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Collectors Old Toy Shop

The "Collectors Old Toy shop" in Halifax, West Yorkshire, is one of those fascinating old-style shops run by a genuine enthusiast that are increasingly rare these days. As the name suggests, it deals in old toys including trains, early tinplate toys, moneyboxes etc. But the majority of it’s stock, and that of most interest to us, is the extensive range of old toy cars.

It is fair to say that it is quite a small shop, but it is literally packed to the ceiling with old display cabinets, worthy of your grandma’s finest china. Each of these cabinets is in turn packed with cars and other toys, roughly grouped by manufacturer and condition. A small room through the back of the shop houses baskets of cheaper cars from the 70’s and 80’s starting at only 20p.

The back room

The minute you speak to owner, Simon Haley, you know that you are dealing with someone with a genuine passion for his subject. When we visit, one of his regular customers has just dropped in while passing just for a chat. When did that last happen at your local superstore?

One of the first cars that we look at with Simon is a James Bond Aston Martin DB5 – you know, the one with the ejector seat. Almost 4 million examples of this car were produced in the mid 1960’s, originally selling for 10 shillings, but the examples Simon has in store demonstrate how much they can now be worth and how much condition and originality affect the value. The first is in mint condition complete with all bits including the often-lost passenger. The box is perfect and includes the instruction leaflet. This example will set you back £250. The second example Simon produces has clearly been well loved and used by a child and is without a box and missing the passenger. By contrast, this one can be yours for £25.

£250 and £25

This brings us on to talking about what actually influences the value. Like classic cars, significant factors are condition and completeness. Where they different from their full size counterparts however is in restorations. A restored toy car will probably not be worth any more than it was in it’s unrestored state and may indeed be worth less.

Simon cites us an example of a Dinky Weetabix lorry. In mint condition with box this could be worth £2000-£2500, whereas a rough example would only be worth £40.

Now knowing originality is paramount to the value of the car and that some cars are restored, we then wonder how the untrained eye would spot an original example. Simon gives us these general buying tips:

• Unfortunately there is no substitute for hard experience when it comes to spotting a restored car, as it could be something as subtle as the shade of the paint. One thing you can look for is paint that has strayed as the cars would all originally have been painted in component parts.
• Always try to go to reputable dealers.
• Always ask if the car and box are original. If you don’t ask then the seller is not obliged to declare that it is a replacement box for example. If however you’ve been told that it is original and later find out that this is not the case then you have grounds for getting a refund.
• Always get the best quality you can.

When it comes to where to buy, there are a number of possibilities:

• Specialist dealers
• Toy fairs
• Auction houses holding specialist toy sales
• Car boot sales
• Flea market

It is easy to assume that there are bargains to be had when buying from anyone other than a specialist dealer but this can by no means be guaranteed and it may indeed be possible to pay well over the odds. The reason for this is that toy car price guides that general dealers may use tend to quote a price range for cars in top condition. So if the guide says £80-£100 this does not mean that an example in poor condition is worth £80, but it would be easy to interpret the guide as meaning this.

Simon prefers not to attend the toy fairs as the overheads in getting there and paying for a stall are high and this would naturally have to be reflected in his ticket prices. Instead he prefers to use the Internet and trade out of his premises relying upon his good reputation to draw people in. Numerous phone calls during our brief meeting confirm that this undoubtedly works.

The Corgi cabinet

By now you will undoubtedly wanting to start your own collection so we asked Simon about how best to look after a collection.

• Do not keep them in direct sunlight. The sun will fairly obviously bleach the boxes, but more surprisingly it will affect the paint on the cars as well. When choosing a location for your collection make sure you check for the position of the sun at all times of the day
• Avoid UV lights as they will cause the above problems as well.
• Do not install a display case over a radiator
• Do not keep in a dehumidified room as surprisingly this is actually bad for the boxes.
• KEEP THEM AWAY FROM THE KIDS!

If you are ever lucky enough to find yourself in this part of the country then dropping in on Simon is definitely recommended. You will very soon find yourself reminiscing and becoming very sentimental as you rediscover your favourite childhood toys. If you are curious about whether a toy of you favourite classic was ever produced then simply get in touch with Simon and he will probably know off the top of his head as we discovered when we challenged him over the Triumph Stag.

You can email Simon at collectorsoldtoy@aol.com or visit his web site www.collectorsoldtoyshop.com.