Kaiser-Frazer toys

[Bob G]

The '52 model I have has an add-on '52 hood ornament. The side-script only says Kaiser, no series designation. As noted the '53 quarter panel top trim and headlight molding wings were sanded off. The underside of the chassis says AST27 on the rear end and SC Miller PO Drawer J Dublin VA 703-980-0376 on the front end. Sorry for my slow response to the questions.

[Gordie]

Thanks Bob G.  It is interesting that Miller made his molds work for two different years of Kaiser models and I wonder if there was an add-on kit to make a 1951.  A 1953 Banthrico model which Miller used as a pattern, experimented with an add-on kit for making a 1954 Kaiser by using plastic bumpers, grill and head lights as well as the larger tail light and trim to make a 1954 out of the original 1953 model.  Only a few prototypes were found in the warehouse when the company was liquidated.

[Bob G]

Would have been nice to have some '54 models out there.

[Gordie]

There is a nice '54 Kaiser Manhattan model available from Brooklin Models in 1:43 scale or about  six inches long.  They are available in a couple of different colors, are very nice and run about one hundred dollars.  You can find them in model shops or on eBay.  That is the only 1954 model that I am aware of.

[Gordie]

A very dirty Banthrico Henry J model appeared on eBay recently but still went for a high price.  Upon receiving it I took it apart for cleaning and noticed that the models with windows have little nubs molded inside the models to keep the plastic windows in place.  When looking inside of the clear windows it is not very appealing to see the plain interior so apparently during production they decided to spray the inside of the windows silver which looks very nice from the outside and hides the interior,  Many later promotional models had dashboards and seats inside and looked very authentic.  Even our Henry J  promotional models had running changes during production!  I cleaned up several scratches and stains and went over the grill and bumpers with fine steel wool and the model now looks very nice.  It is the wind-up motor version.

[Gordie]

Wow!  Someone had an oddly written online auction for a brand new Banthrico Henry J promotional model in the original box.  The auction only showed one picture of the box and not a clue as to what was inside it.  It did not bring much money and I can't wait to see what I bought.  I had never seen an original box before and it has an illustration of the Henry J printed on it.  It is sixty nine years old, no wonder these models are hard to find!

[Dragon]

Gordie, I wish you could put some pictures on.  I would love to see your finds.

[Gordie]

I'm sorry that I got into the computer world late in life and am very limited in those skills.  I collect many topics and everything Kaiser-Frazer and try to bring parts of my collection to the Western National meets for display.  I have found over 100 K-F toys and models but my main collection is automotive related postcards and have about 60,000 of those.  Are there any other postcard collectors among us?  PM me.

[Dragon]

I love collecting Postcards.  I collect many vintage postcards of local towns in my area and many automobile PCs.  Bring some to the National and maybe we can make some trades.  I have many
dublicates I can bring.

[Gordie]

Unfortunately I have over 100,000 duplicates in about 130 automotive topics and no list.  Mine are in boxes mostly sorted.  What are your favorite topics?  I used to set up at Hershey and Carlisle every year until gas got so expensive it was costing me $1,000 in gas just to get to Hershey one way in my 5 MPG motor home.  I have sold all of my non automotive cards, over a million of them and just kept the automotive.  If you are looking for a postcard on any specific car I can probably tell you what cards were made for that car and make copies if I do not have duplicates.  I have a couple of hundred Kaiser-Frazer-Willys postcards in the 1946-1955 era and some duplicates.  Many like dealership postcards are hard to find.

[Gordie]

Over the years there have been very few Willys Aero toys or models made and I am only aware of two inch MPC toys that usually were available in sets of many different toys in the late fifties.  They were very crude compared to later models and had "willys" worded on the trunks.  In 1953 a company named Bird made promotional models of the Aero 2 door in 1:25 scale or about six inches long and someone made resin copies more recently and either version is extremely hard to find.  There is also the Brooklin model of a 1953 Aero Ace 2 door in 1:43 scale.  Brooklin is based in England and the only models I have seen for sale are in Europe and around $150.00 plus $50.00 for postage.  They look nice in the picture but very expensive for a new but limited edition model.  Recently a company named Esval has introduced two 1955 Eagle hard tops in resin and they are very attractive.  One version is red and white and features a full interior, two outside rear view mirrors, an antenna, white walls and is very attractive in 1:43 scale or about 4 1/2 " long.  The second version is the same but with an added continental kit and skirts and in two tone blue.  Both are very nice and would look good on any collectors shelf.  They are on eBay and run about $100.00 each.

[Thomasso]

Just ordered the Esval 1955 Bermuda model in blue.  Its same as mine except for fender skirts and mine is an early car with double quarter mldgs.  Will report when I receive it.

[Aeroman]

Bird updated the 1953 model to a 1954 - see lousy pic of mine. Note the larger taillamps and the removal of the rear window dividers. S.C. Miller did the resin casts.
Also here is a bunch of those MPC toys, Aero is the bottom left one.
The Brooklin 1/43 scale is good, but the taillamps appear to be inaccurate from their pics. I have not seen one in person.

[Gordie]

What was the very first Kaiser or Frazer toy?  I don't know which came first but there was the Tootsietoy sedan that first came out in dime stores in about 1946 or '47.  They are quite stylized and appear too long to be totally accurate but have two bumper guards in the front as did the earliest real Kaisers and they are easily recognized as a Kaiser.  They are six inches long and I have seen them in blue, green and red.  They are still easy to find on eBay and usually are under $30.00 for a nice one or much less if you are handy at re-painting.  The next earliest that I know of is a scarce one that Fid owns and has illustrated earlier on this blog.  They came in a box with a wind-up motor and key and a cable that entered the hood and remotely steered the car with a little steering wheel at the end of the cable.  They were made in occupied Japan by a company named Itaco and went by the name of TM.  They made many nice tin toys in the 1940's and '50's and this one is 4 1/4" inches long and has four bumper guards in the front as did all of the Kaisers and Frazers made after January 1947.  They rarely show up for sale and when they do they are usually just the car and not with the accessories or the box.  A nice complete one did appear a few weeks ago and it sold for about $60.00 which was a very reasonable price today.  I have only seen them in red.  There are a few other early Kaisers and Frazers in tin and die cast.

[Gordie]

Wow!  Someone had an oddly written online auction for a brand new Banthrico Henry J promotional model in the original box.  The auction only showed one picture of the box and not a clue as to what was inside it.  It did not bring much money and I can't wait to see what I bought.  I had never seen an original box before and it has an illustration of the Henry J printed on it.  It is sixty nine years old, no wonder these models are hard to find!
[/
Well this one came in the mail and it was a real disappointment as it was only part of a box for $140.00,  It got bid very high because of a poorly written ad and I got my money back.  The box was interesting though as it stated on the box that it was approved by Kaiser-Frazer and it was the Lincoln Line Co. and not the Banthrico version that was sold or given away by K-F dealers.  Those two model companies used the same exact body and trim parts with only the wheels and chassis being different,  Both companies were from Chicago and I don't know who was first but they certainly collaborated on the Henry J models.  Another Lincoln Line was on eBay brightly repainted in red with whitewalls added along with painted hubcaps and trim that is usually not painted.  It also has windows added which were not original to the Lincoln Line models.  It looks much nicer than the original plain model but I am going to take it apart to see what the original color was and then decide whether i want to restore it to original or leave it as-is.  It sure stands out among the originals.
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