Toy Collectors- The Big & The Bold
Remember when you were a kid? Have you ever played with toy cars and loved them ever since? Some people don’t grow out of it. In fact, many keep their toy cars as part of memories. Well, I kept all of mine! Some even say, toy collection ages like wine. The older it gets, the more valuable it becomes. Here are some of the largest toy collectors in the world.
Andy Goodman
Image source: https://www.phillyvoice.com
He has 30,000 die-cast car models, specializing in Jada and Hot Wheel cars. Self-labelled as a “Die-cast car Dabbler”, his purpose of collecting these cars is to fulfil his automotive passion. He is also a member of the hobbyDB Advisory Board who helps steer the direction of the site and to keep them updated of the latest developments in the collectible world. According to the site jalopnik.com, “You’d drive right by Andy Goodman’s house, nestled comfortably in Suburban Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, completely blind to the fact that behind his garage doors lie over 1,000 feet-square of diecast cars, trucks and machines”.
Die-cast cars
These are not just your ordinary toy cars; these are collectibles. To many, die-cast models are equivalent to fine mechanical timepieces. It can be rare, expensive and sought-after.
Mr.Adil Jal Darukhanawala
Image source: https://www.mansworldindia.com/people/scaled/
He is a pioneer in the automotive journalism field for almost four decades. That being said, he is also a devoted collector of die-cast cars and has 10,000 of it. Two of his rarest collection includes; Formula Nippon car that was driven by Michael Schumacher and the 1948 Ferrari 125 F1. In an interview with mansworldindia.com, he said, “I travel abroad at least twice a month, and end up buying 30-40 cars. I don’t smoke or drink as I can’t afford to splurge on these given the need to fuel my obsession. So, this is my only passion. The question now is, do I stop investing in model cars and real classics and instead buy a piece of land to build a collection house?”
Bruce Pascal
Image source: http://www.hotwheelsonline.com/about.html
He is no stranger in the hot-wheels collection world and has a collection worth over $1 Million! His home office is out of this world! His 225 square-foot home office is a collector’s playground, literally. He is highly selective about his collection and spends his free time searching for the next “big” thing. He takes this very seriously and even travels the country from trade shows to toy executive office with his rare collection. I mean, who knew back then that hot-wheels will have such value? I am pretty sure you have at least one hot-wheels car sitting in the storage somewhere. As for this guy, let the pictures do the talking!
You know its serious business when the interior is made towards the “Hot-wheels” theme.
This table is so cool! Who wouldn’t want one?
Look at this display. It truly is fascinating.
Billy Karam
Billy Karam of Beirut, Lebanon has the largest collection of model cars which exceeds over 30,000 cars and 400 dioramas. To make things even more official, he is certified by the Guinness Book of World Records as the World’s largest collection of toy cars in 2016. Being a former amateur racing driver, looking at his collection gives him the chance to relive that experience again.
Take a look at this video:
Mike Manderino
This collector only focuses on one thing; the Corvette. Here’s a video of his Corvette Die Cast Model car collections!