Collectibility Spotlight: Vintage Club Gambler's Choices

While we’re on the subject of Gambler’s Choices - let’s talk Vintage Club ones for today’s Collectibility Spotlight.

Of the three clubs Breyer regularly offers - Vintage, Premier, and Stablemates - Vintage is the one I’ve done the most. I was a member for eight of the fifteen years since its launch - 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022. The years 2016 and 2017 would have been included in there, but in late 2015, Breyer shut down my local dealer, who had been retailing Breyers for more than 30 years, over a 99-cent pricing error on the online portion of her dealership. I didn’t understand - and still don’t - how they could terminate such a lucrative, successful partnership over an error that is so easy to make. The nine and zero keys are right next to each other and anyone who doesn’t use the side number pad (or anyone who doesn’t have one; I don’t have one on the laptop I’m using to type this blog post) could make the same mistake. As a result of their decision, I boycotted buying anything directly from Breyer for all of 2016, which meant no Club memberships. And since you always have to sign up for clubs the year before, that meant I was out for the Vintage Club in 2017 as well.

I rejoined for 2018 and hung around for awhile, but when I started selling more than I kept and had a hard time getting even half of my investment back on the ones I sold, I was out.

The Vintage Club Gambler’s Choice was introduced for the first time in 2015 with Sailor, the Running Stallion in one of the four original decorator colors. I was a member that year and received a “Copenhagen.” I put that in quotes because, like Smurfy in 1991, something didn’t go quite right when they tried to reproduce the color from the 60s. Unlike Smurfy, though, the “Copenhagen” Sailors didn’t turn vivid Smurf blue - they were teal. Some clever hobbyist coined the color “Tealhagen,” which made me laugh out loud. I stole it and have delightfully used it ever since.

 

Side note: the 2026 Vintage Club release El Dorado (which queues up the Death Cab for Cutie song in my head every time I read the name) looked decidedly teal in his promo photo, enough for me to dub him "Tealhagen 2.0." Happily, he looks much less teal in the in-hand pics I've seen.

I did a three-way trade with a couple friends at BreyerFest that year to end up with a Wedgewood Sailor, who I later sold to my friend Nikki in 2022. She was after the full set of Sailors and he was the last one she needed, and he was going to be much more appreciated there than he was here.

I also received a Wedgewood Bernadette on the Shire mold in 2019, but she arrived pretty damaged from the loose COA in the box. (The resurrection of the “touchability” boxes was a terrible idea.) Breyer offered a replacement, but couldn’t guarantee a Wedgewood, so I declined. I sold the Bernadette at a steep discount in 2022.

 

Now let's get to the ones I still have.

 

 

In 2018, the Gambler’s Choice was #711242 Grace. The Vintage Club often uses at least one new mold in vintage colorways in order to keep memberships up, and that’s what they did here with Grace - the Weather Girl mold from 2011 in the three vintage colors from the Proud Arabian Mare: bay, alabaster, and dapple gray with black points. Since there were 500 memberships that year, that equates to approximately 167 per color. I was happy to receive the alabaster. Her show name is State of Grace.

 

 

Count me as one of those who engaged in chaotic, excited flailing when I saw they were putting out an In-Between Mare for the Vintage Club Gambler’s Choice in 2020 - and that one of them was a Shiny Bay Thing! [For additional reading on the original In-Between Mare and why she’s one of the rarest, most expensive, most collectible vintage Breyers ever, check out this article Breyer wrote about the mold earlier this year.]

I received the sooty palomino with my membership. My friend Beth was also a member that year, but didn’t want her Zahra, so she sold her to me. It was the Shiny Bay Thing, whose show name is Brillante. That just left the glossy rose gray pinto to pick up on the secondary market.

In 2021, the Gambler’s Choice was Nugget on the Brighty mold, offered in one of the four original decorator colors. Brighty fans everywhere started frothing at the mouth. I wasn’t really a fan, but then I saw an ad on Facebook for someone wanting to trade their glossy rose gray Zahra for a gold charm Nugget - and a gold charm Nugget is exactly what I’d received from Breyer. Easiest trade ever! Her show name is Bahira. Of the three, she does the best in the show ring.

