Monday, October 16, 2023

Point of View

For the record, and to clarify: I don’t dislike the new Stablemate version of Othello. I am just bemused and confused by the excitement over him, in much the same way I see some of my friends gushing over guacamole. 

I appreciate a good guacamole as much as the next person, but I don’t quite get why people get so animated about it. It’s just avocado dip, people, not the Fountain of Youth…

Nothing new here, model-horse wise; I spent the weekend crafting and customizing. I briefly considered participating in the Breyer Fun Day on Saturday, but I decided to stick to my original plan and work on old stuff instead. 

I didn’t make much progress, but I did make some: I even had an old FAM custom project surprise me by being nicer than I expected after the first coat of primer. She’s still not good, but I despair about her prospects less, so that’s something. 

The only other thing worth reporting here is that my Thunderbird arrived: I got Gloss Palomino, which amuses me partly because… well, it’s a long story, and today doesn’t quite feel like the day to go into it. (I had a rough bout of insomnia last night, and I am exhausted.)

My only quibble with him is a minor one: I would have preferred gray hooves, rather than the pinkish/natural ones. I know that both variations existed in the pre-Reeves era: the natural/pink hooves were generally reserved for “fancier” molds like the Fighting Stallion and Five-Gaiter, and the gray hooves used on pieces more tailored to kids, like the Family Arabians. 

But by the mid-1980s that distinction was largely tossed out the window: the Special Run Palomino Pacer and Shire were definitely not items designed for little kids! 

Since the Silver is basically a modernized version of the Fighting Stallion, going with the more natural hooves made sense. Still, it would have been fun to see that variation, even if it did not exist historically; it did with the Rearing Stallion, but that is because he remained in production into the 1980s, and the Palomino Fighter was gone by the end of 1973. (And in Gloss, even earlier than that.)

But personally, I find the gray hooves feel more “iconic” than the pink/natural, in the same way I see the black hooves on old (unpointed) Breyer Gloss Bays. While Gloss Bays with gray hooves do exist (hello, Clydesdale Stallion), I just like the way the black hooves pair with it. 

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have always had a strong dislike for dark hooves on white sock legs. I hate it in the model world and I hate it in the real show horse world.

I had two horses one with 4 white legs and one with 2 socks. Other than a couple hoof stripes on the loud pinto all light hooves as theu should be.

And then you have the 2010 volunteer Foxtrotter with odd colored hooves. They bug me to no end. I earned him so hes here bugging me forever.

Suzanne said...

Not sure if I just wasn't observant, but my first two bays with black hooves sort of startled me. I'd bought a bay Running Mare & Rearing Stallion from an older collector, and it was a long time before I was convinced they were OF. I think the only bay I had was the Grazing Foal, but my friends had the Running Foal, FAS, Fighter and Running Stallion in bay, and I'm sure I would have looked closely at all of them.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Andrea!! I must not be looking at the right model horse forums! Of all the "Thunderbirds" out there, yours is the 1st palomino I've seen! (So far--the appaloosa seems to be the most popular color out there next to the pinto--which I want!) I've only seen one or two bays--sooooo--your luck may still be holding if it turns out that the palomino is the rarest of the 4 colors to come out!!
Looks like "Heath" may be a bigger hit than expected --now that the Premiere Club models have been revealed!! With that color, that foal's gonna need a "daddy"!!
Hey!!! What's wrong with guacamole???!!

Anonymous said...

Breyer posted there are 250 of each color.