Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: Sealed Exc+
$149
Still factory sealed but the seal has split on the left short side. Aurora of Canada issue. The factory-applied stickers have a '130' price suffix, but the box was originally '100' priced. Dated 1964 with fantastic Mort Kunstler artwork.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: Good-
$225
Very rare first issue from the early 1950s. When Aurora moved to the West Hempstead plant, they planned a series of very large scale bombers. All kits released up to this time had been small. Aurora's instincts were correct, and the B-26, B-25 and B-29 were a big sales success. This box art was done by Jim Cox and was only used for about one year, making it very rare. The kit has never been started and is inventoried 100% complete with the original tissue paper, all parts, large clear stand, instructions and decals.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: Exc
$179
Rare, Brooklyn-produced, early 1950s U-Ma-Kit. This was Aurora's first naval model. Molded in the correct glossy very dark gray plastic and includes a display stand and decals to match the box art. Never started and complete with all parts, 'very good++' condition decals and 'near mint' instructions. The box has excellent color, four solid corners with no repairs, no fading and no price tags. The only tape is the factory sealing tape on the long sides. There is a light grease pencil price at the top center as shown and general shelf/edge wear.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: Exc+
$125
Dated 1957 with classic Jo Kotula box art. This is the edition with the '198' price circle in the upper right and no Parent's Magazine approval seal. Box is in 'excellent+' condition with like new color and gloss, four solid corners and no tape or price tags. Flaws include very, very light wear and creasing. Molded in gloss olive drab and clear. Never started. Inventoried 100% complete with all parts, decals and instructions. Even includes the original tissue packing paper.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: VG
$379
1958 release of this kit featuring classic Jo Kotula boxart. The large 1/48 scale missile comes with a fully operational scale launcher. The hardbox has 'very good' color and gloss, four solid corners, no price tag or tape tears and no torn or missing litho. Flaws include general wear and edge and corner wear as shown. The kit has never been started and is factory new inside right down to the original tissue packing paper. Aurora factory sealed the silver parts and the red missile parts; these are both still sealed. The deep blue parts were not sealed but have been inventoried 100% complete. Includes decals and instructions in 'excellent' condition. This kit must be shipped insured. The Aurora "Missile Line" is legendary. In the late 1950s, the first missile model kits sold briskly, so Aurora and Revell both planned extensive lines. However, the missile modeling craze disappeared as quickly as it started. Models that were in the works were canceled or completed if they were far enough along. Those that were completed were fine efforts but sold poorly and had very short lives, making them rare collector items today.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: VG
$325
Very rare first issue from the early 1950s. When Aurora moved to the West Hempstead plant, they planned a series of very large scale bombers. All kits released up to this time had been small. Aurora's instincts were correct, and the B-26, B-25 and B-29 were a big sales success. This box art was done by Jim Cox and was only used for about one year, making it very rare. The kit has never been started and is inventoried 100% complete with the original tissue paper, all parts, large clear stand, instructions and decals. The box has very good color, four solid corners (no repairs), no fading, stains or tears and no price tags or tape (other than the factory sealing tape). It does have moderate general wear as shown, a small (3/4" x 3/8") price tag tear on the left short side, edge wear (more on the on the left than the right) and litho chips on the top long side along the edge.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: Sealed Mint
$110
Still factory sealed and in amazing, investment-grade 'Mint' box condition. That simply means that the box is in the same condition that it left the factory assembly line in. The kit is dated 1958, but this is obviously a later issue as the Aurora logo does not say 'Famous Fighters' in the border and has no sunburst. Due to the 100 price extension, it is most likely from 1960 or '61.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: Sealed Mint
$55
Factory Sealed Aurora Line logo from about 1954.
Plastic Model Kit, Box Condition: No Box
$1400
In the 1950s and early 1960s the major model manufacturers would create factory-built and painted display models. These were intended for hobby shops to help stimulate sales. These were disposable items that were produced in very low numbers, so they are very rare today. Here is one of the rarest of the rare: The 'Rattlesnake of the Ocean' Merchant Sea Raider Atlantis factory build up by Aurora. The unbuilt kit is among the most valuable and rare Aurora single kits, making the factory built display much more so. This one is in excellent original condition. The painting is 1950s professional quality as is the gluing. The glue has held up well and all parts of the ship are very solid. The ship is very clean. The original paint is almost flawless with some light scratches on the port side. The 'ATLANTIS' decals are perfect. The stack 'K' starboard decal is mint; the port one is missing 2mm of the white top on one leg of the 'K'. The factory cardboard wood-tone base is 100% intact with typical corner splits on the bends and edge wear. The removable covers display is mint with all 10 gun/hanger covers present. The kit is now 100% complete. It was missing 4 small parts which I am providing. I took them from an original Atlantis kit, so they are 100% correct. (they are the propeller, 'Y' rear crane, rear flag and rudder) Overall, this is an excellent and rare investment piece for the advanced Aurora collector. Shipping insurance required. From modeler Stephen Payne: Recommend that the builder or collector of this kit add the following books to their collection-The German Raider Atlantis by Captain Bernhard Rogge & Wolfgang Frank & Sea Raider Atlantis, Story of a German Surface Raider by Ulrich Mohr & A.V. Sellwood. The first book is by the ATLANTIS commander, Kapitan zur See Bernhard Rogge. He oversaw the transformation and outfitting in Bremen and captained the ship during her 602 day operational voyager which sank or captured 22 ships totaling 144,384 t (142,104 long tons). Rogge also was one of the few German officers of flag rank who was not arrested by the Allies after the war due to the way he had exercised his command of Atlantis. Captain J. Armstrong White, captain of the British CITY OF BAGHDAD, which Atlantis sank in July 1941, stated, "His treatment of prisoners left respect, instead of hatred."The second book is by the ATLANTIS First Officer, Ulrich Moher. Both books read much the same as the events related are the same, but it is interesting to see these events from the two perspectives. Captain White (see above) wrote the foreword to Atlantis, the Story of a German Surface Raider, written by U. Mohr & A. V. Sellwood.The German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis (HSK 2), known to the Kriegsmarine as Schiff 16 (SHIP 16) and to the Royal Navy as Raider-C, was a converted merchant vessel to German Hilfskreuzer (auxiliary cruiser) used for commerce raiding. Commerce raiders did not seek to engage warships, but rather attack enemy merchant shipping; the measures of success are tonnage destroyed (or captured) and time spent "at large" holding up enemy resources. Atlantis had the longest raiding career of any German commerce raider in either world war.
