Auto collectibles and paraphernalia...

fintail

The plastic models are definitely more detailed than smaller diecast. The diecast cars like Corgi and Dinky are 1:43 scale, and were made as toys first, models second. Plastic is also a lot easier to cast than metal, in terms of fine detail.

uplanderguy

The 'marriage' occurred in 1957. 1956 was a financial bloodbath, and with Packard out of production, the losses were 1/4 what they were in '56--but still losses. In '59 they had the biggest profit ever in their 114-year history, due to the Lark.

On topic: I have the Matchbox Wagonaire (discussed previously here) and also the Corgi Wagonaire with TV cameraman standing in the back. I think I paid $20 for the Corgi at Hershey and maybe $15 for the Wagonaire on eBay, both some years back. I also have an Eko Gran Turismo Hawk, looking to be of the scale used in model train layouts. It's in a clear plastic case that says "Eko Made in Spain". I assume that's the car and case, and not just the case.

fintail

Yes, Eko was a maker of 1:87 (HO Scale) plastic models.

There was another Spanish maker called "Anguplas" who had a few 1:87 Studebakers in their range - I had a few of these, but sold them long ago. They should still be relatively inexpensive:

uplanderguy

I wasn't aware of the Lark little cars, but I think I have seen the Avanti ones. Neat to me that all three of Stude's car lineup of those last few years could be purchased in 'mini' form.

A friend who's a vendor at swap meets has an Avanti race car set, still unopened, for sale. I haven't seen it but I'd think it's cool.

andys120

I had a slew of Dinkys when I was a kid in the 50s including a Lagonda tourer, an MG (TF?), a Jag (Mk1), a Rolls (Cloud) and a Morris Minor as well as a bunch of Armored cars and military trucks. I'm sure that's why I have been so Euro-centric in my auto-mania.

fintail

I find it interesting that they were offered by a European maker - I think the size and styling of Studebakers made them more relevant to European tastes, compared to other domestics of the same era.

uplanderguy said:

I wasn't aware of the Lark little cars, but I think I have seen the Avanti ones. Neat to me that all three of Stude's car lineup of those last few years could be purchased in 'mini' form.

A friend who's a vendor at swap meets has an Avanti race car set, still unopened, for sale. I haven't seen it but I'd think it's cool.

fintail

The European/British toy makers tended to have local products in their fleet, I suspect it did influence American purchasers. It wasn't until the brands had success in the US that they offered broader American brand lineups - Matchbox didn't have much American content until the early 60s, when the US became a key market.

andys120 said:

I had a slew of Dinkys when I was a kid in the 50s including a Lagonda tourer, an MG (TF?), a Jag (Mk1), a Rolls (Cloud) and a Morris Minor as well as a bunch of Armored cars and military trucks. I'm sure that's why I have been so Euro-centric in my auto-mania.

lemko

uplanderguy said:

My parents were both from poor families--born in the late '20's so were depression kids. That made them very practical, even after they could afford to spend more, they didn't. I think I picked that trait up.

Dad retired from the post office and was in the Marine Corps reserves, and we lived in a small town--we did OK. Dad would never buy a house though...they rented a house that Mom was in for 29 years and when she moved into assisted living she was still paying $200 a month--little ranch with basement and one-car attached garage built in 1956 with probably 2/3 an acre of land. They could've bought a house of course, but I think he always feared another depression.

He did buy himself a new Chevy probably every three or four years. That was his one extravagance. He'd always buy Mom something new, like an appliance, at about the same time. After he retired, they travelled on bus trips a good bit. They loved Atlantic City, where they'd drop a grand gambling in one weekend, which drove me nuts! But it was their money.

My wife and I both have good jobs, but mine is straight commission and I am always aware it could change at any moment. We're practical and wish to put both our kids through college with no loans if at all possible, but it's tough. I also don't want to worry about money in retirement but I think we'll be OK.

Times sure have changed. Sorry for the ramble; I think personally the worst thing to happen in this country is the loss of so many manufacturing jobs here. That has largely decimated my little hometown.

My wife tells me I should buy another Studebaker when the kids are out of school, but the problem then will be there will be NOBODY that'll work on them.

