Pocher is an Italian toy car brand and former manufacturing company of scale model cars. The company, established by Arnaldo Pocher, was active from 1966 to 2000, and since 2013 the brand name "Pocher"
has been owned and operated by Hornby Railways.
History The early years
Arnaldo Pocher was born in 1911 in Trento, Italy. He trained as a goldsmith engraver and went to work in Turin. In the years following the Second World War he became interested in railway modelling and in 1951 he formed Pocher Micromeccanica S.n.c. alongside Corrado Muratore producing train signals, platforms and points using innovative production techniques. Under a change of name, The Corrado Muratore and Arnaldo Pocher Company, they produced finely detailed freight and passenger carriages in white metal and later locomotives and power cars.
Pocher 1:8 model kits At the International Toy Fair of Milan in 1966, the Pocher stand astonished the world with its detailed 1:8 scale model of the Fiat F2 130HP, the car which won the 1907 French Grand Prix driven by Felice Nazzaro. The model contained 144 high-resistance plastic parts, 173 in brass and 506 in steel, copper, leather, rubber and aluminium. The Company went on to produce ever more detailed models of motoring classics including the 1931–34 Alfa Romeo 2300 Ac Monza, the 1932 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Drophead Sedanca Coupe, the 1932 Alfa Romeo Touring, the Mercedes-Benz 500K/AK containing 2,378 part and then the Rolls-Royce Torpedo Phantom II Convertible with 2,905 parts.
These kits were based on original plans from the manufacturer. Two features present on some models were spoked wire wheels that were assembled spoke by spoke, and engines with working crankshaft and piston assemblies. Assembly was mostly accomplished with threaded fasteners (screws, bolts, nuts) and very little glue. This created finished products that could theoretically be disassembled and repaired or modified. Kits came molded in color and ready painted. Finished preassembled versions were also sold.
In the 1970s Corrado Muratore sold his part of the company to Rivarossi, a bit later Arnaldo Pocher sold his part, too. While Corrado Muratore continued as general manager of Pocher and national sales manager, Arnaldo Pocher left the company.
The product ranges The earlier high piece and high detail kits were referred to as the Classic line. Later a less assembly intensive line appeared which was called the Prestige line of cars. Classic kits were known for their high piece count and incredible detail such as working brake systems, engines with rotating crankshafts and moving pistons, windows that moved up and down, steering that operated, and when a tiny key was inserted into the dashboard the headlights lit up. Classic kits faithfully represented mostly 1930s cars from Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Bugatti, Mercedes-Benz, and Rolls-Royce. Prestige kits were most often die cast metal bodies and contained about 500 parts. They featured working suspension and opening doors and detailed engines. These kits were designed to provide attractive models that could be built with little difficulty. These were mostly of Ferraris such as the Testarossa and F40, along with a few Porsches. A third line existed which was called Pocher Truck. This consisted of two Volvo trucks using the same assembly method as Prestige - mainly press fit parts with superb detailing. Four separate engine kits were produced that featured the engines from Ferrari Testarossa, Ferrari F40, Volvo, and Bugatti. Of these four kits the Bugatti was the most complex as it had a moving crankshaft and pistons.
All model kits in the automobile line were produced in one eighth scale. These cars could be up to long and weigh up to . The aftermarket products produced to support these kits is a small scale industry and the remaining unassembled kits are rare items.Today, they are available through collector channels.
Hornby and Pocher
After the Lima group went into bankruptcy the Pocher brand was bought by Hornby in 2004. In December 2012 Hornby announced the "resurgence of a myth" on the official website of Pocher. An official presentation was held on the Nuremberg International Toy Fair on 30 January 2013. Pocher presented the new 1:8 model kit of the Lamborghini Aventador
.
At Nuremberg 2014 two new models were announced: HK105/6 Lamborghini Huracan and HK107 Ducati Panigale Superbike.
Vestergaard and Pocher In February 2017, while Hornby was in financial crisis and in need of cash, the Danish importer Vestergaard acquired Pocher and its surplus inventory which included about 1600 Ducati kits. A green version of the Pocher Lamborghini Huracan, kit# HK109, was produced and released under Vestergaard ownership of the brand.
Hornby has recently repurchased ownership of the brand. In October 2020, Hornby's interim results stated "With distribution in 27 countries and with plans to launch more new and varied models in the not too distant future, the Pocher legacy of high-quality large-scale model kits will continue." Furthermore, the website and trade mark continue to be registered to Hornby.
