#1104 CHAMPION – FERRARI 512 S (Ref. 205/206) (Around 1976)

Champion models in 1:66 scale (also Ecurie Champion) were produced by Safir in France, a company which is best known for 1:43 scale miniatures.

Their body is made of plastic, with a metallic base, so, unfortunately, many toys are today damaged or in bad shape. However, if it is still good, colours and stickers usually resist and the miniatures look great. The cast itself is surprisingly good for its age and the decals represent real racing teams and competitions. The short series included, at least, the following Endurance GT cars:

• Ferrari 512S
• Matra MS 650 Long Tail
• Porsche 917 KH (Kurze Heck or Short Tail)
• Porsche 917 LH (Lange Heck or Long Tail)
• Lola T-70

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They seem to have been available in shops in this kind of displays, sharing space with Formula One models. The advertisement indicates there are 24 different models (each box contained 36 toys, so some had to be doubles). There seems to be six different Formula Ones, each of them in two flavours or decorations, so, most probably, there were also six endurance GT cars. In my list above one name would be missing. It could be a Porsche 917 (different from the LH and the KH). These were sold in jewel boxes with a red card in which the basic specs and the name of the driver(s) were printed.

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I also found this another picture of a shop display which shows six boxes in a row, which gives reinforces the previous idea that one model is missing from the lsit. Unfortunately, due to the low resolution of the image, I cannot recognise the missing model.

The bigger brothers of the Champions, in scale 1:43, were called the Super Champions (Ref 510). It was a much larger collection of the same type of cars, as we can see from this other advertisement found on the Internet.

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In these two last pictures show at least 5 models (the Matra could be the sixth model in the Super Champion series and the Porsche 917 the sixth in the Champions series, if they comprised the same 6 models). These five models show 30 different decorations, if the sixth model exists, it would add six more decorations, what would make 36 different cars.

The pictures are taken from a catalogue from 1977, in which some models are marked as "new", but since these other cars are not marked new, I dated them "around 1976". They could have also been released a few years earlier.

Safir closed in 1978, leaving us miniatures like this one. Since they were not exactly a toy, since they were intended for young adults or adults, they are rare to spot. This is the only one I ever came accross, and I bought it, although it is not in perfect shape. If you ever see one in good shape, try to get it.

Safir is also mentioned when talking about Guisval, as the Spanish company copied some Safir models in their first years

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: FERRARI 512 S
• Scale: 1:66
• Year: Around 1976
• Company: Champion (France)
• Size: approx. 6 cm

#1103 BBURAGO – 2 METAL MODELS 1:43 (ref. 4200): FERRARI 308 GTB RALLY and BMW M1 BASF (Around 1988)

I presented many years ago all the Bburagos I had in my collection in several entries, but after that, I decided to sell all of them, since they were in a scale I didn´t collect and they were not part of my childhood memories. I still kept one I had boxed and a Fiat Uno, that was the first car I drove when I was 18 years old. I later found this box for very little money and I bought it, since boxed toys are somehow nicer to have and to display than loose ones.

It also included two of my favorite cars of the 80s: the BMW M1 and a Ferrari 308 GTB Rally (curiously, the same car I already owned boxed, but in an alternate colour and decoration). They are astoaunding designs and I like the way they are presented in the box. The 2-pack was probably part of an offer in which the price for the pack was lower than buying two individual models. The company can this way sell models that they have in stock and the customer profits from lower prices.

This kind of box is not very rare, the company used it during many years changing its design. I have seen some of these on eBay and those available go for very little prices, usually less than 20 euro.

The BMW comes in its iconic BASF decoration, used also by other toymakers, while the Ferrari decoration is based also in a real one, but the car was either blue or white instear of green. Bburago usually had dozens of different sticker sets and colour for every cast, so this was a common practice for them. I recall having surfed a web listing all known variants, hundreds and hundreds of cars listed.

