What I Bought vs What I Got: Chalky Edition

I thought it would be fun to share my vintage chalky (and otherwise) hunting results. I love peering at vintage models and Breyer lots in the hopes of finding a hidden gem or two. I especially love looking for chalkies - even though I have examples of most of them by now. I always like to look for potential upgrades or sometimes just taking a shot at the very unlikely. So here are some things I bought hoping for finds - let's see how I did! I wrote the "what I bought" sections before they arrived to give you my honest thought process.

What I bought: Here's that black appaloosa lying down foal I was telling you about. She looks very white and there's something about the way the spots seem to sit on top of the paint that is chalky like - but the underside in particular really looks like thick basecoat to me, and also around the ears. Even that crack in the ear is very reminiscent of other fragile chalkies I have had. Still, given this model in chalky is pretty much non-existent I'm only giving it like a 5% chance of actually being chalky once it arrives.

What I bought: This palomino grazing mare on the other hand - almost certainly a chalky! I won't say 100% because I have been fooled before but this is like 99% a chalky. You can distinctly see the white areas look painted, particularly in the tail. I will eat my hat if this one isn't a chalky.

What I bought:  Midnight Sun is a tricky one. Although relatively common in chalky, or otherwise non-white plastic underneath, I still don't have one! There are always quite a few listed at any given time so I thought I'd take a close look at all of them and see if I could find a chalky one. Since they have no whites this is a hard one to find and be sure of and in all these years I have always come up short. This one I felt was a strong possibility because he does appear to have very thick paint - a hallmark of basecoat chalkies - compared to many of the other Midnight Sun models where you can see much more detail and texture in the sculpture.

There was also a photo of the underside of the hooves which I always love to see - however this one was a little inconclusive - is that a basecoat or grey plastic underneath? Or is it just normal dirt? The photo of the eartip rubs was unfortunately blurry but they actually look pretty normal (no halos or colored plastic) which is a mark against it being chalky. On the other hand is that a nose rub showing grey plastic underneath? All in all I'm feeling maybe 50% chance on this one.

What I bought:  Here's a lot where I thought the Shetland Pony looks potentially chalky. This is another one that I've found to be especially difficult to see in photos. She does have a white face but it's often not enough to go on. Similar to the Midnight Sun I thought the paint looked a little thick and the rubs on the tail and hind legs on the upper right photo look very white. The hooves kind of say chalky plastic to me. But there's a good chance the white balance and photo clarity is what is making it all look that way so I also think relatively low probability she actually is... 30%?

What I bought: This lot has a whole bunch of potentially interesting things in it! The first things that caught my eye were the bay proud arabian foals. The way the paint appears to have almost flaked or peeled off the one in front is very common with chalky plastic models. For whatever reason the paint doesn't adhere to them as well and I have seen and owned many with this particular damage. It is kind of a lot of paint loss, and I don't think I'd be able to do much to fix it, but my hope is that it bodes well for the other PAF and maybe even the PAM who also look kinda sorta chalky? Not quite as convincing as the peeling PAF. The peely guy I'd say 85% chance and the other two maybe 40%.

Although not chalky this appaloosa FAS looks like he's probably the 1959 version which is always cool to find. We shall see if he has a Breyer stamp when he arrives - the earliest ones do not and that means they go with the old mold PAM & PAF. It's they grey legs and larger appaloosa blanket that make me think he is. I feel pretty strongly... 80%

Now I'm almost certainly seeing things but is this alabaster rearing stallion pearly?! The bay pearly is very common, the palomino pearly is fairly rare, and the alabaster is only rumored to exist. But he sure looks odd next to the bay one here. That would be the ultimate thrilling find if so! I've been fooled before though so like the lying foal there is probably like a 1% chance that this is actually pearly. But doesn't it look like it?! The other hope would be that he looks weird because the bay is chalky - I still need one of those! But he doesn't really look it to me.

So what do you think? What is your assessment, how did I do? Let's find out!!

What I got: Not Chalky

Womp womp! But no surprise really - the super elusive chalky lying or scratching foal in black appaloosa continues to evade me. He is super nice though - very white an in excellent shape once I clean him up! Not sure if he will be a keeper but maybe.

What I got: Chalky!

Also no surprise - this girl was pretty obvious in the photos and she's just as nice and super chalky in person! I have to check and see if she's an upgrade from my current one or if she will be for sale.

What I got: Not Chalky

But he still almost kinda has a chalky look to him. It does not look like there is a white basecoat but the black paint is very thick and chalky-esque. He's certainly the closest I have come and I got a really nice note from his former and original owner so he will be a keeper. I don't actually have a single Midnight Sun of any kind right now so he will be my representative on this mold!

What I got: Pseudo Chalky?

This Shetland Pony has gorgeous shading and her blaze is so white and stark - I don't think she is truly chalky but she very much looks like the kinda-chalky plastic Clydesdale Foal I showed in my post about them. I'm going to put her in that kinda chalky category and she's such a nice model just anyway that she's also a keeper.

What I got: No Chalkies

This lot turned out to be a bust for chalkies! I was surprised the PAFs were not given the weird peeling rubs on the one - but alas, just normal plastic. The glossy one is really pretty but has a few too many glaring factory flaws to be a show model.

The PAM is also not chalky but she sure is gorgeous! She has the high-semi-gloss finish and some great shading particularly on her off side. I'll clean her up and see how she turns out.

I can't get a read on this alabaster rearing stallion - it is definitely not a true pearly (which are very brightly pearly in person) but he has a sort of glow to his plastic that is unlike the normal plastic. Is there also a category of pseudo-pearly? I think you can kind of see in my photos too. Perhaps a mix of regrind that is pearly and normal plastic. He's cool either way! I can't find my normal alabaster who is super white to compare but if I can figure out where I have him I'll try to get them together.

My favorite thing from this lot is actually the bay! He's in amazing condition and has great shading. I conga this guy so he's a keeper too - I do already have a really excellent example of the bay one from a 1960s collection I bought but this one being a 70s models can go right alongside him.

Oh and I totally forgot to take a picture of the FAS! He is a lovely early example but does have the Breyer mold stamp, so not a 50s guy after all. It was an incredible pony mail week with even more than just these fun chalky hunts - I will share the FAS and some of my other interesting finds and new purchases tomorrow!