Before I dive into today's post - thank you so much for all your wonderful comments so far! 💕 I didn't expect this much engagement for something that's essentially just me blathering on about my own stuff, but I'm glad that many of you are having fun walking down memory lane right along with me. I have posts written for all of November and will be sticking as closely as possible to my established posting schedule - Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays around 5:00 p.m.
In the Collectibility Spotlight series, I'll be talking about models in my collection that command extra value because they're more collectible - old, rare, different from the norm, highly desirable, or some combination of all those. Most often, the models featured here will be limited-quantity releases, but some hard-to-find regular runs, pieces of significance to the hobby, and oddities will sneak in from time to time.
Today we'll start looking at my vintage chalky models - those produced during the oil crisis years of the 70s. (Side note 1 - I'll cover my modern chalkies another day.) (Side note 2 - For more info on what makes a model chalky, check out this post by a fellow hobbyist, Kirsten Wellman. Her blog is full of fantastic information about not only Breyer collectibility, but other makes as well. It's worth the follow if you haven't already!)
Vintage chalkies aren't limited to a finite quantity, but they rank higher for collectibility because they're harder to find than their non-chalky counterparts, particularly in good condition. Their paint jobs were notoriously fragile. They're also quite popular within the hobby so they tend to command more value than their non-chalky counterparts, again depending on condition.
I wasn't born til 1979 and didn't start collecting until 1990, so I missed the opportunity to acquire chalkies firsthand, but I've managed to pick up a few here and there. As usual, I'll talk about them in the order I got them.
I love telling the story of how I got my first chalky.
It was my birthday in June 2014. I was less than a month removed from breaking up with my boyfriend, moving out of my home of 5 years, and having to put my first cat, Chloie, to sleep. My mental health was rough. I was sitting at work the day before my birthday, contemplating what I could do the next day to have some fun and enjoy myself, and decided antiquing was the way to go.
I stopped at the usual antique places along Route 19 and then ventured to my favorite Breyer dealer, Breyers By Mail, where I bought a couple regular runs. Crown Antiques in Washington, PA, was the furthest away and thus the last stop. It was one of the few stores remaining open in a rapidly dying mall (and it's gone now, too). I'd seen a Breyer in there from time to time but hadn't had any good finds yet.
That day, a booth on the left side had more Breyers than usual. I started looking through them and zeroed in on this Mustang, #87 Diablo, who I instantly recognized as a chalky. He was priced at $15 and said "As Is" on the tag. I looked over every inch of him like five times to see what the "As Is" was for - had his tail or one or more of his legs been broken and repaired? Was he missing an ear? Did he have a seam split?
Nope. He had a few paint rubs, but was otherwise awesome. He had the USA stamp so I knew he wasn't a painted-over decorator or woodgrain, but I was ecstatic nonetheless.
A store employee came up and asked me if I wanted her to set him aside up front while I continued shopping. I'm pretty sure my gut reaction was to clutch him protectively to my chest. I did eventually allow her to take him, not wanting to seem like a weirdo and definitely not wanting to clue her in that he was worth way more than the $15 on his tag.
When I got up to the register, I was informed the booth had a 25% off sale going on - so I got a chalky buckskin Mustang, on my birthday, for a whopping $11.25. His show name is Beyond Gold and he has a nice stack of NAN cards.
Next up is this chalky palomino Grazing Mare, #143 Buttons, which I acquired at BreyerFest 2017. That was the year I spent almost my entire BreyerFest budget on presales before I set one foot in Kentucky (oops). My friend Stacy was selling this gal and a Belgian together for a set price; my friend Kelly K wanted the Belgian, and I love the Grazing Mare, so we split the cost and were both happy. This gal's show name is Falala.
Man O' War is and always will be my favorite racehorse of all time. There will be a future Sentimental Journey post about him, but for now, here's my chalky version of #47 Man O' War. His glamour shots were taken in the sun room right after I got him; they do him much more justice than the crappy dining room lights.
It was August 2020 and we were neck-deep in the pandemic. Most things were still hardcore shut down. One of my only sources of joy during that time was model horses, and I was hunting down ISOs like no one's business. This guy appeared on eBay and I thought for sure I'd be outbid, given how spectacular he is, but I was the lucky winner. He is in insanely good condition for his age and has some of the nicest shading I've ever seen on a chalky. His show name is Distant Early Warning, after a Rush song I particularly like.
I'm happy to say that while chalkies aren't a focus of my collection, I have enough to require a Part 2 for this post, so that will be forthcoming shortly.
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