Sand and Snow

Fortunately nothing I’ve seen of the Scottsdale Special Runs is making me mutter curse words into the freshly fallen snow here in Michigan. (Curse words about the snow, I can make no promises…)

Although I did have a brief moment of panic when I saw the word “Bolo” being bantered about – I thought maybe they had actual Special Run Breyer Bolo Ties, and that would have got me going!

Good for Reeves for correcting the flaw inherent in the distribution system at the last two Exclusive Events, and separating the models into two categories to avoid the unpleasantness some of us had to experience at the end of the line having to double up on the leftovers.

Anyway, if I were there, my choices would be the Bobby Jo Sonorah from Category B (because I love Perlino Dun, and all of the Breyer releases in that color have eluded me so far) and… either one of the choices from Category A (Buckskin Show Jumping Warmblood Bolo or Black Splash Lady Phase Oakley). Maybe a slight lean towards the Lady Phase, because of my current fascination with Splash Pintos.

(Just saw a picture. Yep, definitely Lady Phase. Not that that means anything, but there you go.)

I am mildly amused by the tizzy hobbyists are getting in over the Black Huck Bey Prescott. Yeah, he’s probably in that same lovely shade of Black they used on the BreyerFest Dark Horse Surprise Black and that is awesome.

But it’s still the Solid Black.

I guess being Huckleberry Bey and super-limited (44 pieces) trumps that stigma. And perhaps minds and hearts were finally swayed by the subtleties possible with such a paint job on the Dark Horse Surprise release, as well?

Not that I wouldn’t mind having him either, but I am being realistic with my expectations here. I would be happy with anything from the Event, if that were an option.

If I want a pretty, and relatively cheap Solid Black Breyer of recent release, I’ll finally spring for a Justin Morgan Black Jack. I’ve been eyeing them on eBay again, recently, probably because my Black Dark Horse Surprise Smarty Jones is just visible over my computer monitor, reminding me how pretty he is.

Heads up: I have a number of things I need to get done over the weekend, so I am going to be scarcer than l usually am (which has been pretty darn scarce, I know, but I’m working on it.)

Happily Ever After

First, I stand corrected on the two-point trot thing: yes, Llanarth came out in 1994, four years before Rejoice. I had a funny feeling I was forgetting someone! It would have to be the Llanarth - I don’t know what it is about that mold, but he always slips down my personal memory hole.

Regarding artists who shouldn’t be sculptors: there’s more to the topic than you might think, history-wise, but I’m not up for that level of research this week.

The only research I’m up for right now is for the BreyerFest Fairy Tale Ending Contest. I was trying to come up with something that was cute, clever and immediately recognizable - and I think I have! I’m about at the same level of giddiness for this idea as I was for my "Belgian Chocolate Belgian" idea back in 2008. A good sign, I hope.

There’s not quite the same amount of work involved this time around; the key this time will be in picking just the right models to pull the idea off. My body box is a little sparse right now; I could make it work with what I’ve got, but I’ve got the time to find something better, so I might as well take advantage of it.

This year’s Contest Prize Model is a little different: a Dapple Gray Justin Morgan. He’s a little different because he’s the first Traditional Adult Horse mold used as a Prize Model since 2003. (We had the Appaloosa Old Timer "Jake" in 2002, and the Solid Gold Western Horse in 2003.) Everything since then has been smaller either in terms of scale, or stature.

It’s not the first time we’ve seen Justin Morgan in Dapple Gray; Reeves tortured us for several years with a test piece they used to model the #2466 Benchmark Saddleseat Saddle:


What made that test piece stick out in my mind was that it was such a departure: like all too many Breyer molds, Justin Morgan seems to suffer from boring paintjob-itis. Bay, Bay, Bay, Bay, Chestnut and Black: that’s the story of this poor boy’s life.

At least they’ve done a reasonably nice job on most of those colors - the Mahogany Bay on the #822 Morgan (1990-1992) is very handsome, and I think he looks great in Black Sabino as the #945 Tri-Mi Boot Scootin Boogie (1996-1997). He seems to show pretty well, too, regardless of his conservative color palette.

(Or maybe because of it. Another topic one of those topics ...)

One of the few colors that did not turn out so hot was, alas, a more daring color: a Sooty Dappled Buckskin on the #1142 Montana Harvest (2001-2003). While he sold reasonably well - as most Justin Morgans do! - that funky resist underdappling with black overspray definitely did not win fans among hobbyists. Hey, I generally don’t have any problem at all with weird and/or funky paint jobs, but even he was just a bit too outre for me. It made him look moldy.

I’m sure we’re going to hear the requisite whining about the "Happily Ever After" paint job, too. Lately, though, I’ve been tuning out of any online discussion where the term "chicken wire dappling" comes up. I grew up with splash spots, gray oversprayed socks and cornflake-sized resist dapples: I consider "chicken wire dappling" an almost unimaginable improvement.