C is for Clue . . . Doh!

Well, that was a title that wrote itself, even if it was a bad pun, it was waiting to happen!

Another week, another board game! More charity shop plunder, I love 'em, and you don't feel guilty shoving the 90% in the recycling bin when it only owes you a quid . . . or two, I think this was £1.95!

This is the third generation of playing piece, with primary coloured 'milk bottle' counters for the longest time, then in the late 1980's/1990's sometime, they went over to realistic sculpts in grey polystyrene with coloured 'penny' bases, then in 2002 we got these PVC vinyl (or similar) figures in full colour, each having the dominant 'traditional' colour of each suspect, except the housekeeper . . . and Professor Plum who is a bit orange.

The new['ish] figures and what a dodgy-looking bunch of near-do-well's they are! Colonel Mustard the old B'stard, Miss Scarlet - so the blood won't show, Reverend (are you sure?) 'the hulk' Green, Mrs Peacock, silly name - silly hat, the Ging'er-ming'er should be called Professor' Tangerine' now surely and the housekeeper - black [heart] is white!

They all have a back-story now, but did they always . . . I don't remember back-story's on the sets of my childhood? And the cartoon graphics are very Manga-style in execution, I seem to remember as a kid they were quite sober-looking, realistic, if slightly Edwardian? Fashions change - I guess.

I'm joking-about to make the blurb - it's a board-game and there's only so much you can say about it, but joking apart, it's got a much nicer playing board with more realistic birds-eye views of each of the suitably furnished rooms.

Also the murder weapons have had a make-over, although the loss of the little bit of golden 'rope' in favour of an ethylene moulding is sad I think. The new dagger, on the other hand, is quite fine, and very useful for 70mm Romans, if you happen to have one lying around, unarmed!

The spanner has been replaced by an adjustable monkey-wrench and the gun is now a little six-barrelled 'pepper-pot'.

Which three cards are in the envelope? We used to love this as kids, far less fights than with Monopoly and there was a certain magic in 'working out' who/where/what, before anyone else!

I thought I'd posted the grey figures back at the beginning of the blog, but I can't find them to link to; so we'll look at them here another time! In the meantime there's boardgamegeek:

BGG - Clue

BGG - Cluedo

News, Views Etc . . . Micro-machines

The update I flagged the other day has gone in . . .

. . . with updated images and/or text-box screen-capcha's to provisionally numbered figures 6, 10, 13 and 24 and actual numbered figures 28, 31, 32, 34, 36, 43, 60 and 65. It's starting to look like there was a set of sequentially numbered brown-based figures in sand or grey plastic to match the previous unnumbered sets from the mid-1990's, and a whole crossover set in navy uniforms with numbered and unnumbered bases. It's all on-line somewhere, and I'll write-it up one day, but for now it's not a priority, however the image updates are here.

News, Views Etc . . . Herald Website

Speaking of Barney - as I was earlier today - I had a brief eMail exchange with him last week and he reassured me his Herald Toys and Models site is up and running as normal.

In the run-up to the PW show he issued a couple of 'head-ups' for new stock, neither of which I got round to posting here as I was A) busy doing other things and B) winding down for a break, but it's always worth popping-over to have a check for new stuff as the better bits tend to go the same day!

H is for Hiding . . . in plain sight!

Back in November 2011, I posted the below image as part of the early draft of the '1949 - 1960 (approximately); Early Toy Soldiers' page on the Airfix Blog, saying at the time:

"...various mould variants of the Paratrooper seem to exist - both versions shown in the Plastic Warrior publication 'Airfix - The Early Days' have different arm-gaps from mine - and each other."

Then - in 2014; whenever I did the Khaki Infantry Page, or soon after it was posted in its early form, Barney Brown kindly sent me a bunch of images for it. Most of them were clean examples of easy ('ish - for Khaki Infantry) to ID stuff which was slotted into the appropriate sections of the page. A couple were more problematical and went under the question marks section, one of them was the image below, which remains there, un-annotated.

