So, here he is, at last!
Just your garden variety #93 Gloss Dapple Gray Belgian. The one made from 1964 through 1966, and who used to be the Graili-est of Grails for collectors in the 1970s and 1980s.
Time and the Internet changed all that.
There were a surprising number of Gloss Dapple Gray Belgians out there for me to choose from, but finding one that was that unique combination of price (I could go low-end “retail”) and condition (the best I could buy on that budget) was challenging.
And whenever I thought I did… well, I didn’t. He might not be All That anymore, but he’s still something. There were a lot of painful near misses!
But I think I finally found my guy. All I have to complain about is that he’s very slightly yellowed, and one ear seam is a little rough.
He’s also not a Dapple Black variation, and he doesn’t have his original box or Blue Ribbon Sticker. I’ve had a good year, and a lucky one too, but obviously not that good and not that lucky.
I also paid slightly more than I wanted to, but I’m doing okay right now, financially, so I was willing to pay a little extra. But just a little. The amount of money I see some people throwing around in the hobby will never fail to baffle and appall me.
That, and clapping at auctions. They didn’t accomplish anything, they just spent a lot of money. Unless you’re the one getting the money, there’s no reason to clap. (And even if you are, it just seems tacky.)
4 comments:
Congratulations!! Finally! He is perfect...I love his carefully painted, dark mane. It makes sense to hold out for just the right horse.
I was going through my collection yesterday, and thinking (as I do every so often) I'll thin the herd. Most of mine are body condition, purchased to satisfy my own curiosity. It seems like there are already so many beat-up ponies on Ebay!
Took me forever to find my first dapple gray, and he was purchased knowing he was damaged. Got his tail fixed, then upgraded and sold that one. Still have that one, bought a second, but had to sell him when my window AC broke. (Can't live without AC in TX) Found a third, darker than my first, and finally found my elusive dapple black (and he wasn't cheap, but affordable with PayPal Pay in Four, so...) so unless I find a super cheap BIN, I think I'm good on my dapples finally!! YAY!
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=6756303637738283&set=a.6756328877735759
Even when I joined the hobby in the late '80s this dapply boy still had that holy light shining around him! The way this one's dapples blend into & enhance the white face - *chef's kiss*. Super congrats!
Oh, yes! After being an 80s tween seeing the prices those commanded I still can't believe I have one on my self. And oh, if I could have gone back in time to tell my young self that I would buy a charcoal running stallion AND a JAH SB weanling at Breyerfest in the same year I would have thought I grew up to be rich! Really shocked at how those prices changed.
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