iHobby in Chicago

We attended the iHobby Expo last week in Chicago. We had a chance to talk with several die-cast manufacturers about several issues including their plans for 2008 and the recent safety recalls. Overall the mood was upbeat concerning next year as all of the companies we talked to are forging ahead with many new products for 2008. Mattel has solid plans to finally get the sixties era batmobile into our hands during the first half of the year. Norscot has plans for 17 new models including two new vintage pieces. Corgi is even finding solid footing again and is currently working on a full catalog of new releases for the year ahead. As for product safety, we were pleased by how seriously the manufacturers are treating the problem, in fact, all of them have had testing procedures in place for years. The only down side to our conversations were related to price increases. Due to labor, power, and material shortages in China, most manufacturers are expecting at least some price increases next year. In one case we were told to look for increases of up to 15% from some companies on some of their line. In any case, we at 3000toys.com will be working hard to roll out the information as soon as it becomes available.

Gearbox is Back

Gearbox is back under new owner. We were pleased to be contacted not long ago and told that we would be able to start supplying our customers with Gearbox products once again. It turns out that Gearbox is now under new ownership. We know that several of you were disappointed to find out that Gearbox had closed their doors, so it is great pleasure that we are able to tell you that we will be fully stocking the line again. Over the next couple of weeks, look for the line to be filled back in.

RC2 recalls more wooden Thomas the Tank pieces

RC2 just announced this morning a recall of 5 more Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway items due to potential lead in the surface paint, and we wanted to get the word out to all of you as quickly as possible. I just emailed to our RC2 rep asking which items were involved, and received an email with the official statement from Curt Stoelting, Chief Executive Officer. We are currently in the process of contacting every customer who purchased any of these items from 3000toys.com. Luckily, we will be able to let them know that the ones we sold were received at our warehouse prior to those which are being recalled. RC2 has both a toll-free number and a website to help with any questions or returns you may have (at the bottom of RC2's quote below). Here are excerpts from RC2's letter:

"On September 26, we are announcing the voluntary recall of five additional Thomas & Friends wooden toys that may have been coated with paint containing potentially unsafe levels of lead. Working in full cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), we are voluntarily recalling the following affected wooden items, and our records indicate you may have purchased one or more of the following affected toys:

· All-Black Cargo Car
Sold only in the Brendam Fishing Dock Set
RC2 Item# LC99362
UPC# 796714993621

· Toad Vehicle with Brake Lever
Recall covers only product Tracking Code: 1656OW000
(this tracking code is located on the bottom of the vehicle)
RC2 Item# LC99027
UPC# 796714990279

· Olive Green Sodor Cargo Box
Sold only in the Deluxe Cranky the Crane Set
RC2 Item# LC99371
UPC# 796714993713

· All-Green Maple Tree Top and Signal Base Accessories
Sold only in the Conductor’s Figure 8 Sets
RC2 Item# LC99535*
UPC# 796714995359
*Please note the Conductor’s Figure 8 Set was included in the June recall and may already have been returned to us.

Recall & Return Information

The all-black cargo cars, Toad vehicles with brake levers, olive green Sodor cargo boxes, and the all-green maple tree top and signal base accessories may have been coated with paint containing potentially unsafe levels of lead. Each of these recalled items is from production prior to April 2007:

· The all-black cargo car from the Brendam Fishing Dock Set was manufactured from March 2003 until July 2005, when the set was discontinued from the Thomas line.

· The Toad vehicle with brake lever with tracking code 1656OW000 was produced in June 2006.

· The olive green Sodor cargo box from the Deluxe Cranky the Crane set was produced from January 2006 through December 2006.

· The all-green maple tree top and signal base accessories were included in the Conductor’s Figure 8 Set and were manufactured from March 2006 until April 2007. (Note: The Conductor’s Figure 8 Set was recalled on June 13th due to different potentially unsafe items.)

Any consumers with questions should be urged to either visit RC2’s web site at http://recalls.rc2.com, or call our Consumer Care Center toll-free at (866) 725-4407 for assistance in identifying and returning the recalled toys. Prepaid U.S.shipping labels are available online for any consumer returning any of the recalled items."

Corgi's Prototypes & First Shots to be Auctioned Oct. 3rd

Bonhams, a high-end British-owned auction house established in 1793, will be auctioning off over 570 lots of Corgi first shots, prototypes, and pre-production resins on October 3rd at 11:00am in Knowle in the U.K. Very nice images are shown for each lot on Bonhams' site. This is a rare chance to get a look at a collection that few have seen before - and a chance to perhaps even own a part of it. While the auction will not be live on the internet, absentee bids can be placed online as long as you have registered far enough in advance.

To go directly to the Corgi auction, you can go here: http://www.bonhams.com/cgi-bin/public.sh/pubweb/publicSite.r?sContinent=EUR&screen=catalogue&iSaleNo=15754

Safe for Kids

With all the buzz in the media about toy safety, I thought it would be a good time to spot-light one brand in particular that has always been safety minded. A few years ago, we had the opportunity to tour the Bruder factory. Bruder is a family owned company and all of their toys are made right there in Germany. We were impressed not only by how clean and well organized the factory was, but also by how toughtful their design processes were. To start with, everything is produced from a high grade of non-toxic UV protected plastic. The production engineer giving us the tour explained the you could literally eat the plastic material and it would not hurt you. Not that it would taste great, but it would be totally harmless. Additionally, all of the colors are in the plastic itself so no painting is ever needed. Bruder gives a lot of attention to detail and play value in their toys. But they are able to do so without compromising safety with small or dangerous parts. If you have a little person on your gift giving list, I would encourage you to consider a high-quality Bruder toy.