Displays and displaying

Jan and Jacques, I would love to have your fingers dexterity. My display are coming from 'IKEA' Richard

It looks like that : There are ten display like this one : A bigger one (poor photo !) : An another type with 'mon Ch

Problem, with the last one ! probably because of the chocolate publicity :laugh: Here it is : Richard

Well, Richard, not too bad, they have a home and a decent display anyway (and no doubt surrounded with love!). Of course we cannot match Jacques' professional carpenters work, this natural wood perfectly in style with the setting Jacques lives in. Long time ago when I visited the Normandy border line Dinky castle: September 2006! And here the present state of affairs with my displays, now exactly 20,02 meters done today, renovated, waiting for the Dinkies to return. All three units with one new shelf added, all shelves thoroughly cleant, and the interiors painted in matt white, reducing reflections and presenting the colours of the contents brighter.Kind regards, Jan

I just took the decision (owing to space) to cut down my Dinky collection to something much more modest & sensible in size, my issue is display space and I will be maintaining my collection to fit into just two cases. I love to see the displays of other members & would welcome an article in the DTCA Journal on this subject. Kind regards, Stef

Hi Stef, This is a good idea and I think that Jan and I could do a joint article as we have both build our cabinets but in very different ways. All ideas from other members to add to the article will be welcomed on this thread.

Could be a nice idea Jacques. But first I will have to complete my painting, glass cutting, cleaning and re-arranging of all display units. Perhaps a nice idea to write a kind of illustrated report of this operation in the light of the need of continuous maintenance and improvement of collection display facilities. Below a first idea of the goal to be attained: more spacious placing of the models by inserting a total of some extra 20 meters of shelves (one added to each unit), and better visibility and brightness of the models by changing over to a pure white background in the displays. An evening-light snap-shot of two units which are almost finished and re-arranged. The top shelves are 225 cm above the floor, which produces an impressive but transparent and spacious 'Dinky-wall' effect. Kind regards, Jan

Hi Jan, Lovely display, really shows the models off to full advantage, I really wish I had gone for deeper cabinets and a lighter background. Chris Warr.

JanThose are looking really nice! You mentioned cutting glass......are you cutting your own glass shelves? Are you starting with the correct width and just cutting to the length you need? Do you polish the cut edges??? Just curious! Terry

Hi Terry, I have had so many displays in three decades and I always keep any glass that remains from whatever disposed of in the house, that there is always some piece of glass that I can re-use in a new setting, so I cut it in the right size, lenghtwise and/or width. For the vast majority of the shelves I have it done, of course: less effort, trouble and cumputerized cut. They always ask if the edges have to be polished, but that isn't necessary, they look very clean, it saves costs, they are secure behind the front glass doors (which have been polished of course), and after all I'm still alive. Kind regards, Jan

Hi Jan. How is your way to arrange your 'dinky' in the displays ? On the last photo I can see buses on different shelves, two Streamlined Fire engine in two different displays, and so on ! I would be very curious to know that ! Friendly yours. Richard

Hello Richard, the photo shows two of four display units on top which I gave a completely random arrangement as contents is concerned. That does not matter, because the order and categorisation of the collection is to be found in my catalogue and my displays are for attractive presentation. These four display units contain the smaller, mostly equally sized Dinky Toys. Of those there are many models in several variants. For some this means that these variants have to be placed together, but for presentation I think this is rather boring, so I scattered them all randomly over the shelves. Other non-visible units, however, have more systematically arranged models: agriculture, military, vans with advertising, fire engines, aeroplanes, ships, large commercials etc. Besides that, the central unit, which stretches from floor to ceiling, is filled with pre-war and early post-war Dinky's only. In some instances one cannot be strict. Think of a book cabinet, where it is virtually impossible to have all books on the same subject together, just because of differences in height of the volumes concerned. Kind regards, Jan