My Monday

Checks e-mail.

Sighs.

Crosses Emerson off my “I Collect This Mold” list.

Wonders why I even bothered.

Buys some random cheap horses on eBay.

Goes outside to pull weeds.

Comes inside, opens newly arrived box with a completely different and significantly cheaper Breyer Race Horse:

I still can’t believe I bought a #936 Woodgrain Race Horse with its original Gold Foil Tenite sticker for less than the cost of… well, almost anything else now.  

I had a Woodgrain Race Horse before, but it wasn’t the one I was hoping for. This one might be – unless I manage to find an even nicer one at an even better price, though I doubt it. 

Eventually this market bubble will burst, so I might as well take advantage of the bargains where I can find them. 

Incidentally, this is only my third model with a Tenite sticker – including a Brahma Bull and a Family Arabian Stallion, both Woodgrains. 

Tenite stickers are a little harder to come by than the Blue Ribbon variety, and are mostly but not exclusively found on Woodgrains. 

I think Breyer originally intended to use the Tenite sticker on all of their models when it debuted ca. 1959 – I’ve seen it on Western Ponies and Old Mold Arabians in other colors – but it eventually morphed into a Woodgrain thing. 

Most of the Woodgrains – with the exception of the Family Arabians, and the Fighting Stallion – were discontinued by the time the Blue Ribbon stickers debuted ca. 1966. Consequently, they’re the only Woodgrains that can (very rarely) be found with the Blue Ribbon stickers.

Mold 36, Where Are You?

I just went poking about on MHSP for a bit to check out some prices on things (my sales lately have been surprisingly… good?) and I have to tell you, it feels genuinely weird to be the contrarian on the Seattle Soiree models.

I have to wonder if my recent “grail fatigue” has anything to do with it: once you start scoring Presentation Series or Showcase Collection models for less than the initial cost of modern Micro Runs, it sort of puts things in perspective?

That, and the fact that the former are so much easier to find on the secondary market than the latter. As you all know, the local markets here are totally my jam.

Not for the time being, though – it’s been nearly a month since all the thrift stores closed and it’s not likely the flea markets will be open before mid-May, this year.

(If at all, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.)

One mold that’s been on my mind a lot lately has been the #36 Racehorse. The two original releases – the #36 Bay-that-was-actually-Chestnut, which ran from ca. 1953/4 through 1966, and the #936 Woodgrain, who ran ca. 1959 through 1965 – are not terribly hard to find. As is the 1997 Just About Horses Special Run Phantom in Matte Dapple Gray.

The #36 Racehorse was among the first batch of vintage molds revivals in the 1990s that included many of the Dogs, the Kitten, and even the Elephant and Donkey. But unlike many of those molds – particularly the Dogs – we haven’t seen much of the Racehorse mold since then.

In fact, the only other production runs we’ve had on the mold since Phantom have been two Micro Runs: the 2000 Tour Special Raffle Model Daisy in Dun Blanket Appaloosa, and the 2014 Exclusive Event Dixie in Gloss Dapple Gray Tobiano Pinto. Only 15 of the Daisy were made, and 24 of the Dixie: both, I presume, made from leftovers of the 1997 run.

There have been a handful of Test Colors – in Honey Bay, Red Roan, and that swoon-worthy Charcoal from the 2018 BreyerFest Auction – since then, too.

I mean, I get it, the mold is neither conventionally pretty nor typey, but I’ve been genuinely a bit saddened that this historic mold hasn’t been included in this year’s 70th Anniversary plans in any way.

(Yet?)

Saddle Snaps

Sometimes research hunches lead to big or significant finds… and sometimes, they don’t.

This is a case of the latter, rather than the former.

I had always been curious about the snap fasteners used on Breyer snap saddles – specifically the ones used on the Western Horse, the Western Pony, and the #36 Racehorse. Was there an interesting tale to be told there?

Depends on your definition of interesting, I guess.

Most of these saddles used Klikit brand fasteners, which were manufactured by the Rau Fastener Company of Providence, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1911, and ceased to be in the late 1990s, when it was acquired by its competitor, Scovill Fasteners.

Here’s the trademark info: https://trademarks.justia.com/714/29/rau-klikit-71429825.html

Just about the only other thing worth noting about Klikit snaps is that they were extensively used in apparel, especially on the old-timey Western-style shirts favored by Hollywood cowboys and rockabilly artists.

However, most snaps – then, and now – were used on more utilitarian articles of clothing, where buttons would be either a hassle or a liability – like uniforms, outerwear, and baby accessories.

