Benbros Qualitoys
224 Articulated Petrol Tanker

Dating from 1947 as one of the original Timpo Toys models, Benbros re-issued the Articulated Tanker without change except to the wheels. Timpo did not include id. on either the cab or trailer so there was nothing to blank out. Benbros called it 'Articulator Petrol Lorry'.

The cab was the same as that used on other articulated Qualitoy models and could be coloured red, green or orange. On early variations there was no silver trim added but later models were finished with silver on the front grille, bumper, and sometimes on the headlights.

The tanker trailer was a solid one-piece hollow casting painted inside and out onto which the axle was directly clipped. An internal cylinder at the front provided the coupling method.

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As with the other ex-Timpo articulated models, Benbros created three types of wheels for the Petrol Tanker. The first was a plain and rather flimsy design of thin metal with only a rim of treaded 'tyres', the whole wheel being painted gloss black on both sides. The second wheel type was hollow-cast and much wider and stronger incorporating an 8-bolt central design. These were painted black on the outside only.

The third wheel type was a metal hub with a black rubber tyre. A 6-bolt design was cast on the outside of the hub but the inside was flat and undecorated. Bright colours were used to paint the outside of the wheels, red, yellow, blue, green or orange. The colours of the cab and trailer wheels were often not the same.

Benbros produced several colour variations of the trailer, most with added decals. The green variations seem to have been unadorned but the red trailers had either 'United Dairies' or 'Shell' decals, and the yellow and metallic green trailers carried an 'Esso' decal. There was only one decal applied to each model and it was usually put on the left side of the trailer. 

The Articluated Petrol Tanker shared two types of multi-model boxes, the first a yellow box with various models illustrated with names and numbers (the only reference there is of numbers), and the second one a box with large pictures on all sides. Both boxes had the Benbros Qualitoys 'crest' on red end-flaps and at one end a blank panel for the model name to be added.

The Articulated Tanker is quite scarce and good examples with undamaged decals are rare. 

Variation 1: Green cab (black 8-bolt pmw), red trailer (black plain pmw), 'United Dairies' decal

Benbros Qualitoys 224 Articulated Petrol Lorry

Variations

All models were sold in multi-model 'Qualitoy' boxes

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1)  GREEN cab                   RED trailer                            'UNITED DAIRIES' decal    BLACK pmw

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2)  RED cab                        GREEN trailer                       NO decal                             BLACK 8-bolt pmw

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3)  GREEN cab                   RED trailer                            'UNITED DAIRIES' decal    coloured 6-bolt pmw/tyres

4)  RED or ORANGE cab   PALE-GREEN trailer             NO decal                             coloured 6-bolt pmw/tyres

5)  RED or ORANGE cab   YELLOW trailer                     'ESSO' decal                       coloured 6-bolt pmw/tyres

6)  RED cab                        METALLIC GREEN trailer    'ESSO' decal                        coloured 6-bolt pmw/tyres

7)  GREEN cab                   RED trailer                            'SHELL' decal                      coloured 6-bolt pmw/tyres

Variation 2: Red cab, green trailer, no decals, 8-bolt pmw

Variation 4: Orange cab, pale-green trailer, no decal, coloured 6-bolt pmw, type 2 box

Variation 5: Red cab, yellow trailer, 'Esso' decal, 6-bolt pmw

photos David Elliott

Variation 6: Red cab, metallic green trailer, 'Esso' decal, 6-bolt pmw

Variation 6 with type 2 box showing id.stamp on end-flap