DINKY TOY AIRCRAFT
these miniature masterpieces in decent condition . For instance , a second issue Dinky 60 set of six was sold for £ 800 against an estimate of £ 1,000 to 1,300 , for which you got , in pristine condition , a 60a Armstrong Whitworth Argosy ( coyly called ‘ Imperial Airways airliner ’), 60b DH 85 Leopard Moth , 60c Percival Gull , 60d ‘ Low wing Monoplane ’ ( a Boeing P-26 ?), 60e General Aircraft Monospar and 60f Cierva C . 30 autogiro – all rare and early examples , and no metal fatigue , no knocks , about £ 130 per plane , which is actually not bad for any of these .
Likewise , a box of mixed period ( including ‘ revival ’ ( post 1973 ) ones , all well played with , sold at Bamfords recently for £ 22 . Indeed , Spitfires and Hurricanes in silver rather than camouflage and small post war fighters like Gloster Meteor IIIs and P-33 Shooting Stars ( which lacked the fragile red tin propellors of the former pair ) can be had almost for pence if you look around . And the attraction is that you get some completely forgotten aircraft types , like the Bristol 173 twin rotor helicopter of 1952 (£ 30-40 ), which never really got into serious production , perhaps because on its initial flight on 3 January 1952 , it was found it tended to fly backwards !
After 1973 the firm , taken over as described last month , made more modern types with glazed cockpits / windows , retractable undercarriages and other refinements . They also produced Thunderbirds craft and other TV spin-offs . To me , they are less interesting but , with their ( often elaborate ) boxes , they can still set you back a few bob , nevertheless !
Pictures ; Opposite page : Airspeed Envoy , King ’ s Flight This page : From the top , left to right : Dinky 749 Avro Vulcan . Dewoitine D . 500 . Mayo Composite with box . My Vickers Viking . DH91 Albatross Imperial Airways airliner . Me 110 ( with propellors – these tended to become permanently detached rather easily !). Supermarine Swift . Bristol 173 helicopter . WW2 Armstrong Whitworth Whitley bomber ( as flown by Leonard Cheshire VC ) with box , £ 150 . No . 60 set , mint in box [ Vectis Auctions ]
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