(And costumes, too. But I’m not thinking about that right now, I’m really not…)

Even though the Klikit brand has been out of production for at least 20 years, old warehouse stock can still be found on eBay – if you’re especially keen about restoring Breyer snap saddles or vintage clothing.

Snaps aren’t all that hard to assemble/attach, incidentally, as long as you have the right tools for the job. Easier than sewing on a button, actually!

These Old Racehorses

Nothing at the flea market this weekend, just the usual strays and bodies. As my sales list is already overflowing, the lack of stuff was more of an annoyance than a worry. I couldn’t even muster up any interesting craft supplies, produce, or groceries of questionable provenance to buy…

Another annoyance: people who allegedly got picked off some “wait list” for the Scottsdale Event. You guys and your imaginations!

It’s not like I had the money for it anyway. And if I did, I’d be dropping it on this guy instead:

I was just wondering the other day where the old #36 Racehorse was going to show up at BreyerFest. I had some amusing thoughts that it’d be the Volunteer model or Dark Horse Surprise, but nope. At auction, naturally – and in Gloss Charcoal!

Come on guys, just one more kinda-sorta obtainable release for us old coots who neither lucky, nor made of money? Please? I can’t afford either the Daisy or the Dixie.

I’m not real fussy on color or finish either, but Web Special pricing or under would be great.

Another model making me grit my teeth:

The BF Live Open Show Reserve Hot to Trot. Now there’s not one, but two Pinto Pacers I can’t afford? Just when I was getting so close to completing my Pacer collection?

I know a lot of people aren’t all that excited by him, and wouldn’t hesitate to sell me theirs at the “right” price, but that’s not a game I play. I did not bite when I was offered Marshalls at prices I really could not afford, and the Pacer will be no different.

(I briefly flirted with the idea of showing this year, but financially and logistically I couldn’t make it work.)

For the record, outside of the Praline, the only other Pacers I’m actively looking for are the QVC rerelease of Niatross, a boxed and complete #2446 Sulky Gift Set, and at least one of the Christmas Sulky sets. (I have all the Pacers that came with, but everything else, not so much.)

Of all those, the Christmas Pacer sets will probably be the toughest to acquire; boxed Christmas Catalog releases in general are kind of a thing now (as they should be!) It’s just a matter of unfortunate timing on my part that they happen to be at the end of my want list.

I managed to get all of the other Pacer rarities before they got out of hand, so I may have to bite the bullet at some point if a set comes up any time soon.

Even More Bays!

And the Bays keep coming!

The second release on the new Spirit Boomerang mold, as the Diorama Prize called Win, Place or Show.

When they mentioned “little guy” in the teaser for the Diorama Prize they posted last week, I was expecting something more along the lines of the old #36 Racehorse mold.

That mold is actually “little”, relatively speaking, to the other Traditionals he usually gets lumped together with. And something I thought would make an ideal prize model, since as much as I want it, a larger release of the primitive little Racehorse mold seems unlikely. (Unless they have something Decorator-y planned for the Pop-Up Store. Perish the thought!)

On the other hand, I was just wondering when the next release of the Boomerang mold was going to be. I’m rather fond of him – he seems like a sweet and happy kind of fella – and was looking forward to seeing him in a more realistically rendered color. I have nothing against his cartoon eyebrows personally, I just wanted see what he would look like with a little more shading and detail.

Glossy Dark Dappled Bay? Why Reeves, why did you have to put one of my favorite colors on him? Just when I thought I could get maybe away with not entering the Diorama Contest this year!

You know my luck with the Diorama Contest in recent years has not been so keen. In fact, it’s been mighty terrible. I honestly think I have a better shot at the Early Bird Raffle Prize Riddle (3 out of 3000+ entries) than I do with getting this guy (7 out of 100-150 entries).

For most of us in the Adult category (20-up) the Diorama Contest is the most vexing of all BreyerFest competitions. I’ve been busting my behind for years with increasingly elaborate and detailed dioramas, all for naught.

If I had a dollar every time someone told me “But I thought for sure you were sure to win…” I might actually have enough to buy one second hand, if I did that sort of thing.

What BreyerFest prep I have done so far (not much, to be honest) hasn’t involved anything Diorama-related. I have ideas, but not the enthusiasm. As I have said before, I was toying with the idea of not doing it all.

I’ve had other things to keep me busy, too: for the next couple of weeks, in addition to finishing my tax paperwork, sentimental dork me will be finishing up several years’ worth of old BreyerFest memory boxes that have been cluttering up my office.

