it was silver and had retractable gear

[norri]

and as far as i can remember looked like a Hawker Hunter. but the memory is 45 years old. i had at least two. they were Lintoy size/style diecast toys, purchased in Hong Kong. but both the main and nose gear were cast with gear doors and were a much more precise fit than Lintoy ever achieved.

for years i thought they were Lintoys, but i've never seen a Lintoy Hunter and the clear memory of the gear doors, seems to confirm it. sometimes wonder if i didn't imagine the whole thing.

can anyone shed any light on what brand they were? circa 1966.

norri

[grwebster]

Norri, Lintoy/ERTL/Corgi did not have a Hunter in their line but there were Lintoy sized Hawker Hunters made by both Solido and Dinky Toys but they had fixed landing gear and were finished in camouflage.
The one series that does come to mind with this criteria was by Tekno, Danemark, as their jet aircraft had well reproduced retractable gear and were mostly all silver {The Russian Mig was all green or all red {a red one is quite rare}. Of course selling these in Hong Kong in the 1960s would be similar to importing coal to Newcastle but anything is possible.


Here is the Tekno Hunter


Here is what the Tekno period jet aircraft looked liked from underneath. Some sharp eyed forum members may note that this example is not a Tekno but another maker. Anyone know the details of its production? It is rather a rare toy.


You should be able to find a good example of a Tekno Hunter today at a reasonable price as they are around. {eBay, Vectis etc....}

The quality of the Tekno diecast aircraft set the standard for the period and even served as the inspiration for the Aero Mini series of aircraft.

Hope this helps, GR

[norri]

Mr Webster,

was rather hoping you'd spot my post. that must be it! as i thought, no other toys of the day had gear doors cast into the leg itself. even as a kid i marvelled at their streamlined beauty.

that is the hawker hunter i had when i was five. after all these years i finally know what it was,

many thanks,

norri

[richardstarr]

HI GR,
Many thanks for your super duper replies regarding DIECAST AIRCRAFT.
You have an excellent knowledge of the subject and are always willing to help others.
You are indeed correct regarding the TEKNO DENMARK HAWKER HUNTER. As usual.
I always thought that the TEKNO DIECAST AIRCRAFT were superior.
I have the DANBURY MINT PEWTER HAWKER HUNTER,
Keep up the good work. Regards, RICHARD STARR

[grwebster]

Thanks Richard.
There isn't much in print about miniature aircraft, but I learned so much from talking with early collectors and toy dealers, most of whom are not around any longer. Lots of this information appeared in The Plane News and MAQ over its 10 year publication period and copies of these appear on eBay from time to time.

When you see what Tone posts here on tin aircraft and Michael on small diecast ones, and the others who are generous with their knowledge and photos, it is rewarding.

I had wanted to a series of individual books about the many makers or these aircraft toys and Tekno was going to be my next one. But after the one I wrote and photographed on general aircraft toys, and a specialized one on Dinky Toys aircraft {John Beugels and Sir George Cox were key contributors} I realized that there would not be a lot of time for me to do them. Plus, the fact that those that were published did not sell a lot of copies and frankly the effort was enormous, costly and they took for ever to finish. Both are still available on Blurb.com under GR Webster, if anyone is interested. The hard cover ones are expensive but there are iPad versions for a few bucks.

I will not not do any more and hope much of the information that I and the rest of us contribute in these posts will always be available on this forum well after I and others are gone.

One thing I am glad I did was to take a lot of photos over the years so I could answer questions like Norri's and share information here. With the inexpensive digital cameras to day it it not hard or costly to do and I would urge all collectors to do so and create a catalog, too. I am currently in France and my collection is in Florida so photos are key.
Happy Collecting
GR

[norri]

much appreciated GR. would you mind posting a picture of the underside of the hunter?

many thanks norri

[grwebster]

I am in France, collection in US,and do not have any other photos, but the bottom is the same as the Mystere one above.

[norri]

no probs. yes you did say that. was curious to see the hunter, since i haven't seen it for 45 odd years.

[grwebster]

Norri, here is one for sale and there are some decent photos
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tekno-1960s-Bri ... 3952385%26

I would expect it would sell for about 35-40$us in that near mint condition.

[grwebster]

I see that the seller didn't mention shipping outside the US but sometimes they do if you ask in advance.
If not ask here for a forum member in the USA to buy it for you and ship.
You would need a paypal acct I think in any case.
Good luck.

I once had a chap contact me about his boy hood toy, a 'squadron' set on card of a bunch of cheap plastic aircraft toys from the 1940s. I happened to have one, framed on the wall of my collection room, sent him a photo but told him it wasn't for sale. He bugged me for 2 months and finally just offered a ridiculous sum for it. I passed it on to him but some how I think he was saddened that his 40 year search was finally over.