[Freedom and Fear are at War!!] "F" TYPE BOXES
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Box Description

Color picture, "MATCHBOX" straight. Issued 1969.

Taurus
Oct-14-01

...which RW type "F" boxes come with two different pictures on the box, I know of these 8e, 51c, 52b, 71c, 74b, are there any others? Also how many were issued with the printing, with & without Auto Steer on the box please? George T. !

ChFalkensteiner
Oct-14-01

With 8e I suppose you are referring to the boxes showing the RW or SF model but without SF lettering. The same situation exists with 62c.
51c boxes show either the orange "DOUGLAS" or yellow "POINTER" model.
52b boxes show the model facing left or right.
71c boxes show the model with blue or red "Esso" lettering.
74b boxes show the model in green or red.
These are the only differences in the actual pictures that I know of.

Box variations with or without "AUTO-STEER" are known for 15d, 33c and 50c. Furthermore, boxes for 6d and 9d come in two different sizes each. While the two 9d boxes are otherwise identical, the two 6d boxes also differ in the wider one having white "SERIES" lettering inside the blue square and the narrower one having red "SERIES" lettering beside the blue square. Besides, the narrower one has no "NEW" on the end flaps while the wider one has. The wider 6d box and the 63c box are also known with one front face printed upside down compared with all other F type boxes.

Further differences include four different types of bottom lettering and the presence or absence of the trade mark notice on the end flap closers. Such differences exist on very many F type boxes, but I guess you do not want to go into that much detail.

Pat R
Oct-14-01

...the F type box for Early Superfast models (transitionals)is also very interesting, with "Superfast" written in red (box shows Regular Wheel model) or black (box shows Superfast model). A few numbers also show a Superfast model without any lettering (8A and 62A are some examples).

ChFalkensteiner
Oct-15-01

Just a clarification:
The Mustang and Cougar boxes are the ONLY F boxes that exist showing the Superfast models but NO Superfast lettering. I am regarding these two as Regular wheel boxes now, because they usually contained Regular wheel models, and I believe the Superfast lettering was removed from the printing plates to indicate just that.

Ausbeckett
Oct-20-01

... "F" boxes without the "Auto Steer" logo on the face of the box. Any ideas on or experience with the scarcity of those boxes?

ChFalkensteiner
Oct-20-01

They are all fairly scarce. In my opinion, these are in fact not boxes without "Auto-Steer", but boxes without "Superfast", for they came into being by the "Superfast" lettering removed from the printing plates, presumably to pack leftover RW models for which no boxes were in storage anymore otherwise. On this particular box of the 50c Kennel Truck you can even see traces of the "S" from "Superfast" if you look closely enough.

Pat R
Oct-20-01

For the boxes showing the regular wheels models, the 33C without AutoSteer and without the red Superfast is fairly hard to find. The only examples that I saw were coming with the 33C in Gold or Yellow with the white interior, not in my budget ! I saw a few times the 15D and 50C on eBay. From what I remember, the 50C is the most common. For the boxes showing the Superfast models, the 62A without "Superfast" is the rarest. As for 8A, I saw it several times.

Used with permission, courtesy of Mark Curtis