The box has a catalogue listing on the back part, although interestingly, mainly 1:18, 1:24 and 1:87 scales are represented. The front part has two windows and a punch hole to be hang in a display in a toy store.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: 2 METAL MODELS (Ref. 4200): FERRARI 308 GTB RALLY and BMW M1
• Scale: 1:43 (approx.)
• Year: Around 1992
• Company: Bburago (Italy)
• Size: approx. 9 cm

#1102 BIKER MICE FROM MARS – VINNIE vs. GREASEPIT (1993)

I presented this toyline with two of the villains, which are the first I managed to complete. In the meantime, I completed these other two figures: another villain, Greasepit, and one of the three main characters: Vinnie in its first version. The mice came with more accesories than the villains, so they are more difficult to get complete. 

They toyline is gaining popularity among collectors today, and it is often mentioned when discussing the action figures which are most sought-after nowadays. Just a few years ago, they were extremely cheap to find, but a nice complete figure is nowadays a bit too expensive for me. The few bits I have were bought some years ago for very low prices. I recall having bought a huge lot of Biker Mice (including Motorbikes) and Action Man because it included just a few bits of older collections such as StarCom for no money. When I received the huge parcel I sorted the Action Man for sale and kept the rest, although I had no Biker Mice yet. I am glad I didn´t sell them at the time, because I wouldn't have got much money for them.

Vinnie is one of the three members of the gang together with Throttle and Modo. In this collection, such as in the Ninja Turtles, all are equally important and there is no character that appears more than the other two in the cartoons. Something interesting is that the mice had an accident in which they lost the sigh (Throttle), an arm and an eye (Modo) and his face got burned off (Vinnie) and that all of them have a dark side (or, at least, darker than in most cartoons). Vinnie sometimes behaves egoistictly, is stubborn and braggs when things go well. The characters are maybe designed for older kids who would appreciate a more elaborated plot, compared to, for example, the Ninja Turtles cartoons (not the comics!)

Greasepit is the classic not-so-intelligent and clumsy bad guy, following the orders of his boss, Lawrence Limburger. It is the only evil figure to have its own motorbike, the Grunge Cycle (a tri-cycle, actually). As all the figures representing evil characters, his face is cartoonish, while the face of good characters are more human-like. For kids in a shop (in 1993), trying to choose which figure to buy, I guess Greasepit would come as number one choice for an evil character.

Opposite to the two figures presented previously on this blog, these two are very well articulated. They can bend knees and elbows/wrists, but the shoulders are articulated by means of a ball-joint, same as the legs. This adds a lot of playability to the toys, mostly considering they have to be poseable enough to sit in and drive a motorbike.

As any quality action figure, they included a series of accesories. The mice always include a helmet (safety first), plus other stuff. Vinnie comes with a claw and a metal bar, which is a choice I do not like very much, but, at least, is something original, rarely seen. Greasepit comes with a more common gun attached to a backpack/can. The cardback also included a filecard that roughly explains the background and the history of the figure.

I still have other figures and vehicles to show, but I´ll let some time pass between two entries dealing with the same toyline.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: VINNIE vs. GREASEPIT
• Toy Line: Biker Mice from Mars
• Year: 1993
• Company: Gaoob (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figure: Around 15 cm

#1101 PLAYART - ALFETTA GT (7198) and RENAULT ALPINE A310 (7265) (Around 1982 and Around 1984)

We start this entry with the Alfetta GT in green, which is a rare model at scale. It is still in very good shape. It was a very happy find in a flea market. This model was made by the Hongkongese brand in the very early 80s (or even in the late 70s), as it came with practicable doors and metallic base, something which was common back then, before the costs had to be cutted... even in Hong-Kong.

From the same series, we will also comment on the Renault Alpine A310. This model is my only boxed Playart. I exchanged it with a friend who had found several of these in an old toy shop, and I was pleased, as it is also a scarce model. I have been looking for it online and I didn´t see many of these in perfect shape. The box has the same colours as the blisterpacks and it design with plain colours and checkered flags are reminiscent of the 70s. The box comes in English and French, but I am not sure to which markets was it addressed. Maybe US and Canada or Europe. The back of the box shows an incomplete list of references, maybe some of the models had been discontinued in the meanwhile.