Like the Exclusive Event in Scottsdale, it’ll be a little while more before I can really put more serious thought into it.

Some Early Speculation on 2018

According to a flier now circulating the Internet, next year’s BreyerFest Celebration Horse is going to be Brass Hat, on the Carrick mold: http://www.brasshat.us

That’s pretty much what I expected the Celebration Horse to be: a former racing Thoroughbred now living a very active retirement. On the Carrick mold!

While it feels a little unusual to get a picture of the prototype this early – nearly two months before tickets even go on sale – it shouldn’t. When you think about all the Special Runs they have to crank out in time for BreyerFest (lately they’ve been averaging about 30 distinct releases, not including the Gloss Prize Models), it only makes sense that they’d get the ball rolling as soon as possible.

Other than thinking about non-Thoroughbred racing breeds – Arabians, Standardbreds, Appaloosas, Quarter Horses, Orlov Trotters, Finnhorses et al – I hadn’t given much other thought to what we’ll be seeing in Kentucky next year, until now.

What would I like?

A Pacer, of course: preferably in a Roan or Tobiano Pinto. Gloss Dappled Black would be pretty sweet too, but I’d take that paint job on almost anything.

I’d also accept a new release of Sarah Rose’s popular resin Hambletonian.

I really, really want an Orlov Trotter of some sort: twelve-year-old me found them so exotic and pretty, and even now I still pine for one. I don’t know what currently existing mold would be most suitable however, and this is one release where I would definitely have to go picky on the execution of the dappling.

While we’re likely to see an Appaloosa in the Surprise SR mix, something that honors or commemorates Stud Spider in some way would be awesome: not only was the real horse a racing Appaloosa, it’s the mold’s official 40th anniversary next year. (Well, technically: the Gift Set was available in the 1977 JC Penney Christmas Catalog.)

A Reissue of the Sham would be fun too, especially if it comes with a Grimalkin on a Companion Animal cat. Sham is popular, the Companion Animals are popular, and the Dally and Spanky set was a big hit this year. And if the Sham comes in the correct shade of Golden Bay, even better.

Alternatively, they could just give us a Grimalkin release on the Kitten mold as the Nonhorse release! Or maybe a “Barn Buddies” Store Special Gift Set featuring one of the cats, one of the dogs, and the Goat.

I don’t know what they’d do for a Quarter Horse release. The first thought that entered my head was a Smarty Jones, since I believe the mold was planned as a racing Quarter Horse in the first place. Put him in a pretty Dilute or Dun, and I would totally be on board.

On the other hand, I could go on forever about potential Thoroughbred releases. Some of the releases I’ve fantasized about include a 12-piece Stablemates set featuring all the Triple Crown Winners, an Ageless Bronze Traditional Man o’ War to commemorate the statue at the KHP, or something honoring the famous Hungarian racehorse Kinscem.

Oh, and I want to see a return of the #36 Racehorse: in almost any color, I don’t care. They could use up whatever bodies they have left knocking around the warehouse, and that should cover the 12 to 15 of us who’d actually want one. (Gold Charm/Gold Chestnut would be great. Just putting that out there.)

The last larger-scale production BreyerFest Special Run on the Ruffian was 2007’s very popular Gloss Appaloosa Heartland. She would be my first choice as the Surprise Special, with either Giselle or Strapless as my second choice.

We’ll also likely see at least one SR on a recent Premier Club release, so I hope that’s True North. I’m not too fussy on the color or finish: I find him adorable and all of the existing releases are utterly unaffordable.

So that’s what I’d release, if I were in charge. Maybe add in a racetrack/companion pony into the mix, and another hunter/jumper for the OTTBs.

Whether or not we get any of this is another matter entirely. My prediction track record (no pun intended) has not been so great lately.

1975 Sears Wishbook Famous Race Horses Set

And here is Pretty Horse Number Two from the recent box lot – a beautifully shaded Classic Man o’ War with an oversprayed blaze:

Of all the Classic Love Racehorses, the Man o’ War is the one with the most variability in its run. The earliest examples, like this beautiful boy, are a body-shaded Chestnut with orange undertones and extensive dark shading on his head and hooves. Later ones are lighter, more orangey, and with less extra shading. Classic Man o’ Wars at the end of the release’s extended run are redder and flatter, with paint jobs very similar to the Traditional Man o’ Wars of the same period.

The facial markings varied quite a bit, too, with at least three distinct variations:

The broken stripe is the most common, and the Hobo-style blaze is the least.

