Corgi Toys @ 60: A Ford, Monte Carlo and The Avengers

 January 1966 and Corgi bring three new models to your local toy shop, although only one is completely new.

The lovely Ford Consul Cortina Super Estate Car is all new and a delightful model in rich metallic blue with a bright, almost white interior. The rear door opens and it originally appears on a tray insert with a golfer and boy caddy with the golf trolley which you will recognise from the 'surprise in the boot' of the Chrysler Imperial issued a few months earlier in August 1965.

This model will be released later as #491 on its own in September 1966, when it will appear also in metallic red and metallic grey, with cast wheels being fitted towards the end of production but very seldom will you see these on a blue model.

It appears likely that only the blue model was used for the first issues of #440 but, of course, now it is impossible to know whether a red or grey has been substituted or if they really were in the box when bought.

Perhaps the 'star' attraction for this month will have been The Avengers Gift Set 40.

This set helped sell some more of the old Bentleys that had not been very popular as well as bringing new life to the sales of the Lotus Elan, previously in metallic blue as #318 in July 1965. Now with the "I've got a tiger in my tank" transfer removed and in white the Lotus is a good representation of the car driven by Emma Peel in the first series of the TV programme. The red Bentley, however, is not so accurate!

Early sets featured a green Bentley which would have been a preferable colour for Steed (albeit somewhat bright, I feel) but on no account would he have driven anything with red wheels! 

The set has plastic figures for Steed and Mrs Peel, neither looking very attractive when viewed closely but acceptable at a distance, and three brollies. Original brollies are very hard to find now and most sets you will find have replacements which can be identified with a magnifying glass (see a recent article on this subject).

Beware the many, many reproduction sets of poor quality or downright incorrect composition. Many dealers use a reproduction Steed that is actually from a mould of Jeeves from the #9004 World of Wooster set. The figure supplied by a major 'spare parts' company in Leicestershire was Jeeves in a grey suit and may still be, although I have not ordered any for some time. They may have mended their ways in this respect since. Original Emmas usually have two or more black stripes at the bottom of her trousers but I have also seen what may well be originals with just the single stripe so it is not so easy to tell with her. Some have very poor facial definition and painting, however, and these are likely to be reproductions.

Most reproduction boxes are poor copies too, with colours that are too bright, the wrong quality card and, of course, there are many produced with printers at home on white card as well. I sell many sets and use a particularly fine reproduction box but most I see are nothing like as good, even from those better-known repro box people.

Although you will encounter many variations of the composition, there really are just the two original sets as illustrated here. You will find gold wheels instead of steel colour on the red Bentley, but seldom will all five be the same shade. The Lotus may get cast wheels towards the end of its production run too. That is all, however, apart from the factory one-off samples. I know of a green Bentley with black mudguards and steel wheels, for instance, which is a much better match for those in the series but this would have been a sample for marketing consideration.

Although Mrs Peel drove a powder blue Elan in the second series, the issued sets only ever feature a white car. Some made-up sets show a green #9001 Bentley with the Union flag and RN3 transfers removed and a folded hood replacing the original type alongside a white or metallic blue Elan. These can be nice displays and maybe slightly more accurate but are not original. A green Bentley in the original set always had red wheels and was a slightly different shade to the #9002 model too so any attempt to switch wheels can be identified and needs to be looked out for.

The other not so new model is a 1966 edition of the Monte Carlo BMC Mini-Cooper. Corgi retained the #321 catalogue number for this but it is completely different to the 1965 #321 in several ways. Obviously this one has RN2 on the doors and a transfer of two drivers' signatures on the roof. You will also see that the Mini is a quite different casting, with no fog lights in the metal and this has just the two jewelled fog lights instead of the three before.

The first issues came in the #321 box with an illustration of the RN52 model and a sticker added to distinguish it. Later a box is produced with the RN2 model illustrated.

A chance for someone to catch up with the Corgi Model Club 2021 Reissues!

 

A colleague has decided to sell his complete collection of the 2021 Corgi Model Club issues. The four models are:

474 Thames Wall's Ice Cream Van with Musical Chimes

339 BMC Mini-Cooper S 1967 Monte Carlo rally

258 The Saint's Volvo P1800

330 Porsche Carrera 6

Each has a reproduction box and original packing and ancillary items where applicable.