The loss of those manufacturing jobs decimated my whole city. Philadelphia was once known as "The Workshop of the World." Everything was made here from apparel to locomotives. We had a modest but comfortable living from Dad's job in a manufacturing plant and Mom's job in the apparel industry. My Dad had only a high school education and a short stint in the Navy. Today, one would probably need a Master's Degree to match what my Dad had with a modest education. I do well for myself. My wife, eh, not so much. We pretty much forewent the thought of even having kids. It would be financial suicide. A friend of mine is putting his daughter through law school and paying for all of it. He's giving her a huge advantage as she won't have the onerous burden of student loan debt. Most kids are coming out of school with student loan debt equivalent to a mortgage and little to no job prospects.

fintail

Wasn't sure where to post this - here's a fantastic collection of MB brochures from prewar to the 90s

Mr_Shiftright

What do you think I could get for my Jim Beam 1973 VW? (PS: No juice, no cork, very nice condition, better than this photo)

berri

Now when I think "Jim Beam", from a southern perspective shouldn't that flask be a beat up pickup truck? Or maybe that is a northeastern perspective on a southern topic

Mr_Shiftright

Does seem to be a culture clash, that's true....

fintail

Prices seem to be all over the place on ebay completed auctions. Maybe $20-30? To a VW nut.

stever

Be fun to have since I'm a fan of both. My last Bug was an orange Super Beetle. But for $30, I can get two bottles of Jim, and sometimes they throw in a free T.

Mr_Shiftright

I'll make you a great deal Steve. This model is a whoppin' 14" long, so good bang for the buck. You could buy it, and a bottle of JB, and a cork, and serve it that way. How cool is that?

stever

lol, guess I best PM you. :-)

lemko

Here's a real interesting toy! It's a replica of the Beverly Hillbillies' 1921 Oldsmobile Model 46 roadster modified flatbed truck made by Ideal from 1963.

Michaell

Hey guys! Been following this discussion for a while but never needed to post ... until now.

I'm moving into a new house so am purging all the stuff from the old house. Found a box containing some Matchbox cars from my childhood (40 years ago). A couple of plastic cases of the "traditional" cars, plus a bunch of the "models of yesteryear" that are wrapped in paper. Condition varies.

I need to get rid of them .. PM me directly if anyone is interested.

boomchek

Can you post some pictures and details Michaell?

Michaell

boomchek said:

Can you post some pictures and details Michaell?

I should have some time tomorrow to do that .. spending way too much time (and money) at the new house this weekend.

fintail

I just learned that Germany has kept expanding the line of classic car postage stamps they started a few years ago, and recently featured a fintail:



Not bad, just needs wider whitewalls - narrow band weren't until the final run model year 1965 cars, I think.

andys120

Yes, it's amazing how much those sidewalls shrunk between '59 and '65.

1959>

1965>

fintail

MB used a wider whitewall through MY 1964, even on early W113. Here's an ad for the new 230SL (Stude credit at bottom, too):



Fintail ads from the same year showing off their whitewalls:





1964 brochure shots:





But by 1965, things became more modern:

Mr_Shiftright

I have to say I much prefer the thinner whitewall on the SLs and newer 280s. On the older Benzes, the fatter whitewalls seem appropriate because these cars are a less modern design. I think they look a tad cartoonish on an SL.

sda

fintail said:

I just learned that Germany has kept expanding the line of classic car postage stamps they started a few years ago, and recently featured a fintail:



Not bad, just needs wider whitewalls - narrow band weren't until the final run model year 1965 cars, I think.

No wonder I'm drawn to the W111, it was born the same year as I was (1959)! Modern and sharp, that's it!

fintail

I just hope you didn't fall out of fashion as fast as those fins

sda said:

No wonder I'm drawn to the W111, it was born the same year as I was (1959)! Modern and sharp, that's it!

Mr_Shiftright

Fins are like bellbottoms....someday.... SOME DAY....they will be back!

andys120

Mr_Shiftright said:

Fins are like bellbottoms....someday.... SOME DAY....they will be back!

I'm waiting for wraparounds to come back!


Imagine it, cars you can see out of again.

Mr_Shiftright

Even if everything looks like a fishbowl?

fintail

Just watch out for those doglegs.

I think cars like the fintail and several others (Mopars, Studes, etc) did it best - more upright a-pillar, some wraparound, but no pillar intrusion into the entrance space.

sda

andys120 said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

Fins are like bellbottoms....someday.... SOME DAY....they will be back!

I'm waiting for wraparounds to come back!


Imagine it, cars you can see out of again.

