HERE I AM OFFERING ONE OF MY MOST UNIQUE ITEMS THAT I HAVE LISTED TO DATE HERE ON EBAY.
VLUWOB = VERY LIGHTLY USED WITH ORIGINAL BOX.
THIS IS A U.S. ZONE OF GERMANY (1945~1952) J HOFLER "KLAPPBAHN NR. 400/K" WHICH TRANSLATED INTO ENGLISH MEANS A "FOLDING TRAIN". WITHIN THE BOX YOU HAVE THE ORIGINAL INSTRUCTIONS IN BOTH GERMAN AND ENGLISH. HERE THEY REFER TO THIS AS A "CLAP-RAILWAY" ON THE ENGLISH SIDE OF THESE INSTRUCTIONS.
THIS WAS/IS ONE OF THOSE ITEMS THAT MY DAD BROUGHT HOME ONE DAY ... MANY YEARS AGO!
HAVING
HUNDREDS OF MODEL CARS TO CHOOSE FROM, MOSTLY PORSCHE AND CORVETTES, I
HAVE DECIDED TO START LISTING SOME OF THESE HERE ON E-BAY. 95% OF THESE
ARE ONE-OF-A-KINDS LISTINGS AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO SHOW YOU AN ARRAY
OF PICTURES AND DESCRIBE THEM TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY. THIS J HOFLER TRAIN IS NO EXCEPTION TO THIS RULE!
MY DAD ONCE WORKED FOR A SMALL TOY DISTRIBUTOR OUT OF NYC. HE WAS IN CHARGE OF OUTSIDE SALES AND AS SUCH, HE WORKED A LOT OF SHOWS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. COMING FROM A LARGE FAMILY, HE NEVER GAVE IT A THOUGHT TO COME HOME EMPTY HANDED AFTER ONE OF THESE SHOWS! IN TIME, HE WAS PROMOTED TO PURCHASING AGENT AND TRAVELED THE WORLD IN SEARCH OF UNIQUE TOYS.
ONCE AGAIN, THIS WAS ONE OF HIS HOMECOMING GIFTS TO THE FAMILY!
THIS TRAIN HAS A VERY UNIQUE ACTION/FEATURE (MORE ON THIS LATER) WHICH STILL WORKS TODAY AS IT DID THOSE SO MANY YEARS AGO! THE CLOCKWORK ENGINE WITHIN THIS TINY TRAIN WORKS PERFECTLY AND IN FACT, WILL DO AROUND 7-9 FULL AND COMPLETE LAPS WITHOUT YOU EVER HAVING TO WIND THIS UP OR "NUDGE" IT ALONG.
THE TRAIN IS SO HALLMARKED "MADE IN GERMANY US ZONE" AND THE CLOCKWORK ENGINE IS ORIGINAL AND HAS NEVER BEEN REPAIRED OR TAKEN APART. THE BODY IS FULLY TIN AND HAS NICE TIN LITHOGRAPHY ON THE SHELL. YOU DO HAVE SOME VERY LIGHT WEAR AND TEAR MARKS SHOWING ON THIS SHELL AS I AM NOT CLAIMING THAT THIS IS A NOS (NEW OLD STOCK) ITEM. IN FACT, I PLAYED WITH THIS AS A YOUNG CHILD WHEN I FOUND IT STASHED IN THE BASEMENT MANY, MANY YEARS AGO (LATE 1960'S).
THIS J HOFLER TIN TRAIN IS VERY RARE ... SO MUCH SO I HAVE YET TO LOCATE ANOTHER HERE ON EBAY IN MY 7 YEARS THAT I HAVE BEEN HERE ...IN ANY CONDITION/SHAPE!
THIS IS THE NUMBER 400/K SET WHICH, AS I MENTIONED ABOVE IS 100% ORIGINAL AND COMPLETE.
THE TRACK IS MISSING NOTHING AND STILL CONNECTS TO ITSELF PERFECTLY. YOU HAVE NO RUST, CORROSION OR IMPERFECTIONS FOUND ON THIS TRACK ...OR ON ANY OF IT'S COMPONENTS/PIECES FOR THAT MATTER!
EARLIER TODAY, I PULLED THIS FROM OUT OF ONE OF MY STORAGE ROOMS AND DECIDED TO SPEND SOME TIME ON IT TO SEE IF IT WAS WORTHY ENOUGH FOR ME TO LIST IT. QUICKLY IT BROUGHT BACK SO MANY CHILDHOOD MEMORIES AND THIS WENT TOGETHER AND WAS DOING LAPS WITH MINUTES OF ME UNPACKING IT, NOT A SINGLE TRACK SECTION HAD TO BE TWEAKED, NOR WAS A SINGLE FOUND.
