General Additions thread - Catching up on all I missed, pt1

Postimg photo hosting seems to be back up and running without glitches now, so it's time to introduce my latest purchase.

When the 2021 releases were originally revealed, the one Traditional (1:9) scale horse I most wanted to get was the pinto Icelandic, Sporður frá Bergi.
Despite being really keen to add him to my collection, I ought to just explain why I ended up waiting a while : back when the new year's models first reached our stockists, I'd had a lot of new arrivals in quick succession, and didn't really want to pile more spending immediately on top of what I'd just done
So I thought I'd leave the 2021s for a bit - after all, they were regular runs, likely to be around for ages and not out of stock, right?
Well, keeping things reliably in stock this year has proved challenging for Breyer retailers worldwide, but especially here in the UK with our already slow and patchy supply, and it's turned out that a lot of the time once something's gone, it could be months and months til the possibility of any more coming over, and maybe not even then.

Last week, when I checked my two favourite places to buy Breyers, the first had no Icelandic at all, while the other was down to just a single one left! So I decided it was probably wise to grab that one, and not risk missing out on him if he sold out now, then never came back into stock here before being retired, as has happened with some Breyer releases of the past - even in the years before covid existed and the global shipping problems took hold.

He arrived and had his photoshoot earlier this week, so here he is!

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I really love him, I've already got the sooty buckskin (regular run) and dappled grey (special run) on this mould, so I knew in advance to expect it to be so small and chunky and endearing, but there's just something about holding these pony-sized moulds in-hand, they're a tiny heavy-set little chunk with a cute sparky face, much like real Icelandic horses!

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His official name is Sporður frá Bergi (try to pronounce the ð as th like in 'the', it's not a d like most places selling him have typed it! ), but I've named mine Ratatoskr, after the squirrel messenger from Norse mythology, I think it suits him perfectly!

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There's a lot of action in that tölt pose, sculpted at the perfect moment in the stride, the one that would be the best shot when taking pictures of the real thing - the highest point of the forelegs and the furthest stretch of the hindlegs. The flying mane and tail help emphasise that this is a very fast-moving gait, a smooth running walk at the speed of a very brisk trot - if you've never seen Icelandics in action it's well worth a look on Youtube.

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It's one of those moulds which looks ok from either direction, because he's moving on a straight line so his head isn't turned away whichever way you face him, but for me this is always the 'other side' because I think the leg position displays better when he's running to our left.

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If possible he looks even sweeter from the front, with those big eyes and compact proportions they're a lot like native pony breeds, but Icelandics are always called horses, not ponies.

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The coat colour makes him look more flashy than the fairly plain and dark paintwork we saw on the first regular run release, and I always rather like it when they're based on a real horse, cos the markings have that quirky individuality of being copied from something nature created, rather than designed by a human hand. I especially like the two-tone nose!

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A horse I'm really glad to have for my collection, and would happily recommend to anyone else who likes models in the bigger scales, or the Icelandic breed.

Look at that head of hair! I love the coloration too. Great nee model! Congrats.

Good-looking horse and you've taken great photos again. I still "need" the Stablemates version, which looks similar, but isn't quite the same.

Great name for a great model! Love the sweet and frisky nature of this horse, that pose is so full of energy and charisma!

A very nice Icelandic, congrats! I like the color and pattern, suit this horse very nicely!

Nice Icelandic, great painting and pics  and I learn what is a tölt pose. 

Another big Traditional (1:9 scale) Breyer to share this week, this one was a special run for the Tractor Supply Company in the USA. It seems Breyer make two or three of these exclusives for the company each year, to be sold only in their stores and not anywhere else or online - they must have some sort of promotional deal between them.
As with all the special runs produced for just one chain (Target, Walmart, JCPenney, probably more I can't think of right now!), it's unfortunate for all of us who live in countries which don't HAVE those shops, cos a lot less of them end up on the second hand market over here, and I haven't got many in my collection.
They're not expensive higher-quality or super-rare releases where they're originally sold, but because the postage and customs import fees to have them sent over would double or triple the cost of the model, they end up way too pricey for me to buy in from the States, and I just keep an eye on UK ebay and see what crops up. Sometimes, you can catch a bargain and get one of these rarer horses for normal regular run price, or even if you're lucky, cheaper.
That's exactly what happened with this one - he cost me about £5 less than a normal regular run is priced in my country!

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I think he's a real stunner, I love the delicate shade of pale palomino with a hint of ashy sootiness in the cool tone and the greyer legs. My own pony goes this colour in winter, so I liked Jesse as soon as I first saw the promo pics, though I never thought I'd get chance to get hold of him here.

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Sold as a palomino Quarter Horse, Jesse is a gelding on the 'gaming stock horse' mould - my other in this action sculpt is a mare, so the mould has two versions letting Breyer make any portrait models match the sex of the real horse. It's a nice athletic build, quite lean but strong, which suits the pose perfectly - he looks like a barrel racer or fit working horse, rather than the plump and muscly show-QH types.

