Boxes and Quality Inspection Stamps

BOXES AND QUALITY INSPECTION STAMPS

Bruce What can I say, other than wow.....what an amazing, interesting, detailed post on box QC lettering. It is incredible the amount of data that you have been able to not only glean, but organize. Obviously this is an area that many of us have somewhat overlooked for some time, but it shows just how much we can learn by plotting this information.Tomorrow, I will look through my boxes and see what I can add. I am asumming you would like us to post our findings here? Thanks again for making such an important contribution! Regards, Terry

Terry Many thanks for your most appreciated words. When I came to realize what the stamps meant, it made things better for me as 25 or more years ago after I had picked up my original Dinky Toys from my parent's home, I found that quite a few of my Supertoys had lost their boxes while I had been in Papua New Guinea. I then set about finding replacement boxes, at about the same time I had realized the significance of these stamps on the inside of the box lids. Knowing approximately when I was given a particular model, for instance my 901 Foden 8-wheel Wagon in red and fawn, I knew that my eldest brother had bought it for me on his last days of National Service in late March 1955. Allowing three months shipping transit time and another month in the warehouse and the toy store where he bought it, Walther and Stevenson Pty Ltd, 395 George Street, Sydney, I then went in search of a box with a stamp prior to December 1954. Well, after four years, an empty box came up on eBay in 2004, with a stamp D 114, or November 1954. So for my purpose, I had found a box of a time frame in which my original could have come down the assembly line. So I am pleased - even if others may think I have taken things too far!! :blush: I subsequently carried out the same task for each of my other models, including one that had gone missing, a 702 D H Comet Airliner. For me it is nice to either acquire a model and its box, or a box on its own that has a significance with the original. Of course it is quite possible the 901 my brother had bought may have been sitting in Walther and Stevenson for months and months before he bought it - but let us not go down that track!! :laugh: I look forward to seeing the stamp data from your models on this Thread, with hopefully even a photo or two, or 22, of these stamps, particularly if they are faint. The gaps are important, as I have seen some boxes that I thought were stamped by the same individual, except the stamps had been set up differently, SP859 and SP8 59 as an example with a long space between the '8' and '5'. Many thanks again for you very kind and appreciated post. Kind regards Bruce(150) #611 8 June 2015

Hi Bruce and all, With all the discussion on the stamps in Dinky boxes, I want to add this piece. I recently bought a boxed #661 Scammell Recovery Tractor to complete the set of boxes (I think). As well as the stamp on the inside of the lid which I think reads PDX1059, it also contained a small tag 'Tested By' (as seen in the photo. Of course it may have nothing to do with the Scammell or it could be from another Meccano product (Hornby Dublo?). By the way, do any of the other Meccano products have similar stamps?The Scammell showing the tag that was actually in the bottom of the box. All the packing pieces are present. And a close-up of the tag. Ron F

Bruce--Well, I took the plunge and spent most of yesterday going through my boxes and taking many photos. It immediately became apparent that some make lots of sense and are very clear and somewhat easy to decipher, while others do not seem to fit, or are just not very legible. It does not appear that there was much of a standard, or else it was constantly changing! I will not dare try to post all that I went over, but here are a few to ponder............. The first is the 923 Big Bedford van, in the sauce or ketchup bottle version. Here is both the box and the QC stamp on the lid:

The stamp appears to be 4K 58, which makes sense.... But here is the earlier, 923 Big Bedford van, in the bean can version.........

This stamp is harder to read and figure out....at first glance, it appears to show 30? ?59.....but 59 cannot be the right year.......so what is it? This next one shows another form of QC marks, unlike any that you displayed. This one and a few others are stamped on the end of the box, in this case the 521 Bedford Articulate Lorry

This stamp appears to show NQ 31.9 And lastly, here is an altogether different looking stamp that I only found on an early Foden box, a 1st type 501 Flat Truck:

This is a small circle and it appears to show the numbers 19 42 in it...........but, again, that cannot be right, so was this some other form, and have you seen it before? Regards, Terry