 

 

2022 was my last year in the Vintage Club. The Gambler’s Choice, #712430 Poppy & Ollie, was another one like Grace - vintage-ish colors on a newer mold - but instead of using true vintage colors, they branded the colors as a “modern take” on some of the famous colorways from the Family Arabian sets of the 60s. Instead of matte bay, they did a glossy wild bay; instead of alabaster, they did a glossy perlino; and instead of matte chalky palomino, they did a glossy, much more nicely shaded version. There were 250 sets produced in each color.

While I like the original definition of the Vintage Club the best - vintage molds produced in vintage colors that they never wore originally - I’ve understood the necessity of keeping the collector base interested. If the club were to continue, they needed to vary on that theme a bit with modern molds in vintage colors and vintage molds in more modern colors. Every release prior to this one fit into one of those categories, and while I didn’t always like them, I could at least acknowledge that they fit the theme. Poppy and Ollie, though? While overall superbly done, they’re modern molds in a very modern take on vintage colors, and don’t really fit with the theme of the club at all. That was another nail in the coffin for my memberships.

 

 

As I mentioned above, I wasn’t a Vintage Club member in 2016, but I did like the Gambler’s Choice that year - #712619 My Girl, a Cantering Welsh pony released in glossy honey bay, glossy alabaster, or glossy honey palomino (think “that lovely, soft 60s FAM & FAS” honey palomino). Like Zahra, I immediately wanted one in all three colors, but at just 167-ish pieces per color, they’re hard to find and expensive.

At a show last year, I ran across this one for sale for only $50. That’s a third of what she cost to get direct from Breyer and about an eighth of what she usually sells for on the secondary market. Because I am an ethical person, I asked the seller if she knew it was one of the rarer Vintage Club models and if she wanted to change her mind on the price, but she said no - she just needed the shelf space. She even shipped me the COA after the show because she didn’t have it with her at the show hall. I don’t have the original box, but for $50, I’m definitely not complaining!

In addition to the other two colors of My Girl and a bay Grace, the only other Vintage Club Gambler’s Choice models I’d like to have someday are an undamaged Wedgewood and glossy gold charm Bernadette.

Special Effects: Classic Gambler's Choice Models, Part 2

In my March Special Effects post, I covered the Classic-scale Gambler’s Choice models in my collection from 2017, 2018, and 2019. Today, we’ll round out the rest.

 

 

#712344 Nayati was the April 2020 gambler’s choice on the new Rearing Mustang mold, which had debuted the year before. There were three color choices - matte dark bay pinto, glossy dunalino, and glossy chestnut leopard appaloosa. I’m not a fan of loud pintos and the dunalino looked decidedly greenish-yellow in the promo photo, so I only bought my allotted model from my membership and hoped for the leopard appy. Happily, that’s who I got.

The dunalino ended up being a perfectly normal, nice color in-hand, and I’d probably pick one up someday if the price is right.

 

In late April 2021, the gambler’s choice was #712392 Slyder, on the Hollywood Dun It mold. It’s not one of my favorite molds, but the colors were outstanding, and they were all glossed, so it was an easy choice to order one on my membership. The chestnut splash was the one I received.

 

 

I purchased the gray Slyder a couple weeks later from a seller on Model Horse Sales Pages.

 

 

This Slyder has an awesome story.

Every May since 2014, I’ve struggled with an intense bout of seasonal depression. May of 2014 was difficult - a relationship ended, I moved out of my home, and I had to put my cat to sleep, all within the span of two weeks. I expected some feelings to crop up in May of 2015 when the anniversary rolled around, and they definitely did. What I didn’t expect was for that pattern to continue. And continue. And continue. Every May, like clockwork.