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I've named him Steal My Sunshine, partly cos QHs often have snappy pop-culture names (it's a song title and lyric from one of those one-hit-wonder bands of the 1990s), but also because it's SO hard to catch a bit of sunshine in my garden at this time of year - between the shade of shed, wall, neighbour's roof, and trees, there's about fifteen minutes of daylight which tracks across one side of the lawn and the hedge, so model photography is a great challenge of timing and balancing tricks

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He comes with a good steady base, sculpted to look like a sand arena surface complete with hoofprints, and very strong metal pegs embedded in the hind legs which slot into it firmly, so there's nothing to crack or snap like those horrible clear disc bases.
But when I take my photos I always hide the bases, by pushing the pegs through the 'grass' paper. The very last photo on this post has the base visible, if you want to see.

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Another mould which looks great from either direction, the sculpt just doesn't have a bad side! I've got him facing this way on my mantelpiece at the moment, and when time comes to find him a shelf gap in the other room with the rest of my collection, it won't matter at all if he fits somewhere facing the other way instead.

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All in all, a new addition I'm really pleased to add to my line-up of Breyer quarter horses!

Now, there is one thing I'd like to point out, which doesn't reflect badly on this release, but rather, one of the others on the same mould.
One of the 2020 regular runs was the mare Stingray, who unlike Jesse, is a portrait of a real horse. The thing is, he's much, much closer to getting the colour right, than her own model was!

This is the real Stingray. She's very pale and golden, not at all reddish. It's perhaps even more noticeable in this comparison shot Breyer themselves used in the promotional material and her box packaging.

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Here's my Jesse and Stingray together. The pale sooty palomino on the left would've looked perfect for Stingray, if they'd copied her distinctive markings and brand onto that paintjob it would've been a brilliant lookalike.
As it is, I list my own Stingray as a totally different colour (silver bay, to explain the red coat, brownish points, and grey mane and tail), and think she's probably one of Breyer's worst colour-matching fails in recent years. A nice model, yes; a very striking colour on a dynamic and appealing mould, but definitely not like the real horse.

I have this one and love it. A very nice sculpt in my opinion. Congratulations!

Spectacular horse, congratulations on finding it. I like Stingray's colour too, though indeed very different from the real horse.

Now I see you are almost 10 years younger than me, so 1990 for you was 10 years later than it was for me.
I am joking just because of the song you pointed, I've never heard it but it doesn't sound anything like my 1990's.
It is impressive all the effort you put in your posts, it really worth to visit your topics, everything looks beautiful and very well described.
the horse is really beautiful as it is all the pictures even if the sun is not being generous.

Saarlooswolfhound wrote:

I have this one and love it. A very nice sculpt in my opinion. Congratulations!

Ahh, glad to see another owner of the same horse on here, I think that's the first time that's happened with one of my Traditional scale arrivals, though of course a lot of us share the same Stablemates.

rogerpgvg wrote:

Spectacular horse, congratulations on finding it. I like Stingray's colour too, though indeed very different from the real horse.

Thank you! I always feel really lucky when I manage to get hold of the ones which just aren't sold here, whether it's these special runs, or Breyerfest models, or any of the ones you have to be in a club or win a lottery to be allowed to buy. It can get a bit depressing when they make so many releases the average-budget, non-USA-based collectors have no hope of ever getting, but sometimes just being patient and stalking ebay brings unexpected horses home.

Roger wrote:

Now I see you are almost 10 years younger than me, so 1990 for you was 10 years later than it was for me.
I am joking just because of the song you pointed, I've never heard it but it doesn't sound anything like my 1990's.
It is impressive all the effort you put in your posts, it really worth to visit your topics, everything looks beautiful and very well described.
the horse is really beautiful as it is all the pictures even if the sun is not being generous.

Yeah, some songs are really linked to being a certain age when they were around - I checked and this one was 1999, the year I was leaving school and starting college : I had my 16th birthday in the summer break between the two. That year the chorus of it was used everywhere, in tv trailers and adverts etc, so I can't help but remember it clearly, even though this style was never really my taste in music. I went from classic rock and post-punk, through indie pop-rock, to folk metal and eastern european punk; now I like a bit of all those as well as classical cello/violin. But I never have got into mainstream pop or rap or r&b, almost all modern chart music is an unknown world to me

I always like to write a bit about each model in my posts, it's surely more interesting for other people to read than just a whole bunch of photos to scroll through, and it makes me feel like I'm appreciating each model more if I really consider what to say about it, the good and bad points, as well as what I personally enjoy, and what might be worth mentioning if other collectors are considering the moulds or breeds for their own wishlists.

Both beautiful additions. The hair sculpture world on the Icelandic is really amazing! They're both so dynamic and full of personality. I don't have either of these molds, however, and I didn't even know Tractor Supply had that one. When I checked ours, I didn't see this one.

(If you're ever interested in getting a Tractor Supply horse and are willing to pay the retail cost of the horse and shipping, I could always check and see what ours has. It's right next door practically, and doesn't sell out extremely fast, usually. I know that's still not cheap shipping and the horses themselves seem to be about $40-$60 for the traditionals, but maybe cheaper than second hand ebay.)

I don't think any sculpting really can render the fluffiness of thick manes like shetlands and icelandics have, but this one does go a long way toward capturing the way it bounces and flies back in the wind!

