Posted 9 years ago
Otaco4me
(175 items)
Four inch long bendable rubber police motorcycle made by Reliable Toy Company, Toronto, Canada. Not sure of age but thinking mid 1950's through 1960's. Have seen this model in various colour combinations. Nothing too special, but has survived in nice condition and is a part of Canadian toy history, so it has joined my ever expanding collection. I am sure I had one as a child, as many other Canadian kids would have had also.
That's cool. Much like the Auburn Rubber motorcycle.
Thanks AzTom. Bought it on ebay. It had no bids. Was a starting price of 99 cents. Right above it in the listings was another from a less realistic seller wanting 64 dollars. I checked out the Auburn as I thought they looked the same. A couple of differences ,but pretty close. I did end up having to shell out 4 dollars at the end for it. Someone tried to snipe it at the last few minutes. Too bad for them, as I was at the computer at the time. lol. Was listed within 20 minutes of me, so just drove on over and saved postage. Need to give it clean up, as I see in the close ups it has some years of dirt.
I have the green Auburn version of this with red tires, love it!
Thanks for the nice comments Signaholic and Nicefice. I noticed Auburn put a little more detail in their version, like a tail light. Seems with toy collecting, buying one item opens up a can of variation worms that leads to more purchasing. As with many Canadian toys, they seem to be a copy, or license agreement casting that is very similar, sometimes exact. So much information to find and studying to do for the Canadian toys made during the tariff years, and the way the US and Britain got around these obstacles. I know there was a Tri-ang factory in Canada to produce them for the Canadian market, with special Canadian only specifications. I will never bored with collecting and research.
Very true, and while there is no chain, like on the Auburn, or no plate on the back of the Reliable, there is still a lot to like about this version of the rubber motorcycle toy. I actually like the simpler variation too.
But look how they added on the Reliable, actual spokes cut into the wheels!
Thank you for the comments Signaholic. This bike does have a certain charm. Probably was some kids pride and joy at one time. I will give it a decent cleaning and show it some respect it deserves for holding together all these years.