#1085 SCALEXTRIC UK - B.R.M. (C72.85) (1964)

I was never interested in Scalextric slot cars from Lines Brothers for the English (and other) markets, I decided to focus on the Spain-made by Exin, Tyco or Tecnictoys). But, as a collector of toys, I sometimes get things I didn´t look for.

I got this pristine model of a B.R.M., boxed, together with a large lot of old toys from the 70s and the 80s, although this car was originally released in 1964. I guess it was sold during many years without any changes, so, maybe it was available until the early 1970s.

The model is done at a scale of around 1:32 (as most Scalextric models are) and is British green. The tip of the car is yellow, but in some other models is white. This way, two models could compete against each other if they had this small difference. 

The construction is slightly different from the other cars I have. These older models "hide" the motor inside them, so it is more difficult to oil, repair the cables or simply replace the contact brushes. This is usual in other models from this first years of slot cars, especially from the models from Lines-Bros.

The box is smaller than the ones I know from Exin. The car also looks nice, much better than I had thought, when I saw the pictures online. The detail level is similar to the early Exin models. So, nice to have it.

FACTS AND FIGURES

• Name: B.R.M. (C72.85)
• Scale: 1:32
• Year: 1964
• Company: Scalextric UK (Great Britain)
• Size: approx. 12 cm

#842 TOYS FROM THE PAST - MUSEUM (V)

See more of these entries here: http://toysfromthepast.blogspot.com/search/label/TFTP

See you next month!

Important notice: The items on display are NOT for sale.

#840 TOYS FROM THE PAST - MUSEUM (III)

See more of these entries here: http://toysfromthepast.blogspot.com/search/label/TFTP

See you next month!

Important notice: The items on display are NOT for sale.

#403 SCALEXTRIC UK/ SCALEXTRIC SPAIN – BMW M1 (1982, 1985 and 1991)

SCALEXTRIC SPAIN vs. SCALEXTRIC UK

Scalextric was being manufactured in Spain since 1962. Lines Bros signed a contract with Exin to distribute Scalextric in Spain and Portugal. In this first contract it was specified, that the tracks and the transformers would be manufactured in Spain, while the cars would be imported from England.

After only a few years, Scalextric Spain started manufacturing cars in Spain. The first model that was manufactured there was the Cooper Climax in 1965 (using the casts from Triang). One year later, in 1966, Exin manufactured the first car created and designed by them, the Seat 600. From that year on, the history of Scalextric is a successful one until the early 90s, when Exin went bankruptcy, and had to sell the Scalextric brand to Tyco (read more here). Even at those hard times, the Scalextric line was profitable.

But back to Lines Bros., the British company would collapse in 1972 and many successful toylines were sold to rivals. At this point, Exin bought for itself the Scalextric brand for the Spanish, Mexican and South-American markets, while Triang kept the brand for the rest of the world (until 1980, when it was sold to Hornby).

Around 1985, Exin and Hornby sign a new contract in which they “open” their markets to each other. Exin would be able to sell it cars in the United Kingdom and the rest of the world, and Hornby would be abel to do the same in Spain, Portugal, Mexico and South America. Since both companies had the same name, they agreed to change names on rival markets.

The Spanish Scalextric, made by Exin, would be renamed SCX in England, United States and so on, while the British Scalextric would be sold under the Superslot brand in Spain, Portugal, South America and Mexico. Both Exin and Hornby kept Scalextric in their native markets.

Many collectors are confused when they see Scalextric models, since now, with the internet, eBay and international purchases, you can find the same car model in two different packages with two different brands.

Despite setting these rules to share markets, Exin manufactured some models for Scalextric UK and also the other way round. As seen in the previous entry, the Rover 3500 “Police” was sold in Spain in 1985 and 1986 with the reference 4020.

There are also some “Made in Spain” models which were sold in England under Hornby’s Scalextric brand, for example:
- Lancia 037 (various decorations)
- BMW M1 (various decorations)
- Audi Quattro (various decorations)
- Ferrari GTO “Cimarron”
- BMW M3 (various decorations)
- Ford RS 200 (various decorations)
- Porsche 959
- Ferrari F1
- McLaren Honda MP4-4 (not in the UK)

Plus several SRS references:
- C016SRS Lancia LC2 SRS
- C017SRS Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 SRS
- C018SRS Porsche 956 SRS
- C019SRS Mercedes 190E 2.3-16 SRS
- C020SRS McLaren F1 MP4/2B SRS
- C021SRS Ferrari F1 156-05 SRS
- C022SRS Porsche 956 „Mobil“ SRS

The first BMW M1 were produced in Spain in 1982. The car was available in 4 different colours (yellow, white, red and dark green) and with two different sticker sets each. The car presented here is one of these.

