DISCOVERING YOUR COLLECTING

Author : Veronica Scott

You would be hard-pressed to find someone who did not like to collect something of personal value and interest.

Some individuals purposely set out to collect something, whether it is as expensive and rare as an antique car or easy to find as a tossed penny. The purpose of a collection is to look for certain items that hold some value to you, whether the value is personal or monetary. And collections usually resemble a great affinity for an object, such as fine paintings or sculptures.

You may not even realize when you started collecting something because many times it just happens to accumulate over a period of time, sometimes years. But when you do make the effort to begin a collection, you have to make it a manageable pastime. Otherwise you may find yourself completely surround by endless clutter and chaos.

One thing to remember when you begin a collection is to find something you absolutely love. Take the time to research and learn about the history and mystique behind your prized possessions. This will also aid you in determining what pieces you intend to buy and keep so you can make the most of your collection.

When you collect something, find pieces that have special meaning. If you are collecting antique dollhouses, for example, perhaps you want to look for accessories that represent a particular time period. Or you may want to collect items that remind you of fond memories from your childhood. Adding unique and meaningful items as part of your collection not only gives you ample conversation pieces, but it represents special times in your life.

Because collections normally accumulate over a period of time, it will help if you can make out a “wish list” to narrow down specific items you are looking to find. Locating hard-to-get pieces that go with your collection will require a little research, and you will inevitably find yourself looking through magazines, surfing the Internet or visiting specialty shops. But this is just part of the fun of looking for items you love.

As your collection grows, learn about each item. Find out how it was made, who made it and what they used for materials. You may also want to catalogue your collection to help you keep things organized in case you decide to sell a certain item or trade it for another piece.

You may also want to join a club or organization that deals specifically with what you collect. This is the perfect way to gain hints and suggestions on where to find pieces and get a better price for items you are interested in selling. It also helps form a bond among other avid collectors who also love the same unique things you enjoy.

Starting a collection can be a fun and enjoyable pastime or hobby. You can find a special place for you collection to display for friends and family. And who knows, maybe one day your collection will be worth a lot of money!

CORGI TOY JAMES BOND's ASTON MARTIN DB5 FROM THE FILM

One of Corgi’s best, and most famous, toys, was the James Bond’s Aston Martin. Corgi used their existing Aston Martin DB4, first produced in 1964, as the basis for the model and tired to pack in as many features and devices as possible to emulate those in the Aston Martin DB5 used in the 1964 James Bond film, “Goldfinger”.

Among the main features were: a front machine gun, rear bullet-proof shield, an operating ejector seat. Corgi engineers devised a special test rig to operate the ejector seat to ensure that it would function faultlessly. Their rest was success and the toy was launched in November 1965 and was a acclaimed as the “Toy of the Year” by the National Association of Toy Retailers.

In its original three-year production run, the James Bond Aston Martin became one of the most popular toys ever made, with nearly three million sold. Although the car is illustrated in silver on the packaging, the toy was initially painted gold in order to underline its “premium quality” status.

The rarest version of the James Bond Aston Martin is a revised 1968 model which was slightly larger and painted in silver. It also had extra features: rotating number plates and even telescopic tyre slashers. It is worth three times as much as the gold version.

FABULOUS KING SIZE CARS

The Mercury Cougar K-21 was the first of "the new fabulous King Size cars". It also had opening doors and "True Guide" steering plus an independent suspension. The off-white interior in this version is harder to find than the ones that were issued with red interiors.

TIN TIN CAR-EDITIONS ATLAS

The Adventures of Tintin is a series of comic books created by Belgian artist Georges Remi (1907–1983). The series first appeared in French in a children's supplement to the Belgian newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle on January 10, 1929. The series has continued as a favourite of readers and critics alike for over 70 years.

The hero of the series is Tintin, a young Belgian reporter and traveller. He is aided in his adventures from the beginning by his faithful fox terrier dog Snowy (Milou in French). Later, popular additions to the cast included the brash, cynical and grumpy Captain Haddock, the bright but hearing-impaired Professor Calculus (Professeur Tournesol in French) and other colourful supporting characters such as the incompetent detectives Thomson and Thompson (Dupond et Dupont in French).

The success of the series saw the serialized strips collected into a series of albums (23 in all), spun into a successful magazine and adapted for both film and theatre. The series is one of the most popular European comics of the 20th century, with translations published in over 50 languages and more than 200 million copies of the books sold to date.

