Newest Addition to DFW Elite Toy Museum.com Makes the Grade

November 11, 2008 – Dallas, TX – DFW Elite Toy Museum.com is home to some 3,000 unique toys and miniature cars, but the latest addition to the museum’s collection could have paved the way for the others.

The 22-inch long Adams Road King leaning wheel grader, a scale model road grader, is a salesman’s sample that was used to demonstrate how the full-sized road grader worked. Pulled by horses or oxen, the full-sized Road King featured a manually operated blade that smoothed and flattened the surface of unpaved roads. The Adams Road King could also be used as a snowplow.

J.D. Adams & Co. was the first to make a road grader with leaning wheels. Invented by the company’s founder, the leaning wheel grader was better than competitive graders because it could keep its blades level on uneven terrain. Eventually, the Adams design became the industry standard.

“The Road King is a unique addition to our collection,” says Rodney Ross, curator at the Toy Museum. “Adams made the Road King from 1896 until 1922, so to find a scale model – particularly one in such fine condition – is rare.” The model grader has the original brass plaques, which indicate it was made by J.D. Adams & Co. of Indianapolis. The museum purchased the model with its original leather carry case.

“The detail of the Adams road grader model is phenomenal.” Ross says. “All of the levers and gears work, and the front blade is faithful to the original right down to the tines for breaking dry soil.”

The Museum purchased the grader at an auction in mid-2008. The grader had gained some attention on television two years earlier when it was featured on Antiques Roadshow. At the time the program aired, the show’s antique experts estimated the grader’s value to be between $6,000 and $8,000.

“There are very few of these Road King models left, and I feel fortunate that we were able to add this one to our collection,” Ross says. “Fans of construction models are sure to appreciate the Road King.”

See the Adams Road King leaning wheel grader – along with other rare and antique toy cars – at the Toy Museum at 5940 Eden in Fort Worth. Hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, with weekend hours by appointment. In Fort Worth, call 817.838. RENT (7368); in Dallas call 214.247.4700. For more information, visit them online at http://www.dfwelitecarclub.com.

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