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ALL OUR BEST WISHES FOR THIS NEW YEAR.
Discover a selection of models that will be on sale this week from tomorrow Monday, JANUARY 6, 2025 until Thursday, JANUARY 9 on our website
on sale this week: Tekno – Ford Taunus Haribo 419 – Tekno – Ford Taunus van N.L Dehn 419 – Dinky Toys GB – coffret dining room furniture 101 – Dinky Toys GB – coffret kitchen furniture 103
i remember
…that among the plastic animal figurines that accompanied the miniatures, those of Corgi Toys were my favorite. I particularly liked the Saint Bernard that accompanied the Citroën ID19 Alpine Rescue.
He had something reassuring. It seemed to me that with such a companion nothing bad could happen.
This miniature and its environment, characters and illustrations, were made to open the imagination of the little customers. The drawing with the small plane damaged in the snow that appeared on the back of the box of the Citroën ID19 alpine rescue, was a great starting point to imagine adventures.
The adult collectors who appropriated these objects diverted them from their primary purpose. But for those who have kept some memories and their child’s soul, the magic can still work.
on sale this week: Corgi Toys – Citroën ID19 break Alpine Rescue 513
In the copy on sale this week, the model and the box are in perfect condition, the characters still in their original bubble. And that raises questions. How come such a playful object has not been used?
It is surely an unsold item from a store. The amateur collectors of the time rarely bought this type of product which is clearly a toy and not a model. The latter probably preferred to acquire the Citroën Break ID19, a model from C-I-J, Dinky Toys or Norev. A classic variation, without markings.
playful sets
The Swansea firm has clearly and quickly positioned itself in the fun niche. It has thus been able to capture a younger clientele than that of Dinky Toys. Animal figurines have quickly accompanied the models. They appeared with the series dedicated to the Chipperfields circus and that dedicated to the agricultural world.
These figurines can constitute a common thread, a theme for Corgi Toys collectors. The bull of the Lamborghini, the rhinoceros of the Volkswagen Safari, the dolphins of the Berliet aquarium semi-trailer or the kangaroo of the Hillman Hunter are some examples of the products born from the overflowing imagination of the English design office.
on sale this week: Corgi Toys – Berliet tracteur semi van chevaux National 1105
This week we also have a beautiful Berliet tractor semi-trailer van with horses. Corgi Toys must not have regretted the design of this trailer which has stood the test of time and seen many variations.
The one with the Berliet tractor is not the most common. In the example for sale the horses are also in their plastic bubble. This trailer was first used to transport circus horses before being used for racehorses.
The Land Rover Daktari is another example of the Corgi Toys spirit. The Swansea firm has managed to make a tiger, a lion and a chimpanzee live together. This is a very interesting intermediate version that is offered this week, situated between the first, equipped with steel rims and the last with plastic wheels. It has zamac molded rims which are often synonymous with rare variants at Corgi Toys.
on sale this week: Corgi Toys – Land Rover pick up Daktari GS7
Another TV series on the program, the Chevrolet van from “Charlie’s Angels”. No animals, but a beautiful box with the photo of the three heroines on the back of the latter which contributes to the pleasure of the purchase. In this case, it is the photo of the three heroines, which must open the imagination. Let’s bet that this photo also fueled the dreams of young buyers. Let’s savor this product ahead of its time, because in 1978, there were few series where women led the action.
on sale this week: Corgi Toys – Chevrolet fourgon Charlie’s angels 434
Another Corgi Toys on the menu this week, and which must have also had an effect on young buyers: the “SOS” box. For a toy manufacturer, the presence of a helicopter in a box is synonymous with guaranteed success. This machine has always had an effect. It allowed Corgi Toys to liquidate a few Ford Granadas and Range Rovers, also present in this box. This product dating from the mid-seventies is rare. Again, because of its assumed playful function, it was shunned when it was released.
This is the first one I have for sale in forty years of activity.
The presence of a box in perfect condition is essential to the pleasure of the acquisition.
on sale this week: Corgi Toys – coffret SOS police GS18
solido junior
It was the playful aspect of transforming toys that motivated Mr. Ferdinand De Vazeilles when he launched his Solido range of miniatures.
Manufacturing quality was also part of the DNA of his brand. These two concepts would serve as a common thread during the presence of the de Vazeilles family at the head of the company, until the mid-seventies. Disassemble, assemble, transform, these are words that would accompany the Major, Junior, Baby, Mosquito series.
This week we have some beautiful examples of the latest Juniors.
They date from the arrival of his children, Jean and his two sisters, at the head of the company in the mid-fifties. The latter had realized that it was now necessary to reproduce the cars as faithfully as possible so that children could easily identify them. This would lead to the manufacture of cars with a single-piece body.
on sale this week: Solido – Studebaker Commander JUNIOR
The freedom given to children to create vehicles using two or three different hoods and bodies will disappear, and with it, a certain conception of the toy.
