Auckland Hobbies Fair 2024 Report

Auckland, NZ,  has just had its first Hobbies Fair for 2024, and I got some really nice models. Not much in the way of die-casts this time, but some really fabulous kits.

Unusually, there were some space kits - Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, Star Wars. The Gerry Anderson kits looked to be expensive, from over a hundred dollars, up to $250.

There was even a Lincoln Thunderbird 1 empty box for $20 on one table. It went.

I was able to find both the carded and boxed versions of the Matchbox Indiana Jones car. I missed out on those in the shops, so I snapped them both up, although they were expensive for such recent models.

A couple of model trucks, and a 1970s Corgi Juniors four-car garage. Plus a book on Plastic Toy Cars of the 1950s and 1960s, and one of the small Profile booklets on Merlin-engined Seafires.

A number of aircraft kits, and one civilian truck. Some of the planes were Made in New Zealand by various companies, or had some other NZ connection.

The Lincoln International DC-3 kit was a good find, and is my first Lincoln kit (other than an Air New Zealand DC-8 which might have been a Lincoln model). Made in Hong Kong on the box top, and Made in the British Empire on the side of the box.

The old Airfix Spitfire Mk.IX was a bagged kit, although not in its original bag. But the paper header was still with it.

At a table of mostly Hot Wheels and various toys, I noticed two boxes sitting on the window sill behind the table. Aurora Prehistoric Scenes boxes, which I have never seen in the flesh before.

They were the Sabre Tooth Tiger (which has just been re-issued by Atlantis) and the Cro-Magnon Man. Both had been assembled, and partly painted, but there seemed to be extra parts in the boxes.

I took a chance and got them. Both boxes are Canadian rather than US, and are dated 1971.

There were four bases, and parts for the Saber Tooth and three prehistoric humans. No instructions.

I eventually found, and printed out, the instruction sheets, so I could check the parts. All four kits are nearly complete, and all are buildable.

These are snap-together kits, and none of the models have been cemented together. All have a full set of alternative limbs, so you can vary the poses.

The Tiger is moulded in orange plastic, and the humans in a flesh tone. That would reduce the painting needed.

Cro-Magnon Man - just missing his spear, and name plate for the base.

Cro-Magnon Woman - missing the bizarre two-headed snake that is menacing her, and the name plate.

Neanderthal Man - Missing a stone knife, a two-piece length of fallen log, and a rabbit and a duck tied together which was intended to go over his shoulder, and the name plate.

Saber Tooth Tiger - complete except for the name plate.

My last purchase of the day was hidden at the bottom of a large plastic bin, under a table. A 1960s Renwal Visible Horse kit. See the top of the post for pics.

This seems complete except for the stand, and the Handbook on horse anatomy. The box is 18 inches by 17 inches, and three inches deep.

The horse stands 14 inches high. The box top painting is full-size for the model.

The box sides are in poor shape, and held together with brown parcel tape, but the box top is still in good condition. This is a kit I truly thought I would never see, it is just not the sort of thing that turns up in NZ.

I also got a boxed game called Creepy Critters, which I always wanted, but never had. Made by Lincoln Industries.

You have to assemble an alien looking creature, after rolling a die to obtain the different parts. It was originally made in the US, where it was called Cootie.

It was an amazing day, and I almost totally emptied my wallet. I will write up some of these items in more detail later, but for now, here

 is a look at my treasures.

Paul Adams from New Zealand