The Maltese Falcon Stands Again

 It's good to see many hobbyists appreciating vintage "custom" model horses these days. 

Sometimes, however, these pieces of model horse hobby history need help because of their age. Their custom paint jobs become scratched or flaked away; filler shrinks over time; "hair" manes and tails need to be replaced. And sometimes limbs are lost and need to be restored.

Such was the case of a vintage Hagen-Renaker "Lippet" Morgan stallion that came from the estate of my friend Linda (Kelly) Myron.  In the late 1970s Linda painted him black with acrylics. Either Linda or Nancy Strowger added fine details to his face and eyes. Linda called him The Maltese Falcon, and for several years he graced the tables at Valley of the Sun Model Horse Association (ValSun) live shows in the Phoenix, Arizona area. And always, he was an important part of Linda's collection.

(Yes, we used to customize Hagen-Renakers back then. The adult Designers Workshop horses, about 7" tall at the ears, only cost $3 to $4 at retail stores, so when we found one that had rather plain factory paint and shading, it was a candidate for being customized.) 

But the years were not kind to Falcon. Over time, perhaps during Linda's move from Phoenix to Galesburg, Illinois, his legs were broken; another leg went missing; he had lost his right eyeball somewhere along the way.

But even though he could no longer stand on a shelf next to her other models, Linda kept her beloved old friend. 

When Linda passed away, she left me several of her model horses including Falcon. And my friend Sheryl Leisure was able to come to Falcon's rescue. She gave him a new hind leg and restored his other damage, including a new eye with a paint style to match the original work.

I couldn't be more pleased with the way he turned out. I'm grateful to Sheryl for restoring him so well, and of course to Linda for giving me the honor of making a home for her dear old Falcon. 

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Note: Sheryl has suspended her restoration service in favor of her main work of customizing model horses. You can find more information on her work at the Horse Power Graphics site:  http://www.horse-powergraphics.com/Default.asp?fbclid=IwAR0SfxhI-HKXBucVpZEtBvbXD2Lble8nVsMTvpUB7VAbyidjl1xNtNRDcs4