We know this same model by Majorette (in Police or Ambulance decorations), but in a more standard version, such as this one, it is maybe more appealing. The model was only made in white with racing stripes, the word "Champion" and RN 56. As in every Playart model of this time, I dislike the wheels used, which should represent five or six spokes.

Both models are made in Hong-Kong, but the Renault comes with some tampographies, whose style seem to be more modern, and the reference number is also higher, so I would say the Renault is slightly newer, my guess would be, from 1984 or 1985.

I have some other Playart models that you can review HERE.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: ALFETTA GT (7198) and RENAULT ALPINE A310 (7265)
• Scale: Approx. 1:64
• Year: Around 1982 and Around 1984
• Company: Playart (Hong-Kong)
• Size: approx. 7 cm

#1100 MAJORETTE – BUSSES (SEVERAL MODELS) (1977 to 2001)

A bus is a vehicle like any other, and it is a must in every set of toys for children. As soon as they have a few cars and a couple of trucks, the first bus arrives. So every toymaker usually includes a bus in every collection they have. Majorette is a bit of an exception because it took a while for them to produce their first bus, but afterwards, they did some of the nicest models I recall throughout its history. I am talking about miniature toys, not collector´s items or superdetailed die-cast for adults.

The first one was made for the 300 series, that is the series with car+trailer, trucks with long trailers or bigger vehicles. It was the Autocar (Nr. 373) in 1977. This model quickly got a companion in the Autobus (Nr. 310, in the same series) in 1979, but also made its way to the 200 series, the more affordable 3 inches vehicles with the Minibus (Nr. 262), also in 1979. There are still four other busses we will comment, but which are much rarer that these three.

All models presented here include big parts of plastic, so I assume they were cheaper to produce and reached higher margins for the company. The different models were reused many times, giving each cast a set of colours and decorations (tampographies, decals or stickers) in order to have something different every year or couple of years. Because these models also have a big surface on the sides, they were even used as promotional models. It would be impossible to list all variants ever made of these references, but I will give it a try with the models that appear in the official catalogues, which are not so many. In reality, the colours may vary, as the parts from the previous year were generally not discarded, and thus, we find those transition models, which variants collectors love.

I have to say that I own some other busses not pictured here, so this is the classic entry that will be updated regularly, as I find the time to take more pictures and new models to buy.

Note: when in the following listings more than one colour is indicated, the first one shows the colour of the base, then the colour of the upper part.

AUTOCAR / COUNTRY BUS 373 / NEOPLAN

1977 Red/white "Londres > Paris > Rome" (drawing/prototype)

1978 Red/White "London > Paris > Madrid" (there seems to be several "country-specific" models of this one, such as "Frankfurt > Bern > Roma" in light yellow/white or green/white.

1979 White/red with City Crests

1980 Blue/white "Air France"

1981-82 White "Air France" (Big Logo)

1982-83 White "Air France" (Smaller Logo)

1983 White "Iberia"

1986 White/Red (not readable) "xxx > xxx > xxx > Madrid"

1989 Red/white "Croisière"

1990-91 Blue/white "Miami Beach"

1994 Black/white with colourful grafitti on sides and roof

1995 Blue/yellow "Travel"

1995-97 Red Coca-Cola (Special edition)

1996-97 Yellow "School Bus"

1998-99 Yellow "School Bus" plus colour pencils

2000-01 Black/red "Racing team" with or without two plastic figures

2000 Dark blue "Pepsi" (Special edition)

2005-09 Red "Soccer"

AUTOBUS 310

This one is easy, it only came in one decoration from 1979 to 1987, when it was simply discontinued. Majorette already had the previous model which they will extensively reuse, redecorate and resell as much as they could.

1979-1987 Green/White "Salon de Paris"

MINIBUS 262

The "bestselling" model, as it had the basic price of any other model. I love the detail of the small people sitting inside. The most common decoration is the "TWA" one, which was availabla longer than the other ones, and it is the one I had as a kid.

