Almost Forgotten

Another surprising sales cull from my herd:

You’d think that a Woodgrain Racehorse would be precisely the kind of model I’d keep without a second thought. I like Woodgrains and I love old, rarely used molds, but I find myself with no particular attachment to this model.

He came to me in a group lot on eBay a few years back, but I can’t recall if there was anything otherwise noteworthy about his arrival or provenance. In other words, he came without incident or story.

The same can be said of his condition and overall quality.

I’d like to think of myself as the forgiving sort when it comes to Woodgrains and their condition and quality issues; the scarcity of Woodgrains in my area has made me that way. Usually I’m so overjoyed to find any Woodgrains at all that I’m willing to overlook a few skips, drips and smudges. Heck, I have a Woodgrain Fighting Stallion who is nothing but smudges!

This guy is in better condition than the handful of other Woodgrain Racehorses I’ve had in my possession - a few bubbles and minor scuffs, nothing major. The woodgraining is a little funky, but not in a sufficiently weird or interesting way like that Fighting Stallion.

Still, a model like this shouldn’t have been buried in one of my storage boxes, largely neglected and almost forgotten. All of my other vintage Woodgrains - aside from a couple of Family Arabian variations and a Clydesdale with some condition issues - are out and on permanent display.

The Racehorse is not recognizable to most antiquers as a Breyer, so when they do show up, they are often identified as the "not a Breyer" of whatever little collection they may happen to be in. That’s because aside from the fact that it doesn’t really look like most Breyers (the lack of detail, the smaller scale), the Racehorse doesn’t come with any mold marks, either.

There are quite a few early Woodgrains without mold marks, come to think of it. The earliest Poodles, the earliest Clydesdales, the Western Pony, the Boxer, the Old Mold Family (Stallion, Mare and Foal), the Fury/Prancer, and some of the Bulls can all be found without mold marks, in the Woodgrain finish.

Their lack of mold marks doesn’t seem to make them any easier to find. Like most everyone else, when I do find Woodgrains they tend to be Family Arabians and Fighting Stallions, not the oddities or the rarities.

The #936 Racehorse is something of a minor exception to the rule, but that’s because he’s "common" compared to some Woodgrains - with a decent run from ca. 1959 through 1965 - and not as desirable as most. While he does have his fans, he’s definitely an acquired taste.

I wouldn’t mind adding another Woodgrain Racehorse to the herd, but I feel like I’ve let this little one down somehow. I’m letting him go because he deserves a better home than the one I’ve given him so far.