The Farming Models Gift Set 22

 

One day I will try to gather all the items for the lovely Gift Set 22 Farming Models. The very first set was issued in September 1962, before the deep green 438 Land Rover was available individually. In those early sets was what I call a 'farm green' Series II Land Rover which would have been a 406S had it been issued in a box on its own. These are hard to find now and most that I have encountered appear to have had a pretty hard life on the farm too!

The Land Rover tows another item unique to this set - an all yellow 101 flat bed trailer. The first ones would have had fixed shaped wheels which will be about as scarce as the farm green Land Rover. Later they had free-spinning wheels fitted but I don't know whether this would have been before the deep green 438 started to be used or after. One would guess that, as the deep green 438 appears on the shelves in December 1962 it would also have been put in the Gift Sets once stock of the farm green edition had been used up.

Only 31000 of these sets were produced, according to the records, which isn't very many. By comparison the 351S RAF Land Rover is supposed to have had 25000 produced and you know how hard is to find those now!

The other components in the Gift Set 22 were initially:

• 1111 Combine Harvester
• 53 Massey Ferguson Tractor with shovel attachment
• 51 Massey Ferguson Trailer
• 55 Fordson Power Major Tractor
• 56 Four Furrow Plough
• 1487 Milk Churns
• 1490 Skip & 3 larger Churns to fit on the rear of the Massey Ferguson
• 3 Drivers, each different, for the tractors and Combine Harvester.

Despite its low sales, the set remained available until 1965 and, along the way, changes were made to what was in the box. 

• The normal 438 replaced the farm green 406S
• The 60 Fordson Power Major replaced the 55 version
• The 61 Plough replaced the 56 version
• The 57 Massey Ferguson Tractor with a Fork attachment may have replaced the 53 with a Shovel attachment but I'm not sure. I have only seen sets with the later item but it was not available when the set was first made available.
• The 62 Tipping trailer replaces the 51 Trailer but that will only be late in production as the trailer only gets issued in February 1965 and none of the sets I have seen illustrated seem to have the raves.

So most of the other components are fairly easy to find. It could be a bit of a struggle to find the different driver for the Combine Harvester but the other two gents will be with the later issues of the Massey Ferguson tractors in sets or in the box for the Fordson. You don't see many of the big milk churns or the skip but as a 1490 set they should appear from time to time and the 1487 block is common.

Now there's something that the Corgi Model Club could help us out with!! We haven't had anything agricultural from them yet.

I haven't looked to see whether anyone does a reproduction box but I am sure one will be available, if not both. That does mean you need to be careful, though, and make sure you get the right items for whatever box you find! (I will update later with more about this).

Lastly, you'll see that I have found a way to add some nice backgrounds to images! This is AI at work and most impressive it is too. One of my first efforts is below with the lovely 273 Rolls Royce with Golden Jacks. I have just packed up my silver over metallic blue edition which, interestingly went to an Andrew Windsor! So I had to use the slightly more common cream over muddy blue but it still looks good.

New arrivals in 2020 Pt 2

Another example of the rare Citroen with fog lamps has come along. It is not in the best of condition and it is beginning to look as though the fog lamps go hand-in-hand with free spinning wheels on this model.

At first glance this looks like any other Morris Mini-Cooper but it is a scarce type which has a white bonnet and free-spinning wheels. Usually it is only the models with just a white roof only that have the free spinning wheels.

A super example of the gold Bentley, issued in the Golden Guinea Set. As this set sold only about 30,000, the models in it are really much scarcer than many people seem to realise. That is not a great deal more than a 322 Rover International Rally edition, for example, regarded as one of the more expensive Corgis.

Issued in 1959 and withdrawn in 1960, this was the last but one model to have a friction motor and these are now hard to find in good condition. I am lucky that this one also has a smooth, working motor.

Most early 438 Land Rovers you'll encounter will be in deep green but the very first that were include in the Farming Gift set 22s were a much lighter shade, more of a mid-green. They did not have a canopy, nor were they ever issued in individual boxes to buy at your local store. So these are quite rare and worth a good price, especially when coupled with the all yellow 101 trailer. that too, was only available in that Gift Set. It did survive to get coupled to the deep green Land Rover too, however, so, whilst not at all easy to find is slightly less expensive.

The first Fordson Power Major Tractor, model 55, coupled with the first edition plough, model 56 to make Gift Set 18. The plough would only fit this tractor, with each using a very accurate but awkward attachment method. This Fordson has the later red plastic wheels but early editions had pale orange metal wheels. I don't know which are the scarcer.

The Massey Ferguson Combine Harvester was on my Christmas and Birthday Lists for many years but never arrived. It was quite expensive at 19/11d. (That's one penny, or about ½p less than £1) when first issued in 1959 with metal times like this one. This edition is unusual, however, in having orange wheels.

