Saturday, August 3, 2013
Pressed Steel Wrecker Toy Trucks (Tow Trucks)
American toys
Yesterday, I presented cast iron tow trucks. With the manufacture of the automobile on a large scale, there was bound to be a need for towing cars that "conked out", as well as those that had accidents. By 1919, the tow truck was well established and the boom or tow device was invented in 1916 by Mr.Ernest Holmes, Sr.
American toys in the early years of the 1900's-late 1920's and somewhat into the 1930's were cast iron. Iron ore was inexpensive, transportation by rail was also inexpensive, and so was labour. Huge influxes of immigrants also provides manpower to make the cast iron toys both in abundance and at low wages. Eventually the country expanded, the process of steel was also well-established, and this metal could be pressed into many different shapes and thicknesses (gauges). Toys could be made faster and better with pressed steel, the weight was lighter, and with the costs of rail rising, the age of cast iron was diminishing.
I used this photo before when I wrote about the Kingsbury toy company in Keen, New Hampshire (USA). It's not the most interesting, nor the most complicated, but there is just something to it that I really like. Perhaps its the boom and the colour scheme, but I just like it a lot!
The price of toys also rose as the pressed steel era came into its own. However, there were lots more people now in the USA, and thus there was a market for those who could afford such a nice toy for their children. Also,many of the toys were much larger than the cast iron toys from only a decade or more.
Above is a J. Chein and Company version of their wrecker. It's certainly not as complicated as the Buddy "L' one just above it, but nevertheless there was always a market for toys in the USA by the many new companies being created in ever-expanding America. The early toys naturally were modelled after the "real" working trucks. What fascinates me is how these trucks would operate during the rainy and snowy seasons with their "open air" cab designs!
Of course, the great toymaker, Mr. Louis Marx and Company had a wrecker,
and how could he not? His version is not the most attractive, but it moved on its own, and had a nice colour scheme. And notice the closed cab - someone finally figured that towing cars or trucks in the middle of a snowstorm necessitated some form of protection foe the driver and his assistant!
Here's a Ferdinand Strauss entry to the wrecker toy.
It has mobility (Clockwork wind-up), and a moveable boom, as well as nice disc wheels. This toy is also made of lithographed tin. I'm sure it sold well, but it's too "good looking" to be a true "wrecker".On the other hand. I have seen "good looking" wreckers on the road, and if I was stuck in the middle of nowhere and needed a tow, I wouldn't be looking for another tow truck!
.The major manufacturers of the earlier periods were still in business, and these 2 fine examples from Hubley certainly sold well.
This is the Champion Hardware's version of a cast iron wrecker for 1934. AS you can see, it's quite nice, but certainly no match in complexity and modelling reproduction features of the pressed steel toys of the same year. Of course, for those who could only afford a less-expensive toy, this certainly was a fine model!
This is the Tri-Ang's version of a wrecker. Tri-Ang was a British company,and I thought I'd add just one "foreign" company's entry for comparison. Notice the right-hand steering.
Structo's wrecker entered the toy market with a "huge" 21 1/2" (.546M). The boom design is not the most complicated, but this toy had "electric" (battery-operated) lights!
This is Sturditoy's entry to the wrecker toy market. Also an impressive size coming in at 27" or .686M. I assume any child who had such a big wrecker had to have big trucks and automobiles to tow!
A pair of Metalcraft wreckers.I really like the hook on the black and orange wrecker. THe yellow version has it's crank but is missing the nice hook of the other wrecker.
Metalcraft's entry into the wrecker market.
By now, I'm sure that you can see how many different manufacturers, and American at that, in the USA at the time!
Here's a special Arcade wrecker . It would be one of the last Arcade (and probable any other manufacture as well) metal toy of that time period. Germany had already started a terrible chain of events that would engulf the world in a catastrophic world war. America would need evert nbit of metal for the war effort. While researching this post, I came across a lot of Wyandotte toys form the 1939-1945 period that were in fact made from wood. I 'll have to look around for enough WWII era wooden toys to write a future post.
Here's a simpler Hubley Ford tow truck from around 1954-1962. The shiny metal sides with the 2 small spotlights, and the simple boom design is actually quite nice. This model number was 453.
Of course, no post about tow trucks would be complete without a fine representative such as the Smith-Miller tow truck. Of course, this one was made later when Mr. Fred Thompson had purchased the company and rights after the company had closed down. Nevertheless, the new line of Smith-Miller toys kept the quality and tradition alive form its former owner. These are superbly-made toys, and are collected more by adults than for play by children. They are quire expensive and the company still makes parts for the original toys. I sometimes wonder though if the "big boys" ever play with their collectibles,when no one is looking - I certainly would!
Thanks fro dropping by.
and as always,
have a great part of the day or night,
wherever you may be.
Stacey
(toysearcher@gmail.com)
Please feel free to write to me anytime .
I'm always looking for more toys and stories to write about.
No comments:
Post a Comment