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Mighty Tonka Special Order & Custom Trucks

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Private label, special order. They both mean that Tonka took pride in manufacturing trucks that were unique and manufactured to a specific customer's specifications, not your standard, off the pages of the Tonka (or Hasbro) dealer catalog. These trucks were often given to employees in recognition of superior performance. Some trucks were sold to the buying public. Large department stores like Sears and Penneys, just wanted something that looked different than the standard Tonka truck, even if it was only a color change. And in one example, a Mighty Dump went from mild to wild.

1972 Mighty Mixer for Penneys	1972 Mighty Roller (standard)

J.C. Penney (Penneys) featured standard Mighty Tonka trucks in their catalogs beginning in the very early 1970's. Standard would be defined as right off the pages of the Tonka dealer catalog. Beginning in 1972 and lasting into the mid 1970's, Penneys opted for something a little different. The very basic difference between the standard Mighty Tonka and special order Penneys Mighty Tonka was the paint color. Penneys opted for ocher (orange) instead of yellow or euclid green. This was not across the board but on selected models. Examples would be; The standard Mighty Mixer was euclid green. The special order Penneys Mighty Mixer was ocher (orange). The standard Mighty Crane was yellow. The special order Penneys Mighty Crane was ocher (orange). Penneys also offered a Mighty set in 1972 and 1974-75.

Known Penneys stock numbers for Mighty Tonkas are 925-6587 Mighty Roller; 925-2669 Mighty Loader; 925-2677 Mighty Scraper; 925-2685 Mighty Dump; 925-2701 Mighty Car Carrier; 925-6579 Mighty Crane; 923-0244 Mighty Bulldozer; 925-6595 Mighty Mixer; 925-6546 Mighty Loadmaster; 925-6603 Mighty Set, 925-6553 Mighty Set and 923-5276 Mighty Grader.

In addition to being sold individually in 1972, the 925-6595 Mixer (special order), 925-6587 Roller (standard Tonka), 925-6579 Crane (special order) and a FREE orange Hard Hat, was sold as a set under Penneys catalog number 925-6603, Tonka model 7579. All 4 items were shippied in a single carton.

1972 Mighty Crane for Penneys	Box for 1972 Penneys Mighty Set

1976-77 Mighty Mixer for J.C. Penney	1976-77 Mighty Dump for J.C. Penney

1976-77 Mighty Crane for J.C. Penney
	Finding a J.C. Penney Mighty anything can be a challenge, even in todays ultra high tech environment. One would think that with auction websites being such a driving force in bringng what was thought to be the rare and obscure to common, everyday, more Penneys trucks would be unearthed. But that's not the case. One of these days, we'll be lucky enough to feature all of Penney's special order Mighty Tonkas. For the time being, here are three 1976-77 models. All were painted ocher (orange) while the standard 1976-77 Mighty Dump and Crane were yellow and the standard Mighty Mixer was euclid green.

1967-68 Mighty Scraper Dozer for Sears	1967-68 Mighty Mobile Shovel for Sears

Tonka made 2 Mightys exclusively for Sears in 1967 and 1968 that were unlike anything in the standard Tonka series. The Mighty Scraper Dozer, Sears stock (catalog) #79 N 5504C and the Mighty Mobile Shovel stock (catalog) #79 N 5498C. Both of these items are tough to find, especially in pristine condition. Even so, because of their scarcity, both tend to get bidders excited and prices paid generally run substantially more than standard Tonkas of the same vintage. The Scraper Dozer sold for $11.49 in 1967 and $11.69 in 1968. The Mobile Shovel sold for $7.29 in 1967 and $7.39 in 1968.

1978 Mighty Chevron Tow Truck	1979 Mighty Chevron Emergency Service Vehicle

Tonka and Chevron has a working relationship that lasted from 1976 through 1982. Over this period of time, Tonka manufactured seven trucks with Chevron colors and graphics that were sold by Chevron distributors and service stations. Of the seven trucks, two were from the Mighty series. In 1978, Tonka took a #3915 Mighty Tow Truck and produced the #4195 Mighty Chevron Tow Truck. In 1979, a #3954 Mighty Off-Road Adventure Buggy evolved into a #4182 Chevron Emergency Service Vehicle. Typically, private label trucks are produced in small quantities, say 1000 or less. Chevron appears to buck the trend. In a November 1998 article written by Tonka historian Lloyd Laumann for Toy Trucker & Contractor magazine, he states that "185,538" of the Emergency Service Vehicle were produced. I think we all know now why sellers on auction websites like eBay don't get the big bucks for their Tonka/Chevron trucks.

1974 Mighty Mixer for Sears
	The euclid green mixer to the left was manufactured for and sold exclusively by Sears. Available in 1974 only, the mixer stands out in a crowd of typical #3950 Mighty Tonka Cement Mixers because it has one rear axle instead of two. The box carried the Sears stock number of 49-58043 in addtion to the Tonka model number. This private label mixer can be found on page 580 of the 1974 Sears Wish Book at a cost of $14.47. The mixer below also appears to meet at least two of the Sears mixer criteria in that it does have only two axles and it's with the correct Sears packaging. What it doesn't have is the SCUFF GUARD bumper/grille that was new in 1973 and prominently displayed on the 1974 Sears mixer. It also has the steel front bumper with embossed bumper pads that was new for 1972 and the tires are blow molded Mighty balloon with smooth sidewalls used from 1967 through 1971. Was the two axle Mighty Mixer sold through Sears prior to 1974?

1974 Mighty Mixer for Sears

The euclid green mixer to the left was manufactured for and sold exclusively by Sears. Available in 1974 only, the mixer stands out in a crowd of typical #3950 Mighty Tonka Cement Mixers because it has one rear axle instead of two. The box carried the Sears stock number of 49-58043 in addtion to the Tonka model number. This private label mixer can be found on page 580 of the 1974 Sears Wish Book at a cost of $14.47.

The mixer below also appears to meet at least two of the Sears mixer criteria in that it does have only two axles and it's with the correct Sears packaging. What it doesn't have is the SCUFF GUARD bumper/grille that was new in 1973 and prominently displayed on the 1974 Sears mixer. It also has the steel front bumper with embossed bumper pads that was new for 1972 and the tires are blow molded Mighty balloon with smooth sidewalls used from 1967 through 1971. Was the two axle Mighty Mixer sold through Sears prior to 1974?

I believe the answer is yes, sort of. A review of the 1971 and 1972 Sears Christmas catalogs shows that the euclid green, 2 axle mixer was not availabe. In fact, there were no Mighty Tonka trucks in the catalogs period. It appears Nylint was under contract with Sears to supply very similar "Mighty Tonka like" pressed steel trucks. I do not have access to a 1973 Sears Christmas catalog to determine if Nylint was still the sole supplier of "Mighty Tonka like" trucks or if Nylint finally had some competition.

I would put forth the theory that Tonka ran limited quantities of the pre 1974 version and Sears sold them only in retail stores to gauge consumer response, not only for the mixer, but the Tonka brand in general. The floor is open for your feedback as to the origins of the 1972? two axle, Sears Mighty Mixer. Ex Tonka and/or Sears employees. Let me hear from you.

1972? Mighty Mixer for Sears. Courtesy Robert Burford.	1972? Mighty Mixer for Sears. Courtesy Robert Burford.

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Mighty Tonka Special Order & Custom Trucks

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