36b and 896 Tracteur Willème semi remorque bâchée [Willème Articulated Covered Truck] (1958-1971)

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The earlier postings for this model on the forum are in a topic titled with the words 'smooth cabin ceiling', which would seem to limit further posts there to that variation only. Having recently received a very nice example of this model, I decided to start a new topic, under the correct heading, along with some more photographs just taken. In my opinion, this 36b Willeme semi truck, along with its slightly older brother, the Willeme Log Truck, are two of the nicest truck models ever produced by Dinky Toys. I had neglected purchasing this model earlier in my career, and only recently decided that I really should add one, and after receiving it, I am not disappointed. The tractor, prime mover is virtually identical with that of the log truck, but painted in a darker shade of red. Early versions had the smooth cabin ceiling, along with convex front wheels, and the squared off frame extensions behind the cab. Another early feature, later changed, are the front support wheels for the trailer. On early versions, those are a pair of dual metal wheels, later change to a pair of single metal wheels. Mine has the later, along with a checkered ceiling in the cabin but with convex front wheels, and numbered 36b on the box. The trailer is a very good model of a Fruehauf design, and has an amazing amount of detail, including opening doors on both sides as well as the rear. The simulated canvas top is accomplished by using a plastic casting, which works quite well. Is this possibly the very first use of plastic on a Dinky Toy? Another very nice touch is the use of dual wheels and tires on both the trailer and the tractor, which adds considerable realism. In fact, this model uses a total of 16 tires and wheels, when the spares are included. This was introduced in very late 1958, and first appeared in the 1959 French and US catalogs, and was made until 1971 under the new number of 896. After handling this model, one becomes very aware of just how heavy it is, and indeed, looking at the bottom of the trailer shows why: There are extensive structural ribs running both front to rear and also side to side. This, along with all those wheels and tires must have added considerably to the cost, as it was listed in the 1959 US catalog for $5.50, more than any other model except the very large 983 Car Carrier and Trailer. This makes a great display piece and a wonderful companion to the log truck! Best regards, Terry

Hi Terry, congratulations with this 'best French Dinky Supertoy' ever! I got it as a Christmas present in 1961, so it resides in my collection for 55 years now and we played an awful lot with it. I admire it both as a toy with much play value and as an astonishing model. I will not repeat the family story behind it here, just some romantic photos of this cherished childhood toy. Kind regards, Jan

Jan--I had read elsewhere about your wonderful childhood memories of this magnificent truck, and what a great story it is. It also makes a great model all the more special........I have several of those also from my younger days, and just holding and looking at the model opens the floodgates of days goneby. This is a wonderful model....I should have bought one years ago! By the way, you can tell that the plastic top was not quite 'seated' all the way down on the rear of the trailer, as there is a bit of a gap showing. I had to somewhat forcefully push down, and then it went into its proper position. I will need to take some new pictures. Best regards, Terry

This is my favorite Dinky. 500 375 When you look at this truck, you feel the power of the 12 cylinder engine.

Here under is my contribution at this topic. Two of them have concav hubs, all the trailers are identical but the three boxes are different : the oldest is marked 36b on the top, the middle age one is marked 36b on the top but show both number, 36b and 896 on each ends and the earliest as no number on the top and only 896 on each ends. Do you notice (for the happy owner of this truck only ! ) that all the doors show a number, running from number 2 to number 7,There are four doors on the trailer and you can have doors with three different numbers. it's completely untidy ! On the third photo, the door has the number 4 and on the last photo, we can guess a number 4 on the left door and 6 on the right one (the photo is poor and it's difficult to see the numbers) Kind regards Richard

Richard, Interesting discovery the numbering of the doors from 2 to 7. It would be interesting to know to which of the doors this applies : the side doors or the rear doors and if the numbering is 1 to 8 ? Also, are the side and rear doors the same ?Perhaps Terry and other members can help to answer these questions. All the best. Jacques.

My dear friend Jacques, I was absolutely certain that you would ask me that question !! I thought about it when I just finished to put all the Willeme back in their cabinet ! I said to myself : damned !! Jacques will want to know, which doors , which numbers, where are they located and so on ....! So, I was waiting for your message ! I an going to check and will come back to you with the answers. Friendly yours. Richard

Hi Jacques. Here are the results : Willme 39b Left side lateral door : 6 - Right side lateral door : 2 Left rear door : 6 - Right rear door : 2 Willme 39b-896 Left side lateral door : 7 - Right side lateral door : 3 Left rear door : 7 - Right side lateral door : 3 Willme 896 Left side lateral door : 6 - Right side lateral door : 4 Left rear door : 5 - Right rear door : 3 We can see that doors on the same side have the same numbers as on the 39b and the 39b-896 ! But what about the third one ? Perhaps that the worker who fit it was a rebel ! Friendly yours Richard

I found some older pictures showing in some detail the inside numbers of the doors of my 36B example. Kind regards, Jan

Hi Jan, Thank you for these pictures, they show that there are two types of doors right and left and that the cavity numbers are 1 to 8. Jacques.