A Collector With the Skills of a Detective-Part I

Thursday, December 31, 2015
Seasonal Temperatures with Lots of Snow

A Collector with the Skills of a Detective

(Mr. Bruce Jacobs)

    I have to apologize to all of my readers for not posting, but I've "been in the doldrums". I received several e-mails recently, and that has cheered me up, and I've decided to write a post to end 2015. Since I haven't posted much lately, I thought I'd write a bit more that usual, but try and not detract from Mr. Bruce Jacobs- the focal point of this post.

   We decided to renovate our sunroom in the back of our house. It was poorly built, and freezing cold in winter. My wife Heidi and I live in Montreal,Quebec,Canada. If you've ever been up here in winter, you can appreciate what cold is. If I could package the cold and sell it, you'd know what cold is. Anyway, our 6 month project took 2 years, and as we were doing that project (the sunroom), we had to do another project - plumbing in the garage and downstairs bathroom. I'm sure anyone doing renovations will understand why I could be in the doldrums, especially when 1 project leads to another (lots of expense), and the project takes 2 years to finish!

  But I digress, and so back to the main focus - Mr. Bruce Jacobs. Bruce sent me a fabulous pair of old toy photos, one of them being a #10 D P Clark 1905 antique car with driver and passengers.  That's 110 years old! My large grandmother Lily (on my mother's side) was a mere 5 years old at the time!

  For a toy made of metal and wood, this certainly is a terrific find. What I find interesting is that Bruce knows his toys, judging from his description of the 1905 Hillclimber, and the other one that you'll find below. The  "other" hillclimber is a #2 D P Clark 1903 Hillclimber.  For toys so old, you certainly have to have a strong desire and ardor to know your toys!

For those who don't know, a hill climber is a toy with a self-winding motor. You move the toy along the ground, and a large wheel builds up rotational speed. When you release the toy, the toy has lots of residual power, and will easily go up steep grades (angles) of any sidewalk or road, hence the term "hill-climber".

The excellent photos that Bruce took certainly illustrate the fine condition that this toy is in, and I'm sure the self-winding motor still works.

 I like the 2 small boys with their sailor hats. They remind me of a fairy tale or story about a pair of twin boys. Of course, I can't remember the tale.

Bruce wrote to also say that "he was still searching for the woman passenger for these cars".

You certainly don't get to be a collector at this level, without knowing your toys -  the skills of a detective on a case!

So as the year 2015 ends, I'd like to wish everyone a Healthy and Happy New Year, with only good things to be for the new year.  To date, I've had 342,044 page views for my blog and counting. The numbers certainly won't break any records, but to each and every one who has visited, I'd like to thank you for visiting. 

And to those who have written and volunteered to be on my blog - an extra thanks.

I can tell you that at age 67, the time certainly "flies". It was just yesterday (about 4 years ago) that I started to write this blog.

I don't where where the time has gone!

Thanks for dropping by,

and as always,

have a great time of the day or night,

wherever you may be,

Stacey Bindman

toysearcher@gmail.com