Thanks for the offer, I appreciate the kindness of suggesting pick-ups but it's the postage costs and then the extra fees added by our government and parcel handling company at my end that are the killer - I'd be working a whole day's worth of wages just to be allowed the parcel once it got here, and I object to them making money off us like that
So I really can only afford to buy ones which are already in this country, but I'm used to that limitation and have stopped even considering breaking my own rule - it's a reeeeeally long time since I gave up having them sent over, way back when the exchange rate was good enough, and shipping was cheap enough, and getting hit by customs was rare enough to risk it

Ugh, I sure can't blame you for that decision. I hope you're able to find the ones your after without too much trouble!

It is a very beautiful horse and I had to wait for the last pics to understand how it stands 

International collecting is indeed a big problem (for us) today, increased shipping fees, taxes, not the best period ever. 

Yeah, the bases are really good and steady for the shelf, but they're a bit intrusive if you're trying to take reasonably realistic show/display photos, so I always cheat and hide them. A few moulds with smaller bases on one foot will just about balance upright without their stands, for a photoshoot (on a calm day with no wind!), but not if they're in such a dramatic action pose as this.

Stunning model!

Wonderful models and pictures!

My first new model to introduce this year, and it's a lovely one!
Although I must admit he actually got here in early december, but cos of a combination of my garden's shade problems when the sun is low, and the non-stop wet and cloudy weather lately, I've only just been able to catch a patch of sunlight big enough to get his pictures done

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This is Breyer's portrait model of Marc Of Charm, a multiple showing champion who went on to become a famous stallion at stud. Isn't he just beautiful - even though I'm not a fan of gaited breeds in real life, I just love the elegance, balance, and alert showy sharpness, of this mould!

He's a mid-year release on a fairly new and very sought-after mould, the Racking Saddlebred Stallion, or 'Hamilton', and I'm so glad they decided to let regular-run buyers have one we can more easily get our hands on!
The previous release on the mould was a palomino for the 70th Anniversary, but turned out to be very difficult to get hold of over here. Of course with eager collectors waiting to grab them, plus the added demand of customisers wanting them as bodies to repaint, the models sold out in minutes of going up on websites - in fact, any retailers who offered pre-orders here sold out of those months in advance, and had no leftover stock to just sell once they arrived. And with it being a 2021-only limited edition to mark the company's anniversary, there was no chance for the UK retailers to restock with another batch later on, so while some people were quick and lucky, anyone who didn't get one of that first shipment, missed out.
I'd have liked one, but wasn't crazy about the pearly mane and tail, so I chose to pre-order the dappled grey Andalusian as my must-have from the 70th anniversary batch instead, and was just glad to eventually get that after nine months of waiting, no news, and having all my polite-but-worried emails ignored by the company I'd ordered him with

So when I saw we were getting a chestnut one as a mid-year release, I was surprised they'd gone with the same mould so soon, but very happy!

Much like the palomino before him, this model also sold out rather fast on a lot of websites, but a few still have him, and this time it won't be a one-shipment-and-that's-it thing - he'll be part of the standard range til whenever Breyer decide to retire him, so even if people missed out on the first batch, there shouldn't be any difficulty getting him at some point in the future.

Still, the way this mould gets collectors hitting that Buy button, I decided a name related to his elusive nature and quick disappearances seemed fitting - I've named him Catch Me If You Can

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Here he is with a bit brighter light on him, trying to capture his rich, deep chestnut colouring. It was still tricky getting these shots as the low angle of the sun cast his shadow onto the background, unless I got the alignment just right that it went away behind him, and then the shadows created on his body were overly strong - for once I can see the appeal of those lightboxes we were talking about the other day

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Apparently, this real horse was the artist's inspiration and model for sculpting the mould, even though it made it's debut in another colour. This is unusual - possibly even a first?
Looking back to years ago, portrait sculpts were introduced in the regular run range, in the colour of their real horse, then would be re-used in different colours over the years.
Breyer now release new Traditional moulds to Premier Club members as exclusive special runs in expensive, detailed colours first - so whenever they want to make a regular run portrait model, it's usually on a mould which was sculpted as a different horse.
Doing it this novel way round, where the first regular run is the portrait, but they've already had access to the mould for expensive club special runs beforehand, works well for Breyer's profits, but also for collectors, cos it means we can buy specially sculpted portrait models again.

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He's got great face markings, neatly masked and accurately copied from the real horse, and I always like when they remember to add a faint hint of pink for the nose.

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It's a very narrow, upright pose, with the feet very close together, and I was a bit worried about stability (the similar Peter Stone Saddlebred is a wobbly wobbly beast ) , but he's actually very steady on his feet, with no tendency to tip one way or the other; he'd take quite a push to topple over!

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The other side; it was even harder to get a photo this way as his face was in deep shade unless I tweaked the angle toward the sun, so you don't get to see a side-on view, it's not quite a walkaround if you don't get all the way round

But I think his other side is the best side for photos and display, anyway!

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Beautiful and stunning model!!

Starting the new year with a lot of style!

This model is stunning, so much movement and it is standing still! Congratulations!