Lesney 1963 No 46 Pickfords Removal Van with Plastic Rear Roller Door in Tact Scale 1:64  

THIS 1960S LESNEY NO 46 PICKFORDS REMOVAL VAN IS A POPULAR MODEL WITH COLLECTORS. THE LESNEY PICKFORDS REMOVAL VAN WAS PRODUCED BETWEEN 1961 AND 1968.
 
THE LESNEY MATCHBOX NO. 46 PICKFORDS REMOVAL VAN (19611968) IS A VINTAGE DIE-CAST, 2.5-INCH MODEL OF A GUY VIXEN 4-TON LORRY. INITIALLY RELEASED IN DARK BLUE (1961), IT SWITCHED TO GREEN IN 1963. COMMON FEATURES INCLUDE A CREAM REAR ROLLER DOOR, SIDE DECALS, AND GREY/SILVER PLASTIC WHEELS. 
 
SIDE DECALS READ "PICKFORDS REMOVERS & STORERS BRANCHES IN ALL LARGE TOWNS". GREY OR SILVER PLASTIC WHEELS ON EARLY MODELS; LATER, BLACK PLASTIC WHEELS. CREAM-COLORED REAR ROLLER SHUTTER DOOR WHICH IS IN TACT ON OUR MODEL.
 
The toy represents the full-size Guy Vixen 4-ton removalists van made in England by Guy Motors Ltd of Wolverhampton, West Midlands. The firm was established by Sydney S. Guy in 1914 and produced a 30-cwt truck with a pressed-steel frame which was much lighter than the usual rolled-steel frames. The company came under government control during the First World War and continued to produce trucks as well as aircraft engines, gearboxes and depth charge fuses.
 
The 1930s saw the company heavily involved in the production of military vehicles, but after World War II they returned to civilian production. Taken over by Jaguar in 1961, the company failed to survive the later problems of Leyland and the factory was closed in 1982 resulting in serious local unemployment.
 
THESE EARLY LESNEY MODELS ARE HIGHLY SOUGHT AFTER BY VINTAGE TOY COLLECTORS AND DUE TO ITS POPULARITY, THIS MODEL IS A COMMON SUBJECT FOR RESTORATION AND REPAINTING PROJECTS. PRICES RANGE IN THE HUNDREDS OF US DOLLARS DEPENDING ON CONDITION.
 
SIZE 60MM DEEP OR LONG 30MM HIGH 20MM WIDE SCALE 1:64

CONDITION: PAINT SCRAPES AND USED WEAR. ALL 4 TYRES IN TACT. DECALS STILL READIBLE. PLASTIC REAR ROLLER DOOR IN TACT. GOOD CONDITION OVERALL.
 
LESNEY:
Lesney Products, founded in 1947 by Leslie Smith and Rodney Smith, became famous for producing Matchbox die-cast cars in 1953, designed to fit inside miniature matchboxes.
LESNEY MOKO MINIATURES (OFTEN BRANDED AS "MOKO LESNEY") REPRESENT THE EARLIEST, FOUNDATIONAL YEARS OF THE MATCHBOX BRAND, WHILE THE "REGULAR SERIES" (OR 1-75 SERIES) REFERS TO THE BROADER, LONG-RUNNING MATCHBOX LINE THAT FOLLOWED. The "Moko" branding signifies the partnership with distributor Moses Kohnstam (MoKo) before Lesney took over full marketing in 1959. Lesney Matchbox models distributed by Moko (often marked "A Moko Lesney Product" on the box) began in 1953 with the first few models, ultimately expanding to a 75-model range by 1960. THE FIRST FOUR MODELS RELEASED WERE THE NO. 1 DIESEL ROAD ROLLER, NO. 2 DUMPER, NO. 3 CEMENT MIXER, AND NO. 4 MASSEY HARRIS TRACTOR.
THE PRIMARY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EARLY MOKO LESNEY MINIATURES (19531959) AND LATER REGULAR WHEELS SERIES (1960S1969) THAT FOLLOWED LIES IN THEIR SIZE. Early miniature models were typically 5 cm long, made entirely of metal, and often lacked windows or plastic interiors. Regular Wheels Models (1960-1969) grew to around 7 cm in length, featuring plastic windows, interiors, and improved wheels.
Both series settled on a No 1-75 model limit in their series. When a new model was introduced, an older one was dropped, maintaining a 1-75 lineup. While the series was capped at 75 at any one time, over 100 different models were released in total within the 1-75 Regular Wheels series over its full 19531969 run. 
Lesney expanded to include MODELS OF YESTERYEAR (Introduced in 1956, featuring vintage vehicles).
In 1969, the "Regular Wheels" (RW) series was phased out for "SUPERFAST" WHEELS to compete with Hot Wheels. 
Financial issues led to bankruptcy in 1982 and the Machbox brand was taken over by Universal Internationnal and while the brand is French, the manufacturing of these diecast products commonly takes place in China. 
Early models especially the miniatures which were limited to 75, can be highly valuable and collectable.
 
PLEASE ALSO SEE MY OTHER ITEMS LISTED. I HAVE VARIOUS CIRCA 1950s 1970s DIE CAST CARS AND TRUCKS FROM LESNEY, DINKY, CORGI, HUSKY AND OTHER COMPANIES ON AUCTION THIS WEEK. YOU ARE WELCOME TO COMBINE. SOME MODELS ARE RARE AND SELDOM COME UP FOR SALE.
 
YOU CAN SIMPLY CLICK ON MY NAME OR CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW. OR COPY THE URL UNDERNEATH AND PASTE INTO GOOGLE AND IT WILL TAKE YOU DIRECTLY TO ALL MY LISTINGS THIS WEEK. NOTE ALL MY AUCTIONS END AT 22H30.
https://www.bidorbuy.co.za/seller/3685641/ErnRex1545