YOU WILL NOTE THAT IN A FEW OF MY PICTURES, YOU CAN SEE THE "BLUR" OF THE TRAIN IN MOVEMENT .... I TOOK A SERIES OF PICTURES WHILE THE TRAIN WAS MAKING A SERIES OF LAPS. THE MOST OBVIOUS AND CLEAREST PICTURES I LISTED HERE IN EBAY FOR YOUR REVIEW.
THE REALLY UNIQUE FEATURE IS THE "ELEVATOR" OR GARAGE/BUILDING SECTION OF THIS SET (HEREAFTER SIMPLY REFEREED TO AS "BUILDING"). THE TRAIN RUNS THE TRACK EFFORTLESSLY AND WHEN IT DRIVES ITSELF UP THE GRADE AND INTO THE "BUILDING", THE TRAIN STOPS AS IT HITS A CROSS BAR AT THE FAR END OF THE BUILDING. THEN WITH THE ADDED WEIGHT OF THE TRAIN, THE BUILDING DROPS DOWN AUTOMATICALLY TO THE LOWER TRACK SECTION. WHILE IT TOUCHES DOWN, A TINY LEVER ATTACHED TO THE CROSS BAR WILL DROP DOWN AND TOUCH THE GROUND, THUS LIFTING UP THE CROSS BAR WHICH STOPPED THE TRAIN INITIALLY. WITH THIS CROSS BAR NO LONGER HOLDING BACK THE TRAIN, ONCE IT IS FULLY LIFTED AND COMPLETELY ON THE LOWER SECTION OF THE TRACK, THE TRAIN WILL AUTOMATICALLY PULL OUT OF THE BUILDING AND START OFF ONCE AGAIN ON IT'S JOURNEY AROUND THE TRACK. THE BUILDING WILL AUTOMATICALLY LIFT TO IT'S ORIGINAL POSITION. YOU HAVE A CLEVER BUILT IN SPRING AT THE BASE OF THE BUILDING WHICH DOES THIS ACTION FOR YOU.
ONCE AGAIN, THE TRAIN WILL DO AROUND 7-9 COMPLETE AND FULL LAPS WITH NO ASSISTANCE NEEDED. IN TIME AND WITH SOME USE, I FEEL THAT THE NUMBER OF LAPS WOULD ACTUALLY INCREASE IN NUMBER!
THIS J HOFLER FULLY TIN, VINTAGE NR. 400/K SET IS A QUALITY MADE ITEM AND YOU CAN REST ASSURED THAT IT IS NOT ONLY WELL BUILT, BUT, MADE TO LAST!!
THE ORIGINAL BOX DOES HAVE SOME WRITING ON BOTH THE LID AND ON ONE OF THE SMALLER SIDES. MY DAD STATED THAT THE "70" WRITTEN ON THE LID WAS THE ORIGINAL COST IN DM AS HE PURCHASED THIS ON ONE OF HIS BUYING TRIPS INTO GERMANY... UNFORTUNATELY, HE CAN NOT RECALL WHICH TRIP OR THE DATE THAT THIS WAS PURCHASED ON. THE WRITING ON THE SIDE ESCAPES HIS RECOLLECTION COMPLETELY, BUT HE CONFIRMS IT'S IN HIS HANDWRITING. AS WE ALL KNOW ...IT DOES SUCK GETTING OLD! LOL.....
THE BASE AND LID ARE 100% ORIGINAL AND YOU HAVE NO ADDED TAPE OR GLUE ANYWHERE ON THEM. THE ORIGINAL GRAPHICS ARE STILL SHARP ORIGINALLY AFFIXED TO THE LID.
THE INSTRUCTION SHEET IS PRINTED ON BOTH SIDES, ONE SIDE IN GERMAN WHILE THE OTHER SIDE IS IN ENGLISH. I ALSO ALIGNED UP THE INSTRUCTIONS WITH THE INDIVIDUAL PIECES WHICH VERIFIES THE ORIGINAL CONTENTS ARE STILL HERE. THIS IS FOUND IN ONE OF MY PICTURES.
SPEAKING OF MY PICTURES, I DO ASK THAT YOU INSPECT THEM THOROUGHLY AS THESE DO BECOME A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF MY DESCRIPTION HERE! IF YOU'D LIKE TO SEE ANY PARTICULAR AREA OF FEATURE CLOSE UP, SIMPLY CONTACT ME AND LET ME KNOW WHAT IT IS YOU'D LIKE TO SEE MORE OF AND I'LL TAKE IT FROM THERE!