I now think; as all the above has been screaming at anyone caring to notice; that they are not Airfix, but both the still to be identified (until Saturday-gone when it struck me!) Trojan figure/s from set 1193 - Parachute Battalion, which, according to the little A7'ish buff-covered catalogue I have, contained 3 carded figures.

Now, it may be that you got three of the same figures, or a mix with the ex-Timpo 'solid' GI's binocular guy and another, yet to be ID'd pose. Equally; it may be that some of the other unknowns from the Khaki Infantry page (with similar paint) were part of a larger [un-catalogued] boxed set, but whatever, there are no other 'unknown' figures - like the two above - that I know-of, which would fit the bill, so I suspect you got three copies of the Airfix-Pierwood 'Airborne' figure on your [complete] carded set 1193?

The most obvious difference between the two figures (Airfix-Pierwood and Trojan) is in the base, where the Anglo-Antipodean figure has one foot forward of the other and a neat, smooth-domed, sharp edged base with a clear release-pin mark dead-front-centre (arrowed), while the Trojan figure's feet are together and the base is a lumpy, blobby thing that looks like a cast of a piece of used Blue-Tac!

Apropos nothing in particular - what the hell happened to Pritt 'Buddies' . . . anyone else remember the little rows of squidgy, pink squares, lined-up like a brigade of Napoleonic map-markers on their grease-proof sheets?

Equally obvious is the difference at the other end of the figure, where the Airfix chap wears a helmet-net on his helmet, the Trojan having a slightly lopsided smooth 'blob' which is found painted as both a herb-green helmet or a maroon paratrooper beret, but rather fails to convince as either!

Other differences are in the gaps between the arms and the body where the Trojan has more of an ovoid 'atoll', while the Airfix has more of a shoulder-of-mutton shape! The quick-release buckle is actually better rendered on the Trojan figure than on the Airfix, where it looks more-like a Tunnock's tea-cake, and the main-member of the open-frame 'para' butt - on the pop-gun both figures are equipped-with - differs slightly with Airfix having a broader tube which appears to taper toward the working-parts, while the Trojan one is a thin wire of constant thickness.

The two (Barney's on the right and mine to the left), look to be quite different between them, but carful study suggests most of the differences are down to the lighting and angles of the two shots, along with the fact that mine is  a little more play-worn, although different cavities or even tools can't be ruled out, especially given the numbers of 'Unknown' still in the Khaki Infantry ourvre, some of which seem to have 'Trojan' paint matching these.

But I wouldn't present these to you as I have, if I wasn't pretty sure they are the Trojan Parachute Battalion figures. And thanks to Barney for one of the pieces in this jigsaw, bit's of which have been hidden in plain sight for years, here - on Small Scale World . . . what else is lurking?!

Due to the vaguries of 'Pages' over 'Posts', I have already updated the other two pages as some of you may have noticed on the Airfix blog yesterday afternoon!

T is for Thoughts for the day!

The real reason the orange brillo-pad anointed one threw all the toys out of his pram at 30,000 feet! cheers Huw!

Meanwhile the other idiot American in my life is waving a bent figure on his Blog as a flag of victory, while regaling everyone with a brag about a fort, in doing so he proves both that my assertion he's not very nice is an accurate summing-up (and bragging about money - so nouveu!) and that of course he's in the competitive frame of mind he denies knowing anything about! While Mr. Carrick thinks it's a good idea to validate the post with a comment - again! You can't make this stuff up.

What do you reckon to the chances of Kim 'n' Don' having  a fist-fight tomorrow? Or; has Kim sent a double so he can 'nuke Singapore? Treble Nobel's all round , , hic!

News, Views Etc . . . Airfix Blog

I've added a sailor, very-much the worse for wear, to the early Airfix soldiers post on the Airfix Blog

http://airfixfigs.blogspot.com/2010/06/1949-1960-approximately-early-toy.html

And there will be more tomorrow.

O is for Outfield!

