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.