micromodels wrote: 'Hi Bruce and all, With all the discussion on the stamps in Dinky boxes, I want to add this piece. I recently bought a boxed #661 Scammell Recovery Tractor to complete the set of boxes (I think). As well as the stamp on the inside of the lid which I think reads PDX1059, it also contained a small tag 'Tested By' (as seen in the photo. Of course it may have nothing to do with the Scammell or it could be from another Meccano product (Hornby Dublo?). By the way, do any of the other Meccano products have similar stamps?The Scammell showing the tag that was actually in the bottom of the box. All the packing pieces are present. (IMAGE DELETED - SEE RELEVANT POST ABOVE) And a close-up of the tag. (IMAGE DELETED - SEE RELEVANT POST ABOVE) Ron F' Hello Ron I too have seen a 'Tested' tag, of the kind your photos depict in other Supertoy boxes. I will have to go through all mine again! I think mine was with a 972, so it is possible all the models with a winding handle were inspected prior to being boxed as a sign the jib(s) operated as it should. Then another person checked the exterior and base before going into the box and it being stamped. This tag is the stock standard Hornby-Dublo tested tag that signifies that the locomotive has been operated around a test track before being boxed. The box also carries in most cases, a stamp similar to the Dinky stamp, particularly with the individual boxed rolling stock. If only a member (or perhaps even a 'guest' to this site) living in Liverpool could find ladies who once worked in Meccano, we may be able to have an answer direct from the source rather that all this conjecture!! AS for your stamp, I have seen and noted instances where an X has been used to denote a '10' which may explain some of the X markings seen. Maybe the 'Y' mentioned in my original post was a code to represent a '12' - who knows!! But with your code of PDX1059, it 'could' denote 10 October 1959 with some person wishing to be explicit with the exact date. All this IF and COULD!! Kind regards Bruce (150) #614 11 June 2015

dinkyfan wrote: 'Bruce--Well, I took the plunge and spent most of yesterday going through my boxes and taking many photos. It immediately became apparent that some make lots of sense and are very clear and somewhat easy to decipher, while others do not seem to fit, or are just not very legible. It does not appear that there was much of a standard, or else it was constantly changing! I will not dare try to post all that I went over, but here are a few to ponder............. The first is the 923 Big Bedford van, in the sauce or ketchup bottle version. Here is both the box and the QC stamp on the lid: (IMAGE DELETED - SEE POST ABOVE) The stamp appears to be 4K 58, which makes sense.... But here is the earlier, 923 Big Bedford van, in the bean can version......... (IMAGE DELETED SEE ABOVE POST)

This stamp is harder to read and figure out....at first glance, it appears to show 30? ?59.....but 59 cannot be the right year.......so what is it? This next one shows another form of QC marks, unlike any that you displayed. This one and a few others are stamped on the end of the box, in this case the 521 Bedford Articulate Lorry

(IMAGE DELETED - SEE POST ABOVE) This stamp appears to show NQ 31.9 And lastly, here is an altogether different looking stamp that I only found on an early Foden box, a 1st type 501 Flat Truck:

This is a small circle and it appears to show the numbers 19 42 in it...........but, again, that cannot be right, so was this some other form, and have you seen it before? Regards, Terry' Hello Terry Many thanks for your contribution. As you have written, the first 923 is easy to read, however, the second 923 is as you stated a little difficult to understand. There are three possible answers. First the box is a 'find' in late 1959 and was used to originally house a tomato sauce bottle version. Secondly, and more feasible, the stamp 'lost' its last row of numerals, and the examiner may not have noticed its absence. The final possibility is we know that the can version was in use from 1955 to 1958, and the sauce bottle from 1958 to 1959. What if those dates are incorrect and that the can version went up to December 1958-January 1959 with the can version 1959 only? In other words a 'cross-over' time frame of late December 1958 to early January 1959? This would then make the stamp a confirmed 159. Although this hypothesis may not be accurate as the sauce bottle appears in print in April 1958. So I guess we are back to the first two possibilities!! I presume none of the 923 boxes have a price written anywhere? In regard to the quality inspection stamp on the end of your 521, many thanks for including it, as I had completely forgotten about its existence as I have a noted a similar location for the quality inspection stamp as shown on your 521 Bedford. I presume this was an error which may have been corrected very quickly due to its existence being rarely seen. With your 502, the stamp on all the plain cardboard boxes is a test/examination stamp that was common with all immediate post-war boxes including the plain as well as the green covered boxes up until the boxes were changed to blue covered. The stamp has letters and is of a similar style to that used in the French factory. Thanks again for sharing with us these box details. I will be writing to you direct on this fascinating subject. Kind regards Bruce (150) #615 11 June 2015

Bruce-Thanks for your comments.....a most interesting topic to me at least......I notice that we have a small group so far! I will post some more of these next time, including at least one other example of an early box with the QC stamp on the end of the box, similar to my 521.You mentioned French Dinky's....I have never noticed these same type of markings on any of mine...have you? I have noticed other types of stamps, but not with dates............It is kind of maddening....some of the stamps are very clear and well marked, and others are just a blur..........but it is nice that we have at least some of them. To answer your question on the Big Bedford Vans, no, neither one has any pricing marked on the box...........so no help there! Regards,Terry