BY MY STANDARDS
AND POLICIES, I VERY RARELY DO NOT TEST WHAT IT IS I AM OFFERING HERE ON
E-BAY. AFTER ALL JUST HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO TEST A MODEL? ALL ONE NEED
DO IS TO TOSS IN A FEW BATTERIES AND GIVE IT A GO, OR A SIMPLE PUSH TO SEE IF THE FRICTION DRIVE IS WORKING! I AM NOT ONE OF
THOSE SELLERS WHO WILL EVER SAY "THIS MODEL IS UNTESTED AND AS SUCH IT
IS SOLD IN AS IS CONDITION" OR , "I HAVE NOT TESTED THE WIND-UP
MECHANISM (CLOCK-WORK) AS I DO NOT HAVE A KEY, SO THIS WILL BE SOLD UNTESTED". THIS J HOFLER NR. 400/K TRAIN SET IS FULLY TESTED (AND WORKS PERFECTLY) AND WILL BE FULLY
TESTED ONCE MORE, JUST PRIOR TO SENDING IT OFF. I DO THIS TWICE, JUST
TO MAKE SURE THAT THE FIRST TESTING WAS NOT A FLUKE! I AM SURE WE BOTH
DO NOT WANT ANY ISSUES HERE AND THIS IS ONE EASY STEP TO AVOID ANY!
I
TAKE PRIDE IN MY MODELS THAT I OFFER HERE IN THE E-BAY WORLD. I DO HAVE
OPTIONS AND I CHOOSE TO OFFER ONLY THE VERY FINEST THAT I HAVE
AVAILABLE.
ALL-IN-ALL YOU WILL BE VERY, VERY HARD PRESSED TO LOCATE ANOTHER J HOLFER TRAIN MODEL NR. 400/K THAT LOOKS AS GOOD AS THIS ONE DOES. NOW ADD TO THIS FACT, THAT NOT ONLY IS IT 100% OPERATIONAL, YOU ALSO HAVE THE ORIGINAL BOX WITH THE ORIGINAL INSTRUCTIONS AND NOW YOU HAVE SOMETHING THAT ANY SERIOUS COLLECTOR WOULD ULTIMATELY CHERISH!
ONCE AGAIN, PLEASE TAKE A GOOD LOOK AT THESE PICTURES AND IF YOU HAVE ANY
QUESTIONS OR DESIRE ADDITIONAL PICTURES, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME
VIA E-BAY MESSAGING AND I WILL DO
THE REST!
THIS WORKING VINTAGE, J HOFLER NR. 400/K TRAIN SET
IS AN EXCELLENT
EXAMPLE OF A MODEL AND OF AN ERA THAT HAS LONG PASSED US BY.
THIS
IS A RELATIVELY NEW STORE FOR ME HERE ON E-BAY, BUT, I COME WITH A WELL OILED AND
POLISHED TRACK RECORD! I AM CURRENTLY (NOT ON THIS ACCOUNT ... YET!!) A
GOLD T/RATED POWER~SELLER WITH OVER 6 YEARS OF
THIS STATUS BACKING ME. I SPECIALIZE IN PRIMARILY THE AUTOMOTIVE FIELD
AND I CONCENTRATE WITH/ON PORSCHE, BENTLEY, AUDI AND "PORSCHE DESIGN" ITEMS/ACCESSORIES.
I
HAVE A UPS ACCOUNT AND MOST OF MY OFFERINGS HERE SHALL BE SENT THAT
WAY. I PACK EACH AND EVERY ITEM MYSELF AND DO SO AS IF I WERE RECEIVING
IT. ALL OF MY DOMESTIC SHIPMENTS WILL BE INSURED FOR THE SELLING PRICE. I
ENTER THE SHIPPING DATA DAILY INTO BOTH E-BAY AND PAYPAL. THIS J HOFLER TIN TRAIN SET NUMBER 400/K WILL BE SENT VIA PRIORITY MAIL AND WILL BE FULLY INSURED.
FOR MY INTERNATIONAL SHIPMENTS, I WILL BE PLACING THIS ITEM INTO EBAY’S "GLOBAL SHIPPING PROGRAM (GSP)". UNFORTUNATELY, IN THE PAST I HAVE HAD SOME RUN-IN’S WITH SOME VERY SCRUPULOUS INTERNATIONAL BUYERS, WHO BY THEIR NATURE … "DO NOT PLAY WELL WITH OTHERS". CONSEQUENTLY, I HAVE BEEN FORCED TO USE EBAY’S GSP AS THIS DOES OFFER "WE THE SELLERS" SOME ADDITIONAL PROTECTION FROM THESE FOLKS.
