Dublo Dinky Toys were announced by Meccano Ltd. in late 1957, and appeared in stores in 1958. The series were in 1:76 scale and were intended to work with 00-gauge Hornby Dublo railways. This article describes the three versions of the Dinky Dublo 066 Bedford Truck and the two different boxes in which they came.
Production run
Dinky/Meccano started planning the Dublo range in late 1954, but it was not until late 1957 that the first three in the range were released: the 064 Austin Lorry, the 065 Morris Pick-Up and the 066 Bedford Flat Truck, which were advertised on the back cover of the December 1957 issue of Meccano Magazine.
Dublo Dinky Toys debut in the December 1957 issue of Meccano Magazine.
The Dublo Bedford Flat Truck didn’t have a long life. Its production lasted just under three years, with its last appearance being in the 1959 Dinky Toys catalog.
Dublo Dinky Toys in the 1959 Dinky Toys (UK) catalog.
Although the Dublo range continued to expand in 1960, I find it strange that Dinky dropped this truck from its line up, being that it seemed to be a popular toy and it’s one of the most common Dublo models in existence.
Dublo Dinky Toys in the 1960 Dinky Toys (UK) catalog.
Versions
The three versions of the Dublo Dinky 066 Bedford Flat Truck are:
- With smooth grey plastic tires.
- With treaded grey plastic tires.
- With treaded grey plastic tires and an added tow hook.
The three versions of the Dublo Dinky Toys 066 Bedford Flat Truck (front view).
The three versions of the Dublo Dinky Toys 066 Bedford Flat Truck (rear view).
The three versions of the Dublo Dinky Toys 066 Bedford Flat Truck (bottom view).
The addition of the tow hook is a bit of a mystery as there wasn’t anything in the Dublo range for the truck to tow. Further, it was a late addition. From what can be gleaned from the factory drawing, it was added around October 1959, just before this model was deleted from the range. This does make the version with the tow hook quite rare.
Factory drawing of the Dublo Dinky Toys 066 Bedford Flat Truck.
A draft illustration of the model for the Dinky Toys 1959 UK catalog seems to imply the Bedford Flat Truck wasn’t just designed to work alongside Hornby Dublo model railways, but was also designed to be able to carry Dublo railway shipping containers.
