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Not every member of the human race is good at reading instructions and following them - these slips were an attempt by Plimpton to steer their young customers in the right direction, and to help avoid frustration if not actual damage. |
This slip [right] is shown courtesy of Angus Jones. probably dates from the early days of Curved Bricks and Windows, in the pre-war 'New Series' sets, though it may just have been immediately post-war. |
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The script on the slip is self explanatory - obviously some young modellers experienced difficulties with these parts, possibly damaging them through incorrect usage. This was potentially significant, given that these were new parts at the time. |
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This [left] is a second, slightly posher version of the above, and is also shown courtesy of Angus Jones. I believe it dates from 1946 or 1947, or, just possibly, 1948... |
...the reference to "diagrams on page 4" is, I believe, the key, as it seems to refer to the small 8-page leaflet which was included with all BAYKO sets in the immediate post-war years... |
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This particular information slip obviously had legs, as they say in the media, in other words it continued to be used for many years, throughout the 1950s. This is, therefore, the direct successor to the version shown above. |
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The references in this version of the slip [right] are clear - they refer to the diagram and detailed notes which appeared on page 4 of the standard 1950s BAYKO manual for sets #0 to #3... |
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These two Information Slips [shown courtesy of Bob Burgess] deal with separate, though similar, issues - however, a simple glance at each tells you they are closely linked if not actually concurrent. |
Post-war material shortages and war-time technological advances, led to experiments with a wide range of colours for BAYKO Bases. |
Conversion sets would be made with whatever was available at the time, which may well not match the Bases the modeller already owned... |
...this slip told modellers that, for 6d [2½p], Plimpton would swap them for matching Bases. |
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| The subject is slightly different, "parts" instead of"Bases", but the cause and intent are otherwise identical to the aims of the slip above. |
| The offer here is post free, and they also requested a colour sample, but the solution is similar. |
| The need for a colour sample perhaps implies a greater range of colours across the general range than occurred with Bases alone. |
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Theoretically the second "parts" slip could have applied to the period around 1937 when BAYKO bricks changed from brown and cream to red and white... |
...however, Bases didn't change during this period, so I suggest the post-war date is correct. |
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When these parts were first launched, the BAYKO manuals hadn't caught up with the fact... |
...if the items were the result of the acquisition of a conversion set [other than a #3X] they didn't contain a manual anyway... |
...so these small slips were included with the sets [and conversion] sets in the second half of 1959. |
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The script sets out simple instructions to the aspiring young modeller on how to use the new parts, and seems to me to be perfectly self-explanatory, so will get no further comment from me... |
...click on the image [right] to see a larger version if you can't quite read it. |
Presumably, once the manuals caught up with the new parts, this information slip would no longer have been necessary. |
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However, I always feel slightly sad at this point... |
...Plimpton recognised the subsequent play value of BAYKO models [once they had been built] for years by the inclusion of model railway related models in the manuals... |
...why, oh why, were they so slow in really attacking this marketing opportunity? |
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