Following on from Subbuteo in the original post was the minor makes and novelty items, among which was Mr Musgrave's Gem cricketers; big, green cakes! I thought I'd done quite well with originals and Vinyl copies of 'all three' figures, albeit a couple were damaged, but it turned out there were two fielders I didn't have - or know about!

One reason for this will be the fact that Culpitt's (who will have handled the bulk of them) seem to have only offered the three man 'stumps' vignette we looked at last time, at some point - a still sealed baker's display unit pack is seen here.

Bowler, batsman and wicket-keeper with a pair of stumps . . . is it a pair; or six? What about the bailes, or are they bail's, does anyone other than Wisden's editor give an ess aitch one tee? I have had a couple of loose ones come in over the last 7 years as well; both the 'common' poses.

 However, I picked up one of the missing fielders (it requires a very big cake - see?) at PW and John of eBay's PTS52 brought me the other to the Sandown Park toy fair in May, so - when I get the rest out of storage, we can have a final visit to them and look at them all together.

There are various reasons for why Culpitt's might have been behind the pulling of these two poses, the most obvious being that they are both rather stiff poses, the reaching guy is a brave attempt at an animated pose, but he looks like a Tantric Yoga teacher, not a cricketer, while the other guy looks as if he's waiting for a reaction to a joke he just told - or looking for a fight!

And, for them to be useful, you'd need more than two, AND a very big cake! This may mean that there's an unused stash of them somewhere though . . . but they were both impractical; the three-man vignette could fit nicely on a small round or square cake, and be a nice surprise for a cricketing fan.

My brother and I got hedgehogs (made with chocolate finger biscuits) until we were old enough to get stockade-forts - made with chocolate fingers! The forts had Cowboys and Indians - Herald Hong Kong if I remember rightly . . . early-mid 1970's; Deetail weren't out yet! One year I rebelled against the hedgehog and asked for a ladybird!

While sorting spare stumps for a mate, I noticed two things; 1) they seem to have been cut from triple-stump mouldings (sometimes not terribly accurately - if you're going to glue them to/with cream or fondant icing; I guess it doesn't matter), and 2) that there are (were!) two generations, with narrower and broader base-depths.

RDA is for A Sort of Follow-Up!

Many moons (and several actual blue-moons) ago, I added 'Cricket' to the lag list with a quick overview of the available figures, or at least those from my collection! This is one of two updates to that original post from 2011 publishing today on Small Scale World.

I picked-up this set in a charity shop a few weeks ago, it's the second version of the RDA Wicketz game using Subbuteo players, basically a re-issue in new graphics, it was one of two issued at the same time, the other having hand-painted figures laid out in a flocked tray and more accessories or something, it's all here on a real enthusiast's (Peter Upton) site.

Of more interest is that the final version (and the one I've still to find) was issued under Paul Lamond's label, now they are the current carriers of Hasbro's Subbuteo footballers, and it suggests Hasbro (or Paul Lamond) where somewhere in the background of the RDA thing?

A reminder of the figures, they were pretty-well done to death - image wise - in the original post, but suffice to say they are from the Subbuteo tool, but fitted with different bases, the batsmen converted to spin in their bases.

Note also; the wickets, previously shot in a wood-sympathetic shade of plastic, are now the same plain white polystyrene as the players.

Of far more interest was a change to the offered mail-away sets, which now included coloured team-strips. I have never seen these and presumed they hadn't been issued, however the link above reveals they do turn-up occasionally. The right hand-side shows the unpainted figures you could purchase to paint yourself.

