China Toy Recall (1 Viewer)

jazzeum

jazzeum

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In today's New York Times, there were a couple of articles detailing how all of the recent major toy recalls have related to toys manufactured in China. One of the recalls included RC2 (the former owner of Britains), whose Thomas the Tank trains line has been recalled because lead paint was used.

We all know that toy soldiers are made of lead or pewter (please correct if I'm wrong) but since many collectors have small children, what is the composition of the paint on the toy soldiers we collect?

Since this is a subject of some concern, I would like to have all the manufacturers weigh in on this issue, from King and Country, Britains, Honor Bound, John Jenkins (Andrew, please ask), New Model Army, Figarti, East of India, etc.

A related question is if non-lead based paint is used and a soldier is made of lead, can the lead nevertheless still migrate?
 
Carlos,

I'll be very interested in what they have to say.
 
Brad

the figures are not 100% lead. they are mixture of soft metals (K&C will have the facts)
Also the paints used are Acrylic so water based.
The Varnish (matt or gloss) then used is also not harmful

I would suggest though that nobody goes out and feeds their dog or even their child K&C figures! i would not like to clear up the mess behind them

Andy or another of the K&C crew can fill in the details better than me.

regards

Tony
 
Tony,

That's good to hear. I wonder what the composition of the older K & C figures is, however.
 
Brad

Very similar i beleive.......not 100% on this one dont hold me to it guvnor!

As i have had a discussion with Andy about Lead rott and K&C wont get it as there is not enough lead in the figures to do so, Old and new

Tony
 
I recently read a link on one of the Glossy Figures threads about "lead disease" or "lead rot" and it said none of the modern (post 1960) figures suffer from this because they are not made from lead, but rather an alloy. The lead paint issue, however, raises an entirely different question which I would like to see answered by the manufacturers.
 
First time anybody called me "Governor." I'm honored :cool:
 
I discussed lead content with Richard Walker a while back and he said there is no lead in the paint used on W. Britain figures but he still doesn't recommend letting your kids chew on them;). I assume that is an industry standard though.

Beau Geste and Honour Bound figures contain lead but the paint they use doesn't (I made sure to ask about this when I painted in their studio last year) so again don't be chewing through the crunchy outer layer to get to the chewy middle.
 
Hi Guys,

The older Britains figures 1960 and back are more than likely to be painted in lead based paints. Modern figures should not but that will depend on where they were produced. Its a good question and I am sure that we will here a lot on this from the other makers out there. Still its probably best not to feed them to the kids.

All the best

Dave
 
Oh come on you guys. This is just another example of Political Correctness run wild. :mad:

Why can't we have the "good olde days" of lead based gasolne (so we can breath lead vapors whenever we wanted to), asbestoes, lead based paint (the colors are bolder with lead), lead water pipes (they are easier to bend and soder), used oil being spread on gravel roads in the summer to keep down the dust (I want my furniture clean), lawn darts with steel tips (they stick in the ground better), guns and ammo being sold to anyone that has the cash (remember the constitution), cars without seat belts or air bags (personal responsibility for our own safety), and on and on and on. Oh ya, that's right, all that stuff is really bad for you. I forgot again:rolleyes:

Yes, let's hear from some of the makers on this issue before I have to have some of my guys and vehicles recalled cause some kid eats a toy soldier. And you know darn well that some kid somewhere is putting a toy soldier in their mouth even as you read this. Young kids (especially "crumb crushers") will put anything and everything in their mouth. We have to be responsible for their well being and this is certainly an issue dispite my attempt at humor.
 
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I am not surprised they had to withdraw these products as these toys you mention are designed for young children to play with. Why is it that young children have a habit of once they get hold of something they immediately put it in their little mouths!:confused:

Our products are not toys as such and bear a warning label on each box stating this and also that they are unsuitable for young persons under the age of 12. The worry here is not so much lead poisoning but the fact that some of our figures have incredibly sharp pieces which could do some nasty damage in the wrong hands.

Having said that East of India does not use lead based paints in production. We use acrylics which are water based and lead free.
 
I should add that when I was 6 I used to play with my fathers lead soldiers. They were solid lead in those days and believe me these figures had virtually no paint on them at all.

Wow did these figures taste good!:eek:

Well I’m still around today and my doctor tests me for lead rot every year!:)
 
When I was a kid every spring I would help my grandfather pour lead fishing sinkers in the basement of the house on the stove in the cellar.:eek: My job was to file off any extra flashing from the mould after the sinkers had cooled off. In those days they didn,t know any better.
I can honestly say I don,t think it had munch effect on me!!!
Beaker.gif
 
fishead19690 said:
When I was a kid every spring I would help my grandfather pour lead fishing sinkers in the basement of the house on the stove in the cellar.:eek: My job was to file off any extra flashing from the mould after the sinkers had cooled off. In those days they didn,t know any better.
I can honestly say I don,t think it had munch effect on me!!!
View attachment 7713
Click to expand...

Nice shot of beaker!
 
You have to watch some of those manufacturers like a hawk. They have been practising sneaky underhanded production for awhile and more will be revealed. I try to avoid buying their products because of just this kind of garbage. Let us see more american made stuff please!
 
fishead19690 said:
When I was a kid every spring I would help my grandfather pour lead fishing sinkers in the basement of the house on the stove in the cellar.:eek: My job was to file off any extra flashing from the mould after the sinkers had cooled off. In those days they didn,t know any better.
I can honestly say I don,t think it had munch effect on me!!!
View attachment 7713
Click to expand...

Oh man Tim,

That guy kind of hurts my eyes, LOL.

Carlos
 
fishead19690 said:
When I was a kid every spring I would help my grandfather pour lead fishing sinkers in the basement of the house on the stove in the cellar.:eek: My job was to file off any extra flashing from the mould after the sinkers had cooled off. In those days they didn,t know any better.
I can honestly say I don,t think it had munch effect on me!!!
View attachment 7713
Click to expand...

Tim, that must be were the whole bastard file thing started. Nice pic, Mike:D
 
This is a very interesting read. I'm glad the major manufacturers don't use harmful paint. I'm not too fond of lead in the alloy of the soldier itself either (thank you Britains for using lead-free alloys).
But that's more of a concern with me for potential leadrot.
However, I just can't find anything conclusive information on that. Lot's of different views.

Anyway, news of the paint is good.
 
Lead Rot
I published a very comprehensive article on lead rot some years ago in TSMF - dont remeber which issue however you may care to ask them
 
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