From the same collection as the Combine Harvester, I received this lovely Massey Ferguson 65 Tractor with a Fork attachment, also featuring unusual orange wheels. Both came from the States and I wonder whether the export models had different wheels.

Continuing my purchase these days only of the slightly uncommon models, here is what looks like a very ordinary, and not very good condition, 218 Aston Martin DB4. It has fixed shaped wheels, however, and they are looking to be quite rare on this model. It started with smooth wheels but also was fitted with a criss-cross type of cast wheel to look like spoked wheels and later editions got free-spinning wheels. Those with shaped wheels, however, like this one, are few and far between.

One way to use up the stock of spare Hillman Imp castings was to make them Monte Carlo Rally editions and Corgi did this a couple of times. In 1966 there was the 328 Hillman Imp and a year later along comes the 340 Sunbeam Imp. The 328 gets a couple of jewels added but the 340 gets six, with two replacing the headlights. The interior is a distinctly different white too.

I finally got a black hard top - and another E Type Jaguar to put it on! Love this model.

With a big chunk of paint missing from the front of the bonnet, this 281 Whizzwheels Rover 2000TC is not exactly mint but it dos have a complete chrome section front and rear. It is such a shame that this model had such poor paint, which comes off if you as much as blow on it, and very brittle plastic used for the revised front end. One of the rare ones, though, with only 48000 made. That's less than the yellow Fiat Ghia Jolly.

Another model only around for a very short time and selling in small numbers was the Whizzwheels version of the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, two models now available in a strange pink colour. Note the different headlamp covers too. I need a supply of right hand targa tops! It is always the right one that goes missing!

The rather better and gorgeous-looking 300 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, also only available for a short period before getting the Whizzwheels treatment.

A rare 'transition' model - the 387 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray with Whizzwheels but retaining the rear jewelled lights which were mere blobs of casting metal in the vast majrity of models. This one now gets its right-hand targa top which had been mssing for a year or two.

A nice example of the rare 438 in deep green and red interior.

A complete Gift set 41 with all the right cars on the Transporter.

Here is something most unusual. The 319 Lotus Elan from the Lotus Racing Gift Set 37 but with spoked wheels! In fact, the chassis came from a 318 from the same set but that was in very poor condition so I switched it to this one. I presume this is something that someone has created at some time. Looks great and a lot nicer than either the small shaped wheels or cast wheels normally used.

These Rover 2000 International Rally models are expensive so I could only manage to get this quite worn example. It is all original and the screens are undamaged, though, which means it still will not be cheap.

Lastly for now, a very rare Land Rover! It is the fawn edition from Gift Set 2 but with a yellow interior. I didn't even know that this existed until a collector friend in Germany told me about one he had found. I had to pay quite a bit to someone in America for this one, not because of its scarcity but because it was in America and, for some reason best known to Americans, they all want to use some Global Shipping Programme that is really profitable for whoever runs it and ruddy expensive for us who have to pay. It was also virtually unmarked, as was the matching Pony Trailer.

Charm on the farm

If you had been looking for a green series II Land Rover then September 1962 would have provided the first opportunity when Corgi issued Gift Set 22. This was a huge set containing lots of farm models and extra bits and pieces. Two items in the early sets were unique: the all yellow flatbed trailer and a mid-green 438 Land Rover with no canopy.

Shown above between the Public Address model and a Series 1 406 it is a pretty similar shade to those two and quite distinct from the deep green that you would have found in a box at the shop later that year.

Indeed, many Gift Set 22s seem to have the deep green model so my guess is that Corgi replaced the mid-green version at some point. The Gift Set did not sell particularly well as it was expensive at 50 shillings. That's almost one and a half Transporter Sets. So, for a number of reasons, the mid-green Land Rover in 438 Series II form is a rare item. Indeed, for a long time I have not been totally convinced that it existed. I had peered at small images on various sites trying to decide whether what appeared a lighter green was, in fact, just the light or even an old 406 that had been put in the set.

This example of the Land Rover is pretty worn, missing a spare wheel and quite a lot of paint. The hook is also missing its tip. The screens are fairly clear, however, and the suspension sound. I tell myself that clean, shiny Land Rovers never look quite right anyway!

The trailer is cheerful. It looks slightly too big behind the Land Rover but it is the same as the other later-issue 101 Platform Trailers issued, having the fixed drawbar and free-spinning shaped wheels.

The search is now on for a slightly better example to be kept in a collection so these will be available to buy soon and the proceeds put towards the next ones. On past form, however, it may be a few years before another of either of these items comes along other than in a Gift Set at a thousand or two pounds (which is what this one is going for!)

This week we have seen gold-plated Corgis on the market for pretty huge sums but it is really sets like this that I prize. Despite what some may think the gold models might fetch, these farm models and similar regular issues have that certain charm and, in my view, are what Corgis are really all about.