Never before has there been a guide with so much information!

Dear Fellow Matchbox Toy Collector,

I am very proud to offer you this incredible book that is a result of over 40 years of collecting and researching Matchbox Toys. These fascinating toys have been enjoyed worldwide by millions of children and adults for over 50 years. This book covers the first and perhaps most important 16 years of production. It is an exhaustive identification guide depicting extensive detail and variations of every model produced in the “Regular Wheels” series, from the start in 1953 until superseded by ‘Superfast” wheels in 1970.

The Definitive Guide to Matchbox Toys 1-75 Series 1953 - 1969

The guide consists of over 190 pages crammed full of information and colour photographs. There are colour photographs of all of the 235 models produced from 1953 to 1969. It is ideal if you are a beginner as it shows all the models to look out for. If you are a more advanced collector, it shows 2353 variations (over 400 more than has ever been published before), including castings, wheels, axles, decals and colours. It even shows all of the box styles made for each model along with a photograph of each one.

The research and time that has gone into this incredible guide is mind blowing.

This is the future bible for Matchbox Toy Collectors!

"The Definitive Guide to Matchbox Toys 1-75 series 1953 – 1969" is the most comprehensive identification guide ever produced.

About the Author

My name is John Houghton. I started collecting Matchbox Toys seriously in 1966 after my family went on a holiday to Australia from New Zealand.

At that particular time, New Zealand had very strict import rules and this made Matchbox Toys an extremely scarce commodity. Whenever a shipment arrived, the stores would limit customers to one, or maybe two models per purchase. If you were not in the queue at least an hour before the shop opened, you missed out!

When on holiday in Australia we found that every toy shop and department store in Sydney and Melbourne had Matchbox Toys lining the shelves! It was like heaven!!

In Melbourne we visited the Queen Victoria Markets and found a stall selling new Matchbox Toys that had not been available for 4-5 years! Yes, they even had old stock available! Dad bought me the #33 Metallic Mauve and Orange Ford Zodiac Mark 2 for 30 cents! That was the start of a fantastic life long hobby collecting model cars with the emphasis on Matchbox Toys and to a lesser extent Dinky and Corgi Toys.

My collection grew at an incredible rate. Within 3 years I had over 3000 model cars! I was advertising in the local newspapers every weekend buying Matchbox Toys to get the older ones I needed to complete my collection. To finance my collection, I would sell off the duplicate models I didn't need. I was quite the entrepreneur for a 12 year old! I discovered there were colour variations for different models, so I had to have them. I started communicating with other collectors both in New Zealand and overseas and discovered there were casting and other variations, including box variations, for each model. It was endless, but I had to have one of each! So began my research and the hunt for each and every model.

This book is the Grande Finale! It is the result of all of my research and collecting of Matchbox Toys made from 1953 to 1969 over the past 40 years.

What's in "The Definitive Guide to Matchbox Toys 1-75 Series 1953 – 1969"?

Included in the guide:

•  A staggering 2353 variations of the 235 models listed

•  1235 colour photographs of model and variations

•  Detailed information as to size and when each model was manufactured

•  Details of all casting variations

•  Paint and colour variations for bodies, accessories and bases

•  Wheel styles, colours and axle variations

•  Decal and advertising variations

•  Details of different wheel types used on models and in depth details as to when the different types were used

•  Details of the axle styles used on the models with information as to when the different types were used.

•  Details of boxes and other packaging with information as to when the different packaging was used

•  Over 190 information-packed pages

Photographs of the models Photographs of variations Easy to read format of variation listings Notes on the model and variations Box styles for the model with photographs

Every collector must have this detailed and informative guide whether you are a beginner or an experienced collector.

What others have to say about "The Definitive Guide to Matchbox Toys 1-75 series 1953-1969"

Why an e-book

E-books are the way of the future, especially with a guide as comprehensive as this. It is the most logical and cost effective way of producing such a large and ever changing information guide like this. Electronic media allows for easy updating when new variations come to light. It allows for the addition of new photographs for those variations, so you as a collector know what to look for. It can be stored on your computer or you can choose to print a copy, the option is your! It comes in the convenient PDF format. If you don't have Adobe Reader, you can download it for free by clicking the Adobe button on the download page.

Improvements over Previous Guides and Catalogues.

Over the last 40 years there have been numerous attempts at producing a comprehensive catalogue.

Listed below are the main ones showing the comparisons.

1976
AIM Matchbox toys 1-75 Series Bible written by Harold Colpitts
580 illustrations
Nearly 1200 variations
86 pages

1985
Matchbox 1-75 Series 1953-1969 Collectors Catalogue written by Michael Stannard
Over 800 illustrations
370 black and white photographs
14 colour plates showing the different models.
1940 variations
100 pages

2007
"The Definitive Guide to Matchbox Toys 1-75 Series 1953-1969" written by John Houghton
1235 colour photographs
2353 different variations
190 information packed pages

This is the new bible for
Matchbox Toys made from
1953 -1970!

This book is in Adobe PDF format and is available for immediate download upon receipt of payment

SPECIAL OFFER FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY US$49.95 immediate download NOTE: If you are not automatically redirected to the download page after your payment has been processed, just hit the "Return to Merchant" button