G
Gama
A German producer, initially of tin plate toys, which was started in 1882 by Georg Adam Mangold. In 1920 control of the business moved into the hands of the founder's son, Hans, and expansion resulted. This included making under licence some of the products of Schuco.
The move into die-cast came in 1959, with 1/43rd the preferred scale. Among the various vehicles produced, which naturally included many of German origin, an early range, from the 1960s, was of veteran and vintage vehicles, mainly cars.

The company took over Schuco in 1980.

Gasquy-Septoy
A Belgian producer of die-cast toys, dating from the late 1940s.

Gamda
A series of toys made by a company called Habonim based in Israel in the early 1960s. The company seems to have mainly relied on dies which had been acquired from DCMT, producing a variety of toys including many military vehicles. It also bought dies from Charbens, Kemlow and River Series.

By the mid 60s the future of the range looked in doubt, as it was specifically aimed at the Israeli market, and thus with limited potential.

The company was approached by another Israeli organisation, Koor, which in turn had come to an agreement with an American distributor for models primarily of American cars. Under the brand name of Gamda-Koor a series of American cars of 1965 to 1969 (plus a Volkswagen Beetle) was produced to 1/43rd scale. These were also marketed under the name of Sabra.

Gauge
Strictly the distance between the inner sections of railway track. Model railways use a variety of gauges, the most popular in the United Kingdom being O (1/43rd), OO (1./76th) and N (1/144th). Many toys were originally produced to fit in with model railways, and hence the most popular scales for cars remains as 1/43rd, while for buses the more common scale is 1/76th.

Germany, made in
Germany was always regarded as the centre of the world's toy making industry, particularly centred around Nuremberg. Indeed, the association still exists, with the world's major trade toy fair taking place in early February each year in Nuremberg.

Many of the leading names both in tin plate and die-cast are German, such as Märklin, Gama, Schuco and Siku, leading to Conrad, NZG, Schabak, and more recently Paul's Model Art. However, the inevitable is happening, as elsewhere in the world, in that production is now being focused in the Far East, so companies like Paul's Model Art, with brand names such as Minichamps, no longer manufacture in Germany.

The country is also a stronghold for the manufacture of plastic models, particularly in 1/87th scale to fit alongside HO gauge model railways. The key names here, among many others, are Herpa and Wiking.

Gilbow Holdings
The holding company of the brand name Exclusive First Editions (EFE) which has established itself in the area of 1/76th scale (OO gauge) model vehicles, particularly buses and coaches.

A recent diversion by the company has been to offer models of famous ships, initiated by the fascination that surrounds the sinking of the Titanic. See also Exclusive First Editions.

Gitanes
A small range of toys made in France which very closely resemble the Matchbox '1 - 75' Series.

GMC
Two brothers, Max and Morris Grabowsky, started producing trucks in Detroit in 1900, their company being called the Grabowsky Motor Vehicle Company. In 1908 they were joined by William C. Durant, and in 1916 the business became the General Motors Corporation.

Greyhound
The name of Greyhound is mainly associated with the major bus operator in North America, which was formed by the acquisition of a number of smaller operations. Many models exist of the various Greyhound buses.

Guy
Famed for both its lorries and its buses, the Guy Motor Company was founded in Wolverhampton by Sydney S. Guy. In 1961 the company was taken over by Jaguar Cars, followed by the merger with the British Motor Corporation. Guy production came to an end in 1976.

Models concentrate on the post-war period, including the famous Dinky Toys toy of the Otter, being highly collectable, with liveries such as Weetabix and Lyons Swiss Rolls.

The Guy Vixen is encountered from the Matchbox Series as a Pickfords removal van.

The Invincible and Warrior are included in the Corgi Classics range.

 

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