Without doubt the
best book for the 1-75 regular wheel collector is the long out of
print 1982 Stannard guide that lists all known colour, wheel and
casting variations, It was reprinted in 2002 but the website which was marketing them appears to have gone
so at the moment I can only assume it is unavailable but a google search may turn up something, The 1-75 guide on this site is based on Stannards original variation tables
but with the addition of Christan Falkensteiners update plus many more unlisted vaiations from my own collection
and those many variations sent to me by readers of this site to whom we owe a very big THANK YOU!.
Probably the most useful book
for any Collector of all ranges of Matchbox toys is the Encyclopedia of Matchbox toys by Charlie Mack.
3rd Edition 2002. It has hundreds of excellent colour
photographs and a full price guide for all of the products made
from 1947 to the present. There is a brief history of the Lesney
Company and a description of the range at the start of each
category. He lists the colour and wheel variations for each
model, the years they were produced and gives a value in US $ for them.
Although this book has much less info than can be found on this site it is still a book no serious Matchbox Collector should be without.
Highly recommended.
Another "must have"
for your collection is Collecting Matchbox Diecast Toys: First Forty Years by Kevin McGimpsey & Stewart Orr which is a highly detailed history of the
Lesney Company and their products 1947-1987 and also the history
of the Moko Company from 1875. There are many colour & black
and white photographs of the people the factory and the products
they made. There is no price guide but everything Lesney ever
made is photographed and described in detail. Certainly one not
to be missed but it is getting very hard to find now, This one comes highly
recommended so grab a copy, Although it is expensive you certainly wont be disappointed, It is simply packed full of Lesney info and photographs
The late Harold Colpitts book
"Matchbox 1-75 series Regular Wheel 1953-69" published
by the American International Matchbox (collectors club) is a
good reference guide for casting variations that are missed by
other reference guides, the booklet was last updated in 1983, It
can be ordered from Harolds family at haroldsaim@aol.com
Another very interesting book
is Matchbox Toys [2002 edition] by Bruce and
Diane Stoneback. It has
a well written history of the Company and has a chapter on Jack
Odell's Lledo Company and the "Days Gone" and "Promotional"
toys that they made. The photo's are of very good quality showing
many of the lesser known products. There is no price guide but
the book describes all the rare models in detail. Currently out
of print, even so it's a good book to have in any collection .
I tried to obtain a copy of the Concise Catalogue of 1-75
series Matchbox toys by Lesney by
Geoffery Leake but have been unable to track down a copy but I am reliably informed it is another "must have" for the Lesney colector.
One book that is highly prized
by many collectors is "Mike and the Modelmakers
" by M.Sasek.
It was published by Lesney in 1970 not for Collectors but as a
Childrens story book. The illustrations are accurate drawn representations
of the factory and their products which gives us a real glimpse into the past which few books listed here do quite as well.
Although long out of print his one can often be found on
.
For probably the best reference
book and price guide that covers almost all makes of British die
cast toys try the book Ramsay's British Diecast Model Toys Price Guide / Catalogue 12th Edition - 2007.
The
book is considered the to be the book to have by British
Collectors and Dealers alike. It lists all the big named
Manufacturers as well as the smaller ones like "Morestone",
"Charbens", "Benbros" and "Budgie"
also the modern collectibles like "Corgi Classics",
"EFE" and "Lledo". The book contains lots of
very useful information and compared to most of the other books
on this page it is very easy to find a copy, Sadly it has very
few photographs which could be very useful in helping to identify
old toys, especially to the novice collector it is still,
nevertheless a book not to be missed.
Andrew Ralston has a very
interesting booklet on Lone Star toys, it has a history of the
company and an overview of their products including cap guns and
cowboy outfits, die cast cars and trains among others, a good
read and all for only £4.50 ($9.99) a copy including p&p,
You can order your copy direct from Andrew at ralstona55@yahoo.co.uk
For those interested in Corgi
toys you may want to try the books Corgi Juniors and Husky Models
and the Unauthorized Encyclopedia of Corgi Toys
which are both by the very knowledgeable Bill Manzke. I think the first one may be the only book written on the subject of Husky range so its certainly the one to have if you like Husky toys.
For Dinky toys the The Great Book of Dinky Toys
by Mike & Sue Richardson is superb, With loads of photographs and lots to read it's the best Dinky toys book published to date.
For "Budgie" toys
Robert Newsons book "Budgie models, including Morris &
Stone, Morestone and Modern products" is the one to have, it
has a section on the "Esso pump" series, at the moment
I am unable to find a supplier. the ISBN number is 0 948793 02 3
Robert Newson has reprinted his
booklet Benbros T.V.Series & Mighty Midgets, It covers the
"T.V." series, later known as the "Mighty Midgets".
You can obtain a copy direct from Robert at robert.newson@btinternet.com
by Charlie Mack.
3rd Edition 2002. It has hundreds of excellent colour
photographs and a full price guide for all of the products made
from 1947 to the present. There is a brief history of the Lesney
Company and a description of the range at the start of each
category. He lists the colour and wheel variations for each
model, the years they were produced and gives a value in US $ for them.
Although this book has much less info than can be found on this site it is still a book no serious Matchbox Collector should be without.
Highly recommended.