Bidspirit auction | Mid-20th Century Motorized Tin Ferris

Mid-20th Century Motorized Tin Ferris Wheel Toy - A vintage motorized amusement park toy featuring a tin-plate Ferris wheel structure mounted to a wooden base. The toy is constructed with painted tin lattice towers supported by wire bracing, topped with a green and red striped corrugated roof with a scalloped gold-tone fringe. The central wheel features red-painted spokes and houses four swinging gondolas, three of which contain composition or lead figures including a woman in a yellow dress and a boy in a blue sailor suit. The mechanical assembly includes a large brass toothed gear and pulleys. Power is provided by an external electric motor finished in red paint and mounted to the green-painted wooden platform. The motor housing features raised lettering identifying it as a synchronous motor from The A.W. Haydon Company of Waterbury, Connecticut, U.S.A. The casing lists U.S. patents 2,981,855 and 3,014,141, along with Canadian patent 612,221. Additional technical specifications on the motor include Volts 115, C.P.S. 60, Watts 2.5, and R.P.M. 60. The wiring is currently exposed without a terminal plug. The vertical support tower stands approximately 11.5 inches tall. The toy shows significant signs of age and wear throughout. There is heavy paint loss, chipping, and surface oxidation on the tin lattice supports and the red wheel components (photo 1). The yellow base plate exhibits widespread paint flaking and visible surface rust (photo 3). The composition figures show significant paint loss and craquelure, particularly evident on the woman in the yellow dress (photo 2). The green paint on the wooden base is heavily scuffed, and the underside of the wood shows splintering at the edges and natural knots (photo 5). The mechanical drive belt is missing, and the electrical wiring is stripped at the ends (photo 4). The item is untested and sold as-is.