The Ones That Get Away

Saying this as an historian is a little weird, but sometimes things are best left as mysteries. I found out the identity of the mystery unicyclist, and my world now feels a little less wondrous than it was before.

Moving on…

As any fisherman can tell you, nothing hurts more than the one that got away.

Just the other day I missed getting a pretty sweet Albino Five-Gaiter on eBay by about three seconds – literally! I went to buy it, and it sold before I could finish the transaction.

While it never rose to the status of a grail, I had always hoped to eventually get myself one. Time, money and – most importantly – condition never seemed to work out for me. Vintage Alabasters/Albinos of any sort are notoriously difficult to find in good condition. 

I had thought that now that the Five-Gaiter has moved down another rung in the Breyer Saddlebred hierarchy – with Hamilton now topping the chart – that acquiring one would get a little easier, but apparently that time has not arrived yet.

As I’ve noted before, vintage Breyer Saddlebred molds are relatively easy to collect: whenever the newest Saddlebred mold arrives, all the Saddlebred molds that precede it tend to nosedive in both price and popularity. There are a few exceptions to the rule – the Decorator Five-Gaiters, Translucents like Banner and Gala, and the G1 Saddlebred generally – but for the most part, you can collect them without bankrupting yourself. 

While I like Hamilton as much as the next hobbyist, I’ll always have a soft spot for perhaps the most common Breyer Saddlebred of the bunch: the original #52 Sorrel Five-Gaiter. I keep hoping that that sweet color of his finally makes it onto one of the Saddlebred molds that came after him. 

Or on anything, really. It’s a vintage color that’s been largely overlooked in recent years. I was pleased to see a more modern adaptation of it debut on the on this year’s Seven Arts Surprise model as a “Sable Champagne” Splash Pinto, but I wasn’t lucky enough to get one. Maybe when the prices settle down in a few more months, I hope?

Anyway, there was a pretty nice Black Pinto Clock Saddlebred/American Saddlebred in the last box lot that I bought. I’ve never been a big fan of the mold – he seems so stiff and posed to me – but he’ll probably be sticking around for a little while as I sort out my sales list. I now have about two years’ worth of sales items littering the house, and I haven’t had an ounce of time to do anything about it.

(And I’ll spare you the gruesome details, but it looks like my schedule might be changing again, so I might have even less time for myself. If that’s even possible.)

The only problem here is that any moderately attractive model that hangs around here for any length of time has a habit of staying, especially if they’re a harder-than-average sell. He had a pretty healthy six-year run in the early 2000s (2001 through 2006, to be precise) so most people who needed him already have him. And I don’t necessarily need him.