THE BANDAI TINPLATE GS TOY

The Japanese firm of Bandai produced this tinplate toy of moderate accuracy but considerable charm in the late 'fifties. Note that Bandai aspired to a symmetry that eluded Pontadera, and hence their version of the Vespa has an engine on both sides. Made in a great variety of colours, there is no record of them ever being imported into this country. Certainly, they don't turn up at toy fairs and the like. There are loads in the USA, however, where they frequently turn up on internet auctions. The going rate for a mint one is currently around $150. Tinplate toys such as this eventually fell foul of ever-more stringent safety regulations, and by the mid eighties Bandai were reduced to making horrible plastic toys (including a Vespa) in places such as Thailand. In the meantime these pictures recall Bandai's golden(ish) era