'Superfast' wheel designs.

[Idris]

Bringing more numbers. Checked my 3 SF Ferrari Berlinetta 75A. Why not earlier numbers on the green one ???
Green body - Plain grille - With Pat App - Mixed wheels : 40H - 35H - 3G - F8 (this last wh is hollow).
Red body - Plain grille - With Pat App - Solid wh : 16 - 12 - 22 - 35.
Red body - Silver grille - With Pat App - Hollow wh : L23 - L44 - L40 - L40.

The implication is that the green bodies were old stock which was used for production after the red SF model had been launched. However, if a green body with low wheel numbers can be found, that would indicate initial SF production in green followed quickly by a change to the standard red with residual green bodies being used when available.

[SMS88]

Bringing more numbers. Checked my 3 SF Ferrari Berlinetta 75A. Why not earlier numbers on the green one ???
Green body - Plain grille - With Pat App - Mixed wheels : 40H - 35H - 3G - F8 (this last wh is hollow).
Red body - Plain grille - With Pat App - Solid wh : 16 - 12 - 22 - 35.
Red body - Silver grille - With Pat App - Hollow wh : L23 - L44 - L40 - L40.

The implication is that the green bodies were old stock which was used for production after the red SF model had been launched. However, if a green body with low wheel numbers can be found, that would indicate initial SF production in green followed quickly by a change to the standard red with residual green bodies being used when available.

The red SF67 VW,yellow SF33 Muira,white SF8 Mustang + brown SF25 Cortina GT are proven earliest SF releases made in 1969 however the other RW colour bodies - green SF75 Berlinetta, green SF64 MG, blue SF46 Mercedes, red SF24 Rolls normally have much later mould numbers implying mid-late 1970 production. Blue SF53 Zodiacs may exist with both suffix/prefix hollow 10.5mm wheels that are last half of 1970 production as well much rarer fitted with early solid 11.2mm wheels ( which could be unused 1st run baseplates stored until 2 run late 1970)

[GHOSTHUNTER]

The 1969 Canadian catalogue shown earlier is a very important document, because while it is one of the first pieces of printed media, to showcase 'Superfast' with 5 track sets, accessories and a carrying case, all in the 'Superfast' corporate look, it still includes the 'Regular' wheeled products, implying 'Superfast' at that time was an additional smaller range with differently painted cars, high speed wheels and a track system for them to run on, all for a premium and if you did not want the thrills of high speed racing you could plod along with the 'Regular' wheel vehicles.

Having studied this catalogue closely, I can not see a 'Superfast' Ferrari as a separate model or displayed on the box artwork for the sets, which I have listed below...

SF-1, includes 1 car and has a Red Marzal artwork on the box.
SF-2, includes 1 car and has a Blue Iso Griffo artwork on the box.
SF-3, includes 1 car and has a Yellow-Gold BMC artwork on the box.
SF-4, includes 2 cars and has a Blue Lotus artwork on the box.
SF-5, includes 2 cars and has a Blue Lotus and a White Ford GT artwork on the box.

Additional to these...

SF-6, SF-11, SF-12, SF-13, SF-14, SF-15, SF-16 are track sections, a banked curve and supports, with SF-24 a carrying case.

GHOSTHUNTER.

[GHOSTHUNTER]

The nearest to an early Green Ferrari we have got so far is the one shown by "Vetrad" which from what I can see in the picture has treaded and smooth wheels, with a number '8' and '10' which will be the treaded wheels.

Christian's site does not show an 'F1' (A LESNEY PRODUCT), box for a 'Superfast' Ferrari and with it generally being accepted as having a 1970 launch date, presumably the box will be an 'F2' with the longer 'REG'D T.M.' script (have not seen one of these yet either), but certainly a 'G' box.

GHOSTHUNTER.

[SMS88]

The nearest to an early Green Ferrari we have got so far is the one shown by "Vetrad" which from what I can see in the picture has treaded and smooth wheels, with a number '8' and '10' which will be the treaded wheels.

Christian's site does not show an 'F1' (A LESNEY PRODUCT), box for a 'Superfast' Ferrari and with it generally being accepted as having a 1970 launch date, presumably the box will be an 'F2' with the longer 'REG'D T.M.' script (have not seen one of these yet either), but certainly a 'G' box.

GHOSTHUNTER.

red RW 75b, gold RW 33c and purple RW 67b are all certainly 1970 releases judging from Motorway / Switch a track giftset and Canadian blisterpack designs -cant remember what the AIM dating on these specifically was..........