I didn’t understand it - after all, I had long since moved on from those losses - and I berated myself for being so dysfunctional when everything outside was getting bright and warm and beautiful again. 

Then I did some reading on it, and some work with my therapist, and I started to understand that this is just a thing my brain does, and that it’s not uncommon for people (and even animals!) to struggle with depression in the spring. That helped normalize it, and now I just have the depression to deal with, rather than the guilt and anger and frustration about being depressed. I work extra hard on balance that month, giving myself a couple activities with friends to look forward to and to avoid isolating, but also being careful not to book activities and social time beyond what I know I’ll have the energy for. I take days off from work when needed. I remind myself that a messy house isn’t the end of the world, and that it’s okay to come back to tasks when I have more energy. I have people in my life that know what I experience in May and are there to help if I ask. I allow myself the minutes/hours where I can do nothing more than sit on the couch and stare into space. I remind myself that this is just something my brain does.

I struggled worse than usual with my annual May depression during the pandemic (no surprise there; even the healthiest, most well-adjusted people I know struggled with their mental health during the pandemic). May of 2020 was the worst, but May of 2021 was no picnic, either, even as we started to creep back toward normal life with the vaccines. I was in charge of a brand new program at work that was not doing well. People were still leery of getting together, so I didn’t have the usual social or hobby activities to look forward to. BreyerFest was confined to online-only again, so there wasn’t a Kentucky trip to look forward to, either.

I had been messaging with my friend Nina pretty regularly since buying her Smurfy Sham the year before, and we were talking about the appaloosa Slyder. She had an extra and offered him to me, but I was really after a Crane (the web special on Emerson) and wanted to wait to see if I got picked or not before buying her Slyder. I didn’t end up getting selected for Crane, and as we were lamenting our relative lack of luck with web special draws, I mentioned my annual May depression. She was supportive and we commiserated a bit about how hard things had been with the pandemic.

Three days later, the appaloosa Slyder showed up at my house, with Nina’s return address on the box.

I messaged her right away. It went like this:

Me: “Nina! What is this that just arrived at my house!!!”
Nina: “I wanted to send you some cheer. You need the set!”
Me: “Oh my gosh, he is gorgeous. I love him. You have to let me pay for him. At least cost plus shipping!”
Nina: “Nope! All is good! He’s a gift! I just thought it would help put a smile on your face this May.”

He sure did.

I say this a lot in this blog, but I truly have met the best people through plastic ponies. Five years later, Nina and I are still messaging each other several times a week, celebrating the good times and hobby successes, and supporting each other through the tough times and hobby disappointments. I am so glad we became friends.

***

I wasn’t too worried about the gambler’s choice when it rolled around in April 2024. I had just found out I needed to replace my car and had cut myself off from hobby purchases in the anticipation of that gigantic real-world expense. I hadn’t needed any of Johann the Lipizzan in 2022 or Santino the Polo Pony in 2023, so I figured I was probably safe.

HA.

 

 

Enter #B-CS-10011 Zayn. 

 

Of all the molds they could have picked in 2024, it had to be the Classic Arabian Stallion. My first Breyer love. My first complete conga.

Of all the colors they could have picked, they had to do three ultra-realistic Arabian colors, including a SHINY BAY THING.

Doomed. Instantly doomed.
 

I bought one on my membership, and then threw all caution to the wind and paid for a membership for Felice and bought a second one on hers. I was fully prepared to purchase a third membership on my gmail account … but then Nina and I were messaging back and forth, and she said she was able to secure my third on one of her extra memberships. We would each end up with three, and probably have to do some trading with other hobbyists to each end up with a full set.

Nina received a fleabit, a rabicano, and two Shiny Bay Things. Both of my Zayns arrived a few days later. In the most bizarre twist of fate ever, I, the lover of all Shiny Bay Things, had to root AGAINST a Shiny Bay thing in the boxes. I just needed them to be a fleabit and a rabicano for us both to have a complete set.

 

 

What are the odds?!

I picked up the extra Shiny Bay Thing from Nina at BreyerFest a couple months later, and the rest is history.

