A good question with a simple answer. The majority of the early "Bond" pistols had and therefore shared factory proofed 1961 unnumbered slides. Factory provided/proofed unnumbered slides were also utilised on Brosnan's P99 pistols, both of which (PPK & P99) are illustrated on page 147 of OO7 The Armoury. Incidentally, 1973 rear sights were cut flat and pistols marked Made in W.Germany/ULM were actually made in France!
Not my usual tipple from Japan however both are 1:24th scale, both were made in 1967 when Bondmania serious landed in Japan with You OnlyLive Twice and both boxes are emblazoned with OO7 however only one is licensed. The Doyusha Aston Martin DB5 features a great although incorrect colour DB5 with a great likeness of Sean Connery, Walther P38 in hand behind the wheel. OO7 is proudly displayed on all five sides of the box however this branding was originally covered up with a different number (59) which have all fallen off over the last 56 years where the glue has evaporated. The Imai kit is a different story. Licensed by Glidrose Productions Ltd, it features the actual OO7 pistol brand, likenesses of Sean Connery lifted off the Japanese movie posters and incredible artworks of the DB5 lifted off the publicity photo images of the car taken at Newport Pagnell and utilised on the Top Secret Specification of the James Bond Aston Martin leaflet produced as a freebie for eager school children to write into Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd for a copy.
The amazingly not dried out gold chrome effect door stickers with an extra apostrophe, which stated James Bond's Goldfinger Aston Martin on the actual 1964 BMT216A tour car and James Bond's Thunderball Aston Martin for its 1965 tour of Japan! 👍️
The Imai kit is worth securing for the box art alone (the kit itself is a little pants to be honest) however expect to pay for a complete unmolested example between $3000 to $5000 US in Japan! One would imagine that this price may rise considerably when Goldfinger's 60th Anniversary touches down in 2024! 😥
The Doyusha kit not only features no official branding but the kit itself also has no Bondian gadgets. Fantastic Bondian themed box artwork though! Even the green DB5 on the 4 box sides has OO7 on the doors which were once covered with number 59 roundels! 👍️
A Holy Grail from 1965's Bondmania finally realised!
Back in 1998 Lee Pfeiffer and Dave Worrall published the excellent The Essential Bond book. Within its pages, page 55 to be precise was a photo (see above) with the caption "an extremely rare version of the 1965 Gilbert 007 action figure". This image was the beginning of a quest to track down this exquisite piece of artwork which some collectors claimed did not exist! The item in question was the Sears boxed James Bond action figure which up until The Essential Bond book was published was only believed to be available as a plain mail away carton sent direct from the Sears Christmas Wish Book catalogue of December 1965. Personally, in the last ten years I have only seen one example for sale in the USA with a whopping $10,000 price tag. This was purchased by a speculator who had it AFA graded and then submitted it to Hakes for auction hoping to make a killing. It sold for half what he had paid for it including fees! I always tend to find out about these sales after the items have sold however after decades of searching one has been secured for The Modest Collection. I have been told that only six genuine examples are known to still exist including Donk's example! 👍️
This particular example has a flicking leg action which like the Sears box some collectors say is "urban myth!" 🤔
Sir MilesThe Wrong Side Of The WardrobePosts: 26,569Chief of Staff
That’s a fantastic example…and thanks for sharing…enjoy 🍸
Fantastic story. This is what collecting is all about. Owning something is great, but nothing compares to hours/days/weeks/years of research and then decades of hunting to actually acquire it. Well done.
Released back in 2021, the £1750 Taschen Casino Royale Art Edition (1-500) of The James Bond Archives sold out quite quickly. Editions 501-1000 of the No Time To Die Art Edition have yet to sell out after 3 years which shows what we, the gullible buying public thought of that movie!
The outward appearance was identical to the £150 XXL Edition but came in a posh clam shell box and the volume itself was signed by Daniel Craig, Michael G. Wilson and Babs' Broccoli. It came with an art print by and signed by photographer Greg Williams measuring 60 x 50cm. The image was originally featured on the British teaser quad poster.
Sir MilesThe Wrong Side Of The WardrobePosts: 26,569Chief of Staff
Comments
A good question with a simple answer. The majority of the early "Bond" pistols had and therefore shared factory proofed 1961 unnumbered slides. Factory provided/proofed unnumbered slides were also utilised on Brosnan's P99 pistols, both of which (PPK & P99) are illustrated on page 147 of OO7 The Armoury. Incidentally, 1973 rear sights were cut flat and pistols marked Made in W.Germany/ULM were actually made in France!