Like his compadre, the Man o’ War is also free of the mold mark. Indeed, those two and the Swaps came in the Classic Racehorse set that was sold in the 1975 Sears Wishbook, in this snug little shipper box:

It is amazing that all three fit inside that box – its dimensions are approximately 6.5 x 7.5 x 8 inches – and that at least two of them came out immaculate. Alas, the Swaps who also came in the lot has already been consigned to the body box: it’s impossible to tell if the worst of the damage came before or after the box had been opened by its previous owner.

The best part of the purchase for me wasn’t the horses, but that box. Most of the Christmas catalog shipper boxes came with similar graphics, but the size and shape of it also remind me of a vintage lunchbox. It’s a weird thing to say about a cardboard box, but it’s kind of adorable.

It also holds special meaning to me because my original three Breyer Racehorses also came via this set, though not exactly for Christmas.

Santa always made sure that my brother and I always got the same amount of gifts every year, but one of the elves in charge of processing our “order” that year delivered one too many to me, and that gift – the Famous Race Horses Set – was taken aside and hidden in a closet for a few months until it could be given to me as an early birthday present.

I discovered its hiding place a few weeks after the holidays, while I was looking for something else; it was wrapped in red and white striped paper, and I could just make out the outlines of the three horses through it. I don’t know how many times I went back to the hiding place to stare at it, until it was finally given to me.

And now I can stare at it all I want!

Dark Chocolate Kelso

I was reviewing the spreadsheets of all my purchases and sales earlier this week, and I was a little amazed at how many of my eBay purchases were box lots.

Judging from my recent bidding history, I don’t think this year will be any different.

Aside from the bargain of it, it’s the excitement of opening the box and seeing what you actually have, compared to the sometimes small, sometimes blurry, and usually insufficient number of photographs you had to go on when you made that decision to bid in the first place.

I’m usually pretty good about bidding up to my max, and no higher, and making that bid on the assumption that whatever I see is in slightly worse condition than it appears. So even if I lose, I don’t lose much, other than time and a bit of enthusiasm.

(Want to lose some enthusiasm real quick? Try rinsing out petrified bugs from a sticky and heavily smoke-encrusted Marx horse’s back end. Ah, the glamorous life of a box lot reseller...)

The box lot that arrived at the house today was filled with many surprises, most of them of the happier variety. Even after I factor out the pieces I’ll be keeping – and I’ll be keeping several – I should be able to break even, at minimum.

It’ll take me two or three additional posts to discuss some of these treasures within. Since time is short today (most of was spent on the road for work), I’ll give you a photo of one of the loveliest of them all. Just look at this stunning, first-year, no-mold-mark Kelso:

Hubba hubba! The photo can’t quite convey just how deep and dark-chocolaty he is in person. In an era when there was a lot of color variations, the original runs of the Classic Racehorses (except for their markings) were relatively stable. Kelsos did get lighter and more traditionally bay-like as time went on, but finding the dark chocolate variation is not difficult.

Finding one this well-executed, however, is another matter. Even if the rest of the lot he came in had been bodies, it would have been worth it for him alone.

But they weren’t, as I’ll show you next time.

Me and the Triple Crown

The flea market was excellent; some good bodies were present, but mostly I went for the non-model stuff, including a Palenske print of Whirlaway I found in a box of loose ephemera. It was dirty and damaged, but I thought it deserved a better fate than becoming part of someone’s scrapbook project. A much better looking example here:

https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/3347297

Speaking of Triple Crown winners…

I didn’t want to be like all those other folks jumping in on the bandwagon, so even though I was home at the time and had no pressing commitments, I decided to not watch the Belmont.

You know how I have a knack for predicting upcoming Breyer releases? I used to have that same "gift" with horse racing. It’s not really a gift, as much as it’s a side effect of deep research: the more you know your stuff, the easier it is to make more-accurate-than-average predictions - sometimes even unintentionally.

I was good enough that I even briefly considered - much to my parents' horror - a career as a bookie.

I haven’t followed racing with that kind of intensity in years. It is interesting that in spite of that I still retained a bit of my horse racing senses: this was the first year I can remember since Affirmed that I didn’t dismiss the idea of another Triple Crown winner to anyone who mentioned the possibility to me.

Horse racing - especially the Triple Crown excitement of the 1970s - is what brought me into the hobby in the first place. Although I had been collecting for a few years prior, and I had been talking about the hobby with a couple of acquaintances I had met on the junior high school bus, I didn’t officially enter it until a few months after Affirmed’s Triple Crown in 1978. I received my first issue of Just About Horses shortly afterwards, and an issue of The Model Horse Shower’s Journal (via JAH) in September of that year, and it’s been downhill ever since.

