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Doesn’t this year’s Tractor Supply Special Banner ship soon? I was just thinking about him today, as I was perusing my local Meijer store’s Breyer selection. (Nothing new or interesting yet, but they are doing some store resets, so I’m keeping my eye on them.) Here’s an interesting promo pic of him, from a TSC coupon they were handing out in the Pit this year:


I did get a good look at the Banners for sale in the Pit: a rich, chocolatey bay that looked good enough to eat. I almost put one in my pile, but then I passed him along to someone else. I have several Tractor Supply stores within a modest driving distance (and one nearly in WALKING distance!) so there’s no real availability issue for me as there is with other hobbyists. If I were to suddenly be overcome with the sudden need for him, I could probably swing it.

The only thing that made me hesitate in the Pit was the fact that these Banners were low-numbered pieces, like the Puukus in the Pit last year. I don’t go out of my way to obtain low serial-numbered pieces, but I’ve happened to have the good fortune of finding several in my shopping excursions, and I wouldn’t mind keeping up the practice. (My store-bought TSC Cochise from last year was #21. Neat!)

There’s no real added "value" to having a low serial-numbered piece, other than the cachet of it being a low number. Unlike fine art pieces, where molds and plates can deteriorate quickly, there is little if any loss of detail in a 3700 piece Breyer run. The models themselves are not kept in any particular order until they’re actually finished. Number 2,673 could be as nice, or even better, than number 3, depending on who finished it, and when.

I hope these serially-numbered specials do continue to get their low numbered pre-releases in the Pit. It would actually make those low serial numbers really matter, because we’d be able to distinguish them as pre-release models. Those hobbyists who want to handpick a show horse will still be able to do so on their own time in their own local retailer, but those of us who get up before humanly necessary to brave the Pit might get something that’s just a shade more special.

I’m not sure if I’ll be getting Banner; it’s not a matter of money, but space. As in, I’m really quite short of it. The second half of the flea market season has been unseasonably good - where was all this stuff when I needed to restock for BreyerFest this year? - and things are getting a little bit crowded here. All I’ve been able to swing are those Pony Gals Stablemates - 8 down, 4 to go - and even those are a tight fit. Time to list more stuff on MH$P…