Not that long ago, a collector could go to Ebay and find a reasonably priced Tonka toy. No more it seems! A quick search for Tonka on Ebay today results in ridiculously overpriced toys…seriously overpriced. Why is this happening? There appears to be a…

When it comes to “hydraulic”, Tonka did take liberty with the term. A true hydraulic cylinder will be filled oil whereas Tonka used a spring. This is why a Tonka dump truck will “pop” when the piston is released. A true hydraulic piston will…

More often than not when you see a Tonka Pink Jeep for sale, the description will have a reference to Elvis and one or both of his movies, “Blue Hawaii” and/or “Fun in Acapulco”. While there is a vague connection to one of the…

Tonka design changed throughout the years. Starting with the cab over engine (COE) in the late 40’s, early 50’s…to the round fender shape of the mid 50’s…to the square fender models of the late 50’s, early 60’s…to the gas turbine…Mighty and so on. It…

This is subjective and depends on the collector. For me personally, I don’t believe that it does. You will have collectors that prefer toys with the patina of age. However, to reach the wider audience, I would have to say that, the closer a…