A Collector With the Skills of a Detective-Part II

Thursday, December 31, 2015
Seasonal Temperatures

A Collector With the 

Skills of a Detective

(Part II)

   My first post of the day was about Mr. Bruce Jacobs and his fine pair of DP Clark hill climbers. 

This "follow-up" is about 2 other great discoveries - a Dayton  Trick Duck, 1925 with a Gyro Motor, and a Buddy "L" Scarab in pristine condition.

   I've seen the Buddy "L" Scarab, but never in such excellent condition. Bruce had purchased online (On the Internet), and it was in this superb condition. AS for the Dayton Trick Duck (1925), I'd never seen this toy before. For those who don't know, Dayton (Dayton, Ohio, USA) was a mecca for toy production a long time ago. 

   The Scarab was named after a certain type of bisect beetle, and I assume was meant to look somewhat "futuristic". What I always liked about pressed steel toys, of which the Scarab is one, is that toy designers and engineers had to figure out where the cuts in the sheet of metal would be. In this way, they could design a press and mould to contour the toy with as few steps as possible. You can see  where the cuts are, and how easily the toy would be pressed into it's beetle shape with just one step.

Have a look at the wind-up mechanism. That too is in excellent condition, and will last another 90 years. Buddy "L"certainly knew how to make toys way back then!

The Dayton Trick Duck was not described by Bruce. I'm thinking that it is a pull toy, whereby one attaches a string to it, and simply pulls the toy from behind.

What I like about the duck is its' contours around the neck, and the 2 wings on each side of the duck. Whomever designed the toy decided that adding more dimension (3-D) would add that extra attraction to the toy. That certainly works for me, and I wonder how attractive this feature was for parents purchasing the toy for their children.

Bruce's 2 posts certainly are an eclectic (nice mixed grouping) of collectibles, rather than being focussed on any specify category such as cars or boats. Nevertheless, his detective work and more importantly his patience have paid off. The 4 toys are all very old, and in great condition.

So that's it for 2015, and I wish everyone a Healthy and Happy New Year for

2016.

As always, thanks for dropping by,

and have a great part of the day or night,

wherever you may be,

Stacey Bindman

toysearcher@gmail.com

Very Rare Dayton Friction "Dog's Life" Toy

Sunday, August 17, 2014
           Cloud and more rain

Very Rare Dayton Friction 
"Dog's Life" Toy

    The Dayton toy is named generally for a toy that was production in Dayton, Ohio (USA). As it turns out,there were many companies that began there and produced a similar toy called a "friction" toy. A friction toy is one that has what is called a "friction wheel". As you move the wheel of the toy on a flat surface, it builds up rotation. The more you continue to move the wheel on the ground, the faster the wheel turns. Eventually, you release the toy and the built-up energy is transferred from the rotating flywheel to the toy's wheels,and the toy moves by itself. The flywheel toy design seems to been quite common  in Dayton, and these toys were manufactured for production all across America. Eventually, when the "Great Depression" of the late 1920's and early 1930's arose, many of the companies closed down.

   Most of the friction toys were similar in nature to the other types of toys and manufacturers. That's to say, that you'd see a lot of cars and trucks. However, while I was searching out Bertoia Auctions upcoming listings for their September 19-20, 2014 auction, I came across today's interesting and unique toy. If you're my age (65) or a bit younger, you'd  immediately recognize the feline (cat) character as "Felix the Cat". In a Wikipedia article, the origin of this famous cat remains somewhat in dispute. Pat Sullivan (Australian), the owner of the Felix character claimed that  he was the creator, but Otto Messmer (American), has been credited similarly as the creator.*

Citation: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felix_the_Cat

Please click here to visit this fine American Auction Company

This is certainly a most interesting and entertaining toy,and I'll be watching to see just how well this item receives at auction. I did a search to see if I could find other toys exactly like this but could not. 

Of course, being quite stubborn, I'll be searching again. However, if anyone out there has a toy like this ,by all means send me the photos, and I'll add you to this post.

Tnaks for dropping by,

and as always,

have a great part of the day or night,

wherever you may be.

Stacey

toysearcher@gmail.com