This diecast car is Editions Atlas-VW Combi Annee 1950 Tintin Car appeared in the story of L'Affaire Tournesol. It was printed in 1956 page 13 by an immitation as in the book for everything including a gestures as in the cartoon, every part was made from metal. The Professor Calculus sat on the driver set. This car is rarely seen

RALLY MONTE CARLO PLATE

Besides many collected item concerning to a big rally in Europe, "Monte Carlo Rally" such as model car poster etc., the most popular item is "Plate". It is an aluminium sign, size 12"x6". Its appearance is a rectangle with a half circle at the above. The bottom part screened Rally Monte Carlo. The upper part printed the year of the rally or both side. The middle of the arch is the number of the rally car. It had been used for more than 50 years.

This plate for a Monte Carlo Rally has many styles, many colours. It might be seperated are as the followings:

A plate for a rally racing car used white colour, the surface is red with the number of the car.

A plate for the committe or regulator is white colour, red surface. The alphabeth is "CONTROLE"

A plate for the reporter, the surface is black, the white alphabeth is "PRESSE".

A plate for a photographer is "PHOTOGRAPHE"

Besides this, it had a plate for broadcasting radio car. The assistant rally car, repairing assistant car. Every style to be designed including multi-coloured in the year but the plate is a classic up to the present time.

THAI NATIONAL FLAG ON DIECAST CAR

Model of Yesteryear Y-14 1935 E.R.A.

The only diecast in the world that screened Thai National Flag on the body of the car is ERA a racing car driven by Prince Birabongse Bhanutej.

Birabongse Bhanutej best known as Prince Bira of Siam (now Thailand) was a Formula One and Grand Prix motor racing driver who raced for the Maserati, Gordini and Connaught teams, among others.

Prince Birabongse came to Europe in 1927 to complete his education in England at Eton and Cambridge University. Bira first raced with his cousin Prince Chula Chakrabongse's team, White Mouse Racing, driving a Riley Imp at Brooklands in 1935. It was in this car that Bira established the national motor racing colours of Siam: pale blue with yellow. He also established residence near Geneva (Switzerland) and later in the southern part of France. This explains his activity in smaller, more local type events.

Later in the same year, Prince Chula gave him one of the new ERA voiturette racing cars - R2B, which was nicknamed Romulus. Bira finished second in his first ever race in Romulus, despite needing to stop for repairs. The remaining races of the season saw Bira consistently placing amongst the more powerful Grands Prix vehicles, with another second place, and fifth at the Donington Grand Prix.

For 1936 the princes decided that the previous season's results merited a second ERA. They purchased Remus to use in British events and retained Romulus for international races. Chula also purchased a Maserati 8CM to complete the White Mouse roster. Bira's expertise behind the wheel earned him the Coupe de Prince Rainier at Monte Carlo. Bira won a further four races in the ERAs that season, and took the Grand Prix Maserati to 5th at Donington and 3rd at Brooklands.

Unfortunately, this proved to be the career high-point for both Bira and the White Mouse team. Following Dick Seaman's move to Mercedes for 1937, the Thais purchased his Grand Prix Delage and all of its spare parts, along with a second Delage. Despite several upgrades, and hiring experienced race engineer and future Jaguar team manager Lofty England, the cars underperformed, and on many occasions Bira was forced to race in the older and by now substantially inferior ERAs. In addition, the money spent on the Delage upgrades had sapped the resources of the team and corners were being cut in the ERA's race preparations. While Bira maintained a respectable results tally in British events, the more costly international races were largely a disaster.

After the war, Bira returned to racing with several teams. In 1951 he raced in an old 4CLT fitted with a newer V12 Osca engine. No result were obtained this year as a result of the poor performance of the car combined with a severe accident. By 1954, with some newer gear, a Maserati 250F, he won the Grand Prix des Frontières on the Chimay road circuit and then finished fourth in the 1954 French Grand Prix with his own Maserati. He retired at the end of the following season.

Prince Bira died unexpectedly at a London tube station in 1985 at the age of 71.

SIMON SNORKEL FIRE ENGINE

Corgi No.36 Simon Snorkel Fire Engine

This fire-fighting device is designed to bring the fireman and his hose close to the seat of the outbreak in high buildings. Unlike the normal escape ladder, the Snorkel is articulated so that it can be manoeuvred hydraulically from ground level. It can rotate through 360 degrees, as well as extend vertically or sideways. The fireman does his work from a caged plateform at the top of the movement controls are duplicated. The appliance is mounted on along-chassis Bedford. Stability when the Snorkel is elevated is ensured by hydraulic jacks lowered from the fire-engine chassis.