The only way is… Wessex
It was business as (almost) usual when Wessex Auction Rooms held one of its regular toys sales.
For railway lovers, it was an occasion, for a boxed Iron Horse Models HO gauge Cheaspeake & Ohio K-2, 2-8-2 locomotive and tender came up for grabs. In satin black (factory painted), this dated from 2008 and was made in Korea by BRP. It looked stunning, boasted really fine detail and attracted a worthy top bid of £550. A boxed Daiyoung Models HO gauge ST-888 (Reading Lines) Class N-1, in 2-8-8-2 configuration, was equally complex: this locomotive and tender by Custom Brass, also finished in black, made £460. Another stand-out ensemble was the Hallmark Models HO gauge Santa Fe 1-A and 1-B locomotive built by KMT of Japan: striking in pale yellow, slate grey and mid-blue, this lot was knocked down for £500. Additionally, several welldetailed unpainted HO brass models from Korea sold for £110-150. In fact, the bidder was spoiled for choice: in all, there were well over 250 beautifullymade loco/tender combinations to whet the appetite. There followed dozens and dozens of lots given over to equally attractive rolling stock.
An example of the Lego Star Wars (No. 10144) Original Trilogy Sandcrawler was complete and appeared to be factory sealed – this was bid to a healthy £400; whilst £550 was required to take home a superb Lone*Star The Man from UNCLE attaché case set. This comprised a polystyrene packed, vinyl-covered attaché case containing various weapons and spy equipment, including a Luger (a bit dated!), shoulder stock and holster, a No.11 badge, instruction leaflet, pen and other components. A rare survivor, without a doubt. ■