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, May 7, 2023

M is for Minor Swivels & Swoppets

Bit of a mix here, some 'seen elsewhere', some old Picasa clearance and one recently 'in' who's gone out, and he isn't really a swivel or a swoppet, but he is an over-mould, so he's here!

A 54/60mm motorcycle dispatch-rider from Manuel Sotorres of Spain, from their sort of post-war/contemporary range back whenever. They seem to have been quite common in Spain at the time, but don't turn-up so much over here, which meant I grabbed this when I saw it!
 
Nardi of Italy provide this swoppet cowboy in the style of Britains' own Swoppets, or at least his belt is modelled after theirs, otherwise he's more like early-Timpo or Charbens; all polyethylene, some paint and none of the PVC accessories Britains gave theirs.
 
Torres Maltas, 45mm figures, also from Spain, and yes, I get both (these and Sotorres) mixed up, and if I'm being particularly dimwitted I can confuse either with the Miguel Torres winery and their plastic bull seal-tags - seen here in the past!
 
I have a bit of a mental block on these for another reason too, I keep thinking I have a bunch 'somewhere' in the pile, but actually I think this is all I have, and I saw some others, somewhere else, and just think they may be hiding in the stash! So three mounted, helmeted troops and a sailor - they have swivel arms.

While this chap could be Nardi, but I suspect he will turn out to be Xandria from Holland, when the dust settles. He is part PVC and part PE, but the two over-moulded or heat-welded in 'layers' for a 'solid' figure, unlike the movability of some of the key-ring 'stacks' from Xandria.

And in conversation with Peter Evans and the recipient of it (I liked it, but I knew someone who's need was greater) we agreed it's probably depicting St. Nicholas, rather than some random bishop or archbish' handing out magic gloves, paired amulets and anointed rods-to-god to any old Tom, Dick or Charlie!?

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