My 80s diecast collection

[MiltonBaines]

Dug out my boxes of diecasts from my children, each brings back it's own memory. They are all still positioned in the boxes exactly as I left them back in early 90s. All were played with by me, some more than others but they were always returned to their slot and were never crashed! Hence most are mint or close to it. I love these and as sad as it sounds they are one of my most treasured possessions. Anyway, thought someone might be interested so here are some pics.

[MiltonBaines]

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[Daveb257]

Wow, just wow
I’ve got two display cases full of the vintage delivery vans like in your last pic, lovely thing my dad used to have on his study wall, I should really display them one day

[MiltonBaines]

Thanks the Lledo vintage trucks aren't really anything special to me tbh. The Mark's and Spencer one was my first, a giveaway from the shop, my dad liked it and so I was regularly gifted more. My dad often bought me the models he wanted rather than buy them for himself. Hence I also built up a huge collection of 1/43 scale Solido Anwrican cars of the 50s. I've sold those all in recent years as they weren't that special to me and I just didn't have the space. Still got pics so I'll post those sometime.

[tangerine_sedge]

MiltonBaines said:

I distinctly remember buying the number 8 Countach in the mid 70's, so I'm surprised that it was still available in the 90's...

Looking at this web page linky then it must have been made between '76 & '80, so it's in great condition for its age!

[MiltonBaines]

You're right it is a 1970s model along with others in my collection. In the 80s and early 90s there were these things called model shops and Toy Fairs that sold mint old diecast models...
That's where I would have bought some of these so no need to raise a suspicious eyebrow at my approximate dates of purchase.
I was a fan of the Countach growing up hence lots of variations in my collection, some bought new, some bought mint from collectors fairs. And of course I had the obligatory red framed airbrushed countach pic on my wall that all boys seemed to have back in the day.

Edited by MiltonBaines on Sunday 28th June 16:51

[Nickyboy]

I watch toy auctions a lot, i've seen these sell for £200+ per case, more so if in mint condition. Well done for keeping them mint

[Spottedlaurel]

You have a lovely collection there, great to see them in the cases.

I have many of mine from that age, but having been played with by me and then my son some are now a bit tired.

Toy fairs do still exist (well, maybe not now, but hopefully again one day). I went to one back in February and got some more good things.

I dare not start buying on eBay, I much prefer buying stuff direct having looked at it and after a bit of a haggle. Car shows and boot sales can also be good sources, and collectors/antique shops. There's a shop in my local town that has a few lovely boxed Superfast, but sod's law dictates that I already have them.

[MiltonBaines]

I think I'd still pick up a mint matchox or Siku from the 80s if I spotted it at a good price to fill the few slots I have spare. Always wanted the mk1 Golf that was raised on large tyres and the White Merc 500SEC AMG.

If these were to sell for £200 a case I think I'd be disappointed, that's only about £4-5 a car, even though some are not mint that's stilL not enough. I enjoyed getting them out at the weekend and showing my children, picking out special ones and telling the story behind where I bought it or how I used to play with that one. They were even ok about just picking them up to look at (they have their own modern collection of matchbox so I don't feel too bad). For me they are priceless, anyway am glad a few people on here enjoyed looking at them too.

Edited by MiltonBaines on Monday 29th June 14:27

[Spottedlaurel]

Tidy, unboxed examples don't seem to go for very much money - I buy them as gap fillers in my collection of mint, boxed 1970s Superfast and don't recall ever spending more than £5 each, often significantly less in bulk or at somewhere like a charity shop.

The MIB examples have gone up a fair bit from when I first started buying them in 1991. Back then £2-3 would get most mid '70s examples and £12-13 for earlier models. Now I rarely see anything from that era for under £10 and most are £20-30+, with odd examples going for considerably more. Luckily I'm not worried about particular colours or variations, but even so there are some which I'll probably never get at sensible money.

[MiltonBaines]

Ultimately value doesn't matter as I'll never sell. Yes they're worth less as they are unboxed but they were my toys as a child and were played with. I'd happily buy unboxed cars today to fill the gaps in my collection, I always think it's nice to be able to examine the model from all angles. My era of collecting is mainly mid 80s so they are still relatively easy to find without crazy prices thankfully.