I am sad to say that the reason for my not looking at this site for some while has been justified by the diatribes above .
There seems to be a total sense of humour failure and an urgent need on the part of some of the contributors to air their knowledge .
The toy which is the subject of serious discussion is just that . a toy----even if it is only fit for decoration because of its weight .
It certainly holds its own compared with some of the tat for sale at preserved railway sites , but of course , that brings in money to keep them running , relying heavily on the "not many people know what a real loco looks like" and "his mom will buy it for him , she thinks it looks like a loco". There is even the
"I bought him that , it cost me a hundred pounds , aren't I gracious?" school . Think on that , it's OK to sell tat in some places , innit ?
The sellers of these things do not know what the real value is , which can work in our favour . For example , we got a mint boxed toy train at an auction of household items , the toy being the Corporal Loopy LGB tank in grey for £80 . That is not the only serious bargain we have acquired , but given the attitude of some contributors here they would help crooked dealers in tat alerting them . (oh , yes , you can hear it can't you ?) Smugly , because it isn't their railway of interest they would say "Did you know that thing is worth ten times that ?" Usually in a glottal voice as in rivet counters . If you just happened to be in line waiting to buy the bargain , you would be justified in joining the "Murderer whilst the balance of mind is upset" brigade .
Toys are toys , remember the seriously deficient Dinkies of yore that you coveted ? Take serious subjects seriously and let the toy buyers enjoy themselves .