The new teams and other accessories now read;

International Teams (painted, in order given)

- Sri Lanka
- West Indies
- England
- South Africa
- New Zealand
- Pakistan
- India
- Australia
- Zimbabwe

Sunday League Teams (painted, in order given)

- Kent
- Northampton
- Derbyshire
- Hampshire
- Surrey
- Lancashire
- Warwickshire
- Worcestershire
- Sussex
- Middlesex
- Gloucestershire
- Nottinghamshire
- Essex
- Yorkshire
- Leicestershire
- Somerset

Other Items

- Unpainted Team/s (you had to specify team/s as they came in base-coloured plastic)
- All 9 Unpainted Teams (International line-up)
- All 16 Unpainted Teams (Sunday League line-up)
- All 9 International Teams (painted)
- All 16 Sunday League Teams (painted)
- Scoreboard
- Scorepad [sic]
- 2 Sightscreens
- Self Assembly Set (6 deckchairs, 2 rollers, glue)
- Complete Set (6 deckchairs, 2 rollers, scoreboard, scorepad, 2 sightscreens, 4 teams, unpainted)
- Complete Set (6 deckchairs, 2 rollers, scoreboard, scorepad, 2 sightscreens, 2 international teams, 2 Sunday League teams, painted)

News, Views Etc . . . Toys or Figures in the Media

A round-up of the various toys and figures seen in the media recently, although when I say recently; I've stuff going back to October in the 'News Views' pile, I thought I'd use some of it over Christmas, but with stuff coming in and contributions I never really had time/space, then I did Kinder New Year, 'Thought for the Day' Jan', Toy Fair Feb'/March, and by then the queue was so long everything's on the back burner!

These were on Her Madge's cake when she launched one of our two new Aircraft Carriers, carriers which have already replaced all the others, yet won't have aircraft until . . . err . . . hell freezes over? One of which we were going to share with the French, now we aren't? One of which may get sold as soon as they've finished building it!

Defence procurement in the UK is a joke, but with a cabinet made-up entirely of failed leaders, or failed leadership-bidders, too busy squabbling among themselves about Europe - or leadership - to sort it out, it will stay a joke, and only Putin's laughing.

The Economist in the New Year gave us this meme of a snakes and ladders boardgame board, with the orange brillo-pad anointed one in full 'Fake News' fettle, it's all fake news folks, really, really fake news, so fake, it's so fake!

This is a traditional wooden Christmas tree hanging decoration, but it struck me it's a perfect size for a 15mm war-games village! Murder She Wrote until those T90's pushed through her New Hampshire holiday cabin!

Commonest use of model railway figures, after model railways are these kinds of newspaper background pictures, not the first time we've seen one here at Small Scale World, won't be the last (I have a bunch in the in-storage files), probably Preiser, but could be one of a couple of others?

B is for Because I Had Them Out!

Box Ticker - I had to get their box out for the sheep/shepherd comparisons. Just a few shots of Britains hens that have come in a couple of charity-shop lots since the New Year, but then that's nearly half-a-year ago now!

The first version are to the left and were taken from the old hollow-cast moulds, their legs soon proving as frangible in polymer as they were in metal, which lead to the replacement ones (to the right) from Herald, before the move to Hong Kong produced the vinyl groups in between. There were nicer Herald groups, but I didn't have one here to include!

I haven't asked those who know these things, but suspect all the later ones are supposed to be Rhode Island Reds (or similar . . . Supermarket Whites!), while the older ones are a recognisable British breed, with a bit of Bantam DNA?

The pair from Hong Kong could be separated from the tuft of grass to produce two singles and a piece of cover for 1:76th scale prone machine-gunners!

The 'from hollow-cast's' have very thin, smooth bases not shown in this shot, then from the left are the intermediate designs with an earlier, recessed Herald and later, flat 'Britains' base (or at least - I think they're that way round?), then the Hong Kong combo' continuing out of frame to the right.

F is for Follow-up - A Shepherd and His Dog

More of a return than a follow-up, it was a while since we looked at this here, and there's as many images this time, but last time I shot it in a hurry at a show, this time it was a cheapie from a Charity shop, so I pawed all-over it before the bulk went in the recycling, leaving me with the figures/accessories

Better shot of the box-lid, the boy in his shirt-sleeves rather belies the older Britains piracy within, which maybe why there's a photo of the game in play as well! A photograph which seems to be using all-Britains products!

It's not clear in these shots I'm afraid, but I can assure you the farmer is the same moulding as the orange and grey chap to his left as we look at them. The crook has been hefted-up to survive repeated handling, but the mould mark visible on the grey base is repeated in the orange figure. Flashing and gate-marks are also in the same places and of the same appearance.

