Corgi Model Club: Citroën Safari (Corgi Ski Club)

 

Here is the latset edition from the Corgi Model Club. It's the second version of #475, with Winter Olympics replaced by the Corgi Ski Club but otherwise, I think, the same. (I have always wondered whether the skis and ski poles and roof rack changed from one edition to the other and there are also versions with the interior colours switched round but whether these variations occur within a model run I have to investigate.)

Anyway, this one has yellow skis and poles and a red roof rack. It looks a lot whiter than I remember but that may just be because I've only ever had a pretty well-played-with model myself!

The certificate information appears not to have been edited very carefully. I quite like the two 'i' s in skiis, though, and we'll forgive that but they claim that the last model of this car was #499 in 1968. That model was issued in October 1967 and the last one was #513 in September 1970 (incidentally also the last Corgi issued with 'normal' wheels).

In the box the car is wrapped in thin tissue-like paper and there is a small piece of plastic foam (not shown above). The figures and skis are in a plastic bag and separate to the car in the box. I was surprised to have two skiers, four skis and four poles. The original only had one skier.

I am a little intrigued too by the 'instruction sheet' included. My copy has just one side printed whereas this should have the usual membership text and form on the reverse. In fact, with this particular issue, all the examples i have seen have not had the wording about adjusting the skiers legs. That text seems to have been added for the #499 model with the TV21 style footer. The one supplied is odd and I wonder whether someone has not advised them well on this or, perhaps, I'm wrong and there simply might have been a variety of 'instructions' used of which the one they've supplied is just one.

The #499 original instruction sheet

The #475 original instruction sheet (both editions)

This is a good-looking model and the now familiar top quality accuracy in reproduction and near-perfect silver detailing. I still find the shaped wheels not quite right and I believe the roof rack should have straight parallel sides rather than the curved variety we have here. However, that may, again, be my memory?

The car arrives with ski poles in the bag but they should be stowed in the roof rack for which there is space provided. I haven't done that in the photos, though, and it may be that the thin plastic poles would be vulnerable to bending if left there in the box for a while.

I also note that the skis are attached to each other in pairs. Is that how they were originally? It does make it easier to keep the chap standing upright so maybe not a bad idea even if not as they actually were provided originally.

This is all very fine engineering in both metal and plastic and an enjoyable model to have in this growing collection. As always, I find the box lacking in being very shiny and the fonts for the number and features are still not right but I guess they never will be so I'll have to put up with that.

Of course, now that we have this model, expect Corgi to come up with a few variations (or the Club to have a go at one of the others in due course). Just not the hearse, please.