A Private Motorcycle Museum

by Diecastduck

Hello fellow Toy Collectors!  A Very Merry Christmas to you and your families. I have a little christmas treat here for those of you who are motorcycle fans. I have spent the last few weeks on vacation in Phoenix, Az, where I finally had the opportunity to visit the Buddy Stubbs Motorcycle Museum. Buddy Stubbs is a famous motorcycle racer who now operates three Harley Davidson dealerships in Arizona. He has also worked as a motorcycle stuntman in Hollywood. His personal collection has upwards of 300 motorcycles which rotates from location to location. Despite the huge number of motorcycle marques in his collection, he has no Japanese motorcycles. He refuses to own any due to a long standing hatred of the Japanese stemming from the huge losses he sustained in sales when Japanese motorcycles invaded this country over 40 yrs ago. Be that as it may, here in these pics you will see some of the rarest, most highly collectible motorcycles anywhere. They are all running and road worthy and are all for sale so if you have deep pockets you might find the perfect christmas gift. This portion of the collection contains 125 motorcycles of which I have only pictured a small portion. The following pictures are in no particular order. The museum is housed is a large room in his Phoenix Dealership. It is open to the public as a free tour led by his shop manager on friday nights @ 6 PM, and on the last sunday of the month when the tour is led by Buddy Stubbs himself. If you are ever in the Pheonix area and have the time I highly recommend a visit.

This first beauty is a 1950 Sunbeam from England,
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This is a trio of Norton Motorcycles from England. The black one is a 1978 Norton 850 Commando.
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This is a selection of post war German motorcycles. The first white one is 1953 Zundapp, OHV, 601cc, opposed twin. The second blue one is a 1956 NSU 250cc single. The third one with the silver tank that's barely visible is a late 50's Samson 250cc single. Barely visible to the extreme right is a trio of early BMWs.
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This next one is a 1954 Matchless from England as is the one with the red tank behind it.
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THis next one is a beautiful unrestored 1938 Harley Davidson model "EL". 1000cc OHV V-twin. The black one in the background is a 1985 H-D 750cc twin. more about the white one on the right later.
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This is a 1942 Indian model 741, 750cc machine for wartime use.
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This great bike is a 1942 Harley Davidson WLA, 750cc opposed twin for the U.S. Army
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This is a 1999 Harley Davidson MT-500 single made under contract exclusively for the British and Austrian armed forces.
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This is a 1937 Excelsior "Manxman" OHC 350cc single which became famous for their performance during the races on the Isle of Man .
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This meticulously restored piece of motorcycle history is a 1926 Harley Davidson "Peashooter", 350cc OHV single used for board track racing.
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One of the most highly sought after motorcycles for collectors is this 1939 Brough (pronounced "BRUFF") Superior, 1100cc V-Twin. These were often called the "Rolls Royce" of motorcycles in their day,
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This rarity is a 1958 Nimbus MK2 from Denmark. An OHC 750cc inline four.image

On the left we have a stock 1990 H-D Fatboy, a 1340cc V-Twin. One of the first off the assembly line. The Red one is a custom built motorcycle by Buddy Stubbs. a 1991 " Classified Sportster" OHV 600 cc motor. (actually a stock harley motor with one cylinder removed). The black one on the right is also custom built. It has a standard 1200cc engine.
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Okay now for the white one mentioned earlier. This is a 1941 H-D "74", OHV 1200cc twin.
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This Magnificently restored machine is a 1918 H-D Model "J", 1200cc cycle with sidecar.
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This rarity is a 1915 Excelsior 1000cc twin madee in the USA for the european market hence the sidecar on the opposite side..
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This is a totally original 1950 H-D Servicar. A 750cc V-twin machine. The towbar visible on the right was attached to the front wheel so this trike could be towed by another vehicle.
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A 1939 Indian Sport Scout 750cc V-twin.
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An unrestored 1913 Indian TT, two speed, 1000cc V-twin.image

I am not sure of the year of this one but it was used to teach Robert Blake how to ride a motorcycle in preparation for shooting "Electra Glide in Blue".
It was also used as a prop in the film.
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Just some new bikes on the showroom floor. The last one showing yours truly, DieCastMadness in Dreamlandimage
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Something Completely Different Chapter 2

by Diecastduck

Hello again,  Today I will again do a short study of assorted classic commercial vehicles and where they reside in the model world.

FAGEOL Super Freighters: These huge vans were used extensively by UPS for delivery of large items including furniture and appliances.  These vehicles were also used by moving and storage companies in many colorful liveries.

A look at an assortment of interesting vehicles and their models.

One of the joys of collecting for me is seeing an interesting or unique prototype vehicle in a picture, and then acquiring a model of it.  There are literally thousands of models out there, which, while beautiful pieces in their own right are somewhat questionable in my mind due to their decorations.  I mean let's be honest, how many Domino's Pizzas really get delivered in a 1930s Packard Town Car?

Dodge, Circa 1925:  This neatly done Dodge has top-of-the-line trim.  AS the door stated it was an "Advertising Car", and showed it's advertising license number.

General Motors Futurliners

by Diecastduck

These General Motors Futurliners were only 12 such vehicles ever built. They were introduced in 1940 as part of GM's "Parade of Progress," spun out of the 1933-34 World's Fair, themed "A Century Of Progress." There are nine known Futurliners that have survived. Three are in operating condition, including this 1950 model which sold at an auction recently for US$4,320,000. 

FDNY Super Pumper System

by Diecastduck

FDNY SUPER PUMPER SYSTEM

For more then a century, despite numerous technical innovations, firefighters had been faced with the fact that battling truly huge blazes, they did not have the capability to deliver adequate amounts of water onto fires.  Conventional pumps were still not powerful enough to jet streams of water onto flames at long enough distances or in vast enough quantities.  And if pumps had been sufficiently powerful, fire departments still lacked hoses that were strong enough to handle high pressure and large amounts of water.  Fireboats, at least, had unlimited supplies of water to draw from, but their success was limited to waterfront areas.


Labatt LogoHello All, I am going to start a series of blogs about die cast vehicles and the prototypes that inspired them. Commercial Fleets, Fire Fighting Apparatus and anything interesting. This first one is by request from the lovely and gracious LaToya. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy creating them.

LaBatt's streamliners were a unique sight in Canada from 1932 until 1955. The tractor chassis was produced by the White Motor Company and the trailer chassis by Freuhauf. Designed by Count Alexis De Sakhnoffsky, the bodies were crafted by Smith Brothers Body Works of Toronto.