As
far as i know this is the first Jeep Model. Its a pen holder and part
of a desk top set that included a paper weight ( identical to the pen
holder ) and a larger center piece that as yet i have only heard about
and never seen. Its made of a man made wood ( or brown plastic as we
now know it ) by a Company called Syroco Wood Co and can be dated exactly
as these sets were
Next
significant Jeep model was a Recognition or "ID" Jeep made
by a company called "Framburg", (who normally produced light
fittings). This Jeep model was used in training against friendly fire
along with the more well known ID models such as ships and planes
etc. The Jeep shows the standardised MB / GPW design so must hail
from mid + 1942. Its Metal, slush cast and has no moving parts. They
are getting harder to find and the price on these puppies is also
getting a lot harder! However you can still find them on ebaY and
sometimes the seller doesnt realise what he has got....
aparently
presented to the army testers in charge of putting the first Bantam
through its paces. Note the 1st World War Helmets and trench coats.Mr
Dale was an employee with Framburg in Chicago. For some reason
Framburg quit making ID models at some point during the war. Dale
left the company with the moulds for all the former Framburg castings
and set up "Dale-Model Co" still in Chicago. The Jeep
casting was immediately altered by being given rolling wheels
and Dale markings on the spare wheel. So the Jeep finally became
more than just a desk ornament. There were other Jeep Toys in
manufacture at that time, by the likes of "The New York Wood
Co" to name one. However the Dale was the only Jeep toy that
was an accurate representation of the vehicle itself. Dale only
made one other alteration to the Jeep casting and that was the
addition of a star on the hood, when exactly this happened is
tough to tell. The Dale pictured below on the plain box was another
angle that Dale thought of during the war. As demand for ID Jeeps
was fairly limited, Dale decided to market the Jeep as a Toy the
Gi's could mail home to their kids. The Jeep pictured has a star
on the hood and was found in the US forces issue box, therefore
the change happened at some point during the war. Post war Dale
Jeeps were packaged in a more attractive box and sold for some
years after 1945. All the pictures here are of my Dale, it is
in perfect condition and was found stored in its box. The other
shot of the post war Dale is courtesy of Jarek who has a Dale
restoration page on the CJ3B Toy page, check the link on the previous
page or find both Jareks site and the main CJ3B site on my links
page.