I like that '59 Bonneville. Dad had a black '59 Catalina 2dr hardtop. I think he bought it in '61 and don't know any history about it. Traded it in '65 for a '63 Olds. I remember dad telling my 2 sisters and me not to step on the floor in the back, only to sit on the seat. The floors had already rotted out, prompting dad to buy the Olds. Rotted out in 6 years! My father in law had a '60 Impala. He said it leaked around the dog leg windshield from day one. Multiple attempts by the dealer failed. The carpet stank and the floors rotted on that one, too.

uplanderguy

Stude never spent the money to convert the coupes and hardtops (later Hawks) to wraparound windshields, which by the early sixties was a totally accidental good thing!

fintail

Wraparound windshields look cool, but must have been a huge expense for tooling and production - they really only lasted several years. By 1961, the game was ending. Of course, with the market at the time, profit margins had to have been so huge that it could be justified.

uplanderguy

Stude introduced wraparound windshield on sedans and wagons mid-way through '55. That, on top of the sedans/wagons and coupes/hardtops being two totally different cars since '53 (not a piece of sheetmetal or glass will fit between the two) seems like a crazy expense.

andys120

Wraparounds became popular in Europe during the early 60s

fintail

Here's a funny thing I mentioned before. A few years ago my mother mentioned to me that she found an old advertising thermometer at a yardsale, and she bought it because it featured a car that was "just like the fintail". I look forward to see what this actually was, and this is what I was greeted with:



The color is somewhat similar, I guess, but that might be about it. Funny how things are to people who aren't obsessive (I once met a guy who thought the fintail was a Bentley, no joke).

berri

Wrap arounds probably can't come back due to crush and safety regulations and rust was just a big issue back in those days. But the cars were kind of cool and exciting!

texases

Many of you may have seen this Lesney video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_Yjyy_Rp2A

texases

Discovered: the first Matchbox! Or is it a Dinky? edit - must be Dinky, they were first...
https://jalopnik.com/archaeologists-find-5-000-year-old-toy-chariot-in-ancie-1819765277

Mr_Shiftright

Looks like they did some modern restoration work on it, so it's not factory-stock anymore

fintail

Visited an automobilia dealer in Vancouver, found something interesting. The August 1959 issue of In Aller Welt, the corporate magazine of M-B, similar content to Ford Times, stories mixed with cars (but in a larger format). August 1959 is significant, as this was the launch of the W111 fintail. For under $10, I couldn't pass this up:

Mr_Shiftright

It actually looks pretty good in red/white. I hope the young woman it ran over is okay.

omarman

One eye is bigger than the other. All things considered I guess that's okay.

fintail

Maybe she's winking.

I've never seen a red and white fintail before - it might be more of an early run thing. A design that was pretty modern in 1959 looked pretty vintage by 1965.

Mr_Shiftright

The fintail was the last completely European Benz.

fintail

I look at it a baby step for the US market, with the fins.

andys120

fintail said:

I look at it a baby step for the US market, with the fins.

Fins and wraparound glass were all the rage for Eurocars in the late 50s and early 60s including many that were never officially exported to the USA.










I could go on but you get the picture. Not since the 1930s had Detroit made such an impact on European (and Japanese) styling and not since.

omarman

fintail said:

Maybe she's winking.

I've never seen a red and white fintail before - it might be more of an early run thing. A design that was pretty modern in 1959 looked pretty vintage by 1965.

Winking with both eyes open...and one of them is bigger than the other.

Maybe the bright primary colors were used just for the glossy magazine pics without reflecting the factory color options for that car. Note that the model shows her blue top and white gloves in both shots with the red car with white top.

fintail

I have to believe at least one reason for the appearance of fins, chrome, two-toning etc was to appeal to the US market - the dollar was strong and exports were vital. That was also the end of the last era when American passenger cars had global relevance, and it showed with styling influence. We definitely got the Borgward and other Facel-Vegas, and I suspect at least one specialty importer had the Auto Union mini-Thunderbird, too. A lot more fintails were sold than pontons as well.

The white gloves are something else I think was in style in 1959 but passe a few years later. Maybe half-winking was a thing then too

omarman

That red and white car reminds me of a story about the Plymouth cars used on the show Car 54, Where Are You? The show was filmed in black and white but the cars were painted red and white. According to Wiki:
"The TV show's police cars on location shots were actually bright red and white, which appeared as the proper shade of gray for an NYPD car on black-and-white film. NYPD cars of that era were black and green with a white roof and trunk".

Maybe that red and white fintail was originally set up to be used in B+W print media? Anyway, nice looking color combo even if it's very unusual for that model/year.