On a Regular Basis: Traditional Black Beauty

I just realized I can respond to comments people have left (still getting used to how all this works!), so if you're a regular commenter and received a glut of notifications recently for my replies, my apologies!

 

I also noticed that at some point, my font size increased on my posts, so I went back to fix all the old posts to be consistent (since I was replying to comments anyway). I'm positive that's not something that would bother anyone but me, but it was making me twitch. My "I can't possibly be old enough to need bifocals" eyes liked the bigger font, so we're sticking with that.

 

Since I featured Dream Weaver in a post earlier this week, I thought I’d share the rest of my traditional Black Beauty models for today’s On a Regular Basis post, featuring regular runs. (Well, mostly.)

 

 

Many of the models I accumulated prior to rejoining the hobby in 2010 are a big question mark when it comes to when and how I acquired them. I’ve pieced together what I can from old photos and videos, but that still leaves around 300 or so that I’ll probably never be able to figure out. This guy, #722 Sir Wrangler, is one of the mysteries. He was a regular run from 1998-1999, so I would have picked him up sometime during college.

A few years ago, during a shelf space crisis, I packed Sir Wrangler into a bin to be sold at BreyerFest. Once I got to Kentucky, I pulled him out of the bin, unwrapped him, looked at him on the shelf, and started to have regrets about bringing him, and felt pretty bad about selling things in general. My roomie Beth told me to look at all of my sales models and repack all the ones that made me twinge. He was the first one that I packed back up; three or four others joined him in the bin. That was the year that I declared that no models I’d acquired prior to 2010 would ever leave my collection unless I was under financial duress. I had too many regrets for the ones I’d already parted with, and didn’t want to feel that again.

 

 

 

This guy, #802 Fade to Grey, a regular run from 1989-1990, appeared on every single birthday and Christmas wish list of mine for years and years and years. Like Dream Weaver, I loved him as soon as I saw him in the 1990 catalog. He was discontinued that year, though, so he wasn't in stock at any local places for my parents to buy him.

 

While I didn't manage to acquire one during my childhood, I discovered the magic of Model Horse Sales Pages shortly after jumping back into the hobby in 2010. In April 2011, a seller posted this Fade to Grey for a super cheap price. When I unpacked him, I was immediately worried that he was an oozy; he was so SHINY and his entire production run happened right smack in the middle of the bad plastic years (1987-1992). But a semigloss finish is normal for this guy, and he hasn’t shown any sign of trouble (knock on wood).

Remember the "Well, mostly" disclaimer above? That's for this guy, #430054 Sport Horse, and whether he's a regular run or not is debatable.

Arguments for a special run:
    •    He’s got a six-digit issue number, #430054, which are usually limited to special runs
    •    He’s not in the dealer or regular catalogs, which has traditionally been how regular runs           are defined
    •    He’s only available to order on the website and is not sold in stores

Arguments for a regular run:
    •    He’s been available to everyone via the Breyer website since 2022 and is still in stock as          of today
    •    Regular runs have high quantities, multi-year production, and broad availability
    •    There are other web-exclusive models in the catalogs, like the 75th anniversary Proud             Arabian Family set, so presence or absence from the catalog isn’t a surefire way to                 determine RR vs. SR

Given that I put him in a regular run post, it’s pretty clear how I feel about him.

I ordered him and a couple others from the Breeds Collection series in February 2022, shortly after they were released. I think this is the prettiest color they’ve ever put on Black Beauty.

Though the model is a long one and tends to tip over easily, there are a few Black Beauty models on my want list: the Talisman/Fairbanks special run (he was issued with both names), the regular run Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, and the TSC special run Lakota.