1961 Bluebird Dauphine Travel Trailer

Bluebird Caravans LTD was based in Poole, England, and became a private company in 1940. By 1961, Bluebird was manufacturing 16 different models ranging from small pull-behinds to large residential caravans. The 14-foot Dauphine was equipped with either 2 double beds or 1 double and 2 singles, and included a dinette and kitchen with a hotplate, sink and drainer. In 1963, Bluebird merged with Alperson Products and the name was changed to Caravans International.

The Matchbox Bluebird Dauphine Travel Trailer was first released in 1960 and was produced in about 4 different variations. This metallic tan model with gray plastic wheels is another of my Wichita eBay scores.

The Matchbox Bluebird Dauphine Travel Trailer features an opening door.

The label on the back reads: ON TOW MBS23.

Matchbox | 1961-1964 | #23 | Bluebird Dauphine Travel Trailer | metallic tan, opening door, On Tow label on back| England | gray plastic wheels

As for a tow vehicle, I think it looks perfectly fantastic behind my 1961 Matchbox #57 Chevrolet Impala (if we can just pretend for a minute that the Impala’s tow hook is not broken.)

Click here to compare to the Matchbox #23 Trailer Caravan, click here to compare to the Matchbox #31 Caravan Travel Trailer, and click here to compare to the Matchbox #57 Eccles Trailer Caravan.

1977 Matchbox Honda CB750 Police Motorcycle

The Matchbox Honda CB750 Police Motorcycle was first released in 1977 and was produced in about 13 different variations. The casting is closely related to the Hondarora Motorcycle, but rather than plastic, steerable handlebars, it has fixed handlebars that are part of the metal casting. It appears to use the same engine and exhaust molding, but the Police Motorcycle has a different plastic seat with molded side compartments. And, of course, the plastic rider (optional on the Hondarora) is a uniformed policeman. This example with Police labels is another of my Wichita eBay finds.

Click here to compare to my two example of the Matchbox Hondarora Motorcycle.

Click here to compare to the Matchbox Honda Motorcycle and Trailer from my childhood collection.

Matchbox | 1977 | #33 | Honda CB750 Police Motorcycle | white with POLICE labels, white plastic seat, blue plastic driver, chrome plastic engine and exhaust | England | diecast wire wheels with black plastic tires

1967 Matchbox Claas Combine Harvester

Founded in 1913 by August Claas, CLAAS is a manufacturer of agricultural equipment based in Harsewinkel, Germany. Early on, the company made milk centrifuges, straw binders and cutters for mowing machines. The first combine harvester was introduced in 1930 and a model designed for European harvesting conditions began mass-production in 1937. By 2003, CLAAS had produced 400,000 combine harvesters at its main plant in Harsewinkel. Today, the product line includes tractors, balers, mowers, rakes, wheel loaders and other equipment that is sold worldwide.

The Matchbox Claas Combine Harvester, based on the Matador model that was made from 1962 until 1970, was first released in 1967 and was produced until 1972. Early models have dark red paint, while later versions are bright red. This nice example is another of my Wichita eBay scores.

Click here to compare to the Matchbox #51 Combine Harvester – of which I have four different variations – from 1978.

The Matchbox #65 Claas Combine features nice detailing and yellow hubs on the front wheels that match the yellow plastic blades.

Matchbox | 1967 | #65 | Claas Combine Harvester | red, yellow plastic blades, red metal base | England | black plastic wheels with yellow hubs front, black plastic wheels rear

1966 Matchbox Lotus Racing Car Variations

The Matchbox Lotus Racing Car was first released in 1966. The earlier issues have either green or orange paint with black plastic tires on yellow hubs. In 1970, it was given purple paint and Superfast wheels. This clean example of the green model with intact labels is another of my Wichita eBay scores.

The Matchbox #19 Lotus Racing Car features a plastic driver and an unpainted metal base, engine and exhaust.

Matchbox | 1966 | #19 | Lotus Racing Car | green with 3 decals, white driver and steering wheel, unpainted metal engine and base | England | black plastic wheels with yellow hubs

This orange model with missing labels is another one I landed from my Wichita eBay friend.

Matchbox| 1966 | #19 | Lotus Racing Car | orange, missing number labels, white plastic driver, unpainted metal base, engine and exhaust | England | black tires with yellow hubs

1965 Matchbox London Routemaster Bus

When it comes to the Matchbox #5 London Bus, it can get a little confusing. This is another of those models where there are several different versions with only slight differences between them. All are referred to (in various sources) as some varition of London Bus, Routemaster, or London Routemaster Bus. The important thing to remember is that each version is slightly larger than the one that came before.

