Helicopter Toys from Italy

[Tone]

Here is another "FSC" brand 'copter from the "old country" image I found on-line: owner says it is 17 cm or 6 3/4" long.

[hovermd]

Here is another "FSC" brand 'copter from the "old country" image I found on-line: owner says it is 17 cm or 6 3/4" long.

A cool toy!

I have a page exert from a distributor catalog that pictures this toy and a F-3 tin windup tank. I was able to purchase both toys as a grouped lot a number of years ago.

Unfortunately, there's no clues on the catalog page to date the toy...

[hovermd]

This toy is made in Italy and is marked "Lima." Some cursory research shows that this firm mostly made toy trains. It's interesting to find a helicopter toy by that manufacturer. It closely resembles the a few of the German toys made by Gama.

Lima Helicopter

[Tone]

I am confused - there is another brand called "FSC" or Federico Centola that made some small tin planes. The firm was still making toys in the 50s according to one web site I saw, so ... maybe some helicopters?

[hovermd]

Here's a photo of the helicopter and catalog extract stating "Giocottoli Ferrari."

I guess you can't call it conclusive, but it leads me to believe that the toy probably can be attributed to FSC (Siro Ferrari).

I'm not familiar with the logo for FSC - you can see a logo on the catalog page. Does anyone know if this logo matches Siro Ferrari?

Giocottoli Ferrari catalog and toys

I found the logo for the Siro Ferrari toy company on the following Italian website:

http://ingap-it.ning.com/

It's a match to the catalog page.

Here's an enlargement:

Siro Ferrari Logo

[Tone]

...and then there are very expensive ones from the Industria Nazionale di Giocci Automatici Padova Ingap, like the one below which is (march 2011) for sale for € 450:

Attached below is a color variant I just discovered. Toy's length is 14.30 cm which amounts to 5 1/2"

[hovermd]

...and then there are very expensive ones from the Industria Nazionale di Giocci Automatici Padova Ingap, like the one below which is (march 2011) for sale for € 450:

Attached below is a color variant I just discovered. Toy's length is 14.30 cm which amounts to 5 1/2"

This toy just sold for $345 on Ebay with Buy It Now... The rotors are pretty delicate and are usually broken. I think the rotor on this particular toy was repaired, and it still brought a big price. Also, the lithography is often faded. I think the manufucturing process and inks must have been substandard. Anyway, the sale price is testament to its rarity.

[hovermd]

Here's a photo of the helicopter and catalog extract stating "Giocottoli Ferrari."

I guess you can't call it conclusive, but it leads me to believe that the toy probably can be attributed to FSC (Siro Ferrari).

I'm not familiar with the logo for FSC - you can see a logo on the catalog page. Does anyone know if this logo matches Siro Ferrari?

0730.JPG

I found the logo for the Siro Ferrari toy company on the following Italian website:

http://ingap-it.ning.com/

It's a match to the catalog page.

Here's an enlargement:

Siro Ferrari logo.jpg

By the way, I also discovered that the Siro Ferrari company initials seem to be often transposed. Sometimes the logo on the toy reads "FSC" and sometimes it reads "SFC." I've seen a "F.S.C." variant as well.

This makes me a bit more convinced that SFC-229 helicopter above is quite likely from the same manufacturer.

[alas]

I managed to buy my own wind-up Ingap - and did not pay the 'market' price!

[hovermd]

Excellent! They are hard to find, especially with all the rotors unbroken.