1979 Orange/White "Alitalia" (drawing/prototype)

1980 White/red "Japan Airlines"

1980-85 White "TWA" 

1986 Green/White "Alitalia"

1990-91 White "Air France"

1992 White/red "Airport"

1994 Red/yellow with red symbols on side

1995-97 White "Airport"

1998 Green/White Football players on side

1999-2001 Orange/white "Airport"

2003 Dark Blue "Airport International"

BRITISH BUS 286

I understand the british bus is an interesting vehicle for a kid, specially for a non-british kid, but it cannot be rethemed easily. The cast was available intermitently over many years. For example, we can find it in the catalogues from 1983 to 1986, but then disappears until 1995. Then four years long without a trace of it, to reappear in the year 2000 in two variants: The classic red one, plus a yellow one decorated with the Circus Pinder tampographies. This second colour variant also appeared intermitently between 2000 and 2009. 

1983-86 Red "Visit London"

1995, 2000 Red "Visit London" (different sticker)

2000-01, 2007-09 Yellow "Pinder" (Circus)

CITY BUS 262A.00

This bus is the update of the at this time outdated 262. It looks like an urban bus, lightly built and with many windows. In the few catalogues I own from the early 2000s, it always appears in an orange colour. The many windows cannot hide the two bars that connect the roof to the body of the bus; this is a minor flaw in the design.

2004-09 Orange "Aero Bus"

In the SERIES 3000 / 3040/70 or "Super Movers" there was also a bus, which, honestly, I do not recall having seen it. It is much bigger in size (1:55 scale), so if I ever came accross, I probably missed it.

Mercedes, Nr. 303

Red/white with blue/orange/yellow lines

Autocar, Nr. 3046 

1995-96 Blue "Holidays". Represents a Van Hool.

1997 White "Paris"

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: 1) AUTOCAR or COUNTRY BUS 373 or NEOPLAN, 2) AUTOBUS 310 and 3) MINIBUS
• Scale: 1:87
  
• Year: 1) 1981 and 1998, 2) 1979 and 3) 1978 and 1999
  
• Company: Majorette (France)
• Size: approx. 6 or 11 cm

#1099 BULLY – BATMAN (ARTICULATED VERSION) (1989)

This small and poorly manufactured figure of the DC character is maybe one of the most intriguing action figures made along with the Tim Burton movie from 1989. The figure is marked on its feet with the text: TM © 1989 DC COMICS INC. But beside this indications, there is no maker sign or name casted in the body. This probably made many people suspect, that it might be a cheap bootleg or a copy of something else, since, if you had the rights to represent the Batman, why hiding your name?

The truth is that this figure was distributed and sold by Bully of Germany, most famous for their plastic or PVC figures of all kinds. This adds a bit of confusion to the topic, since this figure is made of hollow plastic and is articulated in their shoulders. It is also partially flocked and came with a cloth cloak. All these elements are previously unseen in other Bully toys or figures. Note that I said distributed and sold, but not manufactured, because I think these may have been made by another company for Bully. So the mistery continues...

As you can see in the pictures, the figure is well painted and flocked. It comes with a yellow belt (that cannot be removed), a cloak (removable), and the arms are practicable. Although in the picture of the shop display, that I found on the internet, all figures seem to be correctly assembled, my Batman has the chest logo upside-down. I love this detail, and I preffer this figure to another one with the logo correctly oriented. Also some figures seem to have a cord on the head to be hanged from a zip or somewhere else.

I think it is quite rare, I haven't seen many, or, at least, compared with the plastic/PVC Batman (I show it here, but it deserves it's own blog entry). It was part of the merchandising that Bully offered in 1989, as it can be seen in this promotional pages seen on eBay. The figure is shown on the right side, close to the right border.

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: BATMAN
• Year: 1989
• Company: Bully (West-Germany)
• Size of the figures: Around 10 cm