The following reproduction items are also available:

1505 Garage Attendants

Corgi badge

1966 Corgi catalogue

Certificates of Authenticity

Collector's Tin for the Certificates

All the models are mint. Some boxes have very minor marks where the awkward flap has been opened.

The Ice Cream Van is the 2nd issue from earlier this year, not the January 2020 issue (although it does appear to be identical). Only the certificate and box differ.

Although the more recent items may still be available to order from the Club, restrictions mean that only one of each model per address will be supplied and the Club do not accept orders from outside the UK. The Ice Cream Van has now been discontinued and the Mini-Cooper may not now be available either so this may be an opportunity for someone who is either a little late to the party or who is based abroad to catch up with these lovely new 'old' Corgis.

Contact me for more information. Ideally we would like the set to be sold in its entirety but the individual items are also being advertised so don't delay.

More new old Corgis

You may remember the issue of a reproduction 474 Ford Thames Ice Cream Van (the one with musical chimes) way back in January 2020. My article is here if you have forgotten.

The COVID-19 virus interrupted production in China and we had been hoping that what appeared to be a well-intentioned project would get going again. Earlier this year promotions started to appear once more in magazines and the original web site offered the Ice Cream Van once more. There would appear to have been very many more of these issued than first time round - tens of thousands rather than a mere 1000 or so, according to some estimates I have read. The firm managing the project do seem to have got things moving again. They have a strict 'one model per household' rule and so I was unable to get hold of another Ice Cream Van but other people are reporting that the model itself appears identical but with a different box and different paperwork coming with it. In particular, the Certificate now specifies a number and has a different design to the first issue.

Bearing in mind that no payment was required for the first model (if one ordered the next issue) and, even if someone did pay for it the price was a mere £1.99, I think we were all surprised to see these selling for £100 or more back in early 2020 but put it down to life in an Ebay world. I have to say now that £100 may have been a bargain if the buyer also received the bits and pieces as well, as there will not be many of those around.

Finally, rather later than some of my colleagues, I have received the second model in the series, the 339 BMC Mini-Cooper S 1967 Monte Carlo Winner. There were two versions, the early one had shaped wheels but this is the later issue with cast wheels.

That's the original. Below is the Chinese reproduction.

It's very good, with a very well-matched paint. I understand that the people doing this consulted Corgi for things like the colour reference to ensure that was right. (I am intrigued that there were records to consult and do wonder what else might be in the archives that Hornby acquired, but that's another story!)

The first thing that strikes me and one or two colleagues is the 'soft', almost plastic look to the jewelled lights. Whilst getting the headlamps white and fog lamps yellow as in the issued model, the inserts used seem a little cheap.

The RN177 decal is pleasantly 'yellowed' and not bright white as all the reproduction transfers seem to be but, unlike most of them, it does have the right font. The spacing and size of the digits isn't quite right but that is a minor criticism.

The most annoying fault for me is the rear number plate which has an odd spacing for the characters and looks significantly less deep than the original. The Rally stickers are also small, as you can see from comparison with the original below.

The roof rack is a splendid copy, as are the spare wheels and pins attaching them.

It's nice to see the base reproduced nicely, with the original style of text and layout retained but, of course, featuring Made in China now.

The box is very similar on four of its six sides. The original had different illustrations on opposite sides but this has the same scene printed twice. Otherwise only minor text differences are made and the obvious difference is the side that displays all the production and legal stuff. Luckily, that can sit at the bottom when the box is displayed in a cabinet.

The card itself is the right weight but the printing process used and/or card coating create a very shiny finish which is not particularly pleasant. I also found the changed design of the flaps on the ends very annoying, making them extremely difficult to open without causing a tear. Perhaps this prevents accidental opening and damage en route but I do think they should have taken a chance and left the flaps as they were. This is a most frustrating design and I now leave one flap permanently open to avoid more trouble.

