Very rare pre pro 75 thunderbird

[Batterseaboy]

that would be too old to have been Paul Carr then. but we are still only 5 to 8 miles from Lesneys various factories and complexes so there must be quite a few ex Lesney employees living in close proximity to the Pageant.
1983 was also the year that Lesney / Matchbox production finally came to an end and the R & D department was cleared out.

He was local if I remember correctly

[Batterseaboy]

The stuff he had was all rare..

[Tinman]

The man who had them was not a dealer he worked for Lesney and was disposing of his stuff, he said they were prototypes so we must not change that to a flow test as that will do him a disservice. So please in the interest of clarity the test idea is a sweet notion but that is not what they are.

I hate to burst a bubble, but "prototype" and "pre-production" are two terms heavily misused and abused, especially by those who claim to have worked there or obtained this or that from someone who allegedly worked there. Even some infamous people who actually did work in Lesney R&D continue to churn out endless "prototypes" and "pre-production" models of fiction.

As Nick has noted, none of this detracts from how unique this piece actually is.

[Batterseaboy]

The man who had them was not a dealer he worked for Lesney and was disposing of his stuff, he said they were prototypes so we must not change that to a flow test as that will do him a disservice. So please in the interest of clarity the test idea is a sweet notion but that is not what they are.

I hate to burst a bubble, but "prototype" and "pre-production" are two terms heavily misused and abused, especially by those who claim to have worked there or obtained this or that from someone who allegedly worked there. Even some infamous people who actually did work in Lesney R&D continue to churn out endless "prototypes" and "pre-production" models of fiction.

As Nick has noted, none of this detracts from how unique this piece actually is.

True but this fellow just wanted this stuff gone...

[Martin Avis]

Just to throw another thought into the equation...

It is clear, from the Fiat roof rack, that Lesney needed clips to attach the luggage to the roof. Witness the two holes cast into the Fiat's roof.

The fact that the Thunderbird roof rack doesn't have have holes argues - in my mind - that it was an early research and development piece and not intended as a finished product.

Martin

[Moyboy]

It must be remembered that it is far easier to add to a mould than take away. To add all you do is recut, to take away you have to fill the mould and then regrind and polish smooth. I always thought that once a mould was ok it was case hardened or chromed vanadiumed ( not sure what the process is ) but basically hardened for long term usage - so is it possible to recut an already used mould.
I have many prepro models and even wooden patterns and Lesney were well known for using parts from other models to make new ones ( as Joe said they were frugal). A lot of prepro I have , have many castings that appeared on an issued model missing completely ie flat bases with no detail whatsoever etc. In the case of the rack , to me it looks bloody ugly on this superb model so cannot see why it may have been done.
PS this is one of the best threads in ages !

[Idris]

In 35 years of searching I have been lucky enough to find two 'one off' castings like these...

What were those, Nick?

[Idris]

I can't think of any model in the entire 1-75 range that was "enhanced," in any way, in order to give it new life, with the hopes of continuing is production run and generating further sales.

SF34 Vantastic - removal of exposed engine from bonnet.

[GHOSTHUNTER]

Do these count...

#8, 'Wild cat' customised Ford Mustang, (original casting with cut-out in bonet for an engine).
#62, 'Rat Rod' customised Mercury Cougar, (original casting having doors sealed and cut-out in bonnet for an engine).
#63, Simon Snorkel Fire Engine, (original Merryweather casting having some drastic metal cut away and additional 'Snorkel' equipment in plastic fitted at the rear).

Ghosthunter.

[Batterseaboy]

Now we are getting there, these all happened later but it all had to start somewhere......