Fairey Rotodyne, Gyrodyne, Gyroplane

[Tone]

Napier stopped making the Eland engine. That's one reason why the Convair 540, which used these engines and was operated by Allegheny, reverted to the piston-engined 440.

Here are some more shots of Sears, Roebuck & Co's fantastic Vertical Liner SR-649!

[MichaelB]

Here's the Revell box top, which is a real work of art from Jack Lynnwood. I love this '60s aerial view of a dark, wet airport with the "new" technology soaring overhead!
Enjoy!
Michael

[fliegerii]

A Horikawa Fairey Rotodyne recently was sold on Ebay for more than 900,- Euro:

http://r.ebay.com/64ASSV

A similar, if not same model was sold in July 2013 at the German auction house Lankes for 220,- Euro.

Market drives crazy....

Regards,
Chris

[hovermd]

This most recent sale price for the KOT (Yoshiya) Fairey Rotodyne is no fluke...

I've seen the toy bring $940 U.S. and $1250 U.S. mint in the box. I've also seen the toy bring $660 U.S. and $1250 U.S. without the box.

I'd call that Lankes sale price a very good bargain.

The toy came in two versions that I've seen.

I think the toy pictured further above in this post is the more rare of the two examples. It's only marked with the KOT (Yoshiya) makers mark and totally lacks the "FR 250" aircraft identification numbers. I've never seen an example of this toy that includes the original box. In fact, the example pictured earlier in the post is the only one I've ever seen.

The version with FR 250 on the wings that just sold on Ebay is made by KOT (Yoshiya) and SH (Horikawa). I've seen five or so examples of that toy sell.

[MichaelB]

Thanks for that info!
Michael

[hovermd]

An exciting version of the Fairey Rotodyne toy recently surfaced.

The toy is identified as the " Vertical Liner " and also has the registration number " H.C. 123 " displayed.

The toy is made by Yonezawa of Japan, similar to the " Sky Patrol " toy above.

I believe this toy was produced slightly earlier, likely in the 1950s.

It, too, is friction powered, but is simpler in design with only the rotor on top that spins. The toy does not feature propellers of any kind on the engine nacelles. And, it has an all-tin rotor.

The scale is smaller than the " Sky Patrol " version with a length of 8 1/2 inches and a wingspan of 8 1/2 inches.

Has anyone encountered this toy before? If so, I'd love to hear about it...

Here's the photo:

Yonezawa Vertical Liner H.C. 123

[Tone]

Hmmmm ... do we know for certain if the 8 1/2" red and yellow H.C.123 toy originally had engines with props, and a previous owner just pulled the props off?

Do you think the toys illustrate the association between the two manufacturers? Usually we see both trademarks (ET Co - Tomiyama and Yonezawa) on the same toy but it could mean that one firm acted as a sales agent or exporter on behalf of the other. How similar, or different, are the Yonezawa brand vertical liners from the Tomiyama/Sears SR649? I do notice that the Yonezawa toy does not have a see-through flight deck.

[hovermd]

I am positive this toy never had props installed.

I would describe this toy as much simpler in design and somewhat more "crude" that other Fairey Rotodyne toys out there. I feel like the tin cockpit area is another indication of it's simplicity.

Perhaps the fact that the tin cockpit area has been distinctly/separately applied indicates that another version was produced, potentially with a plastic see-through canopy? Maybe that version made provisions for spinning propellers in the engine nacelles? If that version exists and is out there, I can't wait to see it!

But, besides it's more complex Yonezawa "Sky Patrol " cousin shown above, it's the only other friction version of the Fairey Rotodyne that I've seen. Perhaps this H.C. 123 is a smaller prototype toy for the " Sky Patrol " version that was clearly produced in somewhat greater numbers?

To reiterate, this toy clearly is marked with the Yonezawa trademark ( a "Y" inside a flower ). There is no other maker mark present, and I currently don't have any evidence to indicate that Yonezawa paired with another company to produce it. Incidentally, the " Sky Patrol " version above is only marked by the Yonezawa trademark.

As an aside, I personally have never seen E.T. CO. (Tomiyama) paired with Yonezawa on the rotary-wing toys I collect. I have seen E.T. CO. paired with C.K (Kuramochi) on some early autogiro toys, but that's it. Did E.T. CO. and Yonezawa combine to produce other airplane toys?

The battery-operated Tomiyama/Sears SR-649 Vertical Liner toys are much larger and more complex. The SR-649 Vertical Liner comes in two versions: one with retracting landing gear and one without retracting landing gear.

The battery-operated Bandai toy that is simply marked " VTOL " and the KOT (Yoshiya Toy) " Fairey Rotodyne " toys are also much more complex. But, the Bandai and KOT toys are not quite as large as the Tomiyama/Sears toy.

One thing is for sure: it's fun to see various toy manufacturer's interpretations of this really pioneering aircraft design. The roots for aircraft like the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey run deep!

[Tone]

Mark, thank you very much for your detailed reply with observations.

I am positive this toy never had props installed.

The reason I was wondering is that I have an "HWN" (Heinrich WImmer) brand plane that resembles the Noratlas, which should have a pair of props, yet the toy was designed without them.

To reiterate, this toy clearly is marked with the Yonezawa trademark ( a "Y" inside a flower ). There is no other maker mark present, and I currently don't have any evidence to indicate that Yonezawa paired with another company to produce it. Incidentally, the " Sky Patrol " version above is only marked by the Yonezawa trademark.

As an aside, I personally have never seen E.T. CO. (Tomiyama) paired with Yonezawa on the rotary-wing toys I collect. I have seen E.T. CO. paired with C.K (Kuramochi) on some early autogiro toys, but that's it. Did E.T. CO. and Yonezawa combine to produce other airplane toys?

One thing is for sure: it's fun to see various toy manufacturer's interpretations of this really pioneering aircraft design. The roots for aircraft like the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey run deep!

Many of the airliners and fighter planes from the 50s and early 60s have both the "ET Co" - Tomiyama and the "Y" - Yonezawa trademark together. Examples include the pale blue B-50 Superfortress with red markings, the Comet jetliners, and the multi-action DC-7 planes with 23" wingspan and opening doors.

[hovermd]

It does stand to reason that E.T. CO. would pair with Yonezawa... they are both excellent examples of Japanese manufacturers that made high quality toys. Thanks for the examples of their teamwork!