Custom Car Update: Lamley Finds

Lamley Finds: Someone's store returns are another's treasure...

Yeah, returning models to the store that you have had in your possession for a few years is a crappy move. I just don't think that someone opened a box, looked at the models, and vocally expressed their displeasure with how those Hot Wheels were unsatisfactory based on their expectations. You bought them at some point, you should figure out what to do with them. And it should be something other than returning them.

But...

Sometimes returns are the real treasure. Take today. I am traveling, and got into town and had a minute to check a Target near the hotel. I was surprised to see quite a few 2008-2010 Hot Wheels models hanging on the pegs. I took a look at a few, and based on the models that were there (mostly licensed), I decided to dig in.

I checked the pegs and the bin below. By the time I was done, I had put these aside:

Almost all of these are models I have wanted to add to the collection after passing on them when they were actually out, and while I have the R32 Skyline, I wasn't going to leave it. And that Evo! (I think I left another. Should I go back and get it?) And considering these were $.79 each, I think I did pretty well.

And as great as those Hot Wheels finds were, it was the Matchbox pegs that really delivered. I moved down the aisle to the Matchbox section and saw that they too were holding some older models. It was a little treat to flip through the pegs to see what treasures were hidden behind each other. And treasures they were:

Ah, the Golden Age of Matchbox, represented right here at Target. Remember when this was the bulk of what was hanging? I got a little nostalgic to be honest while going through these.

And the cool thing? These were EXACT SAME pegs that inspired the "Mattel, we want Matchbox back" post that I wrote a few weeks ago, and that garnered quite a bit of attention. These magic pegs are really trying to tell us something...

So yeah, returns are wrong. And yeah, returns are awesome. What a fund day of finds.

The Great Super Treasure Hunt Experiment of 2014: A tip from a friend...

My mini-hot streak continues. The last 3-4 weeks have helped my fill in some spots on my quest to find all 15 Super Treasure Hunts in the store, in the middle of the day. Three weeks ago I came across the Super Twin Mill, last week the Chevy Nova Wagon, and this week the '69 Corvette.

The '69 Corvette was found yesterday. In fact, I found two at the same store. This wasn't as unique as my find last week at Alco in the middle of nowhere, but it wasn't a standard Walmart find either.

This came after a tip from a fellow collector. A friend in Arizona, known on HWC as blackb13, posted on a forum I frequent that he had found the '69 Camaro Super at Dollar Tree. That was a bit of a surprise, as Dollar Tree hasn't carried Hot Wheels for at least a couple of years. But it appears they have changed their minds, as from what we have heard, all Dollar Trees are getting either Batch K or M in droves.

After Jason mentioned his find, I figured I would stop by the two Dollar Trees in the town I was visiting on business. The first did have Hot Wheels, but it appeared they had been there for a few days. The second Dollar Tree was bursting at the pegs. Upon walking up I could see two Homers and a regular TH right up front. It was definitely promising.

Peg after peg I went through, knocking my fair share on the ground (which I always put back, I promise), but only a few false hopes occurred when I thought I saw the Vette but it ended up being the mainline. Ultimately I walked away leaving quite a few Homers and reg TH's. Either someone just beat me to the pegs or the cases at that store were void of Supers.

That was Tuesday. Wednesday I drove to another area for meetings, and had a few minutes to kill, so I decided to visit the one Dollar Tree in town. I found the pegs were a lot like the previous Dollar Tree, bursting on every peg, with Homers all around. So once again there was promise.

I was coming up empty after a lot of searching, and was starting to think that I just missed out when the third row from the bottom yielded a purple treat:

A few pics and it was in my hands. I was more than happy to have the one Super, and was ready to leave when I decided to keep looking. Sure enough, on the very last peg I checked, hanging right at the bottom:

Finding a second is nearly as fun as finding the first, but I rarely find two in the same store. That was fun.

A lot of you have commented that I seem to find a lot of these. Of course I have had my share of luck. But it is not as crazy as you think. That is why we are calling it an experiment to see if I can find them all without pallet-raiding overnight or door-warming every morning. Most collectors that do that find Supers, find more than one. I have happily found one here and one there, mostly by hitting rural stores, visiting certain Walmarts with toy managers that like to peg Hot Wheels randomly during the day, or randomly stopping by stores that are not on most collector's routes.

You might notice that I usually find Supers well after they have been released in dump bins at Walmart. That seems to be the key. Don't fret when the batches first hit, just be patient and see what comes later. For example, the N case dump bins are hitting Walmarts around here, and of course when I found one the Supers were long gone. I was happy to walk away with the Zamac Hakosuka Skyline and green Kenmeri. Finding the Impala Super TH will come later. If I am lucky.

Alright, the tally so far:

Chevrolet SS - Found at a rural Walmart at 11:30 am
Sand Blaster - Found at a nearby Walmart around 4:30 pm
Camaro Special Edition - Found at neighboring town Walmart around 3 pm
'71 Mustang Mach 1 - Found on a Saturday afternoon grocery run at Harmon's Market (I found two)
'07 Mustang - no luck
'55 Chevy Bel Air Gasser - no luck
'70 Chevelle SS - Found at two different Walmarts on the same day (one at 10 am, one at 5 pm)
Twin Mill - Found at a rural Walmart at about 3:45 pm
'64 Chevy Nova Wagon - Found at 5 pm at a rural Alco
'83 Silverado - Found at Target at 1 pm
'76 Greenwood Corvette - no luck
'69 Corvette - Found 2 at Dollar Tree around 11:30 am

With the Impala just hitting, I am only missing three. Like I have said before, finding the Gasser and '07 Mustang seems highly unlikely, but I am holding out hope I can find the Greenwood.

We shall see...