To the left is a commoner, larger copy of the Britians original - who is himself - on the far right, as a late PVC one, made in Hong Kong. The fences on mine are of the same quality as the Merit ones seen last time (i.e. better than all the HK-marked ones in mini-farm sets), but are unmarked, so a possible conclusion is that the Merit ones were probably replacements, although Spear's may have procured two batches, one from Randall's the other HK?

We looked at the other version's set here

Of more interest that the sheep which are 'after' but not 'of' the Britains examples is the dog, which is almost certainly from the Britains mould.

Whether this was with the knowledge of Britains or their HK agents, or a back-door door job at the factory remains to be discovered, but there's nothing in the moulding, nothing in the paint to ID him separately if you don't find him in the box (he's on the right in both shots), and I don't think it's s second case of replacement, this was an unused set.

While I had them out! A living graph of the various Britains sheep generations, oldest on the left, newest (Tomy PVC) on the right! The Spears is to the far left with a resting Blue Box above it. In the 1970's at some point the dog was simplified and given a straighter head/longer nose.

The first generation were better detailed (the grubby one seems to be an owner added over-wash), then they lost some of that etched definition, as such they ran for the longest time, eventualy switching to both Hong Kong and PVC. Toward the end of 'Real' Britians (under/as Britains Petite?) they got a new colour-way, and finally you have the have the new Tomy vinyl sculpt, which keeps only the scale!

Being far more common than Toy Soldiers, these come in with charity-shop bags all the time now, and with some in storage, we'll do a better 'graph' with more stages in the future. My Barny Brown/Peter Cole guides are in storage, they have better timing/date info, than the quick 'overview' here.

Board!

Still bored!

News, Views Etc. . . . Comet HO Model Railway Vehicles

I have been unable to find an eMail for the 87thscale.info Website's web-master/s, who were asking (a few years ago) for a better listing of the Comet model railway, solid cast, lead/white-metal vehicles. Could anyone from the die-cast side of the hobby who does have contact with them or a contact for them, please pass on the following list for them to use.

I notice they have deleted the whole Comet entry now, but they may wish to reinstate it with this listing? I have highlighted the vehicles-proper in red but they're welcome to the whole list, which comes from a 1950/60's catalogue.

Comet Metal Products Co., Inc.

Listing

Railroad Accessories (painted HO Gauge Accessories, unless stated otherwise)

R1 - Letter Box, No Parking Sign, Fire Hydrant and Mail Storage Box

R2 - GM Milk Delivery Truck

R3 - 12 Coach Chairs, 6 Left, 6 Right (unpainted, railway passenger cars)

R4 - 3 [Staff] Lockers (O gauge)

R5 - Tool Cabinet, Utility Table, Utility Cabinet and Stock Closet (O gauge)

R6 - Superintendant’s Desk, Foreman’s Desk cabinet and Double Utility Cabinet (O gauge)

R7 - Executive Desk and Swivel Chair (O gauge)

R8 - Typewriter Desk and Swivel Chair (O gauge)

R9 - Lavatory Set - Sink, Bowl and Urinal (O gauge)

R10 - Stop and Go Sign and 2 No Parking Signs

R11 - Newsstand and 2 Half-figures

R12 - Stools and Stools with Backs (2x2 designs, O gauge)

R13 - Draftsman’s Table and Stool (O gauge)

R14 - Office Desk and Swivel Chair (O gauge)

R15 - 5 Assorted Cabinets (O gauge)

R16 - Single and Double-door safes, single and 3-drawer file cabinets (4 items, O gauge)

R17 - 3-drawer Typewriter Desk and Swivel Chair  (O gauge)

R18 - Cowboy on Horse and 3 Cows

R19 - 6 Cows (2 each in 3 poses)

R20 - 6 Horses (2 grazing, 2 standing and 2 saddled)

R21 - Cowboy on Horse and 3 Horses

R22 - Water Trough, Goat, Cow, 2 Pigs and a Horse

R23 - 4 Coach Steps (unpainted, for passenger cars at stations without platforms)

R24 - [Never issued?]

