Sieper Lüdenscheid GmbH & Co. KG, mostly known by its trade name Siku, is a German manufacturer of scale models headquartered in Lüdenscheid. Some of the products sold by Siku are model cars, figurines, model aircraft, model commercial vehicles, and model agricultural machinery. Traditionally, production was centered in Lüdenscheid, but diecast models are now made in China, the Philippines, Poland, Taiwan and Vietnam.

History

Founded in 1921, Sieper-Werke (Sieper Works) was originally a manufacturer of metal tools and cutlery in zamak and aluminium; later on, it also made ashtrays, badges, medals, belt buckles, and buttons.

Sieper-Werke also experimented with early plastics. In 1943, it expanded to a facility in Hilchenbach, about from Lüdenscheid (though the latter remained Sieper-Werke's headquarters), in which products like plastics, furniture, mirrors, and cabinets were developed and manufactured. Its Lüdenscheid operations generally focused on promotional items for major brands, such as the 'elephant shoe' and 'Zeller black cat', which were injection-moulded.

It was not until 1950 that the company started producing toys in Lüdenscheid, registering the "Siku" trademark for the new products. The name originates from abbreviating the name of the founder of the company, Richard Sieper, and the German word for plastic, Kunststoffe (i.e. Sieper Plastics). Originally, there were a broad variety of Siku toys which at first were plastic, including figures and animals. These were often called 'margarine figures' because they came in margarine packages as a food promotion. According to an archive of the official Siku website in 1998 (December 6, 1998 on archive.com), it is highly likely that production at that time took place at "Industriestr. 1-3, 12099 Berlin-Tempelhof-Schöneberg".

Model series

Siku's primary offering is the 1:55 scale "Super Series" line of model vehicles, which can be seen as roughly equivalent to Matchbox vehicles. The company also owns the well known HO scale manufacturer Wiking Modellbau.

V-Series

Plastic models

In 1955, the first dedicated line of vehicles, the V-Series (V for "Verkehrsmodelle" or "Traffic Models"), was produced. It consisted of plastic replicas of actual vehicles in a uniform 1:60 scale. Colors were often dull and rather pastel. Vehicles were well-proportioned and detailed, like the Magirus fire truck with a whole series of ladders, a very detailed electric street car, or some figures like the drivers in the Mercedes 190, Porsche 550 Spyder, or Karmann Ghia convertibles. One particularly sharply detailed model was V228, an all-plastic Willys Jeep with trailer, which featured a detailed driver and folding windshield.

Most vehicles did not have interiors, with the exception of convertibles or the double-decker bus. Some of the Mercedes-Benzes even had hood ornaments.

Most V-series vehicles came packaged in cardboard boxes bearing the words "Siku-Flitzer" ("Siku Speedster"), with vehicles illustrated on opposite panels. Different colors were also shown on the opposite panels; some boxes were blue and red, some green and yellow, and others orange and cream. The style was somewhat reminiscent of early Solido boxes. This packaging was used until rather late and seemed rustic compared to other companies' use of modern clear blister packs, which had become dominant by this time (even being used by Matchbox). For some time, the illustrations of the vehicles on the boxes were bathed in a yellow light from the round sun-like Siku logo.

One notable example was a Ford F-500 flatbed "dually" truck made in the mid-1960s. Proportions were realistic and colors were authentic-looking. The grille was also authentically detailed with jeweled headlights. The wheels were done in a utilitarian black, detailed, but with no chrome. One model offered a dark green body, brown interior, and a red metal chassis. As of 2010, Siku does not export toys to the United States due to conflicts with the 2008 Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). However, in Canada, Siku vehicles are sold by Mastermind Toys.

Collection and vintage value

The V-Series and the Super Series have recently been highly sought among collectors. The manufacturing quality of the models is significantly higher than average, and the price of individual models is higher as well. Today, new models still retain their quality similar to older Matchbox, Dinky and Corgi of decades past. For example, Siku wheels are more sculpted and detailed. Tires are separated from wheels and made of rubber, while other brands (e.g. Hot Wheels) usually have wheels as single plastic pieces.

See also

  • Model cars
  • Die-cast toy

References

  • siku-database Siku Database (formerly known as Sikumodels.com), a Siku Database with pictures and details per model
  • The Siku Super Site—A collector's page with Siku model history and database
  • Siku-digitaal.nl, Official website of the independent dutch Siku-newsletter 'Siku in de 12 provincies'
  • A Siku gallery