Overall, this is an excellent reproduction and I admire the effort that seems to have been put in to this project and the prinicpals involved do seem to care about getting things right. I believe they have experience from Atlas and their excellent Dinky reproductions and the whole thing has a very similar feel to it, with the planned future issues, lots of goodies issued at the start and options to stop any time. I shall be continuing with this and wish them well.

Next, I believe, is The Saint's Volvo P1800. I hope they use better jewels this time but cannot imagine there is much else to go wrong there.

282 and 308 BMC Mini Cooper S Whizzwheels

As there are just a few of each of these I have listed them both in this post.

There are just two 282 editions:

The body style is very similar to type 2 but does not have the wheel arch extensions of 2a, and has the separate radiator and chrome decoration as for the 334 Mini Manifique.

Four 308 editions:

For the red interior editions you need to look out for different base colours. For the blue interiors it is the wheel style that differs.

For an explanation of the different types, please see my article titled Minis - the different types in September 2017.

317, 321, 333 and 339 Rally Mini Coopers

'Monte Carlo' Mini Coopers were issued in 1964, 1965, 1966 and 1967, as well as a Sun International Rally edition in 1967.

The first three seem to be pretty straightforward, with just one version of each!

The 1964 issue was 317, with Morris Mini Cooper on an early base. That base was also associated with fixed shaped wheels but I think all the 317s would have free spinning wheels.

Some make a distinction of a pinkish roof as opposed to white. 

The 1965 and 1966 issues were both, confusingly, numbered 321. Fortunately they are easy to tell apart with different racing number transfers and different sets of jewelled fog lamps too. The 1965 edition had quite a different front end, with two fog lamps included above the grille in the casting.

1967 saw two Rally Minis. In February the 333 Sun Rally edition and the Monte Carlo 339 followed a month later. The 333 started as an Austin-badged type 1 casting and shaped wheels, surprising as cast wheels were generally available at that time. When the second cast type was used for this model it gets the Morris badge. There may be Austin-badged cars with cast wheels but I have not yet found any.

In a similar manner to the 333 model, the 339 Monte Carlo edition spanned the period when cast wheels became the norm and the change of casting to type 2. In addition, paper labels were used for the racing numbers on the doors, making it important to examine these models carefully! I am not sure whether Austins did appear with the paper variety as these had a comparatively short production life but good quality reproductions are available that tend to confuse matters!

For an explanation of the different types, please see my article titled Minis - the different types in September 2017.

Some Suffolk Surprises

Bury St. Edmunds is a quiet town in Suffolk that saw a little excitement yesterday. You may have seen several really nice, boxed models appearing on my site recently and they came from a customer who also gave a pile to some auction people. Auctions can work very well when there are at least two people desperately wanting to buy a particular item and my colleague did well with a few that I had advised he set a high reserve for. 

The one I had predicted would be a star was, indeed, the top price of the day although, to be fair you did get five cars and an extremely scarce box for the money. This is Gift Set 46, a very strange, even to kids at the time, group of sporty looking models described as 'All Winners'.

I have yet to discover just what it was that they 'all won' and I suspect this was just one of Corgi's marketing chaps coming up with a way to move some models they had had hanging around for a while. At £480, the total cost to its new owner would be about £600, including fees and postage, easily beating my £540 estimate.

Quite a big surprise was the price reached by the 270 James Bond car.

One of the earliest of this type, which appeared in several guises over the years and finishing up with plastic wheels and flared wheel arches. It made £460 and that must be due to the packing being the early bubble type. From the pictures (I never saw the actual model) it would appear that the side flaps are missing. For what will add up finally to nearly £600 I would hope they're just folded back! 

The nicest surprise for me was the remarkable £400 paid for A Gift Set 10. 

This does look lovely but had it come my way I would have been happy to sell it for £330, which was the price I had put on it. As it is, the new owner has actually parted company with over £500 by the time he's paid the £88 buyer's premium and some postage. Although you can buy nice reproduction boxes, this set is very difficult to make up. The blue and white Ramblers are not easy to restore and the trailers, with the same two colour finish aren't easy either. So the only sets are usually featuring a pretty scarred Rambler. For some reason the paint on them just fell off if there was a draft under the door, the doors seldom closed evenly and the door trims got lost. So this, in marvellous condition, is, indeed, pretty scarce and probably worth the money.