 

The chestnut rabicano is the only one of the three I've shown so far; he took first place in his class and NAN'd his first time on the table. His show name is Like A Charm. 

 

Favorite release of the gambler’s choice Classics by miles and miles.

 

 

I didn't pick up any of the 2025 Gambler's Choice, Rambler, not having been a fan of the mold or the colors. We'll see what they throw at us for 2026.

 

If it's a Classic Arabian Mare, think good thoughts for me.

On a Regular Basis: #683 Colorful Foals Gift Set

Back in February, as I was moving some models around to take blog photos, I experienced a calamity in the form of multiple broken G2 Rearing Arabs, who plummeted to their doom and snapped legs off like twigs as soon as they hit the hardwood floor.

It almost made me give up the blog.

Instead, I’ve been confining myself to writing about the models I already have photographed. That’s actually a decent amount of my collection, so it hasn’t been too much of hinderance so far.

For today’s regular run post, I’m going to talk about three little shits that multiplied themselves literally overnight (it’s not my fault, I swear!) and have turned into an unintended popcorn horse - the leopard appaloosa Classic Andalusian Foal from the #683 Color Foals Gift Set. I also have a couple of the models that have accompanied him in those sets, so they’ll get their turn today also,

 

 

My first acquisition from the #683 sets was this shaded dun Classic Quarter Horse Foal (CQHF), whom I purchased through Model Horse Sales Pages in November 2018. I’d been on the lookout for a nice one for awhile. The CQHF was only part of the #683 set in 2005, and was then replaced with Rojo for the rest of the run after Breyer lost the rights to produce the HR molds. The CQHF isn’t as easy to find, since he was only in the set for part of a year, and he also tends to be outstanding as far as the depth of his color and shading, so the ones that come up for sale aren’t cheap.

I knew this guy wasn’t minty-mint when I bought him, but he arrived in worse shape than the seller’s photos showed. It wasn’t worth the hassle of a refund/return, so I kept him. I would still like to find a showable one someday.

 

 

This is the Rojo from the set, who replaced the CQHF sometime in 2005. Aside from the noticeable difference in the conformation of the sculpts - the CQHF is pretty well put-together, while Rojo is definitely a more artistic sculpt - they also didn’t take nearly the time with the paint jobs on the Rojos, as they tend to be much flatter and more monochrome than the CQHF. Still, I conga all the Mesteno molds, and this Rojo was one I needed for my collection. He and the Classic Andalusian Foal on the left in the photo below were acquired from my friend Heather B in July 2020.

 

And then they multiplied.

I’ve loved the Classic Andalusian Foal since I was a kid, with his cute little cocked head and those giant eyes. Even though I’m typically not an appaloosa person, I’ve always been impressed with the detail on this particular paint job - they tend to have nice body shading and several layers of spots, from the large round ones to tiny flecked ones. It wasn’t a hardship to get one in the set when I bought the Rojo.

Fast forward to 2024, when I went over to Heather B’s house to hang out. Heather was trying to purge some things, so we were sitting on the floor going through her sales stuff, while one of her cats, Wally, who had never met me before that day, shoved my arm out of the way and made himself right at home in my lap. (I love all of Heather’s cats, but Wally is far and away my favorite favorite. He is the best, sweetest little old man cat who just wants to love and be loved.) Heather is a giant Maureen Love sculpt fan and had bought numerous #683 sets in the hunt for a nice, showable CQHF. She had the little leopard Andy Foals already sitting aside and turned to me and said, “Mel, you’re taking those home with you.” I told her I already had one, from the set I’d bought from her several years ago, but she insisted. She also wouldn’t let me pay her for them. They’re the middle and right foals in the picture above.

They're all slightly different as far as the size and concentration of their spots, so how could I possibly part with any of them?

Maybe, when I finally find a showable CQHF from this set, he'll be for sale by himself … but if not, these little Classic Andalusian Foals are in danger of further multiplication.