"Rare" stuff that really doesn't seem to be rare

[Terry Bond]

A while back I wondered here if anyone knew anything about those cast iron Michelin Man tire statues that seem to be turning up all over the place. There are three-four on ebay at any given moment, and I continue to see them in antique shops and flea markets. I'm sure there will be quite a few at Hershey. Prices are all over the place and a lot of people insist they are genuine antiques. I think not! They seem to be created (and finished) to look old but that red rust appearing in places on the iron gives it away. That's a sure sign of a recently made fake.

Now another item seems to have surfaced - a Richfield race car cigarette box made of plaster with a gold/bronze finish on it. I've heard a lot of different stories - executive desk piece, give-away, salesman's item, etc. I've seem them in all kinds of auctions, and again, ebay seems to have three or more listed at any given moment lately. So, doubt it's as "rare" as advertised, and highly suspect they are recent productions in fairly large quantity. Pic attached below. Does anyone know anything about them? Please don't ask me to believe they are all original or that someone just discovered a warehouse full of them.

[Restorer32]

We do business with an Amish foundry. I am amazed at the cast iron "antiques" I sometimes see there. The Amish of course just cast whatever they are presented with, not implying they are involved with faking antiques. Railroad Crossing signs seem to be a big item, always some of them being cast. Can't say I've ever seen any high value antiques being cast but literally dozens and dozens of items you would think no one would bother to fake. Any "antique" cast iron piece is very suspect.