The largest USA/Canada sets of the 20th Century...

[LEGO Historian]

These sets are so rare, that they are likely unknown to all USA/Canada LEGO collectors. They were likely produced from circa 1963-65, and are among the earliest institutional LEGO sets.

The sets are the 750 and 7100 Educational Sets of the mid 1960s. These were

Samsonite LEGO sets, and likely produced at the Stratford Ontario and Loveland

Colorado Samsonite plants.

The 7100 set is the largest volume LEGO box of all time (including any of the

mega-sets of today). It is an enormous 3,250 piece wooden box set, that sold

for $100 in the USA (less if you were an institution), likely about $110 in

Canada.

I know of only 1 example of this very rare set. There are none of these in the

Vault in Billund Denmark. Infact TLG has no records of this set, which is not

really that unusual, since what Samsonite did in their USA and Canada subsidiaries

was often unknown to Billund.

Here is the very very rare 3,250 piece 7100 set....

And until recently, the 750 set was totally unknown, except being mentioned as a

$50 set in mid 1960s Samsonite LEGO retailer reorder catalogs. I finally found

an image from a Canadian 1960s LEGO Junior Designers Club brochure. And wouldn't

you know... it had the same look as the 7100 set, just smaller....

This 750 set is unknown in any collection, and would command a steep price (as

would another 7100 set). The 750 set likely contains about 1500-1600 parts, and

cost $50 in the USA, and likely $55 in Canada back in the mid 1960s.

Here is a copy of the fall 1965 Samsonite USA Retailer Order form (with the set

numbers as the black numbers within the "Stock Number" area:

These same sets were sold in Canada (at a little higher price), and for both

countries, this sheet shows the transition between the early 1960s Town Plan

sets and the later 1960s Samsonite LEGO sets where the set number equals the

parts count (as seen below the heavy black line in the left part of the order

form). I enjoy finding images of old order forms or retailer catalogs... they

provide a snapshot of LEGO at an exact moment in time.

And until I came across that Canadian brochure with that 750 set as a contest

prize... I had never even seen an image of one...

Enjoy!

Gary Istok

P.S. These very rare wooden box sets can be found (with 80+ other LEGO wooden

box sets) in Chapter 15 of my 2,800 page 73 chapter LEGO DVD download (found in

the Bazaar here). Only about 10 wooden box sets are found in any online

database).

Edited December 3, 2012 by LEGO Historian

[LEGO Historian]

Also... on that previous order form there is a "MINIATURE CAR ASST" with number "472".... for $54.

Having a sealed one of these would likely be the most valuable LEGO item of all time (ignore that gold 2x4 brick on EBAY, it's not worth 5 digits).

What this 472 item is, is a cardboard retailer box of 72 1:87 LEGO Vehicles from circa 1962-66 that came in small plastic garages. These boxes are unknown to us... none has so far ever been found... and it's likely something that may never be found.

In Europe TLG sold these 1:87 vehicles in plastic garages (with clear sides/top/back, and 99% of the time with gray base and door) with a Banderole around them.... in boxes of 5, as seen here...

Depending on the color of the vehicles inside (some are rarer than others), this box of 5 could sell for maybe $700-$1000.

Now imagine a box of 72 of these vehicles... as sold to USA/Canada retailers!! You're talking $10,000-$12,000!!!

But like I said... none have ever been found... and I doubt one ever will...

But you never know!!

Chapter 36 of my LEGO DVD/download has over 60 pages of rare and even unique 1:87 cars and trucks... the most valuable of all LEGO items.... (an Opel Kapitän in red, yellow or orange would alone fetch $4000+).

Edited December 3, 2012 by LEGO Historian

[LEGO Historian]

One of the earliest suitcase sets was not an Educational set, but a USA Samsonite carrying case that was known as the "Loveland Carrying Case".... named after Loveland Colorado... (outside of Denver, the Samsonite HQ) where Samsonite's LEGO products for the USA were produced (starting in 1965).

This 1965 introduced carrying case was NOT a true LEGO product... but because it was used filled with LEGO parts under several different numbers (including some Kraft Velveeta USA promotional sets in the late 1960s), it is included as a LEGO item (also found in my DVD/download).

For some odd reason.... Eurobricks had a hiccup and I was editing the previous post and it deleted the first half...

Anyway Fugazi, the 7100 set was also indeed a circa 1977-83 Canadian set.... TLG liked to reuse set numbers back in the 1960s and 1970s... so this 7100 Educational set was a Canada only Samsonite luggage set of 1440 parts. There was also a 7110 refill box for this set....

[Fugazi]

For some odd reason.... Eurobricks had a hiccup and I was editing the previous post and it deleted the first half...

Anyway Fugazi, the 7100 set was also indeed a circa 1977-83 Canadian set.... TLG liked to reuse set numbers back in the 1960s and 1970s... so this 7100 Educational set was a Canada only Samsonite luggage set of 1440 parts. There was also a 7110 refill box for this set....

Yes, this is what I had in mind! I had no idea there had been a "predecessor" to this set with different content and packaging, but same set number. One learns every day!