Category:Rosebud Kitmaster Ltd

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Toy Brands and Manufacturers

Rosebud Kitmaster logo.jpg

Rosebud Kitmaster Ltd

1959 - 1962

Rosebud Kitmaster Ltd represented Nene Plastics' (of Rosebud Dolls) brief foray into the plastic model construction kits market. Despite the very high quality of the kits, and a healthy (and presumably expensive) advertising campaign, the short-lived offshoot company didn't do as well as hoped, and sold its moulds on to Airfix.

The first twelve kits were all locomotives, with "coach" kits 13-15 added in early 1960.

Box artwork for the "Harrow" Schools Class locomotive, Rosebud Kitmaster No.5
Box artwork for "Biggin Hill" Battle of Britain Class locomotive BR 34057, Rosebud Kitmaster No.11


Accessories

At least one of the coaches could be motorised with a special add-in motorised bogie, and a Kitmaster goods loco could be pushed around the track by a sneakily motorised freight van.

There was also a range of PECO-produced cut-out card interiors for carriages.

Closedown

In 1962 the company tried to find a new market with a model of the Ariel Arrow motorcycle, numbered 60 to allow any further railway products to have continuous numbering. This seems to have been released by Kitmaster just before the company went under, and was the first kit that Airfix reissued. There also seem to have been plans to release a model of the Gerry Anderson Fireball XL5 spaceship, which was never released as a commercial model, but apparently produced by Airfix as a promotional model for breakfast cereals.

Scale

Most of the range was 00/H0, but there were also five items scaled for TT model railways, a rebuilt "Royal Scot" locomotive and four coaches. The Ariel Arrow motorcycle kit was 1:16-scale.

Product range (drawn from Meccano Magazine/Hobbies)

  • No.1 "Rocket"
  • No.2 Diesel Electric Shunter
  • No.3 Early American "General"
  • No.4 Coronation Class
  • No.5 Schools Class "Harrow"
  • No.6 Saddle Tank
  • No.7 Prairie Tank
  • No.8 Italian Tank
  • No.9 Stirling 8ft Single
  • No.10 Deltic Diesel
  • No.11 Battle of Britain Class "Biggin Hill"
  • No.12 Giant Swiss Crocodile
  • No.13 Corridor Composite Coach
  • No.14 Corridor Second Coach
  • No.15 Corridor Brake Second Coach
  • No.16 TT3 Rebuilt "Royal Scot"
  • No.17 TT3 Corridor Brake Second Coach
  • No.18 TT3 Corridor Composite Coach
  • No.19 German Baureihe 23
  • No.20 TT3 Corridor Second Coach
  • No.21 TT3 Restaurant First Coach
  • No.22 B.R. Class 92000
  • No.24 City of Truro
  • No.25 Beyer Garratt
  • No.26 E.R. Saddle Tank Class J.94
  • No.27 German Coach Type B4yge
  • No.28 B.R. Standard Restaurant 1st
  • No.29 French Coach Type A.9 Myfi/1958
  • No.30 B.R "Mogul" Class 7600
  • No.31 Midland Pullman Power Car (blue)
  • No.32 Midland Pullman Kitchen Car (blue)
  • No.33 Midland Pullman Parlour Car (blue)
  • No.34 New York Central Hudson Type J3a
  • No.35 S.R. Tank Class USA
  • No.36 apparently never released, Flying Scotsman
  • No.37 Canadian National Railways Type U-4-A

Motors:

  • No.KM1 Coach Electric Motor Bogies – for Kit No.15
  • No.KM2 Electric Motorised Box Wagon – for Kitmaster Freight Engines

Miscellaneous

  • No.60 Ariel Arrow Motorcycle

Peco Interior Kits

"A colourful card you can cut out to give a realistic interior finish to your Coach"

  • No.13 (for Coach 13) Corridor Composite
  • No.14 (for Coach 14) Corridor Second
  • No.14SO (for Coach 14) Open Corridor Second
  • No.15 (for Coach 15) Corridor Brake Second
Interior Kit for Kitmaster Coach No.15, PECO


Lineart

Advertising

Kitmaster's heady arc can be traced from the advertising in Meccano Magazine between April 1959 and December 1960, where the company had a series of fifteen mostly full-page adverts announcing what was new that month.

April 1959 *
No.1 Stephenson's "Rocket", No.2 Diesel Electric locomotive, No.3 Early American "General" locomotive, No.5 Schools Class "Harrow" locomotive

AT LAST! Plastic Scale Model RAILWAY KITS Authentic Models with Moving Parts Can be used on 00 and H0 Gauge Tracks Brand-New! Exciting! Just what you've always wanted! Assemble these thrilling new 'Kitmaster' railway kits yourself ... you'll get hours of pleasure and satisfaction. No ordinary models these. They move ... are built to scale ... finely detailed – look just like the real thing.

That's why you get that professional finish every time with all 'Kitmaster' models. Start your collection now ... you'll find plenty of thrills and fun with these authentic new 'Kitmaster' plastic scale models.

  • A fresh, new model is coming out every month
  • Step by step instructions, coloured leaflet and transfers included
  • Special plastic cement is enclosed for a rigid, lasting fit
  • Supplied in all good model shops and toy shops.

Get yours today!

May 1959 *
No.6 Saddle Tank locomotive, "First used on the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway in 1891, this unique old dock shunter has its water tank saddled over the top of the boiler."
September 1959 (half-page) *
No.9 Stirling 8-Foot Single
October 1959 (half-page) *
No.7 London Suburban area "Prairie" Tank Locomotive
November 1959 (half-page) *
No.4 Coronation Class locomotive
December 1959 (half-page) *
No.8 Italian Tank locomotive
January 1960 *
No.10 Deltic Diesel "Ten models to make!"
February 1960 *
No.11 Battle of Britain Class "Biggin Hill" locomotive, "RUSH TO BUY"
March 1960 *
No.12 Giant Swiss Crocodile pantograph locomotive
April 1960 *
"The first KITMASTER COACHES", No.13, No.14, No.15
May 1960 *
No.16 TT3 Rebuilt Royal Scot locomotive, "TT3 Models Are Here!"
June 1960 *
TT-scale coaches No.17 and No.18
July 1960 *
No 19 German "Baureihe" locomotive, "Locomotive Realism"
August 1960 *
TT-scale coaches No.20 and No.21
September 1960 *
No.22 Last of the BR Steam Locomotives: 92000 Class "Evening Star"
October 1960 *
No.23 French 241P Mountain, "Mistral Express"
November 1960 *
No.24 1903 GWR "City of Truro locomotive
December 1960 *
No.22 Evening Star (again)

External links


Media in category ‘Rosebud Kitmaster Ltd’

The following 39 files are in this category, out of 39 total.