogue on feeBay? Anyway, you can see the cheaper, rival Märklin model has all-tin wheels/tyres and simpler figures, albeit three of them, probably small O-Gauge/40mm to boot? Whether the main-subject above is also a 1936 model Mercedes or not I don't know, there are differences between the mud-guards of the two vehicles?

A worthy - if temporary - winner of 'Best Toy Ever' I hope you'll agree; despite it's background politics, it's a beautiful thing and many thanks to Adrian for the chance to photograph it.

2 comments:

Jan Ferris said...

I could care less about the blighter in the back seat, but I must say that the Mercedes tourer is beautiful.

Hugh Walter said...

That's the crux of the matter Jan! The arseholes get all the best cars! Although 'Lady' Thatcher's' just fail to sell at a reasonable reserve, however pale-metallic blue is not the best shade for a Rolls/Bentley!

H