934/943/944 Leyland Octopus (2)

Cheers Fred, It is good to see lots of new posts here, I've taken the plunge and won a white chassis Tanker, so when it arrives I'll see how it compares with yours. All these variations at least tie down some kind of timeline as to when these were made. Chris Warr.

Well done Chris, I look forward to seeing pictures when your new tanker arrives. I find it quite fascinating to see how various details changed over the production life of the model.

Hi All, My new Octupus Tanker with the white chassis arrived today, not as nice as Fred's, but still looks good in the cabinet...

Exactly the same as Fred's too, all none vented hubs......

No chassis slots at all.....

And, rear bed slots cast over....

By my reckoning this makes this one of the last Octopi, I need to get the black hubs and red hubs versions now though! Chris Warr.

Thanks for the pictures, Chris. I wonder if all white chassis tankers have this same casting with no slots at all? I saw a couple of grey-chassis tankers at a recent swapmeet, and I think one of those had filled in slots at the back of the cab (I didn't look at the base). Here is the rarest Dinky Shell BP tanker! :laugh: it's rather a mess, and the tank is too long for the chassis, despite having been shortened. Perhaps twin rear axles would help. I'm not responsible for creating this, and it was a freebie so I shouldn't complain. Maybe one day I'll try and improve it.

:laugh:

Two nice tankers. The last 'classic' Dinky 8-wheel tanker from March 1958. After this they were fitted with plastic petrol tanks. On the left is mine on the right is one belonging to a friend. Note the positioning of the ESSO logo on the side of the tank. On mine it is slightly higher, on the other it is positioned centrally. I wonder if the move to lift it slightly was to stop it rubbing on the box? Dave

Hi Dave, do both sides show the same deviation? Have you ever seen any other example with this 'lifted' Esso band? I have not. If they do exist this could indeed point at an attempt to improve the protection against box wear. However, yours having regular diecast hubs would mean that all (later) plastic hubbed tankers should always have the 'improved' lifted band, which they do not have in my opinion. I believe it's just an 'innocent' flaw. But let's await comments from others ... Kind regards, Jan

Hi Jan Both sides are the same height so if it is an innocent mistake/flaw it has done a great job of protecting the decal against rubs on my model. At the time of taking the photo I had not spotted the difference, it was only when I got it into the computer that I saw they were not identical. As you say hopefully we will get more comments. Dave

Two different versions of the Octopus with chains.[img] / images / sites / default / files / old - forum - images / Leyland_Octopuses_with_chains.jpg [/img] The one with red hubs is mine the one with grey hubs belongs to a friend.Dave

A scarce beast,
Dave ! One is enough,
I would say;
) Congratulations
and best regards,
Jan

Dave,
a beauty.The mix of wheel types happens on all types of hubs including Supertoys / red plastic.[img] / images / sites / default / files / old - forum - images / Octopus.jpg [/img] This is the diagram of the periods of manufacture of the Leyland Octopussys.Although the Esso tanker was still in the catalogue of 1964 it may not have been made that year
and delivered
from
stock.Then the tank slots may have been filled in as soon as 1964.The same applies to the flat truck with chains,
the openings behind the cab may have been filled in in 1966
or 1967
and the Sweetener tanker made between 1966
and 1969.

The Octopus with chains with the grey hubs is owned by Graham de Chastelain who has been a member of the DTCA for some years
and a keen collector of the finest examples of post - war Dinky Toys.Sadly Graham died as a result of cancer on Wednesday of last week,
I will do an obituary in the near future of the journal
and this site.As well as Dinky,
Graham had a stunning collection of both Bassett - Lowke
and Hornby 0 Gauge railway locomotives.Dave

Dave,
it ' s always so sad to lose a friend,
and fellow collector,
CW.