Other BMW M1 include
- BMW M1 “20th Anniversary” from 1982 in black (limited edition) - very rare!
- BMW M1 “20th Anniversary” from 1982 in silver (for customers only) - ultra rare!
- BMW M1 “Motul” (ref 4072) from 1985 in white.

The last version made of this beautiful car was the BMW M1 „Jägermeißter“ from 1991 (Ref. 8337). Since the letter “ß” is not available in the Spanish alphabeth, this model is often listed as “Jagermeifter”. This version is considered to be rare.

In England, this car was available in black with the reference C347 from 1984 to 1992. (this version is very similar to the Spanish “20th Anniversary” edition) and also in silver with Reference C405 from 1991 to 1992.

 

 Instructions included in 8337 BMW M1 "Jägermeißter" or "Jagermeifter"

FACTS AND FIGURES

• Name: BMW M1, BMW M1 and BMW M1 “Jägermeißter” (Ref. 4063, C347 and 8337)
• Scale: 1:32
• Year: 1982, 1985 and 1991
• Company: Exin, Scalextric UK (Spain and Great Britain)
• Size: approx. 15 cm

#402 SCALEXTRIC UK – ROVER 3500 POLICE (Ref. 362) (1985)

HISTORY OF SCALEXTRIC (UK) – MINIMODELS, LTD & TRIANG

Scalextric is a brand of slot cars and racing track sets. Although the name appeared first in 1957, the concept of “slot” is a bit older.

In 1947, the company Minimodels, Ltd. was founded by Fred (Freddie) B. Francis. At the time, the company manufactured tin toys. In 1952, he had the idea to incorporate a wind-up mechanism in tin cars, and that’s how the “Scalex” line was born. The name refers to the fact, that cars were on scale. The Scalex were very popular during their first few years, but around 1956, sales decreased dramatically. This led Mr. Francis to think on how to improve the toys Minimodels made, and which by the way were almost the same thing that the company was manufacturing at the time.

First he thought it would be a good idea to create some track in which kids could simulate races, and he came to some kind of plastic track with two slots on it, in which cars would fit. The next step was to substitute the wind-up motor for an electric one, and then, power it from the track itself. Scalextric (Scalex + Electric) was now designed and ready to be produced. The first tracks were fed by batteries. The toy was presented in 1957 in the Harrogate Toy Fair.

This improved version of Scalex was also very successful. So successful, that Minimodels could not manufacture as many units of cars and tracks as needed, and could not meet the demand on time. In 1958, Minimodels was sold to Tri-ang (part of the Lines Bros. imperium back then), which was a much bigger company, and had the means to produce those toys efficiently and place the orders without delay.

Triang re-released old Scalex models with some modifications to be driven in the slot tracks. Later, Triang would team-up with another company part of the Lines Bros. group called Rovex, and whose major focus was plastic. Cars were still being made of metal, and tracks, of rubber. Then they both changed to plastic. Plastic was much cheaper to produce and it allowed a better casting and modelling, making car models more attractive.

The car presented today is much more modern than that. It is the latest of the 3 British versions of the Rover 3500 Police.

• C284 with siren and flashing roof lights (1981-82) – “Police” on bonnet
• C315 with siren and flashing roof lights (1983-84) – “Police” plus crest on bonnet
• C362 without siren, with flashing roof lights (1985-93) – “Police Patrol” on bonnet

Mine is the most common version, since it was sold for 8 years in a row. Something strange, is that the car was not sold fully assembled, but included the srear mirrors in a plastic bag and still attached to a plastic tree. Nice detail that Scalextric also decided to include a spare pair of brushes.

The first two versions (C284 and C315) were also sold in Spain under the reference 4020 in 1985 and 1986 respectively. These cars were not manufactured in Spain, but imported.

FACTS AND FIGURES

• Name: ROVER 3500 "POLICE" (Ref. C362)
• Scale: 1:32
• Year: 1985 (to 1993)
• Company: Scalextric UK (Great Britain)
• Size: approx. 15 cm