The More Complex Hubley Motorcycles

Saturday, December 20, 2014
Sunny and very cold

The More Complex

 Hubley Motorcycles

   Yesterday's post was a continuation of motorcycles.  Two days ago, I wrote about some cast iron toy motorcycles that were not Hubleys, and yesterday about the Hubley civilian motorcycles. The Hubley Manufacturing must have had some very intuitive people, because they decided to produce cast iron toy motorcycles,and became one of the largest producers of these toys. Interestingly, other companies at the time didn't follow suit (follow the lead and do the same thing). 

   Of course, Hubley made exceptional cast iron toy motorcycles, as well as other fine toys,so perhaps they just  had everyone buying motorcycles because real motorcycles became very popular, and Hubley reproduced the toys exceptionally well. 

   I decided to present the larger and more complex toys. 

Please click here to visit this fine American auction company

The Hubley below is "The Mono Lisa" of cast iron toy motorcycles. It's the rarest of the rare, and might be the only one in existence. It  was custom made, had a wind-up mechanism 

(very rare for Hubley), and is in excellent condition.

The toy below also is a wind-up and is rare.

This one is in excellent condition. I've presented 2 sets of photos for this specific model. The reason for my having down this is to show you that if you're interested in bidding for a toy or buying one at an antique store,you should always do your research. The model below is missing some of its original accessories   that came with it. It's the ax in the lower set of photos, as well as the hose nozzle and cotton cord that was made to look like a hose.

 On this model,the gate at the back can be removed. What's so interesting about these Hubley toys, besides the toys themselves, is the fact that Hubley made so many variations using the same body and figure of the policeman. The body of the motorcycle is an "Indian" brand reproduction that 

has an in-line 4 cylinder engine

This model is "huge", being 12"  (334 mm) long.

Here's a similar Hubley Indian Traffic Car but it's the smaller version.

It's 8 1/2" ( 216 mm) long, has the name "Indian" embossed from the original casting, and 

looks like it has a one-cylinder  engine.

I think that the figure below is a policeman or the casting of a policeman.

My question of course is why would Hubley

 place a police figure on a civilian post office motorcycle?

 I had to finish the post with this model. It's my favourite. It's an armoured motorcycle. The reason that it's my favourite is for that armoured plate  at the front. You could purchase this "optional" piece at the time. The reason that I like it so much is both for the unique item and for its detail.

There must have been the "occasional"real armoured motorcycle back in the 1930's when all of those "gangsters" were roaming around the USA robbing banks or getting into illegal activities Bonnie & Clyde, Al Capone, from Chicago, and of course John Dillinger, and Baby Face Nelson were just some of the more infamous people of the times.

I hoped that you've enjoyed these last 3 days of toy motorcycles. Hubley made even more motorcycles, as did some of the other companies of the time. I'll probably add another post soon.

As the expression goes, "if you have a good thing, stay with it".

Thanks for dropping by and as always,

have a great part of the day or night,'

wherever you may be,

Stacey

toysearcher@gmail.com

A Friend Shares his Well-Deserved Success

 Friday, July 4, 2014
U.S. Independence Day Holiday
   Overcast, raining and cooler

A Friend Shares His

Well-Deserved Success

   I woke up early this morning and received a surprise e-mail from Mr. Clifford Olsen of Gotham City Toys on ebay . He's a friend whom I met when I asked him if I might use his fine photos. His a successful ebay seller, who has sold some very nice and rare toys, as well as less-rare toys. However, like all successful sellers with an excellent reputation, he takes pride in his work, and photographs and describes each and every toy as if it were the rarest of them all!.

   So when I looked at the item, and them the final winning bid, I knew this toy was rare! I initially didn't recognize the name of the toy - a  KiCo, but upon reading the written description and reading further, the names Gely, and then George Levy, I recognized the company. I'll know for future reference the name of KiCo.

   I took longer than usual in writing this post because Clifford takes great photos, but as you know, I like to present them against a white background. But I debated (with myself), and finally decided what I'd do. I would present a few versions of just one photo ,but let Clifford's excellent photos show as they did on ebay. All I would do is colour-balance the photo, and remove some of the dust on that nice foundation that Clifford uses for all of his photos.

Please click here to visit Clifford Olsen's fine ebay store

Please click here to visit the actual listing of this rare toy!

(Please note that  this listing will be available for only about 60 days on ebay)

Description

A Rare 1915 KiCo (Germant) 2-Cylinder Motorcycle

Lithographed tin with wind-up Clockwork mechanism.The mechanism does;t work,but it is not overwound. The small support wheels are missing, so the toy has to be propped up to stand.

Age:  1915
Length:    8 1/4"  210 mm   

Clifford's Photo on E-Bay

I did minor improvements on colour-balance and exposure.

The way to tell if the colour-balance is off to look at a white area called highlight in photography/.

If the white area is coloured, then the colour-balnce is off.

I removed the nice sky background, as well as the coloured-relfection in the black glass base.

Regardless of my small improvements, Clifford's original photos are excellent.

A nice close-up photograph of the detailed lithography.

I like how Clifford found that small-sized crate to hold the toy.

It's just the correct proportion for the motorcycle and rider.

 As you can see, Clifford likes to take plenty of photos to present his merchandise well.

A close-up of the actual KiCo logo on the motorcycle.

I was trying to think how I would end today's post, when I thought to myself what the oldest item is that I have. I've only had this fish is riverbed sandstone for about 15 years, but the sandstone and fish are about 135,000,000 years old.

Of course, the age of an item isn't what makes something valuable- 

it's the rarity, and of course, the amount of interest that people have and are willing to spend in their bidding! In the case of this very rare KiCo toy,there were 10 bidders interested with 16 bids having been placed - that's a lot of bidders for one item on ebay!

Thanks for dropping by,

and as always, have a great part of the day or night,

wherever you may be.

Stacey

toysearcher@gmail.com