I collect many things.  One could argue that I’m an organized hoarder of collectibles.  I have always been of the opinion that I needed the complete set, or one of each variation of anything I collected. 

Around 2011, as things began to pile up around me, I made the decision that I should start collecting something that was extremely difficult to find.  My thought was that if they were difficult to locate, I couldn’t possibly be overloaded with a multitude of whatever the specific collectible may be.  Not long after that, I attended a local auction and purchased a box of approximately 8-10 pull toys.  I paid $5 each for the toys so approximately $40-$50 for the box. 

Upon arriving home, I started digging through the box. There were three Ted Toy-lers and four Hustler Toys in the box, along with a few others.  Intrigued, the following day I started to research Ted Toys.  I only found a few references and one website that mentioned them.  The website was All About Old Toys (www.oldwoodtoys.com) so I contacted Jim Sneed and we spoke on the phone.  It has been several years, but the gist of the conversation was that Jim’s wife, Judy, was an avid collector for years.  Over time, she became frustrated with the difficulty of locating Ted toys she wished to add to her personal collection.  She eventually sold the bulk of Judy’s  collection, but still had 8-10 of them.  Jim also had many projects and parts as he repairs toys for others. 

Based upon our conversation, I knew that I had found the collectible I wanted.  I bought Judy’s remaining inventory, along with many parts and projects.  Overnight I had a small collection of approximately one dozen Teds. 

I began to scour the internet searching for Teds.  I made flyers and left them at every antique mall I encountered.  I added 5-6 toys over the course of the next few months.  I also flooded the internet with information and pictures.  If you search for information on Ted Toys now, it’s very likely you will see toys that I own, many of which were once owned by Judy.  Jim’s site still remains the ultimate authority on the types of toys in which I collect. 

Randomly, I purchased a Ted Toy Jockey on eBay.  I contacted the seller and asked him if he had any others.  He said no but mentioned that he had sold several to a collector over time.  I asked him to put me in contact with him.  The collector contacted me.  Coincidentally, he had purchased quite a few of his Teds from Judy’s collection.  I purchased his entire Ted collection.  He and I are friends and message often about Teds and other wooden toy companies. 

As my frustration in locating additional Teds began to mount, I decided to start collecting Hustler and Rich toys as well.  I found a major collector and purchased a majority of his Hustler and Rich collection, along with a few Teds.  So now I was collecting three companies. 

Not long after that, I won an original Ted Sailor box on eBay.  The backup bidder wished to talk to me so I contacted him.  He was a major collector of wooden toys.  He became my toy mentor and I learned volumes of information from him.  He sold me any doubles he had, which were many.  He also provided Jim with quite a bit of toy information which is now on his site.

He and I spoke many times of the next dozen years.  He was always very nice and took time away from his busy schedule to answer any questions I had. He has since passed away and is sorely missed by all that knew him.  I will be forever grateful for his friendship and the information he shared with me.

I also met two other people that repair toys, besides Jim.  As they are in the business I will mention their names.  Randy Ibey at Randy’s Toy Shop and Kevin McGuire at Playful Plans.  Each has their own area of expertise and I highly recommend both of them should you need to repair an old toy.

I continue to add needed Teds, Hustler, and Rich toys I need as I locate them. I also added Buck-a-roo, Toy Tinkers, Newton & Thompson, Go-Toys, Wilson Walkies, Cass, All Fair, Gibbs, Gropper, Gong Bell, Fun-e-Flex, Kohner, Joy Toy, and National toys: along with a few others. 

What started as an attempt to reduce the volume of collectibles I obtained, evolved into a major collection due to countless hours of research, innumerable hours of searching, and the kindness of a select group of like minded collectors in which I am now fortunate enough to consider friends.

Happy hunting. 

Steve Mayo

Hustler Beads