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in the last few months I've found several racing cars with the number 5, including a 19c Aston Martin and a 41b D-type Jaguar. The latest is this 52a Maserati, and I'd welcome your views on whether it's a replacement or genuine.

It was shown like this on eBay: and drew no attention, so I was the only bidder. This is the other side: and here the number is much more clearly visible. The seller obviously didn't draw attention to the number and certainly didn't get a premium price, so I think that's a good sign that it's just a playworn old toy. My only reservation is that the decals are quite creamy yellow compared to those on the D-type and the Aston. What do you think?

In my book:
Playworn + (as-good-as) no premium = (almost certainly) genuine

The #5 looks right to me Glenn. here is a pic of my #5, 52a


zBret

Thanks, Gene. They do look very similar, though I think yours is a little better than mine!

The roundels seemed to have been shared, on an as needed basis, within the group of racers.