Anton is here!

 Good news, everyone! I finally got my hands on an Anton, and he arrived today! Behold! 

He's so cute, with his little box, and the design that comes straight off of a Classic Lipizzaner box from the '70s, and his gloss, and...aww! I love him. 

He even has some very minor pinking on his muzzle! 

Quality-wise he's pretty good, though I wish his eyes had a little more detail (and were more neatly-painted). But you don't really notice it unless you look really close, so I guess I can overlook it. 

I've also seen some mentions on the Internets that he looks squished, and mine is no exception - he's substantially narrower through the chest than my other Darwins. The major difference between Anton and the rest of the Darwins is that Anton is molded from cellulose acetate, as Stablemates were in the "Vintage" days (modern Stablemates are molded from ABS). So the speculation is that something may be going wrong when switching the molding process from ABS to cellulose acetate. The Valerio models from a few years ago also had some major issues with looking like they'd been pinched or something. Hopefully Breyer gets the issue straightened out at some point, ideally by switching all Stablemate production back to cellulose acetate - though that seems unlikely. I can always hope, though. 

Jota and Tuxedo!

 Good news, everybody! Not only is Jota (still, as of now) available to purchase, but Tuxedo as well for VC members! 

I'm still working on getting ahold of one, but I hope everyone gets the variation they want! I'm most partial to the star-with-socks one, followed by the solid black, but I'd be happy to get any of them, really. Happy ordering! 

The Fabulous Thunderbirds

 Good news, everyone! Or, well, bad news if you're a Silver collector and don't have multiple Vintage Club memberships. Behold, the gambler's choice release for 2023!

Oh boy. Four new Silvers? In four vintage paint jobs? Well, now I'm kinda regretting not joining the VC this year. Hmm...well...nah, still not worth it. But ouch! Four new Silvers, when I just got finished putting all my models on shelves and figured I wouldn't be getting any new Silvers anytime soon? I guess I do have room for more, but it's going to be hard to get all of these - I presume there are 250 of each color since the VC is up to 1,000 memberships this year. Sheesh! Sure hope I can find one or four for a decent price down the line, but I'm not enthusiastic about my chances.

Also, apparently this year's VC free Stablemate will ship with these as well! Here he is, if you're like me and forgot who he was:

At least we're finally getting Darwin in a Lipizzaner color! Just one more thing for me to find later - though it'll probably be easier than getting any Thunderbirds. Anyway, I hope lucky VC members will get the colors they like! I think I like the palomino the best, followed by the bay, the Appaloosa and the pinto. 

C'mon, do something...

 Well, I have good news for Vintage Club members - this year's music box release, Rustler, is available for purchase! 

Good job releasing him so close to Breyerfest, but it does give me something to post about, so I won't complain...too much. Anyways, the payment deadline is July 10, so you've got a little time to get it paid for. 

In other news, things have been pretty dead in the Breyerfest department. Aside from exciting beer garden arguments and even more exciting car show arguments, there's not much going on in the Breyerfest sphere. So this is how I feel right now: 

I really, really miss the days when we had a daily auction model reveal to help build the excitement for the event. Why did that have to go away? Now it's just...watching tumbleweeds roll by while pouncing on any tiny dregs of information Breyer decides to dole out. Maybe we'll get the program this week? Maybe the rest of the auction models will be in it? Maybe the raffle models will be in there too? Something's going to happen sometime, right? We leave in less than two weeks! Give us something, please! 

The next Vintage Club release has been revealed!

 Good news, everyone! The next Vintage Club release was revealed on the Vintage Club blog today. If you're a VC member, check the blog on the Breyer website for more. Anyways, here's the model! 

Cool, it's Secretariat on the Man o' War Classic in honor of the 50th anniversary of his Triple Crown win. The box is retro-styled but has new art by Kathleen Moody, and 50 of the Secretariats will be gold rather glossy bay chestnut (seriously, their "style" is to put dark points on every chestnut, but the real Secretariat did not have dark points, nor did any of his previous portrait models, so...why?). He seems pretty spendy for a Classic, too - $162.50 seems a bit much for a ho-hum chestnut Classic, even if you might be lucky enough to get a gold one. Nice idea, I guess? 

More new arrivals!

 Good news, everyone - it looks like the releases for 2023 are getting off to a timely start! The first releases of this year's Stablemates Club and Vintage Club are now ready to order! 

This year's first SMC release is the G1 Arabian Mare and Lying Down Foal set, Nadira and Zaahir. I managed to sell my set already, so they'll theoretically be on their way to their new owner tomorrow. I'm going to be doing a lot of this for this year's club, so let's hope all the transactions go smoothly! 

Next on the list - Go Figure, the first release for the 2023 Vintage Club! Ooh, what a stunner:

I am not a Justin Morgan collector (though I'll admit I wanted Tri-Mi Boot Scootin' Boogie  and Montana Harvest back in the day). But this guy almost makes me want to start! Honestly, if I had the shelf space I'd probably collect him. Maybe someday...but in the meantime, this guy is great! I saw on Facebook that Sommer Prosser had designed him - another triumph! What a beauty. According to Breyer, this is also the first time in the mold's 50-year history that he's been produced in a non-solid pattern. It's about time! 

That's all I have for today - I hope I have more exciting things to write about soon, now that the 2023 floodgates appear to be open! 

Looking to the Future: 2023 Vintage Club

This post is extremely, shamefully late, but I need to pad out my post count for the year better late than never...right? Much of this post will be cribbed from previous years' worth to save some time. Anyway, let's get going! Last year's post on the Vintage Club was also pretty late, but I'd predicted that the gambler's choice mold would be the Justin Morgan in an array of colors (wrong) and that the optional model would be on Vermeer (also wrong). I also failed to predict that the Indian Pony and mini-me (??) would show up, along with Galahad (so wrong!). So uh...I'm not going to put much stock in these predictions, and neither should you. 