R25 - Passenger Set (unpainted, 8 figures from R323)

R26 - Drinking Fountain, Adding Machine, Wastepaper Basket and Armchair (O gauge)

R27 - 8 Sections of Farm Fence (unpainted)

R28 - GM Open Top Truck (bull-nosed)

R29 - GM Stake Body Truck (long-nosed)

R30 - GM Tow Truck (pick-up)

R31 - GM Pick-up Truck

R32 - GM Panel Truck

R33 - Push Cart

R34 - Baggage Cart

R35 - Chevrolet Sedan

R36 - GM Express Truck

R37 - GM Fuel Truck

R38 - GM Stake Express 1 ½ Ton

R39 - GM Stake Express 2 Ton

R40 - Railroad Signal Light Dwarf (unpainted)

R41 - Railroad Signal Lights Dwarf (unpainted, pair)

R42 - 8 Coach Chairs, 4 Left, 4 Right (unpainted, railway passenger cars, O gauge)

R43 - Freight Set Skid [stillage] and Barrel (unpainted, O gauge)

R44 - Baggage Cart, Crate and Basket (unpainted)

R45 - Hand Truck with Crate and Barrel (unpainted, copies of Britains?)

R46 - Parcel Truck with Crate and Barrel (unpainted, Powered? Crate and barrel copies of Britains?)

R47 - 2Fire Alarm Boxes

R48 - 2 Fire Alarm Boxes (O gauge)

R49 - 2 Signal Lights 1/3L, 1/2L, 1 Stand, 1 Base and 1 Connector (unpainted)

R50 - GM Taxi

R51 - Passenger Set (unpainted, 9 figures, O gauge)

R52 - Passenger Set (unpainted, 10 figures, O gauge, became; R723 painted, from Ireland)

R53 - Three Station Benches (O gauge)

R54 - Texaco Gas Pump and Attendant

R55 - Gulf Gas Pump and Attendant

R56 - Shell Gas Pump and Attendant

R57 - Esso Gas Pump and Attendant

R58 - Traffic Light - Stanchion Type

R59 - Traffic Light - Corner Type

R60 - Traffic Light - Hanging Type

R61 - Traffic Light - Boulevard Type

R62 - 12 Railroad Station Stanchion Posts (gauge unknown, seems to be ‘O’)

R63 - 2 ½ Ton Truck - 10 Wheel

R64 - Freight Van - 10 Wheel

R65 - De Soto Taxi

R66 - Heavy Platform Truck

R67 - Fire Chief Truck

R68 - Fire Engine - Pumper

R69 - Fire Engine - Hook and Ladder

R70 - Wheel Barrow with Man (unpainted, O gauge)

R71 - 4 Street Barricades (unpainted, O gauge)

R72 - Wheel Barrow with man and 3 Street Barricades (unpainted, HO Gauge)

R73 - Wrecker Truck

R74 - 4-door Chrysler Sedan

R75 - Ambulance

R76 - Subway Entrance Wall Type with Lights in Kit Form (O gauge)

R77 - Subway Entrance Curb Type in Kit Form (O gauge)

R78 - Subway Entrance Wall Type in Kit Form (O gauge)

R79 - Subway Entrance Curb Type in Kit Form

R80 - Sports Car

R81 - Farm Wagon with Two Horses and Driver

R82 - Coach/Buggy with Two Horses and Driver

R83 - Carryall Carriage with Horse and Driver

R84 - Van (equivalent of British 'pantechnicon' removal van? Lorry or trailer?

R85 - Policeman and Traffic Light (O gauge, painted)

R86 - Two Figures on Bench (O gauge, painted)

R87 - [Never issued?]

R88 - [Never issued?]

R89 - [Never issued?]