Terry It is nice to see you becoming fascinated with this aspect of Dinky Toys and to have someone of 'kindred spirit', (from a famous book based on the life of an orphan growing up in Newfoundland, Canada), is most appreciated! I must go in search of the QIS on the end label that I have observed, and hope it is not one of those models that I have passed onto someone else! I will photograph a French Supertoys with a similar round stamp as on the early British Supertoys boxes. I have had another look at your 501 stamp and I think it is actually 'M 42'. Attached is the stamp on the base of my 512 Guy Flat Truck (I can never tell with this colour whether it is maroon or dark brown!) that shows a similar stamp to yours, that is also similar to the stamp used in the French factory: Processing the image by increasing the saturation, adjusting the exposure, contrast, etc, etc, makes the stamp a little clearer, which at first looks like 'N 18' but is actually 'M 18' as one has to turn one's head slightly to see it in a vertical plane. It can be presumed that the numeral represents the person checking the item. After several years and no doubt with the increase in the products of Supertoys, Meccano must have decided it would be best to introduce a code of letters for the individual and then numerals to reflect the month the item was checked. Kind regards Bruce (150) #617 11 June 2015

Bruce--Here are some more QC markings for you to ponder........... First one is the 14C Coventry Climax Fork Lift, which I got as a child

here is the QC marking....looks like 1953?

Next is the 751 Supertoys Lawn Mower:

This is another example of the markings on the box end

Next is the 622 10-Ton Army Truck, another model that I received...I think for Christmas in 1955

Here is the QC marking.....looks like 1954

Next is the 49 Petrol Pumps

and the QC marking.....1949?

And, lastly for now, the 1st version 504 Foden Tanker

And the QC marking....another one shown stamped on the end of the box....1949?

Regards, Terry

Greetings Terry Thank you again for your valuable contribution to this Thread. Hopefully I can answer all the Quality Inspection Stamp data you have graciously provided! 1) 14c - Coventry Climax Fork Lift Truck - I read the stamp as aO 153 = January 1953 2) 751 - Lawn Mower - E P 5 9 = May 1949, price on the box - 5/-. Price as per Meccano Price Leaflet April-May 1949 5/-. Model released June 1949 as per announcement in MM, price 5/-. This price remained current until February 1950 when it was increased to 5/6. 3) 622 - 10-Ton Army Truck - FN 9 54 - September 1954 4) 49 - Petrol Pumps Set of 5 - AP 99 = September 1949 Price 3/3 in pencil - September 1948 to January 1950 price 3/3 5) 504 - Foden 14-Ton Tanker - nw5.9 = May 1949 (Green covered boxes introduced March 1949 and withdrawn October 1949) It is nice to see your 751 with the UK price matches the period of the quality inspection stamp. These have been added to my data base, and many thanks for the considerable time you have devoted to this subject. It is highly valued and appreciated. I look forward to receiving more Quality Inspection Stamp data in the time ahead. Kind regards Bruce (150) #646 17 June 2015

Of all my models in a lid box, only my 965 Euclid with a yellow / red lid box had a white control label Tested By. There was no stamp in the box. I thought that was strange. I couldn't find any information about it in existing documentation from Richardson and others.That's why I went to Vectis auction to search for more Dinky Toys models with a Tested By control label.I searched on Vectis with the catch Dinky tested by and found 3 pages with a total of 38 Dinky Toys models with box, whereby the auction description stated the presence of a tested by label in the box. With the catch 'Dinky tested' I even found 8 pages with even more mentions of tested labels.What is striking is that it concerns Dinky Toys with lid boxes of various Dinky Toys models with a lifting, winding or tilting mechanism or battery operated, in which normally a control stamp could also be present.This confirms Bruce's explanation in comment # 6: I too have seen a' Tested 'tag, of the kind your photos depict in other Supertoy boxes. I will have to go through all mine again! I think mine was with a 972, so it is possible all the models with a winding handle were inspected prior to being boxed as a sign the jib (s) operated as it should. Then another person checked the exterior and base before going into the box and it being stamped. This tag is the stock standard Hornby-Dublo tested tag that signifies that the locomotive has been operated around a test track before being boxed. The box also carries in most cases, a stamp similar to the Dinky stamp, particularly with the individual boxed rolling stock. ,Even a 27k Hay Rake and 310 Farm Tractor and Hay Rake had a white control tag 'Tested By'. it's a very small label that can easily be overlooked or lost. You can say when you still have this control label in the box with your model, you have a premium. This white Tested By tag is indeed used on Hornby Dublo trains. I have found pictures of it that I attach to this.Jan Oldenhuis, 21 September 2020








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