Pocher prestige model list
Kit number Maker Model Color K30 Porsche 911 black K31 Porsche 911 "Silver" silver K31 collco24 Porsche 911 "Silver Plated" silver K31 collco24 Porsche 911 "Cabrio" silver K32 collco24 Porsche 911 "Yellow" Yellow K33 collco24 Porsche 911 "Blue" Blue K34 collco24 Porsche 911 "Red" Red K35 collco24 Porsche 911 "Carrera Cup 1994" Racing K51 Ferrari Testarossa Coupe red K52 Ferrari Testarossa Spider white K53 Ferrari Testarossa Coupe "Black Star" black K54 Ferrari Testarossa Spider "Sportster" red K55 Ferrari F40 red K56 Ferrari F40 "Yellow" yellow K57 Ferrari F40 G.T (Dutch prototype) red K58 Ferrari F40 G.T (Italian prototype) red K59 Ferrari Testarossa Coupé Convertible yellow K60 Ferrari F40 "Black Power" black K61 Ferrari Testarossa Spider "Silver Special" Silver K63 Ferrari Testarossa Coupe "Flashlight" yellow
Pocher Hornby model list Kit number Maker Model Color HK100 Lamborghini Aventador Coupe Argos orange (discontinued) HK101 Lamborghini Aventador Coupe Isis white (discontinued) HK102 Lamborghini Aventador Coupe Nero Nemesis Black (available) HK103 Lamborghini Aventador Roadster Blue Monterrey (available) HK104 Lamborghini Aventador Roadster Isis White (available) HK105 Lamborghini Huracan Isis White/Red (available) HK106 Lamborghini Huracan Yellow (available) HK107 Ducati Superbike 1299 Panigale S Red (discontinued)HK109LamborghiniHuracanGreen(available)HK110Ducati1299 Panigale S AnniversarioRed/White/Black(discontinued)HK111Ducati1299 Panigale S "Carbon Edition"Black/Gold/Red(discontinued)HK114Lotus72dBlack(available)HK117Ducati1299 Panigale R Final EditionGreen/White/Red(available)HK118Porsche917K - Gulf EditionBlue/Orange/White(available)HK119LamborghiniAventador LP 700-4 Giallo OrionYellow(available)HK121LamborghiniAventador LP700-4 Roadster Nero NemesisMatte Black(Unknown - eBay only?)
Pocher Classic model list Kit number Maker Model Colour Wheel Type Like Model K70 Fiat Grand prix de France red Hard Plastic Spokes K71 Alfa Romeo 8c 2300 Monza red Spokes K72 Rolls-Royce Sedanca Coupé Phantom II black-blue Spokes K73 Alfa Romeo Spider Touring Gran Sport cream-blue Spokes K74 Mercedes-Benz 500K/AK Cabriolet black Spokes K93 K75 Rolls-Royce Torpedo Phantom II Convertible silver – orange Spokes K76 Bugatti 50T black – yellow Plastic K77 Fiat F-2 Racer black – red Plastic K88 K78 Alfa Romeo 8c 2300 Monza "Muletto" white Spokes K80 Mercedes-Benz 500K "Sport Roadster" red Spokes K81 Alfa Romeo 8C 2600 "Mille Miglia-Scuderia Ferrari" red Spokes K82 Mercedes-Benz 540K "Cabrio Special" white Spokes K94 K83 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Ambassador green Spokes K84 Bugatti 50 T Coupe de ville blue-silver Plastic K85 Mercedes-Benz 540K "Classic Roadster" red Spokes K86 Bugatti 50T Surprofilé black-red Plastic K88 Fiat F-2 Racer black- red Hard Plastic Spokes K77 K89 Alfa Romeo 8c 2300 Coupé Elegant black-white Spokes K90 Mercedes-Benz 540K "Rumble Seat" maroon Spokes K95 K91 Mercedes-Benz 540K "True Roadster" cream-brown Plastic K92 Alfa Romeo "Dinner Jacket" black Plastic K93 Mercedes-Benz 500K/AK Cabriolet black Plastic K74 K94 Mercedes-Benz 540K Cabrio Special white Plastic K82 K95 Mercedes-Benz 540K "Rumble Seat" maroon Plastic K90
Pocher truck model list Kit number Maker Model Color K79 Volvo F-12 Turbo Truck red K87 Volvo F-16 Globetrotter black
Pocher engine model list Kit number Maker Model KM51 Ferrari Testarossa KM55 Ferrari F-40 KM76 Bugatti T50 KM87 Volvo Truck
Further reading Giorgio Giuliani, La storia dei treni Rivarossi: sessanta anni di modellismo ferroviario in Italia, Università di Bologna, Facoltà di Lettere e Filosofia, 2008 Michele Lomolino, Catalogo guida al modellismo ferroviario di Arnaldo Pocher, Palermo, Edizioni ML, 1984 Edoardo Massucci, Quei giorni in cui facemmo la Pocher, da ACI News, n.4 Ottobre 2003 Additional historical information can be found in: A Short History of Pocher-Rivarossi by Unknown, previous to February 6, 2009. Additional historical information can be found in this forum post: Porcher - Aventador 1:8 build by AMG., 23 April 2014.
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