A few months ago, I found some vintage diecast at an estate sale and shared them here, even selling a few. This morning, it happened again. I got up way too early, waited in line for a long time (they operate by a “list” here, be early on the list or go home), and probably spent more than I should have. Here’s the horde, or hoard:
First off - Corgi. Monkeemobile is in nice shape and has figures, VW tow truck is cool, VW Polizei is interesting as the wheels steer by turning the roof dome light, Heinkel is fun, Ferrari is pretty with lovely rear hood/engine cover action, Marlin is as odd as the real car:
And Dinky. Most of these are older, and have more wear. Black Simca Ariane is a French Dinky. Beetle at lower right is a 50s issue oval window very near mint, I’ll be keeping that. Porsche 912 is a Politoys, couldn’t resist jeweled lights:
And Lesney Matchbox. This was irksome, as I was in and on such a rush at the sale, I didn’t check them closely. The canteen is relatively scarce with fine grey plastic wheels, but tow hitch is broken. VW camper is also has slightly unusual fine grey plastic wheels, and is in decent shape. MB coupe has slightly less common grey plastic wheels, but that red paint chipped easily from new. Ford wagon up front is a minor rarity with black base and black wheels and is near mint, but....also missing tow hook. Still a steal at $4, it would be worth in the hundreds mint in box.
Prices were OK, kind of random - all kind of flea market prices, but inconsistent and kind of illogical. A lot of estate sale companies here are operated by general antique dealers or appraisers, and they seldom know much about toys. Many common castings were left behind by me- a loose mildly worn Corgi Batmobile is not worth $85 etc, yet I will buy $4 Lesney rarities all day. Most everything else I bought was in the $10 range. These are mostly in what I call “gently played with” condition - a chip here and there, maybe some storage wear, most are presentable, some are close to mint.
I’ll be open to selling or trading many of these - I know a certain VW collector here might want a few, and I won’t look to make much of a profit. Let me know, as I am not an avid facebooker, and am still hesitant to list there - and I would rather have them go to you guys than ebay.
That is all.