23g 233 and 208 Cooper-Bristol Racing Car (1952-64)

I have brought up this issue at TMT some time ago, so I think it would not hurt to bring it to your attention here again. I am talking about the base plate of the 23G/233 Cooper Bristol Racing Car and to support my point I enclose a picture of all the variations known: From Top: 1. First issue with mottled base plate 23G (correct lettering from left to right) 2. Second issue with mottled base plate 233 (reversedlettering) 3. Third issue with shiny base plate 233 (correct letteringfrom left to right) 4. Fourth issue with spun hubs and shiny base plate 233 (reversed lettering) 5. Fifth issue with plastic hubs and shiny base plate 233 (correct letteringfrom left to right) How come the Cooper Bristol is the only one of the six Dinky Racers where base plates have been wrongly attached again and again? Any help?
Regards from Thailand
Walter

Hi Walter, no doubt you checked your other five contemporaries of this series and they did not show that odd reversing. I cannot explain. The minority of those you show are wrong, as the text should read from front to the rear. But the repeated mistake was made before attaching already. As this base plate it is not symmetrical it cannot have been wrongly attached. Before attaching it was reversely embossed. By the way, my (only) 23g is correct in this respect. Kind regards, Jan

Jan, You are right, of course. I assume the process of making base plates is 1.) embossing the letters, 2.) punching/cutting out the base plate, then mounting/riveting. Therefore the mistake must have happened when punching/cutting took place. Maybe they wrongly punched too many of them so they didn't wanted to throw them away, because who would notice anyway! Further, I noticed that all the wrongly cut base plates are of the shiny variety, therefore post 1958. So far I have not seen any wrong earlier mottled base plates on a Cooper Bristol. Walter

Looking at my Cooper-Bristols, I found a small variation in the casting: Unlike the first 23G Cooper-Bristols, all the later 233 Cooper-Bristols (from 1953/54 onward) carried small vertical lines on both sides behind the racing numbers, which have become a little fatter too. Any explantion regarding these lines? Regards Walter

Dear Walter, The raised lines are used to position the racing numbers, they have the same use as the circle on some other racing cars. Why this was not done to the other models of this series will remain one of many Meccano mysteries. Meccano France used a blue line on some of their transfers to position the racing numbers properly.



660 444 My reason for visiting this post today is that I am looking for the date of introduction of the plastic hubs on this set of racing cars. Can any one help ? Is it 1962 ? Thanks and regards Jacques

Hi Jacques, always nice to hear from you. Hope this helps. brgds Walter

Hello, could anybody confirm whether this model was issued in a trade box as I expect. The only trade boxes I have seen are the 23k Lago & the 23f Alpha-Romeo. My question also applies to the 23j, 23h, 23n. David

Here is the 234 Ferrari

Thank you will add this picture to my wants list it still amaes me what is out there, but still would like to see if the prenumbering trade boxes exist. I think these are referred to as 'Outers' and not'Trade Boxes' David

An older picture from my files: the final (5th,1962, left) and earliest (1952) issues together + the firts one in more detail.

Dear David T,
I do not know of a trade box for the 23 J - HWM, it was issued in a yellow end flaps box which showed the ref. number 50 193 the model number was then 23J, the next type of box had the double numbering and later the ref. 235. The same applies to the Ferrari with the box ref. 50 192 and to the Maserati with the box ref. 50 199. I do not know of a tradebox for these three models.I only know five models the box of which had a 50 xxx ref. number.


All the best. Jacques

Had not relized that the yellow ended boxes had the 50 xxx reference number on them will have to look out for that. The trade box for the 40j does exist as a type 5 dual numbered box, so interesting that the yellow box with end flaps also has a 50 xxx number on it.
David