THIS ITEM MUST BE DECLARED FOR IT’S SELLING PRICE. IT IS SIMPLY NOT POSSIBLE TO DECLARE AN ITEM FOR $20.00 AND THEN TURN AROUND AND ATTEMPT TO INSURE IT FOR $400.00! IN ADDITION, VIA THE GSP, THEY (EBAY) AUTOMATICALLY FIGURES OUT THE IMPORT FEE (IF APPLICABLE) AND COLLECTS THIS, SOMETHING I HAVE NO CONTROL OVER.
IF YOU HAVE
ANY PROBLEM WITH THIS, I STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT YOU PASS ON THIS AS I DO
NOT NEED ANOTHER INTERNATIONAL BUYER WHO DOES NOT TAKE THE TIME TO READ
AND UNDERSTAND THIS, BUT, YET TAKES THE TIME TO LEAVE BADLY PLACED
FEEDBACK DUE TO THEIR IGNORANCE!
AS
MENTIONED ABOVE, THIS IS A NEW AREA FOR ME (HERE ON E-BAY) AND I DO TRY
MY BEST TO DO AS GOOD AS I CAN. THIS HAS BECOME A FULL TIME BUSINESS
FOR ME AND I REALLY ENJOY DOING IT. I WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO TILL IT
BECOMES A BURDEN AND I CAN NO LONGER ENJOY IT. I WILL BE ADDING TO THIS
STORE WEEKLY (OR TRYING TO) AND HOPEFULLY YOU WILL SEE THAT I DO EXACTLY
WHAT I SAY AND DO SO IN A VERY TIMELY FASHION.
INTERNATIONAL BUYERS, PLEASE READ THE VERY BOTTOM OF THIS
SECTION AS IT DOES APPLY TO YOU......
THIS WILL BE OFFERED IN THE BUY-IT-NOW FORMAT AND THIS IS A ONE-OF-A-KIND LISTING/OFFERING BY ME AT THIS TIME AND WITH A LITTLE RESEARCH, YOU'LL CONFIRM THE ONLY J HOFLER NR. 400/K LISTED HERE ON EBAY .... WORLDWIDE!
IT
IS MY INTENTION TO LIST AT LEAST ONE NEW MODEL/TOY CAR A DAY UNTIL SUCH
A TIME WHEN I CONSIDER MYSELF BURNT OUT. I HAVE LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF
DIFFERENT MODELS TO CHOOSE FROM. SO IT MIGHT BEHOOVE YOU TO CHECK IN
WITH ME REGULARLY. WHO KNOWS WHEN YOU MIGHT FIND THAT ONE MODEL/TOY THAT
WILL COMPLETE YOUR COLLECTION!
THIS IS WHERE I THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME IN READING ALL OF THE ABOVE.
I
HAVE JUST ADDED THE "STORE" FEATURE THAT E-BAY OFFERS WE SELLERS TO USE
(AT A FEE OF COURSE) AND THIS IS TO ASSIST YOU, THE BUYER, TO VIEW ALL
OF MY OFFERINGS. IN ORDER TO VIEW MY LISTINGS IN A CONCISE AND ORDERLY
FASHION, ALL YOU NEED DO IS TO LOCATE THAT SMALL "RED"
DOOR A TOP THIS PAGE. THIS IS LOCATED JUST BELOW MY SELLERS ID AND
FEEDBACK TALLY. ONCE LOCATED, A SINGLE LEFT CLICK ON IT WILL IN TURN "OPEN" THE VIRTUAL DOOR TO MY STORE HERE ON E-BAY!
IN
ORDER TO STREAMLINE YOUR SEARCH FURTHER, ONCE YOUR IN MY STORE, TO THE
LEFT YOU WILL SEE A "SEARCH" BAR, IF YOU'D LIKE TO SEE JUST MY MODEL
CARS, JUST TYPE IN "MODEL CAR" AND JUST MY LISTED MODEL CARS WILL
POP-UP. ... IF YOU'D LIKE TO SEE SOME LP'S ... YOU GOT IT ... TYPE IN
"ALBUMS" . I THINK YOU GET THE JIST OF THIS NOW!
I HAVE A LIST OF
CATEGORIES THAT WILL ASSIST YOU IN STREAMLINING YOUR SEARCH AS WELL. I
HAVE ADDED A NEW CATEGORY OF "ANTIQUE/VINTAGE TOYS", BE SURE TO CHECK
THIS ONE OUT!
ONCE AGAIN, I THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATIONS ON THIS EVER-SO-LIGHTLY USED, VINTAGE, FULLY WORKING, CLOCKWORK TIN J HOFLER NR. 400/K TRAIN SET WHICH IS STILL IN IT'S ORIGINAL BOX (AND HAS THE ORIGINAL INSTRUCTIONS) AND FOR ANY OTHER CONSIDERATIONS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE GIVEN ME IN THE PAST......
JOE