Issued 1961    Length 189mm

 

The Background

 

The Wells Fargo Stage Coach is one of the rarest Budgie Toys. One of the reasons is that it had a very short production life, but another is because there is so much uncertainty about it. 

 

To start with the number on the box was given as 'No.434' but the model inside had no number on it. The box itself was not a standard yellow Budgie box but a 'one-off' design. Robert Newson in his 1988 book Budgie Models lists the Wells Fargo Stage under the number '248', probably based on Trade Lists of the time. It does not appear in any of the Budgie colour leaflets but cast on the base of the model it clearly says 'A Budgie Toy'. 

 

In 1960 Budgie planned to produce several 'Wild West' toys. These were to be numbered from 400 to 450 in a mixture of sizes and scale. The first ones were miniatures based on the 'Wagon Train' televsion series popular at the time and were to be numbered 430 and 432 but the packs in fact were without numbers when they appeared (see the Budgie Miniatures pages). In 1961 two Wells Fargo Stage Coaches were issued, one larger scale (434) and the other smaller but not as miniature as the Wagon Train models. This last was given the number 410 and sold in blister packs but these are very rare.

 

Few of these models, large or small, reached full production and as a result are now rare. Probably the explanation of why they carry such uncertainty is that in September 1961 Morris & Stone (London) Ltd, the owner of Budgie, was bought by and merged into the Guiterman Group. A short time afterwards, the new owners decided to discontinue all the horse-drawn items. No.434 was probably already in production so a special box (which carried the name of both old and new owners) was created for it. 

 

The Model No.434

 

No.434 Wells Fargo Stage Coach appears at first to resemble the Morestone Series stage coaches from the early 1950's but this coach was an entirely new and different casting and the horses and figures were plastic. 

 

The casting of the coach was all in one piece except for the separate roof insert incorporating the luggage which comprised a trunk and a hold-all. On the  coach doors 'Stage Lines' was cast and over the windows 'Wells Fargo' is written. On the underside it states 'A Budgie Toy Wells Fargo Stage Coach' and beneath the rear platform is cast 'Made in England'. Two colours are known to have been used for the Coach,  mid-blue and red.

 

All four wheels and the shaft for the horses were metal, painted either metallic dark-brown or metallic gold on the red coaches and charcoal-black or plain black on the blue versions. The front wheel supports and shaft were cast as one piece and this was fixed to the coach beneath the driver's seat with a central pin. At the rear, the larger wheels had a separate axle set through the back of the coach. All the wheels were on round-head and crimped axles.

 

Four plastic horses fitted onto the shaft, usually two each of two different styles, heads up, or heads turned to the right. On most models there were two white and two brown horses but all white horses are known in two different pairs. They were depicted as being quite frisky as if the coach was moving along at speed. Two plastic figures of a driver and a guard or rifleman were included in the set, and these could be either brown or white, sometimes with pink face trim, and they fitted into slots cast on the front seat.

 

The Stage Coach was sold in an unusual and unique box which was not a yellow Budgie one. The two large picture sides depicted the coach passing a Wells Fargo Depot, and on the remaining two sides 'Wells Fargo Stage Coach' was printed with 'Made in England by Morris & Stone (London) Ltd. A Member of the Guiterman Group'. The end flaps also had 'Wells Fargo Stage Coach' with 'Model No.434' added but it is interesting that the Budgie name does not appear on the box.

 

The Wells Fargo Stage Coach is one of the harder Budgie models to find. The plastic horses are prone to deterioration with age, and the figures of the coachman and rifleman are often missing. 

 

The illustrated box used by Budgie is a rare one, and complete, undamaged examples very rare.