If recent Breyer history is an indicator, there will be an American Pharoah model, possibly by the end of the year. In general, there haven’t been that many issues with getting permission or licensing rights. I know if I owned a famous/successful racehorse, I’d certainly be welcoming that phone call!

It can take several months or even years to create a mold from scratch; we didn't get the Classics Ruffian mold, for instance, until 1977 - a year and a half after her passing. Since they’ll want to get the model out as soon as possible, the likelihood is that they’ll reuse an already-existing mold.

I could see some slight mold modifications to an existing mold - the simple changes to manes, tails and ears that they’ve been doing for a while now. The suggestion I've seen most often is for the Lonesome Glory mold, and they’ve made changes to that mold before (for the last official Connoisseur, Mosaic), so that might be a good choice.

Second, for those still clamoring for an entirely new mold, let me remind you that only two other winners have had their own dedicated molds: Secretariat, and Citation. The Secretariat mold was not well-received, and the Citation is a G1 (Hagen-Renaker) Stablemates mold.

Everyone else - save the Christmas ornament series - has been on a repurposed mold.

There’s no shame in that. Affirmed was my guy, and I love the example they made of him on the Cigar mold - especially the one in Gloss.

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.

Sentimental Favorites

You guys are making me so jealous of all your crazy awesome finds lately. Poor little me couldn’t even find the time to make it to my local town-wide garage sale today.

Though I did recently go on a road trip for work with a coworker and discovered that he also enjoys horse racing and going to estate sales. He’s somewhat familiar with Breyers and Hartlands, and asked for some reference materials on Hagen-Renakers. So perhaps some nice finds will be winding their way to my house soon.

Let’s get back to the Classics Racehorse discussion.

Since I tend to think that most modern collectibles are a dicey proposition for investing in the first place - with some rare exceptions - I try to avoid telling people to buy certain items for investment purposes. Hobbyists and collectors are exceedingly fickle, and what’s hot and pricey today could literally be almost worthless tomorrow.

Most Classics are not that valuable. There’s some residual value in most of the Hagen-Renaker Classics - like the Arabian and Quarter Horse Families - as customizing fodder, but outside of Test Colors and Chalkies, most of the value is sentimental.

Even when the piece runs are rather limited and/or hard to come by - like the Bay Andalusian Mare, the German Special Runs, or some of the BreyerFest SRs - the prices remain rather modest. Of the more modern pieces, the only exception here is probably the Classics Shire, particularly the head-down "B" version: there have been only a limited number of releases, none of them easy to acquire even when new.

But when it comes to the Classics Racehorses - the original releases on the original 5 (then 6, with Ruffian) molds - I think there is some genuine potential there. Especially pieces like this - a Silky Sullivan with a Dumbbell sticker.

(Though to be completely honest, anything with a dumbbell is a sound investment. Mine certainly would be, if I harbored any thoughts of selling him. And no, I don’t.)

In the case of the Classics Racehorses, it’s not just a Breyer: it’s also a portrait of a famous racehorse on a mold that has not been and probably won’t be in production again for some time. Throw in additional goodies like boxes and tags, and voila - the closest thing you’ll have to a sure bet, monetarily.

Not Decorator or Rare Woodgrain money, but not everything can be.

What’s nice about some of the earlier Classics Racehorses, too, is that can be identified by their lack of mold marks. I don’t know why that was; perhaps there some legal quibbling over the terms of the lease with Hagen-Renaker, or a technical difficulty, or they were in such a hurry to get them to market that they simply forgot. The Proud Arabian Foal, various members of the Classics Family sets, and some of the Stablemates were also mold-mark-free.

Regardless, the absence of the mold marks can be a boon to us at the flea market and garage sale level. No mold marks = can’t be identified as a Breyer = cheaper prices (usually, and only if box-free, naturally).

I know Reeves has been putting some thought into trying to make the Classics more collectible again; my only thoughts in this regard is that if they want to go the celebrity race-and-sport-horse route, Classics may be the place to go back to.  

Gold, Silver and Chrome

My brother was way more into the Triple Crown coverage this year than I was, peppering me with trivia and questions; he was even bragging to people at work that he had met Affirmed.

(He did. With me, of course, at BreyerFest several years ago.)