R90 Railroad Signal Set (O gauge, painted)

R91 Additional Figures and Signs (7 figures, handcart and 4 items of street furniture, painted)

R92 Crosswalk [pedestrian crossing] Scene (7 figures and 2 items of street furniture + 2 vehicles, painted)

R93 Fire Fighting Set (9 firemen and 2 fire trucks, painted)

R94 Accident Group (5 figures and 3 vehicles, painted)

R95 Large Farm Set (2 figures, wagon and 10 animals, painted)

R96 Bus Stop Scene (4 figures, bus and 4 items of street furniture, painted)

R97 Flat-car Loads (8 large pieces of civil-engineering, painted)

R98 Road Signs (12 items, painted)

F is for Follow-up - Hong Kong Copies of European Premium, Rack Toy, Bazaar and Other Wagons

Just a quickie - not long after I published the VT follow-up to an earlier JCT post, I remembered I had some more VT and/or other bits in the attic, shot them when I was putting the others away, then picked a few more up at the PW show, so here they all are!

The previously Blogged VT coach with it's not-correct driver at the back, in front are a bunch of bits (from Micheal Melnyk I think?), sadly one of the pulling ropes is damaged, so apart from coach-body, chassis or wheel colour swaps, I'm no nearer a whole one!

In front of that is an Italian cheapie version's horse team from Dario, these are closer to the French horses than the HK ones.

But at PW I got both a whole replacement draw-bar and ropes (unbroken) and locating plug, and a lesser-quality/later-generation open-wagon (sort of Giant scale-up), the wheels are sized between the front and back wheels of the stage coach and the figure, though the correct driver for all these wagons, is of too poor a quality to use with my coach, but there are spare drivers in storage (and hopefully - a few hats), if it has the same horses as the JTC one . . . they are a bit 'twee'!

So - when the two stashes are brought together I should end-up with a boxed coach, a loose coach (complete), a loose wagon and a few bits. All I need now are some poorer horses (I may have somewhere) and a draw-bar & tilt for the open wagon, which - I fear - should be a covered wagon like the one in the original 2009 post?

It's Hong Kong shite, but it keeps me sane . . . sort of!

K is for Kleeware's Komic Kop Kar!

Continuing with yesterday's 'oh that's what they are' meme, these were shot on Adrian's stand at the recent PW show and actually produced "Oh! That's where they're from / what they are" calls of recognition; all day.

Anyone who collects a bit of everything;, anyone who collects early-looking stuff; anyone who collects police, emergency service or civilian themes; anyone who's spend more than an hour going through rummage trays, bins or tubs in the last 20 or 30 years - has either got one or two of these or seen a few! Mine's the standing red one!

Now, given the amount of mould-sharing (and piracy) that went on back in the day, especially with Kleeware, and the fact that some US police forces had helmets like ours for a while (I seem to remember from the old B&W silent comedies of my youth - they were repeats all right! I'm not that old!), I wonder - given that they also have sheriffs/deputies stars - if the original might be an American thing?

The Kleeware Crazy Cop Car. The box is similar to that unknown-maker, clockwork, firing machine-gun nest we looked at a while ago, but that's where the similarities end. Where that was made of bright lightweight polystyrene, this is a much heavy, colder polymer, with more subdued colours; still a styrol I think, but it could be a late, stable, phenolic resin, or - from the damage on the foot-slots of mine - a high quality Bakelite?

The wheels are fitted to cam-equipped axles which jump the seats up and down causing the policemen to bob about as the vehicle moves. Additional fun can be had by piling them up using the various slots/grooves and protrusions on both the figures and the car.

A few shots of the box sides gives a further idea of how they stack and join-together. If you have them, you can get them out of the 'unknown' zone and label them-up! Cheers Adrian.

News views etc . . . Woburn Abbey Teddy Bear Festival

Picked up this flyer for a Teddy Bear event Sunday;

10th June 2018

Not really the blog's shtick, but, hey; if it's toy related I'll share it!

Woburn Abbey teddy Bear Festival

Artist Bear Awards

Might be fun for the kids/grandkids?