Here’s a brief description of each:

#5A London Bus | 1954-1956 | 2” | red | Buy Matchbox Series | metal wheels

#5B London Bus | 1957-1960 | 2 1/4” | red | Buy Matchbox Series | metal or gray plastic wheels

#5C London Bus | 1961-1964 | 2 9/16” | red | Player’s Please, Visco Static, Drink Peardrox, Baron of Beef | gray or black plastic wheels

#5D London Routemaster Bus | 1965-1969  | 2 ¾” | Longlife, Visco Static, Baron of Beef | black plastic wheels

This nice example – another of my Wichita eBay scores – is the 1965 #5D with Longlife BP decals. Click here to see a slightly later variation of the Matchbox 5D London Routemaster Bus, the 1967 issue with Visco Static labels.

Matchbox | 1965 | #5 | London Routemaster Bus | red with Longlife BP decals, white interior, black metal base | England | black plastic wheels

1959 Matchbox Land Rover Series II

The Matchbox #12 Land Rover Series II, based on the second generation of the successful British off-road vehicle, was first released in 1959 and was produced until 1965, wearing either gray or black plastic wheels as you see here. This example, missing part of the windshield frame, is another of my Wichita eBay scores.

Click here to compare to the 1965 Matchbox Land Rover Safari. And click here to compare to the 1966 Matchbox Land Rover Fire Truck.

Matchbox | 1959 | #12 | Land Rover Series II | olive green, missing one side of windshield frame, black metal base | England | black plastic wheels

1979 Matchbox Armored Truck

The Matchbox Armored Truck was first released in 1978 and was produced in about 6 different variations. This worn example of the 1979 Wells Fargo version with blue windows and QZ-2031 (barely visible here) on the front fenders is another of my finds from the Paramount Antique Mall.

This is the first of this casting that I’ve added to my collection.

Matchbox | 1979-1982 | #69 | Armored Truck | red, Wells Fargo QZ-2031, white plastic top, blue windows and dome light, grey metal base | England | Superfast 5-crown wheels

1981 and 1982 Matchbox Hondarora Motorcycles

The Matchbox Hondarora Motorcycle was first released in 1975 and has been produced in about 20 different variations up to the mid 1980s.

The Hondarora features a metal frame, gas tank and rear fender with a plastic engine, plastic seat, plastic steerable handlebars and special motorcycle wheels. There is a kickstand molded to one side of the exhaust. Later models included a plastic rider. I recenlty picked up two variations of the Hondarora from my Wichita eBay friend.

This metallic green model with a chrome engine and black 5-spoke wheels is from 1981.

Matchbox | 1981 | #18 | Hondarora Motorcycle | metallic green, black handlebars, chrome plastic engine, black plastic seat, black wheels | England

This yellow version with a chrome engine and black 5-spoke wheels is missing one handlebar and the seat. It also may or may not have had a plastic rider who might have been tan, brown or green.

Click here to compare to the Honda Motorcycle and Trailer from my childhood.

Matchbox | 1982-1983 | #18 | Hondarora Motorcycle | yellow, black handlebars (missing one), chrome plastic engine, missing black plastic seat, missing brown plastic rider, black wheels | England

1976 Matchbox BMW 3.0 CSL Box

I’ve been thinking about Matchboxes. Or, I should say Matchbox boxes. When I see photos online of collections from the UK or Europe, the cars are often paired with the original boxes. It seems to be less so in the U.S. In fact, in all my years of hunting, I almost never come across cars in boxes. I still have some nice Matchbox examples from my childhood, but I don’t remember much about the packaging. If anything, I seem to remember looking at a display where all of the cars were hanging in blister cards.

This is only the second Matchbox box that I’ve added to my collection of over 230 loose Matchbox cars. Like the Ford Tractor and Harrow box, this box for the Matchbox #45 BMW 3.0 CSL is a pickup from my Wichita eBay friend. The boxes, with their bold graphics and beautiful illustrations, really are an enhancement to a collection.

Matchbox | 1976 | #45 | BMW 3.0 CSL | box only

Fortunately, in this case I already have a nice example of the BMW 3.0 CSL to pair with it. Looks pretty good, doesn’t it?

1973 Matchbox Rolamatics Turbo Fury

The Matchbox Turbo Fury was first released in the 1973 Rola-Matics series and was produced in about 4 different variations.

A reworking of the Blue Shark casting, the rear of the car has been modified to house twin jet engines and now includes a pair of fans that spin with the rolling action of the car.

This red example, which is missing a label (it might have been 69, 86, or a scorpion), is the second of two cars I picked up at the Toy Shack in Las Vegas.

Other Matchbox Rolamatics models in my collection include the Mustang Piston Popper that I still have from my childhood, the Range Rover with Police Patrol livery, the Range Rover with Sheriff livery, the metallic green Weasel Armored Vehicle, the olive green variation of the Weasel, the Badger Exploration Truck, the Stoat Armored Car, the Maxi Taxi and the Fandango.

Matchbox | 1973 Rolamatics | #69 | Turbo Fury | red, missing label, clear windshield, white interior, ivory engine fans, unpainted metal base | England | Superfast 5-spoke wheels