Corgi Toys @ 60: Gift Sets!!

I finish the posts for the vast array of November 1963 issues with these four Gift sets. Two have become real classics and are the most sought after, and valuable, of the whole Corgi range.

First, the Gift set 15 Silverstone Layout

Here's what the set included:

Kits: 602 AA & RAC Boxes, 603 Pits, 604 Press Box, 605 Club house & timekeepers box, 

Cars: 150S Vanwall, 151S Lotus XI, 152S BRM, 215S Ford Thunderbird Open Sports, 304S Mercedes Benz 300SL Hard Top, 309 Aston Martin Competition, 417S Land Rover Breakdown, 

Figures: 1501 Racing Drivers, 1503 Race track officials, 1502 Spectators.

There would also be a large, quite flimsy plastic mat and a set of enamel paints and glue for the kit constriction. These items are extremely hard to find now and usually only then in complete boxed sets.

The next is the Gift Set 25 Garage Layout

This is a wonderfully detailed set of kits and a few cars with a layout mat, glue and paints as for the previous set.

I have never had either of these sets but have acquired all the components, except the glue and paint. The 'mat' here is a board that someone created that is not quite the right size. I have since found someone who makes the mats - not the flimsy plastic but a nice hard-wearing and strong textured plastic which lays completely flat and should be excellent as a display as and when I get all the bits and pieces out again. For now, here are some photos of the lovely display as it was. I have tried to reproduce the Corgi Catalogue image.

These smaller items, like the pressure gauge or small signs are very hard to find and often get lost in non-Corgi boxes never to re-appear in places one might hope to find them.

These were wonderful sets and I do hope that one day someone will present me with one or the other to say thank you for all this work I have put in for Corgi collectors over the years. Well, a man can dream. . . . The price that must be paid to acquire a complete set now is simply way beyond my means. Here is the list of contents:

Kits: 602 AA & RAC Boxes, 608 Shell/BP Service Station, 609 Forecourt accessories, 606 Lamp Standard x2, 601 Batley Garage x3, 

Cars: 224 Bentley Continental - Black, 225 Austin Se7en - Red, 229 Chevrolet Corvair - Bright Blue, 234 Ford Consul Classic - Beige/Red, 419 Ford Zephyr Police - White

There were two more Gift Sets at slightly lower prices that year:

GS29 Tractor & Trailer 50 Massey Ferguson 65 Tractor, 51 Massey Ferguson 30cwt Trailer, Driver figure. This is basically the same as Gift Set 7 from 1959 but with Farmer George now at the wheel. Corgi certainly got value from these two models over the years!

GS28 Car Transporter Set 1105 Bedford TK Car Transporter, 222 Renault Floride, 234 Ford Consul Classic, 232 FIAT 2100, 230 Mercedes Benz. This is also an update of the old Gift Set 1 with the newer Bedford cab and a new set of models on board. It's an odd set of models listed in the Corgi documents and, as you will see from the illustrations, the contents not only changed but were freely changeable provided the total value remained the same.

So whilst illustrating the models stated above, the content was completely different!

And that completes November  60 years ago!