Heco Tinplate Models (3 Viewers)

[Louis Badolato]

My very generous friend, Mark Keighley (Saxon Lions) has sent me one of his own painted and converted Saxon Pilot figures with a loyal canine companion.^&cool^&cool^&cool^&cool I will take and post some photos later of it holding a place of honor with one of my favorite WWI German warbirds. I can't thank you enough Mark, that was incredibly generous and kind of you!:smile2: Merry Christmas!

 

[Louis Badolato]

My very generous friend, Mark Keighley (Saxon Lions) has sent me one of his own painted and converted Saxon Pilot figures with a loyal canine companion.^&cool^&cool^&cool^&cool I will take and post some photos later of it holding a place of honor with one of my favorite WWI German warbirds. I can't thank you enough Mark, that was incredibly generous and kind of you!:smile2: Merry Christmas!

Mark informs that figure is supposed to be Johannes Werner Jastafuhrer of Jasta 14 who he believed was a Saxon until information proved him to be a Hessian. Here are some photos of the figure with one of my favorite Heco Tinplate German aircraft, and two figures painted by the great John Firth:

 

[Louis Badolato]

I managed to get a Heco Naval Captain and Sailors, probably from one of the Heco WWI Gunboats (alas, not available). Here are some photos of the Heco Naval Captain and Sailors on a Heco Gun Emplacement, and the Heco WWII British Soldiers on a Heco Radar Station Diorama:

 

[Louis Badolato]

I just made a deal for about 15 Heco figures, including several WWII Tommy figures I had seen in the catalogue photos but never in person. I will post photos upon their arrival.

 

[Louis Badolato]

I just made a deal for about 15 Heco figures, including several WWII Tommy figures I had seen in the catalogue photos but never in person. I will post photos upon their arrival.

Here they are. The Tommy carrying the supplies is depicted in a catalogue photo with one of the anti-aircraft guns. I have several of the figure of the mechanic leaning over, but I have never seen one painted as an RAF Mechanic before. The RNAS pilot figure is also new to me. There are also a couple of different naval figure, one of which I haven't seen before.

 

[Louis Badolato]

Here are some Shots of my new Heco Tommy Figures alongside a Heco 8 Inch Howitzer, Heco Quick Fire Anti-Aircraft Gun, and Heco Austin, Crossley and Rolls Royce Armored Car:

 

[Louis Badolato]

Here are some shots of my new Heco Royal Navy Figures on a Gun Emplacement (note the sailor with the white sweater with the tiny tinplate tales on his hat) and my new Heco RAF Mechanic (in the bed of the general purpose truck, along with several other Heco RAF and RFC figures and another Heco RAF Truck):

 

[Louis Badolato]

Some photos of my rearranged Heco Display in the Aerodrome Room:

 

[jazzeum]

Looks good Louis.

 

[Louis Badolato]

Looks good Louis.

Thanks Brad! Hopefully you will take some better photos of it at the Symposium next weekend.

 

[Louis Badolato]

Thanks Brad! Hopefully you will take some better photos of it at the Symposium next weekend.

Thanks to a heads up from good friend Marc Keighley I bought a very special Heco Sopwith Camal Comic. As Marc informed me:

“comics were not magazines featuring Batman or Superman but home based British night fighters produced to defend British towns from German bombing raids first the Zeppelin Airships and then the Gotha and Zeppelin (giant four engined) night bombers.

The particular features of a Comic were Pilot head rest (like that on the Heco Albatros and no nose machine guns only wing mounted ones as the idea was to attack from underneath the bomber that was lit up by search lights on the ground. They also had brighter colour schemes as they were home based - hence the nose.”

 

[Louis Badolato]

Additionally, there are several other nicely detailed late production Heco aircraft on eBay, including 3 more Camels, an SE5a and an Albatros. The all have $99 starting bids and $199 buy it nows. I am not the seller, and will only bid if no one else does, so go get them!

 

[Louis Badolato]

Thanks to a heads up from good friend Marc Keighley I bought a very special Heco Sopwith Camal Comic. As Marc informed me:

“comics were not magazines featuring Batman or Superman but home based British night fighters produced to defend British towns from German bombing raids first the Zeppelin Airships and then the Gotha and Zeppelin (giant four engined) night bombers.

The particular features of a Comic were Pilot head rest (like that on the Heco Albatros and no nose machine guns only wing mounted ones as the idea was to attack from underneath the bomber that was lit up by search lights on the ground. They also had brighter colour schemes as they were home based - hence the nose.”

Here are some photos:

 

[Louis Badolato]

Al found this cool Heco flyer from 1996/97 at the West Coaster. ^&cool^&cool The prices make your head spin!{sm2}

 

[lancer]

Al found this cool Heco flyer from 1996/97 at the West Coaster. ^&cool^&cool The prices make your head spin!{sm2}

Very interesting, with very high prices for the time period. I also note that this dealer worked out of Rockville, Md., about 10 minutes down the road from me in Germantown. Not a dealer I was familiar with. -- Al

 

[Louis Badolato]

Very interesting, with very high prices for the time period. I also note that this dealer worked out of Rockville, Md., about 10 minutes down the road from me in Germantown. Not a dealer I was familiar with. -- Al

When Heco was in "regular production," (and I use that phrase generously), it was very expensive, even more expensive that the King & Country wood, metal and resin aircraft and vehicles of the same timeframe. You might order 5 Heco items from the East Coast distributer, Classic Toys in NYC (sadly, like most brick and mortar toy soldier shops long gone), and six months to a year later, 1 or 2 might arrive. Whenever Gideon at Classic Toys got a shipment, just about all of it was spoken for, and whatever was left sold in a day or two, despite the high prices. I didn't start collecting until I found Heco items in the secondary market, often at a fraction or retail. Now the prices on Heco items, when you can find them, range from well below retail for some of the more common planes, to way above retail for the rarer pieces. But the original retail prices still make me cringe . . . {sm2}

 

[saxon lions]

Two new HECO planes for the Saxon Aces Collection A

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to win two new HECO models (Nieuport 17 and Sopwith Triplane) on Ebay from the same seller as Louis got his Camel comic although unfortunately I lost out on a nice Albatros DV.



The two planes have now been added to my Saxon Aces Collection along with models of the relevant aces.

Kurt Wüsthoff Jasta 4 with Sopwith Triplane Sep 17 - Wingnut Wings think he probably flew the plane but not in action

 

[saxon lions]

Two new HECO planes for the Saxon Aces Collection B

The Nieuport 17 was converted into a Siemens Schuckert copy of the plane the SSW DI which the Jasta 5 Saxon ace Kurt Schneider flew in April 17 and thought highly of although by the time it was issued to the Jastas it was out powered and gunned by the new Abatros fighters. Schneider was lucky as at the beginning of May the plane developed an engine fault killing his Jastafuhrer just after take off.



The eagle eyed among you probably spotted that Schneider and the Jasta 5 mascot Hans appeared in a previous post and as each ace can only have one plane in the collection the Albatros DIII has been reallocated and painted in the conjectural
markings of Fritz Krebs of Jasta 6 c. Jul 17.

 

[egonzinc]

Great to find these here. I bought a couple of these models in the late 1990s. I wanted to order some more, but at the time they stopped being produced. Saw some in eBay that guve me an idea if current value. Decisions, decisions...

 

[Louis Badolato]

Mark,

Great work on the conversion!^&cool^&cool^&cool^&cool