Lesney Matchbox time has returned. Today we take a look at Lesney Matchbox 59b, the Ford Fairlane Fire Chief car. This casting entered the range in 1963, remaining until 1966, and is may seem familiar to some readers:
A few Lesney installments ago featured a Ford Fairlane police car - this is the same casting with different livery. This model is based on a 1961 Fairlane - the last year the Fairlane name would be on a full sized platform. This type of car was a workhorse in such fleets, and using the same casting as the basis for two different models was efficient and accurate for Lesney - this strategy would be seen later with other models. As this is an early 60s casting, it has the modern amenities of glazing and an interior. The "Fire Chief" decals and light on the roof have survived the past 60+ years in fine style, and add interest. I suspect scale is maybe around 1:70, maybe a little smaller than the standard of small scale, as the real world vehicle is not small, and this casting was made to fit in a normal box. From all angles, one can this car on scene at calls day and night:
Front and rear views show plentiful detail, with silver mask painted detailing at front and rear being nice touches:
The base contains maker and model data, and this view shows the black plastic wheels:
This model is fortunate enough to live its original Type D2 box, likely indicating production in 1963:
I'm more than happy to have this model in my collection, as I like Fords of this era and there are only so many period models of them out there. Pictured with an old dime for scale:
Image of a similar non-liveried 1:1 from barnfinds.com:
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