This is the most impressive modest collection I've ever heard of, Donk! 😁
Not my usual tipple from Japan however both are 1:24th scale, both were made in 1967 when Bondmania serious landed in Japan with You Only Live Twice and both boxes are emblazoned with OO7 however only one is licensed. The Doyusha Aston Martin DB5 features a great although incorrect colour DB5 with a great likeness of Sean Connery, Walther P38 in hand behind the wheel. OO7 is proudly displayed on all five sides of the box however this branding was originally covered up with a different number (59) which have all fallen off over the last 56 years where the glue has evaporated. The Imai kit is a different story. Licensed by Glidrose Productions Ltd, it features the actual OO7 pistol brand, likenesses of Sean Connery lifted off the Japanese movie posters and incredible artworks of the DB5 lifted off the publicity photo images of the car taken at Newport Pagnell and utilised on the Top Secret Specification of the James Bond Aston Martin leaflet produced as a freebie for eager school children to write into Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd for a copy.
The amazingly not dried out gold chrome effect door stickers with an extra apostrophe, which stated James Bond's Goldfinger Aston Martin on the actual 1964 BMT216A tour car and James Bond's Thunderball Aston Martin for its 1965 tour of Japan! 👍️
The Imai kit is worth securing for the box art alone (the kit itself is a little pants to be honest) however expect to pay for a complete unmolested example between $3000 to $5000 US in Japan! One would imagine that this price may rise considerably when Goldfinger's 60th Anniversary touches down in 2024! 😥
The Doyusha kit not only features no official branding but the kit itself also has no Bondian gadgets. Fantastic Bondian themed box artwork though! Even the green DB5 on the 4 box sides has OO7 on the doors which were once covered with number 59 roundels! 👍️
Great finds. Really nice examples and artwork. Any thoughts on the badge on the grille?
^Caption the image:
"Oof, that's a fine way to treat the CIA."
"Whoops, sorry Felix, I thought that button was the demister."
Period 1960s AA (Automobile Association) member’s badge which the real tour car had.
Thanks - some interesting details all around on that one.
I love they couldn't be arsed to take that off to make the cars match 😁 The numberplates aren't even the same!
Lovely examples, Donk 🍸
I notice Imai refer to one gadget feature as the 'Projection Seat' - very useful when you need to analyze data on the windscreen:
A Holy Grail from 1965's Bondmania finally realised!
Back in 1998 Lee Pfeiffer and Dave Worrall published the excellent The Essential Bond book. Within its pages, page 55 to be precise was a photo (see above) with the caption "an extremely rare version of the 1965 Gilbert 007 action figure". This image was the beginning of a quest to track down this exquisite piece of artwork which some collectors claimed did not exist! The item in question was the Sears boxed James Bond action figure which up until The Essential Bond book was published was only believed to be available as a plain mail away carton sent direct from the Sears Christmas Wish Book catalogue of December 1965. Personally, in the last ten years I have only seen one example for sale in the USA with a whopping $10,000 price tag. This was purchased by a speculator who had it AFA graded and then submitted it to Hakes for auction hoping to make a killing. It sold for half what he had paid for it including fees! I always tend to find out about these sales after the items have sold however after decades of searching one has been secured for The Modest Collection. I have been told that only six genuine examples are known to still exist including Donk's example! 👍️
This particular example has a flicking leg action which like the Sears box some collectors say is "urban myth!" 🤔
That’s a fantastic example…and thanks for sharing…enjoy 🍸
Fantastic story. This is what collecting is all about. Owning something is great, but nothing compares to hours/days/weeks/years of research and then decades of hunting to actually acquire it. Well done.
Sorry about the flicking leg, Donk, skiing?
HUNTING!
Well done!
And now for something completely different:
Released back in 2021, the £1750 Taschen Casino Royale Art Edition (1-500) of The James Bond Archives sold out quite quickly. Editions 501-1000 of the No Time To Die Art Edition have yet to sell out after 3 years which shows what we, the gullible buying public thought of that movie!
The outward appearance was identical to the £150 XXL Edition but came in a posh clam shell box and the volume itself was signed by Daniel Craig, Michael G. Wilson and Babs' Broccoli. It came with an art print by and signed by photographer Greg Williams measuring 60 x 50cm. The image was originally featured on the British teaser quad poster.
A beautiful book full of paper tat ❤️🍸