[chrisguyw]

For Christmas 1962, my dad bought me a VIP Slotcar set that he purchased at the London (UK) toy show.
He and my uncle set it up on a table in our basement, and when I discovered it I was the happiest kid in the world.

There is actually a story attached to this, which I should share......Up until I went into the basement, that Christmas was not going very well at all for a 6 yr old kid,...I was getting socks, Soap on a rope (remember that), facecloths, and other really boring stuff, and while I had to politely thank my parents/aunts/uncles, I was becoming increasingly more depressed, as, there did not appear to be a toy in sight...not even a bag of "Green army men". After the unwrapping was over, my father worsened my mood by asking/telling me to go to the basement to retrieve some more wood from the wood box, so the adults could enjoy a big fire and sip their eggnog. I flipped the light switch, saw the track, and almost peed myself with delight !!

Anyway, I still have those cars (track is long gone), and as it is the season to remember Christmas' past, I though I would post a few pics. of those "Christmas" cars

Cheers
Chris Walker

PS hope you all have some good Xmas memories.

My original cars,......all I have done over the last 55 years is to clean them, and, replace a few parts with original bits.........they still run great, not the fastest, but, very smooth and quiet.

Image resized to 87% of its original size [1024 x 768]


Image resized to 87% of its original size [1024 x 768]


The following pics. were stolen off "Images" to show the track/set/chassis......they are unfortunately a bit small.

The set as it came....



The Smooth metal track....much nicer looking than black plastic......looks like this one has had a few sections "copper taped"



And an underside, showing the 5 pole motor, independant front wheels, and "Ackerman" steering.....really advanced cars for the time.

[Anthony B]

Awww Chris!! Awesome

My memory is fading - I think I was 9 - so '65 when I woke up on Christmas morning having never seen 'slot cars', to find the Scalextric GP 33 set under the tree.Had a Yellow lotus 21 and a Red Ferrari sharknose . And I think the Bentley and Alfa Romeo vintage cars were extras. My birthdays and Christmases thereafter became a procession of Scalextric gifts - wanted nothing else.

I am sure it is why I am stuck in the past for my Slot car passion today. Even the modern Cars I buy are cars from the 50's-70's period. I did at one stage collect Le Mans cars, after my visits to the 1:1 race in 2001/2/3. But in then end stopped and eventually sold them off.

I too do not have the original sets and sadly the cars, but in recent years have re-purchased the set off the dreaded 'bay.

[CMOTD]

My parents were not well off so, in spite of frantic letters to Santa, I never got a Scalextric set when I was a child. Dinky Toys GP cars were about as near as I ever got.

Christmas 1958 I received these:
       
Wish I still had them as the transporter would fetch a bob or two these days. It is a point worth noting that old toys are only worth money because children destroy most of  them so pristine survivors are not common. If you had kept all your toys mint in box and never played with them you could probably retire on the proceeds at some later date. The downside of this is that childhood would have been a lot less fun and, if everybody did it, there would be massive oversupply in the collectors' market and they would be worth the best part of bugger all.

But I digress, back to Scalextric, soon after Christmas I was invited to tea at a school friend's house. Now his parents were seriously well off and he had received one of the very early sets - #MM1 with rubber track, two Maserati 250Fs, cardboard battery house and simple push button control. In all honesty it was a bit rubbish as you rarely took your finger off the push button in time to stop the car for the corners. It was full power or nothing so it was a miracle if you ever completed a lap. We played with it for a while till the batteries went flat and then switched to his equally brand new Hornby Dublo train layout for the rest of the evening, I told you his parents were rich!

It was another 20 years before I acquired my own set and set off down the road to ruin that is slot car obsession but I suppose that Christmas visit must have planted the seed for later germination. Funnily enough I never had any desire to own one of those original sets from 1958!