Tuesday, August 7, 2018

Bay, Bay and Bay

If Monday was any indication of what’s to come, it looks like this week is shaping up to be a sequel to last week.

However, I decided to take some of that this-only-seems-to-happen-to-me stress out on one of my hapless customizing projects (that Mesteno’s Mother mold I blathered about a while back) so it’s nothing but pretty ponies for the rest of the post, yay!

Specifically, three Bay Western Prancing Horses:


The older “Sorrel” variation of the #114 Bay Western Prancer, the later “Bay” variation of the same release, and the Tractor Supply release of Annie Oakley’s Prince.

The Sorrel was one of my very first in-hobby purchases, and I was positively giddy when I got him: he was my first model with eyewhites, and one of the first models I purchased that was older than me!

The Bay Bay was a CHIN purchase. I was looking around the hotel hoping to upgrade my Buckskin WPH; I thought I had a potential candidate, but didn’t pass closer inspection. Then I found the Bay Bay variation, so I bought him and called it a day.

The Prince was an NPOD find. He’s not a true Sample or anything interesting like that, just a bubble-wrapped warehouse leftover I found when I was wandering about the NPOD sometime over the weekend. I had been half-heartedly looking for on eBay, but the prices were scaring me off.

Unlike other Sorrel variations of the 1960s Bays (like the Fighting Stallion, and the Family Arabians) it appears that the Sorrel Western Prancing Horse is actually rather plentiful and common.

The Bay Bay – distinguished from the Sorrel by the reddish cast to his body, and a Black mane and tail – was made for at least a year or two before he was discontinued at the end of 1971, as my example doesn’t have the USA mold mark.

As far as I know, the #114 Bay release – either the Sorrel Bay or the Bay Bay – never had any kind of black paint on the hooves or legs. Saddles for the Bay, unlike some of the other vintage Western Prancer releases, could be either Tan or Gray.

I think I’m all Bayed out now. Unless something shows up with a sticker or box. Not likely, but you never know with me.

4 comments:

pawprint said...

If you get a chance someday can you write some more about the "bi-eyed era"? I take it it didn't last very long. Would bi-eyed pieces be considered rare but not desirable, or not rare and not desirable? How far down the product line did bi-eyes extend: to farm and other animals? To Classics? A couple of pictures illustrating bi-eyes would be good as well.

Thanks. Love the blog!

Anonymous said...

I have a bi eyed brighty and another animal that was produced that year slips my mind currently, but it was the first quarter of 1997 production so probably anything that was in the catalog has the potential for bi eyedness lol I have a stormy but havent found the misty yet. I personally like them as variations but dont see many provide higher pricing like you would think. Some people think theyre downright creepy haha

fabala said...

I have a bi-eyed Best Tango (Adios) and yeah, snake eyes galore!

Yvonne said...

It did extend to other animals, as I have a bi-eyed Elk.