This is the most
desirable of the standard issue Yesteryears and
is hard to find in mint condition with the full
team of firemen. The first models to be issued
had a 'Kent fire brigade' decal applied. This is
the version I have here. This is issue 3 and was
bought at a local swapmeet for £19 which was
quite a bargain considering the excellent
condition of the model. Expect to usually pay
well over £150 for mint boxed models. However,
issues with grey horses rather than white are in
the extremely rare category and can command
prices over £500.
By 1963 the decal
was changed to 'London fire brigade'. The horses
for this variation were either white, bronze or
black. These 'London' models are slightly scarcer
than the 'standard issue' Kent models so expect
to pay a little more.
A real example of
the Shand Mason can be seen at the Castle Museum
in York.
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The footplate
showing 9 full and 3 partial slots. As
time went on and the tooling became worn
the number of slots was reduced to 7. |
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