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The Schuco company was founded in 1912 by Heinrich Muller and Herr Schreyer in the town of Nuremberg, Germany. It was later called Schreyer and Co. and adopted the name "Schuco" as its trademark. There innovative designs soon found many customers in pre-war Germany and when the wind-up model of the legendary Mercedes Silver Arrow was produced, sometime around 1922, the production surpassed 8000 pcs. A DAY ! "Schuco" toy autos (although Schuco made many toy types my intrest lies primarily in the autos) are noted for there ingenious mechanisms made in the 1930s through the 1950s. These autos are clearly marked on the bottom with there trademark, model number and either "Made in Germany" (Pre World War II) or "Made in U.S. Zone Germany" (Post War). To me, the cars are just great looking, fun to play with and now there like A little piece of history The war naturally halted the production sometime around 1941 from what I've seen and read. I beleave the "Schuco" trademark, more or less like we know it today, was issued in 1938. So as I see it the Pre WWII models are marked "Schuco" and "Made in Germany". These would be the first Schucos, and thay would have been made between 1938 and 1941 (Right ?). Models made for A few years after the war, from 1946 till 1951-54 (and maybe into the 60's or 70's, I'm just not sure) are marked "Made in U.S. Zone Germany". Models after that are marked "Made in Western (or West) Germany", according to the history books "U.S. Zone Germany" became "Western Germany" in 1954. The "Made in Western Germany" marking I've seen on A 1990 model Schuco, the seller claimed it was made by GAMA. Thay may have (or maybe not) stopped useing "Made in Western Germany" after the fall of the berlin wall, and from what I have heard thay are now back to marking them "Made in Germany". In 1952 a new 130,000 sqft. facility was built in the Further Strasse in Nuremberg. Gradually, a change was made and the company ventured into diecast models with the introduction of the Piccolo series while still upholding its backbone of wind-up tintoys. and in 1962 the company sold its 100.000.000st. toy. However, the fall came as fast as the rise: the years 1966-67 saw a dramatic fall in sales and the tintoy production had to be given up. The attempt to change to plastic and diecast came too late. The end of the tintoy era was also the end of Schuco as the company went out of business in 1976. The name (or trademark, Schuco), however, was kept alive and after a short merger with Gama, the facilities were merged with Trix which as I understand it, were both owned by the same people. The trademark was bought and transfered down through the last 40 or so years. Sometime around 1996 the company (trademark) again surfaced. The trademark "Shuco" still lives on today, but I'm not sure who owns it or who makes them (Lillput maybe ?). There is none the less A "Shuco 2000" line of toys, some or all of which are reissues of past models. The one reissue I have seen had no "Made in" markings on the bottom.
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