Time for a surprise, as I have a few spare minutes this morning. 3 weeks ago I found this Corgi at an estate sale, and thought I would share it today. This is Corgi 261, the James Bond Aston Martin DB5. This model was in the range from 1965-69, and is a legendary toy today. This is the original, not a later issue. It’s a cool casting:
There is ample detail from all angles. I especially like the cast metal wire wheels, which aren’t chromed or too shiny - they make it look like the car is driven. I estimate scale to be around 1:43. For something that was meant as a toy first, it is a nice piece:
Front and rear have similar detail:
The base is pretty, well, basic, but that’s OK. Here you can see the levers for the special features:
These features are what made this car special. They are as follows - ejector seat (with baddie to eject), front ram/guns, and rear shield. The ejector seat and front protection operate via tabs on the side, the rear shield by the exhaust tip. After all these years the roof still springs open cleanly:
The baddie is still there, aiming his gun at Bond:
The front defenses operate with ease:
The rear shield needs to be helped up, but it still operates:
It’s a pretty sharp piece that I was thrilled to find for something like $12 I think. I was going to sell it, but now I think I will keep it:
And the real thing as seen in “Goldfinger”, from imcdb:
