Hubley Static Boat for Sale Cast Iron *Antique Toys E-Museum*
Hubley Static Boat for sale- Cast Iron
We just got in a Hubley “Static Boat”, assuming this is a reference to a static sculpture. It is an incredible, large, heavy toy that was the epitome of high end Hubley cast iron skills. The driver is realistic, the motor, the boat, and even the raised lettering on the bow. All are a tour-de-force of cast iron artistry.
Historically, this toy fell into a very unfortunate time in our nation’s life. It was sculpted and designed pre-1929 depression, but went to market in 1929. Terrible timing! So very few families and kids could justify a top end and expensive toy in the middle of the nation’s worst depression a time when kids starved.
The Hubley Toys Catalog ,Cast Iron Toys That Sell, from 1929 reads “HUBLEY (EXCLUSIVE RIGHT) TOY No. 18 “Static”Boat . The “Sea Horse” is equipped with a toy model of the famous Johnson Outboard motor. It runs on rubber tired eccentric wheels, which give it a wave-riding motion. Also has imitation motor exhaust [sound]. Packed on in a box, two dozen in carton weight 75 lbs.
That said, the few toys that are in collections are loved and highly treasured. Arguably this red paint is tops for paint choices on the race boat. Lettering is gold. The driver is a very striking bright orange. The sculpture has rubber tires and then it is a pull toy that has a back axle noise maker.
A brief history of Hubley Manufacturing Company of Lancaster, Pennsylvania:
The Hubley Manufacturing Company was first incorporated in 1894 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania by John Hubley. Their slogan was “They’re Different”. They were occasionally known as Lancaster Brand Iron Toys which manufactured electric toy train equipment and parts. In 1909, they purchased the Safety Buggy Co. factory and moved to the site. The first Hubley toys appeared in 1909 and were made of cast-iron, with themes that ranged from horse-drawn vehicles, fire engine, circus trains, different breeds of dogs, tractors, steam shovels, horses, banks, and cap guns.
The Hubley Manufacturing Company produced a wide range of cast-iron toys, doorstops, and bookends. Toys, particularly motor vehicles and cap guns, were also produced in zinc alloy and plastic. The company is probably most well known for its detailed scale metal kits of Classic cars in about 1:20 scale. Starting in 1960, Hubley participated for a couple of years with Detroit automakers as a plastic promotional model maker. Many Hubley toys are now sought-after collectibles. Hubley’s main competition in the early years was Arcade as well as a bit from A.C. Williams.
By the 1930’s autos became the headliners. By quickly converting to cheaper smaller toys during the Depression, they avoided financial woes experienced by many other toy companies. Iron shortages in WWII and commitments to fill war contracts did stop the toy division in 1942, until after the war.
As of 2019, Wikipedia tells us that, “Perhaps Hubley’s diversification in the 1960s overtaxed its profits, weakening it financially by the 1970s. Hubley was purchased by toy maker Gabriel about 1969 who continued to make its regular kits and diecast kids toys through the 1970s. A series of colorful but rather unexciting generic make diecast toy trucks were available in a variety of forms (dump truck, tow truck, etc.) up until about 1980. Gradually, the Hubley name was downplayed in favor of Gabriel.
Around 1980, Hubley was acquired by CBS Toys which later sold many dies to Ertl and Scale Models, both of Dyersville, Iowa. For example, the Hubley Ford 4000 tractor was reproduced by Scale Models, up through the 1990s and perhaps later (Scale Models 2010). In the 1990s, some Hubley vehicles like the school bus, were also reissued with minor variations from the original casting.
Ertl has now stopped production of all of the original toy dies and molds purchased from Hubley. As a result, all remaining Hubley/Ertl metal kits are fairly rare. They can be purchased from auction web sites as well as from collectors and older hobby stores.”