1920 Whimsical Tin Litho Trikauto F. Strauss Wind-Up Roadster Car Key & Working

Description

Classic Trikauto by Ferdinand Strauss Inc, New York
Tin Litho Wind-Up Roadster Car
Circa 1920 (Happy 100th B-Day!)
Good Original Paint & Driver
& Key
Approx: 8" L x 3.5" W x 4" H, 4 Ounces
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Just Reduced!
Awesome antique Trikauto by Ferdinand Strauss celebrates its 100th Birthday!  Made from Tin with Litho print, original key, paint & driver.  The toy works well, but we always caution buyers to be careful not to over stress these old toys or over wind them.   We only test toys a time or two for listing purposes.
Our research indicates this was made in the 1920's (likely 1920-1922).  At roughly 100 years old, not too many this nice come up for sale.  When they do, many are usually missing the driver, steering wheel or other.  We found a number of news ads from 1920 already featuring this version of the car (not the later circus decorated ones).  This version appears far more rare with original driver and steering wheel.  Car should rate very good to excellent condition.  There is some wear to paint and fading from sun perhaps as shown in pictures but still has a great look.  We noticed the driver had two places of glue (along his back to seat and bottom to seat) keeping him secure in seat, we assume this was added years back to secure driver.   Some of the later versions of the Trikauto have sold up to 0+ and one like ours, but in inferior shape sold for 5 in 2016 on eBay.  We are pricing ours accordingly.
Sources vary slightly on exact details of the Ferdinand Strauss company, but from what we gathered, Strauss was an early pioneer in the mechanical toy industry in the U.S., later being known as "The Founder of the Mechanical Toy industry in America."  Strauss ventured into the toy business somewhere around 1910, primarily importing toys and then moved to making them (particularly after a war embargo prevented German toys from being imported in 1918).  By 1914 he had a number of stores and was well into manufacturing toys.  He hired Louis Marx (another noted early toy maker as collectors know).  Many F. Strauss toys such as the "Santee Claus on Sleigh", "Big Show Circus Wagon, "Tip Top Dump Truck" and many more remain high on collectors lists.  Economic times ended Strauss' short but very productive run as a toy maker in the 1920's (some say early 1920's, others a few years later).  He was bought out by Louis Marx if research sources are correct.  (Note: Ferdinand Strauss was an American toy maker and seller, not to be confused with the Strauss tin toy makers from Germany).
We photographed the car from all sides to allow buyers to determine condition and not rely on our opinion.  You can also use zoom feature on eBay if needed.
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