[Idris]

...implying 'Superfast' at that time was an additional smaller range with differently painted cars, high speed wheels and a track system for them to run on, all for a premium and if you did not want the thrills of high speed racing you could plod along with the 'Regular' wheel vehicles...

I don't own a copy of this particular catalogue and find it extremely interesting that you've come to the above conclusion. I would very much like to know whether other members agree with you. The sub-range concept certainly makes a lot more sense to me than what actually happened (blanket conversion to Superfast, outlandish designs, unrealistic colours etc.). If only they'd stuck to it....

[Matchboom]

Hello. SF 25 A Cortina wheel numbers. Hollow wheels on both.
Brown body : 34B - 19B - 43B - 44B.
Light blue body : 5D - 8D - 1D - 35D.

[SMS88]

...implying 'Superfast' at that time was an additional smaller range with differently painted cars, high speed wheels and a track system for them to run on, all for a premium and if you did not want the thrills of high speed racing you could plod along with the 'Regular' wheel vehicles...

I don't own a copy of this particular catalogue and find it extremely interesting that you've come to the above conclusion. I would very much like to know whether other members agree with you. The sub-range concept certainly makes a lot more sense to me than what actually happened (blanket conversion to Superfast, outlandish designs, unrealistic colours etc.). If only they'd stuck to it....

We know from 40 years book that Jack Odell advocated leaving all trucks + Kings with RW - 1969 sales literature does suggest only some Superfast models in 1-75 series not a whole Superfast range -that decision was taken when G box artwork was created

[GHOSTHUNTER]

If we now look at what must be the first showing of 'Superfast' in the UK, the 2nd edition of the 1969 pocket catalogue, only One page features it in the form of an artist's impression of the track set we know as SF-4, the twin loop set...

1st 'Superfast' showing in the UK!.jpg (135.68 KiB) Viewed 1777 times

Clearly visible artists's renderings of the Blue Lotus Europa, Gold BMC 1800 and a dark Red Lamborghini Marzal, but there is no definition of the wheels here. There are no other references to track sets or accessories.

Within the pages of the 'Regular' wheeled vehicles they highlight a 'Superfast' model with the addition of a tiny logo of a design that looks like a shopping trolly wheel and this idea must surely predate the 'Superfast' logo we now know, shown above.

1969, 2nd edition UK catalogue.jpg (122.93 KiB) Viewed 1777 times

If you look at the detail box between the #2 Trailer and #3 Mercedes Ambulance, the logo at the bottom of the Three, is what identifies a 'Superfast' model within the 'Regular' wheeled models on these pages. I have enlarged the detail below.

DETAIL.jpg (25.04 KiB) Viewed 1777 times

This logo appears alongside these models...

#5, Lotus Europa, this replaces the 'RM' Routemaster Bus in the 1st edition catalogue.
#14, Iso Griffo.
#15, VW Beetle.
#20, Lamborghini Marzal, this replaces the Yellow TAXI in the 1st edition catalogue.
#33, Lamborghini Miura.
#41, Ford GT.
#56, BMC 1800 Pininfarina, this replaces the Fiat 1300 in the 1st edition catalogue.
#62, Mercury Cougar.
#67, VW 1600 TL.

All the models in this catalogue are artist's impressions and no hard clues as to when this catalogue was printed, but given the new catalogues tend to appear during Jan-Feb of a given Year and several new models are noted as being available mid 1969 and later 1969, may help tie this one down.

I have also shown the back page of this catalogue as it shows all the prices, but as you may notice, not the 'Superfast' models, nothing!

1969, 2nd Edition price list..jpg (185.29 KiB) Viewed 1777 times

GHOSTHUNTER.

[Matchboom]

Can't wait to read an advanced demonstration about the meaning / chronology of these wheel numbers. Is there a grid giving a time frame for each letter ? Dreaming...
Ford Mustang 08A - White body - Red interior : 17 - 9 - 35 - 25.
Ford Mustang 08A - Burnt orange body - Red interior : 8 - 6 - 1 - 44.
Ford Mustang 08A - Burnt orange body - Ivory interior : 50 - 37 - 26 - 44.
Ford Mustang 08A - Tomato red body - Ivory interior : B9 - B7 - B13 - B35. This one looks very interesting, with other letters and numbers half-hidden (not half-erased) on each inner wheel cos' too close to the center !! Half-hidden ones located at 9 and 3 o'clock when final letters and numbers are put together at 12 o'clock.