Other stories in the Aug. TT&C 2012 are:
• First Gear 20 Years of Innovation, Resourcefulness and Quality Replicas by Mark Macreading
• Riessen's DC Toy Trucks by Fred Hendricks
• ATHS Show Report by Mark Macreading

What started in a garage 10 years ago, now fills a 3,500-square-foot warehouse with die-cast models shipping to more than 60 countries around the world.  
It all started when Jeff Silver, now 48, was approached to have a replica done of a Sysco truck. He knew a lot about die-cast models because he had been collecting them since his teen years.
In fact, he still has his first piece—a Dinky Wayne school bus—just like the one he rode to school every day in Montreal, where he grew up.
“I gave $25 for it, and that was a lot of money for a kid,” he said. He still has that piece in addition to several thousand more, consisting of other buses because he was a tour bus driver two summers during college, fire trucks because he was a volunteer firefighter for 14 years and trucks just because he loves them.
With his wealth of knowledge about die-cast and the collecting industry, he started Awesome Diecast LLC in November 2002.
“To date, we have produced more than 60 different DCP, Tonkin Replicas, Liberty Classics, SpecCast and First Gear models,” he said.
Besides American manufacturers, Awesome Diecast also carries a wide variety of foreign trucks: Tekno from Holland, Hachette from France, Premium ClassiXXs and Siku from Germany, DIP Models from Russia and Cooee Collectibles from Australia, among others. 
“The idea is to offer a wider variety of items that are a little more unique than most distributors,” Silver said. Altogether, he stocks trucks, buses, police cars and motorcycles, military vehicles, farm and construction equipment, ambulances, automobiles and airplanes.
 He travels each February to Nuremburg, Germany, to attend the International Toy Fair—the largest toy show in the world. “If I didn’t always come back with something new to sell,” he said, “I wouldn’t bother going.”
Silver has also attended the National Toy Truck ’N Construction Show in Indianapolis for the past five years. “We ship several hundred pieces there for the show,” he said.  
From the beginning, Silver’s focus has been on building a relationship with customers through great customer service. “We really try to get to know our customers. People call me personally, and they’re as passionate as I am about the die-cast industry.”
Georgeanna Rhodes, 63, and her husband, Paul Walters, 61, of Illinois, are both avid collectors. She said, “Jeff is very knowledgeable. He can tell you about the products, how many are available and the cost. If he doesn’t have it in stock, he will research it and call you back.”

Terry Bork’s collection of model trucks may seem out of place to some people. After all, Terry is a railroad man who worked as a brakeman for the Wabash/Norfolk & Western Railway for six years during high school and college. He graduated from the University of Southern Illinois with a bachelor of arts degree in accounting.
He discovered, though, that riding the rails was not his life’s calling, so he eventually moved to Texas and worked as an accountant, moving up to president of the general contracting company he worked for. Today, Terry owns a general contracting company—TASCO Builders, which he has operated since 1981.
Unlike some collectors, Terry’s love for model trucks did not come from a trucking career. “I’ve never driven a commercial truck,” he said. “Nor has anyone in my family. I fell in love with model trucks on Christmas day 1949 when my brother, Lynn, and I opened presents and out popped our first Smith-Miller toy trucks. They were beautiful, and it was love at first sight!” That Christmas, Terry and Lynn received a 1949 GMC PIE truck and a 1949 GMC lumber truck. Terry still has both of these trucks in his collection.
“We only received toys at Christmas,” Terry explained. “My parents, Henry and Kathryn Bork, had eight children, so they saved to give us a big Christmas, making it special. Every time we opened a Christmas present, Mom and Dad told us, ‘Don’t break it. You won’t get another one until next Christmas.’”
Over the next couple of years, the two boys received a GMC wrecker, GMC orange cab Triton oil truck, 1950 LF fire truck and a 1952 Blue Diamond dump truck. All were Christmas presents.

Other stories in the Aug. TT&C 2012 are:
• First Gear 20 Years of Innovation, Resourcefulness and Quality Replicas by Mark Macreading
• Jeff Silver, An Awesome Die-cast Guy by Diana West
• ATHS Show Report by Mark Macreading

Farm toy collecting is a natural evolution when you grew up on the farm. With Dean Riessen’s farm background and interest in farming, he began collecting farm toys in 1983. After amassing a sizable collection, Dean and Carol Riessen started selling farm toys. This hobby/enterprise lasted for a good 15 years. 
When the Riessens offered their goods at farm toy shows, they saw the growing opportunity with toy trucks, particularly 1:64 scale. They soon switched from farm toys and climbed aboard the exciting toy truck bandwagon. Dean and Carol have been selling small truck replicas ever since.
Dean and Carol Riessen reside in Spencer, Iowa. Located in the northwest Iowa county of Clay, Spencer is truly America’s Heartland. The Visitor’s Bureau touts the community’s pace as leisurely, yet progressive…a wave, a smile and a friendly hello are commonplace, even among strangers.  
George E. Spencer gave his name to the city of Spencer in 1859. Nearly 20 years later, the first railroad was built through the black fertile prairie land of Spencer. In less than a year, the settlement grew from 300 people to a bustling town of 1,000. The current population hovers around 12,000. 
The Clay County Agriculture Society was organized in 1879. Through the efforts of the Agriculture Society, the Clay County Fair Association was formed in 1917. Since the founding of the fair, it has evolved over time into the Greatest County Fair in the World. The nine-day fair held in September attracts more than a quarter of a million visitors. 
A disastrous fire in July 1931 destroyed most of the business district. The fire was reportedly caused by a youngster who dropped a burning sparkler into a box of fireworks. The civic-minded spirit of Spencer that flourishes yet today came together and rebuilt the business district into one of the most attractive communities in Iowa.       

Dean’s Upbringing
Dean grew up on the family farm near Hartley, Iowa. Like most Iowa farms in those times, a variety of crops were raised to support their dairy herd of 35 Holstein cows.
“I was involved in most youth activities during high school, including track. Our field work was completed with a variety of tractor brands, including Farmall, Massey-Harris along with a Massey Ferguson. I also helped the neighbors in the spring with their planting. I returned in the fall to help those same neighbors take their crops out. 
“Most of my toys as a youngster were farm tractors. I hung on to my favorite toy, a 1:16 scale John Deere Model 620 tractor with loader, that I later restored. I always liked those old farm toy tractors. My lingering interest in tractors got me started in collecting farm-related belt buckles and farm toy models later in life,” Dean reflected.
When Dean graduated from high school, the U.S. Military draft program was in effect. Six months following graduation, Dean was called into active service with the Army. Following basic training, he was deployed to Vietnam in February 1966, just prior to his 21st birthday. 
Later that year, Dean was severely injured in combat. He underwent extensive medical treatment, along with an extended period of rehabilitation. This resulted in meritorious service recognition with an honorable discharge.   
“Following my military discharge in 1967, I returned home and started working for Monsanto. C-D Farm Service of Hartley, Iowa, bought Monsanto in 1969, so I continued working for that business. Carol and I married in 1969 and moved to Spencer.  
“I commuted the short distance to Hartley and worked as an operation manager where I applied fertilizer and chemicals. I retired from the Hartley farm business with 32 years of service. Prior to retiring, I started collecting the belt buckles and farm toys. As we were living in Spencer, we launched our business from there,” he recalled.   

Want to read the rest of the story?  It's available in the August TT&C 2012 magazine!
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