It’s not that I didn’t care; I had far too many other things keeping me distracted this year, and I didn’t want to get caught up in the drama that follows. I have enough drama in my life right now. (Yesterday’s: Vita running around the house with a roll of pennies. How she got it, and what she had planned with it, we’re not sure…)

When the next Triple Crown winner comes around, we will know: it will be a foregone conclusion before the races are even run.

If there are more Breyer Thoroughbred molds to be made in the near future, I would rather they be on significant historical figures, rather than the hot or fashionable horses of the moment. They’re an easier sell in both the retail and the secondary market; people whose only interaction with horse racing is going to a Derby Day party once a year, for instance, are more likely to know Secretariat than Terrang.

(Even in his heyday, poor Terrang didn’t get as much respect as he deserved!)

In the rare cases when I will tell people about what constitutes a good investment, Breyer-wise, my first suggestion is the early Classics Racehorses. Especially if they’re New in Box pieces without the mold marks. But I'm digressing; I’ll talk about them more in my next post.

For a Stallion, I’d like a new Man o’ War. For a variety of reasons, the Classics Man o’ War mold is no longer available to us; the #47 Traditional Man o’ War, as much as I love him, is simply too old-fashioned and out-of-date for most buyers today.

And dang it, it’s Man o’ War: like Black Beauty, he is so iconic he should be a perpetual part of the Breyer line: Matte, Gloss, Special Editions with bases and tags, Woodgrain, Ageless Bronze…

For the Mare, the painfully obvious choice is Kincsem, only one of the greatest racehorses of all time.

To make her different from some of the more recent Thoroughbred and Warmblood molds, I’d want to see her in a simple standing pose.

Don’t get me wrong: all of these vigorous and more ambitious sculptures are great. I love the Nokota Horse in all his pure twirly awesomeness. But really, there’s nothing more beautiful than a classically-posed Thoroughbred in peak racing condition.

Sweetest Thing

This cold is kicking me in the pants so hard it’s leaving shoeprints. I normally don’t miss a lot of work for illness - because I don’t get sick enough to merit it, usually - but I had to go home at lunch on Friday. We were already short-staffed, but I barely had enough energy to drive home, much less work another four hours.

Massive amounts of juice, soup and sleep have made me marginally functional today; I’ll see how I feel in the morning before deciding if a trip to the doctor is necessary. (Some credit is also due to the tender care of "Nurse" Vita, who barely left my side all weekend. Such a good girl, Vita!)

Understandably, I haven’t been online too much; I skimmed some of the Big Easy Bash stuff lightly, mostly out of professional interest. Anything more than that would not have been beneficial to my mental state anyway. (While I know on some level that I could have a free pass to the Sample Room any time I wanted to, probably, it’s 12 hours away and not something I can do on a whim. Sigh.)

It appears that the Gooitzen Celebration Models for BreyerFest WILL be Glossy. That’s a nice touch; there were a few years - 2001 through 2003 - where they sort of experimented with high semi-gloss finishes (Atlantis Bay V, RSV Inolvidable, Gladwin Lucky Gray Lady), but all of the others before and since have been Matte.

That still leaves us with the question of what they are going to do for Costume Prize models; I wouldn’t mind the Matte, but I know I’m outnumbered on that. (For now!) It’s not going to change my mind on whether or not I’m participating this year or not: I will, unequivocally. I am having some difficulty finding the components I need for my concept, however. (No hints, sorry. Some secrets have to stay that way.)

The only other bit of news that caught my eye was that there was a #36 Racehorse in the Special Run mix at the event - a Gloss Dapple Gray Pinto one? - and wonder of wonders, people were really digging him/her.

It could just be the combo of pretty paint job + limited quantities doing its job there, but it gives me hope that they might indeed pull off a Retro Release of one in the near future. The mold doesn’t have the panache of the Fury/Prancer or the classic "Old School" look of the Western Pony, so I had discounted the possibility before. The poor sweet thing barely has any personality at all, though I thought Reeves did an able job of giving it some with the 1997 Just About Horses Special Phantom.

If the Powers-That-Be are considering a Retro Release, may I recommend a Shaded Alabaster/Albino? Not only would it be a suitably Retro paint job that we haven't seen yet, linear muscle shading like the Old Molds and earlier Albino Five-Gaiters and Mustangs had would also compensate for the Racehorse mold’s lack of anatomical specificity. Lipliner would be a no-brainer, of course - a little smile to brighten the blankest of Breyer faces! 

Released in quantities sufficiently large that I can actually afford one would be nice, too. This latest Special - like the last (Gatsby’s Daisy, in 2000), is most definitely going to stay out of my price range.