This photo is so old, it's probably not worth bothering with anymore, but I'll put it up just the same:

So far, club members have seen the following models from the photo above:

Amigo, the charcoal Adios;
Halo, the Appaloosa-Performance-Horse-colorway on the Stretch Morgan;
Commander, the smoke Five Gaiter;
Denim (Diamonds?), the Copenhagen pinto Shetland Pony;
and Kiowa, the Indian Pony pinto on the Jumping Horse mold.
Also, the glossy palomino Semi-Rearing Mustang was one of the losers in the vote that gave us Tanner.

Molds that appear in the photo, but were used in the VC in other colors, include the Running Stallion, Man o' War, Quarter Horse Gelding, the Belgian (twice), Semi-Rearing Mustang, Fighting Stallion (twice), Running Foal (with Mare), the Western Prancing Horse, the Grazing Mare (with Foal), the Western Horse and the Thoroughbred Mare and Foal.

So really, all of those molds have been used by now, with the exception of the Longhorn Bull, and I doubt he'll ever show up - but you never know. 

These are the vintage Breyer molds that haven't been used in the club yet:

Black Beauty, the Black Stallion, Bolya/Halla,  Buckshot, the Donkey, El Pastor, the FAM and FAF, Galiceno, Haflinger, the Hanoverian, the Lying Down Foal, Midnight Sun, Morganglanz, Phantom Wings, Phar Lap, the POA, possibly the PAF, Quarter Horse Yearling, the Race Horse, Saddlebred Weanling, the Scratching Foal, Sea Star, the Stock Horse Stallion, Mare and Foal, Stud Spider, the Trakehner and the Western Pony.

So, with the Fury Prancer and presumably Justin Morgan already in the lineup, that leaves one vintage mold and probably one modern mold with a vintage paint job, plus the optional model. El Pastor is currently in production as Vivaldi de Besilu, so I wonder if he might turn up in the VC as well? I'll guess him for the optional model. For the modern mold, I'm going to go with Duende, because Premier Club molds have been used in the VC quite frequently. That still leaves the gambler's choice - for that I'm going to guess the FAM and FAF, because they're way overdue for inclusion in the club. 

Lastly, there's the Stablemate. Last year I guessed the G1 Morgan Mare because they'd been alternating between old and new molds, but I was wrong again and it turned out to be the mini Clydesdale Stallion as Dandy. That presumably means a newer mold for 2023, so I'm going to go with Cassidy, because it's been ages and she hasn't had any releases since her debut in the Stablemates Club. 

Breyer seems to enjoy taking their sweet time revealing the releases for this club (along with everything else), so it'll likely be a while until we see the releases. Let's hope my aim is a little closer to the mark this time! 

2023 Vintage Club signups

 Heads up to anyone who wants to join the 2023 Vintage Club: signups open tomorrow at 3PM EST! So if you want to join, be ready to hit that button tomorrow. Note that memberships are being increased to 1,000 for next year, and I've seen a lot of people talking about not rejoining. Add that to the fact that it's already hard to resell most of the club models for what you paid (I have personal experience with this), and it may end up taking a while for the club to sell out this time. I hope it does, because they should really be showing people what they're getting ahead of time like they have in the past. Anyways, if you want to join, good luck! I'm not joining, so you at least won't be fighting with me for a membership! Haha! 

Ooh, shiny! (again!)

 Greetings, readers! Well, there are more exciting reveals from Breyer today- for starters, the 2023 Stablemates Club is open for membership! Check out this adorable mare and foal set! 

Their names are Nadira and Zaahir, and they're the first releases for next year's club! Looks like they'll make a good family for Zahrat. Nothing I need - hopefully we get some more reveals soon. 

While the 2023 Premier Club isn't open for membership yet, its first release can be previewed on the website - hover your mouse over the Clubs and you'll be able to mouse down to the preview page on the dropdown. Same deal for the 2023 Vintage Club! But here's the preview for the Premier Club:

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Say hello to Cancion, sculpted by Jennifer Scott! I thought the sculptor was Kitty Cantrell - oops. Anyways, he'll be available in glossy or matte finish. I do like him from this angle, though I'm not crazy about his front legs being perfectly even with each other like that - makes him look like he only has one front leg. He also looks like that right front leg is longer than his right rear leg, but that may be an optical illusion. He looks spectacular in gloss, though! 

A couple of notes about this year's Club: the price on the last release is $200 rather than $175, but that's understandable. Dare I hope this means we're finally, FINALLY getting a draft mare and foal? I hope so. 

Lastly, let's take a look at our Vintage Club preview! 

Say hello to Rustler, a brand-new Fury Prancer! Uh, seeing this release made me realize I never wrote a Looking to the Future post about next year's Vintage Club...oops. I suppose it's not too late. Anyway, check out all that detailed mapping on him! Nothing I need, but I wouldn't mind seeing that paint job show up on, say, Hamilton, for instance. This guy is also a music box! Gotta have that gimmick to make people join the club, I guess.

Memberships have also been increased to 1,000 (from last year's increase to 750), so they must still have a lot of demand to join the club. I suppose it only makes sense that the size of the club should grow as the hobby grows. Prices for the VC will be increasing as well, but they've been the same since the club's inception in 2012, so it had to happen sometime.

Come to think of it, we still haven't seen anything special happening with the PC or VC this year, since it's the 10th year of both clubs and I'm pretty sure Breyer said they were doing something special. I suppose the shipping delays are affecting that too - oh well. 

Now that we have our club information, let's hope we get more reveals for these clubs soon! I need more incentive to join.