Thanks Chris!!

Continuing with the Dinky Club's Newsletter No. 3, and adding to the absorbing/fasinating article in The Journal prepared by Dave, this Newsletter lists the members who were selected as winners for September, October and November 1959.

Wouldn't it be fascinating to know what became of the above winners! Are they members of the DTCA? Are their children carrying on what their father (and mother) collected almost 50 years ago? And what did they select for their Two Pounds?

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#507

Chris

I think it was great to see that females were just as interested in Dinky Toys as the males. In the first awards that David wrote of, there are THREE young ladies out of the ten winners!

And here we are patting ourselves on the back with modern attitudes towards the female sex, and there Meccano was with its Dinky Toys, leading the pack!

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#508

Greetings!

In my last post on this topic, I scanned two pages from the 3rd issue of the Dinky Toys Newsletter, a small publication for the members of Meccano's Dinky Toys Club, listing the winners of

Greetings All

How many Newsletters were issued for the 1959-1960s membership of the Dinky Toys Club by Meccano?

I have three in booklet format and three in tabloid format. Someone wrote or told me that there were more than three issued in tabloid size before the club wound up due to it being too successful and a drain on Meccano's resources. The Great Book of Dinky Toys only wrote about the club, badge, the special badge for the visits to the factory (anyone seen or have one of these?) and licences but makes no mention of these newsletters, unless I have missed it. If it was missed, how many other Dinky-related subjects were also left out?

By the way, The Great Book mentions a blue licence that was issued to club members. What year was this one, as I thought the yellow licence for 1961-62 was the last one issued.

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#523

Hello Dave

Many thanks for confirming that there was never a "blue" licence issued. I wonder to what the Richardsons were referring when they included this on page 247 of TGBDT. I only have licences for 1959-60, 1960-61, and 1961-62. The Richardsons wrote that licences were issued commencing with 1958, so presume that would be 1958-59. What was its colour? Perhaps it is mentioned in one of the Meccano Magazines. It is mentioned in the first newsletter with Stirling Moss on the cover. (I see that Stirling now gets around in a small electric car these days with a top speed far less than what he has achieved in the past!)

So it appears that I am missing the first licence issued for 1958-59.

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#524

Richard

Many thanks for bringing this unique piece of Dinky France history to our attention again! I had completely forgotten that you had posted this 7 months ago, on 10 September 2014 at 5.52pm! This is what you wrote under the topic "Driving-Licence":

Richard wrote:
"Hi guys,
Are you allowed to move or drive your dinky Toys ? I don't think so ! So, send me your collections because I am a driving-licence holder for Dinky Toys ! :laugh: :laugh:

I prove it :

It was given on the Meccano stall after driving Dinky Toys on a circuit, during the "Foire de Paris", in 1954.

Kind regards.
Richard"

Was this "licence" printed on both sides, as the picture shows what could be two licences showing the front and back. How many years was this "licence" issued, or was it only in 1954?

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#525

buzzer999 wrote:
"Here is the licence for 1958-59

Dave"

Greetings all!

Adding to Dave's contribution of the cover of the 1958-59 licence, the following are the other three licences issued for Meccano's Dinky Toys Club, showing both front and rear covers:

The print number is interesting. In 1959 the number printed was 35,000, 1960 was 100,000 and then the number takes a slight nose-dive to 90,000 for 1961. Was this an indication that interest was starting to wane, or that 1960 had an optimistic print run that was not quite succeeded?

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#526

Terry (and Dave)

Australia too had its agents distributing application forms, although in Armidale where I lived, a small city (large town by European and British standards?) of 10,000, I never saw anything to do with the club, only what I read in the Meccano Magazine.

Here is an example of the Australian application form, distributed by LITTLE FOLKS TOY SHOP which was then located in the Old Town Hall Arcade, Queen Street, Brisbane. (The Arcade is still in existence although its name has changed to Brisbane Arcade, but the store is long gone.)

The reverse has the address where applications are processed for each State and Territory. E G Page & Co in Sydney were the Australian agents and distributors for Meccano and their products. In South Australia, the applications were processed by Harris Scarfe Ltd, a company that is still in existence with branches around Australia. It is a general merchandise store with electrical appliances, kitchenware, plastics, Manchester and clothing, so I presume in 1957 it also had a toy department.

Note that the application form is dated July 1957, with 50,000 being printed.

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#568

Greetings all

With Dave raising the subject of the Dinky Toys Club of America, until such time as sufficient information comes to light we may as well include material on that club here!

So, herewith is the application form that was included in the US version of the Catalogue No. 14 for 1979 - long after the UK club had become a victim of its own success. This catalogue incidentally was included in a letter to a US toy store dated June 1, 1979 that also included tags for the #6030 Display Case.

Even as late as June 1979, the impression given at least by AVA, the US distributor in Hewitt, Texas, for Meccano, Airfix, etc was apparently unaware of the imminent closure of the Meccano factory.

Regards

Bruce (150)
#605
7 June 2015

Jacques

I mentioned the "imminent closure of the Meccano factory" as part of my post dealing with the application forms for the Dinky Toys Club that was included in the last catalogue issued for the American market. Unfortunately, your post is taking us away from this Thread, so I have responded with a copy of your post which is on Binns Road Closes the Gates for the Last Time thread just to ensure (as you have written a number of times in the past), that we do not go "off topic"!

Dave

The book, "Factory of Dreams" is a fascinating account, and as you said quite rightly, the last 30 or so pages are very painful. But returning to the Dinky Toys Club - it is interesting that the US version continued right up until the factory closed. I was a member of the later version of the Dinky Toys Club of America, but we parted ways many years ago, and I often wonder if any members of that club having joined up with the DTCA.

Kind regards to you both

Bruce (150)
#607
8 June 2015

Greetings

From Newsletter Number 4, Australia hit the front page!

Again I ask, I wonder what became of Master Paul Morgan. He certainly had a fine Dinky collection. Seen are three Fodens (two first series and one second), three Guy Flat Truck with Tailboard and at least one rare issue, a 25W Bedford Truck with black front mudguards.

Kind regards

Bruce (150)
#687
30 June 2015