My favourite when I first saw a list of what might be offered was the Agricultural Gift Set 5. You see so few of these with bits and pieces included that you really would have difficulty finding anywhere else. Those key items are missing here, though. There should be a driver, a farmhand, a dog, four calves, three pigs and two piglets and some more straw card. So £360 is probably about right for that, again bearing in mind that the buyer would have to part company with about £460 in total.

The last major sale from my colleague's collection is the BMC Mini Cooper 333. Packed in the all-important 225 box with a sticker and all looking immaculate, this was the most expensive item in terms of price per pound! At £340, or about £420 including fees etc., someone must have been very keen to own one. The cars are scarce but didn't sell well, even appearing in Transporter sets as Corgi wondered how to get rid of stock with 1966 on it in later years. I have one for sale at just £60. It is the box that makes all the difference.

Three other lots were of particular interest. The iconic gold 261 James Bond Aston Martin made £290, which wasn't as much as I would have thought. There are plenty of these around but they do seem to make good prices and even the £360 total seems a touch low. Maybe the box was not perfect or the instruction sheet and lapel badge were missing. They're pretty important.

Also costing someone about £360 was this 303S Mercedes 300SL. That seemed a huge price and I can only assume it is the cast wheels that have made the difference. They only were fitted quite late in this model's life and the model was withdrawn shortly afterwards. At first glance, I thought they were actually spoked wheels - the see through wire type as on the Buick, James Bond Aston etc. The Corgi Catalogue shows this model with such wire spoked wheels as 'Available Later' (and also on the Competition Aston Martin) and for a long time I searched for these models or even pictures of them. Eventually I gave up on the Aston Martin and reckoned that the cast spoke effect wheels were what were actually issued for the Mercedes. I still look at the front wheel in this picture and my heart skips a beat but I reckon it is just a very clean cast variety.

That is definitely one to look out for, though. The Mercedes is not uncommon and you may well find an example with the scarce wheels at a modest price.

Lastly, I had placed a bid on these two myself as I have been trying to get a bronze Sting Ray for ages. But my maximum was very quickly passed as the bids sailed up to £290, meaning another £360 sale for the pair. The Oldsmobile looks lovely but they are really quite common and there are plenty still in great condition and with nice boxes for around £100. I have several varieties for sale at the moment. This, with cast wheels and no tow bar would seem to be the most common too so the big money, probably getting on for £300 is for the Sting Ray. Again, boxes are not expensive as there are loads with crimson Sting Rays in which can be used. So this bronze model on its own is costing about £250. 

That probably screws my chances of getting one anytime soon!

I understand that there are a few items that my colleague didn't sell at the auction and he has said that I may get these in a while. I am not yet sure what they'll be but I am fairly confident that a Riviera Gift Set 31 will be amongst them - a lovely original set with the earlier, light blue Buick.

I have also decided to make a couple of sets using good reproduction boxes and some replacement characters (but original cars, boats and trailers) so, as winter draws on, we can gaze on some girl surfing on a cardboard sea in December or January.

The Magnificent Mini

One of June's arrivals is a nice green #334 Mini. These seem to go as fast as they come in and do represent what might have been the peak of the Corgi era. This was December 1968 and the engineering is tremendous. There is a lot going on in this model: doors, tilting seat backs, a sliding roof blind, opening boot and a detailed engine under an opening bonnet. Chrome running all around, just like the strip that real minis had. That is also cleverly moulded into an attractive radiator grill and even has the double bars at the corners.

Add a couple of jewelled headlamps and a consistently excellent paint finish and it looks pretty good for 7/6d, especially as The Monkeemobile, released at the same time and which didn't do anything, cost a shilling more.

The window box they came in tended to get broken easily and thrown away so they're hard to find now and most I see are unboxed. They're probably worth specialising in and getting some decent reproduction boxes for as I can see these being one of the models that will always be in demand.

The base bills it as a BMC Mini Cooper S and the box calls it a Mini 'Manifique'. I don't don't about the 'Manifique' bit but it certainly looks right for the Cooper S.

Even the badge shape is right! Amazing. There weren't that many around in those days.