L1889 1950s SMITH MILLER L MACK AERIAL LADDER TRAILER

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LOT # 1889 Detailed Photos Estate Road Show L1889 1950s SMITH MILLER L MACK AERIAL LADDER TRAILER Item Description is an original pre-1955 Smith Miller cast Aluminum L Mack Aerial Ladder truck trailer and the original SMFD decals. This is a really nice piece for parts, featuring excellent ladders, two large hand wheels and base plate. The rotating platform base has a crack, and t are no swing out stabilizers. Smith-Miller started in 1945, and was one of the first companies to make toys in very high quality cast aluminum alloys, making them extremely sturdy. Smith Miller started making Coke trucks in the 40s, and used a several different cab styles including Mack, GMC and Chevy. The first truck lines had two different classes with expensive replicas, as well as the no name trucks that resembled Fords. In the last year of operation, Smith Miller changed their profile from Mack Trucks to Auto Car diesels, with opening doors & working steering wheels. After closing in 1955, Smith Miller was reopened in 1979 when Fred Thompson, a Los Angeles area resident was in search of parts to bring his original Smith Miller trucks back to life again. The company had been out of business for about 24 years but for some reason Thompson dialed information for the Los Angeles white pages and discovered the owner still maintained a phone number for the defunct business. He called and then got in his car. Miraculously, the factory was still t, complete with the sign over the front door. When he walked in he said it looked like everyone had just gone to lunch and never returned. The work benches, boxes, crates and even the rafters contained toy trucks and parts that grown-up kids around the country were searching for especially the Mack trucks. Included among them were 150 yellow GMC Coca-Cola trucks popular in the 1950s. They were painted, decaled and waiting for someone to assemble them. After numerous visits, Thompson bought the Smith-Miller Company in 1979, and decided the best course of action for his new company and collectors alike was to first sell the Smith-Miller trucks in production and in stock and then make new trucks of equal quality. The only difference between the trucks sold in 1953 and the ones assembled in 1979 were the crates Thompson used. Today the company has produced 48 different toy trucks, all serially numbered limited edition. Retail Value Estimate: $75-$100 Condition: missing & broken pieces / parts don't work Weight: 6lb 8oz Measurements (LxWxH): 26 inches x 6 inches x 6 inches Estate Road Show This is a live auction - want to watch each lot sell in 1 minute increments? This link will be active at 10am CST Saturday May 8th. Beta software - if you need help please contact us at or , the ONLY live auctioneer using eBay. You can attend this live auction in person (Killen AL) and place your bids on eBay using timed-live. Free brunch, view lots in person, avoid shipping costs! Wireless supported in Gallery for snipe bidding: Five Brothers Rare Toy Estate Auction: (day one of four days auctioning over 1500 lots NO RESERVE), The core of the collection was actually established in the 1950s by the father (from Indiana) of the adult sons who are consignors to the May sale. As time went on, each of the five brothers set out on his own individual collecting path. Each took a different approach to building his collection, but the one important thing they had in common was a love of vintage American toys, primarily of the boomer era. The time-span for the toys is heavily focused on the 1950s and 60s, with a few from the 1970s. SHIPPING : Bid online, pickup items at NO CHARGE from SC or AL (auction held in Killen AL). We combine to save you money & ship in-house based on weight. We use Federal Express Ground and USPS, only the USPS rate is quoted on eBay so you need to request a quote to compare FedX rates which for boxes over 3lb is normally much more affordable. Keep in mind we ar... read more

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