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boxes featured period 1950s-style art- This 1961 Cadillac Fleetwood is a monster,
work. Each model also came with a measuring 17 inches from stem to stern. Made by
6-inch by 3-inch “certificate of title” SSS and in excellent condition, it sold for $1,270 in
card and registration form. The models a 2021 Vectis auction. Photo courtesy Vectis Auctions Ltd.
weren’t hyper-accurate replicas, but
they have a toy-like charm that makes
up for that, and they were well-made
products. Complete examples with
box, card, and form generally sell for Learn More
$25 to $50, depending on model and There are lots of websites
color, which is about what they sold for back in the offering information on Japanese
1980s. It was thought that the company planned a tin toy cars, but several excellent books also have
fifth model, which Ron Smith told me was to be a been published that each contain a wealth of information
1957 Chevrolet, but it apparently never was produced. on the subject. Teru Kitahara has published numerous books on the
It didn’t take long for Chinese knock-offs of the Fifties cars to subject, but for my money his first three books—the Tin Toy Dreams
appear. They’re easy to spot as the quality of the fit and finish is inferior, series—reign supreme. Look for the one titled Cars, a paperback
and the baseplates have no identifying marks. If there’s any doubt, the published in 1985. Dale Kelley’s book, Collecting the Tin Toy Car, a
makers made it easy by including “Made in China” on the rear license hardcover published in 1984, will help fill in a lot of blanks, both
plate holders. with Japanese tinplate and European manufacturers. Ron Smith
The “Minister Delux” knock-off is a little trickier. These were made published two books on the subject in 2003 and 2004,
by Amar Toy Co., near Delhi in India, during the 1980s, and each called The Big Book of Tin Toy Cars. Look
were made to look like a Pontiac tinplate car made by for the one focusing on passenger and
Asahi (ATC) during the mid-1950s. The 10-inch- sports cars. And Andrew Ralston’s
long Minister is a poorly designed and poorly made Tinplate Toy Cars was published in
copy of the Asahi, but the style and the box artwork 2008. All recommended reads.
often fool people into thinking it’s a legitimate
1950s item. The brightwork (headlights,
bumpers, side trim) often corrodes, further adding
to the false impression, and the “Made in India”
and “Amar Toy” logos on the box often are Douglas R. Kelly is the editor of Marine
blacked out or covered with a sticker. The $50 to Technology magazine. His byline has
$75 that sellers often ask for these is way too appeared in Antiques Roadshow
much (actually, $20 would be too much). In my Insider, Back Issue, RetroFan, Diecast
view, you’d do better to put the money toward an Not what it seems to be: watch out for the Collector, and Buildings magazines.
actual 1950s Japanese tin toy.
Minister Delux repro.

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