Dinky all white Eagle
I have been directed to this group as I have an all white Eagle on Ebay and many people have stated it is a fake.
I state my case for this item here
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7000949604&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT
In 1975/76 I bought a dinky Eagle from my local toy shop, it was the transporter and looked like the one on TV. It had red engines and silver rocket ends. In about 1990 I was offered £200 for my old toy loose. a couple of years later I bought this one from Christies, it was exactly the same as my childhood one apart from the engine colours were reversed.
I have been collecting toys for many years and used to buy a lot of parts, prototypes etc from previous meccano employees. The one thing that became clear is that these are just toys and not super detail models. What I mean by that is the stories they used to tell me about swapping bits was hilarious. If they ran out of wheels for one car they stuck different ones on, they would do special colours as their own kids presents etc. Regarding the Eagles apparently Dinky presented Gerry Anderson with an all white one and the employees would make them up for themselves and when other parts were short variations were made to fulfil orders.
Apparently the staff shop at Dinky was a goldmine of specials!
I have no doubt at all that all white Eagle were supplied by Dinky, I am sure however that they perhaps were not supposed to be!
Original - certainly, if you go by the catalog they should not exist BUT I bought one brand new from the store. I also own other Dinky variations that are not cataloged but they also do exist and as I got them direct from employees and for not a huge amount of cash so they would not be worth faking.
In the end of the day I have looked through some of these great Space 1999 sites since someone kindly informed me it could be fake, It would, as they all say, be easy to make one of these up. I agree to that as that is what must have also been done at the factory, an original fake?
In the end of the day people must be happy and make their own mind up.
Nick