In the mid-fifties, it was American cars that made people dream.
The management of Solido therefore drew part of its inspiration from the other side of the Atlantic. We have a Studebaker Commander and a Mercury convertible
on sale this week: Solido – Mercury cabriolet JUNIOR
.. The latter can receive two different finishes: coupe or convertible.
The turquoise color of the model for sale suits it very well.
The latter is a rare Mercedes 300. The mention of this car immediately brings to mind the one offered by Märklin. The Solido is much rarer.
These models are unfairly shunned by many enthusiasts. The affordable prices are a pretext for their rediscovery. They form a set where the playful spirit predominates.
on sale this week: Corgi Toys – Lotus Elan S2 318
other beautiful sets
Solido has rarely used the trick that many of its competitors have sometimes used to the point of exhaustion, which consists of creating boxes to sell off part of the production.
An attractive price, given the number of models, served this purpose. If we go further, we can see in this practice the sign of the precarious health of the manufacturer.
When the Vazeilles family left the company, the buyers did not deprive themselves of this practice, at the risk of tiring collectors, in the 1990s and 2000s. I speak from experience. We stopped buying new Solido products in 1990.
on sale this week: Solido – coffret sports d’hiver 617
The two boxes offered this week mark a pivotal period.
Jean de Vazeilles explained that he had left the buyers in the mid-seventies, a “catalogue” and many projects.
These two boxes are part of this heritage. They also seem to be inspired by those seen in the 100/200 series (three boxes).
I like the one setting the action in the mountains in winter. I also see a nod to Corgi Toys.
Several details can be a pretext for their acquisition. The decor of the box inviting the viewer to immerse themselves in the joys of snow sports and the cold of winter, the character wearing his cross-country skis, the gallery with its skis that equips the Lancia Beta and of course, the Unic Marmon snowplow that opens the road.
The other box features a Peugeot 504 estate and a horse van. We can regret that Solido did not decorate its box with an animated scene as Corgi Toys knew so well how to do.
The products are of quality, but the horse, alone, lost in its large box has a little trouble moving us. It lacks a human presence.
on sale this week: Solido – Peugeot 504 break avec remorque van 616
The other two boxes from Liverpool on the menu this week are much more evocative.
Some will say that Liverpool, thanks to the magic of its packaging, has managed to erase some of the shortcomings of its models.
The presentation is dynamic, with the three models presented at an angle.
But it is above all the drawing in the upper corner that conditions the viewer. It is successful.
on sale this week: Dinky Toys GB – coffret international GT gift set 246
In the “International GT” the representation of the circuit chicane must have motivated more than one young buyer. It resembles that of the Goodwood circuit.
These boxes are rare. They were not distributed in France. They also support the following theory. You have noticed that they contain late, less frequent colors. They were therefore used to sell off part of the excess from the end of production.
on sale this week: Dinky Toys GB – coffret Superfast gift set 245
A word about another box that is close to my heart and that enthusiasts do not know how to appreciate at its true value. It is the one containing the Commer articulated semi-trailer, which can be declined with high openwork sides or with a tarpaulin. Liverpool used the mold of its Commer tow truck. This box is rare, especially in a beautiful state of preservation. The straw yellow color, very fragile, makes the slightest defect jump out at you.
on sale this week: Dinky Toys GB – Commer semi remorque transformable 424
My favorite for these two Norev sets
My favorite for these two Norev boxes.
No evocative drawings, no expressive characters, just a car towing a flatbed trailer on which rests a racing car.
It’s simple, almost rustic compared to what we saw above.
And so you might ask me, why do these boxes win my support?
The magic power of these two boxes lies in their titles: “Grand Prix de Montléry” and “1000km de Spa”. That says it all.
on sale this week: Norev – coffret Grand Prix de Montléry 104
Reading the titles of these boxes takes me back to the world of motorsport in the seventies. I think back to the exploits of Rodriguez and Siffert, associated with the evocative names of certain bends on the Spa circuit: Malmédy, Stavelot, la source.
The other box evokes the many meetings that enlivened Parisian weekends on the Montléry circuit ring. We rarely talk about it, but in addition to the quality of its products, Norev excelled in the art of creating an atmosphere through the choice of the title of its boxes: “Foire de Beaucroissant” “transport exceptionnelle” “zone bleu” “Targa Florio” “1000km du Nürburgring” “TIR”.
So many evocative titles that immediately put the young buyer in the mood.
on sale this week: Norev – coffret 1000kms Spa 110
Vincent Espinasse
also coming on sale this week:
