Item TB52
This Item was Sold for
$222
Other collectable boomerangs for sale can be found on the
Collectable , Hardwood
and Art Boomerang web links.
Historical Pricing information for this item and similar
collectable boomerangs can be found on the Boomerang
Pricing Guide
Herb Smith was one of England's greatest boomerang
makers. Herb started making Birch plywood hooks and
traditional boomerangs in the 1960s and was one of the first
suppliers of boomerangs to the Boomerang Man in the early
1970s. Before Al Gerhards started making his S/L hooks, Herb
Smith was the only commercial supplier of long distance
boomerangs. One of the first boomerangs I ever purchased was
a large weighted Sussex Hook with a range of 80+ metres. I
became an instant fan. Herb was an early Long Distance World
Record holder with a carefully documented throw of 108 yards
on 17 June 1972 using a large weighted traditional model
called the "Gem". In the 1980s, Herb introduced the world to
Paxolin material, a dense and hard composite material that
significantly extended the range of his plywood models. Herb
continued to make plywood models as Sports boomerangs, even
after the introduction of the Paxolin models. The Paxolin
boomerangs were smaller and usually painted in two colors
and with simple line art banding. The wooden models were
often decorated with many colorful bands, flowers, birds and
occasionally other themes. Herb did most of his own art
work, but while he was a prison guard, he employed the
skills of master forgers in the prison where he worked. Herb
stopped making boomerangs in the late 1980s and the
boomerang world was without one of it's greatest craftsman.
Then suddenly in the early 1990s, Herb started making
Paxolin and finely decorated Birch plywood models. This
continued until Herb's death in 1995. Herb's models have
become among the finest of collectable boomerangs as the
supply continues to diminish. This is a full size Paxolin "Marathon" that was made as a
special gift for Brother Brian Thomas by Herb Smith in the
late 1980s or early 1990s. In addition to the signature on
the underside, Herb wrote "For Br Brian with Best Wishes"
and "Good for 75 yards" and "Resin Fibre". The boomerang
also comes with a hand made cloth case that Herb made to fit
this exact boomerang. This boomerang is in very good to
excellent condition. It does have a few light scratches and
and couple of small paint chips on the leading edges from
use. It is one of the more desireable Smith boomerangs that
I have ever seen and is one of the best collectable
boomerangs offered on my collectable boomerang web page. This boomerang is from the estate of Brother Brian
Thomas. This is a boomerang that Brian never let out of his
collection, all the way until his death. The sale of this
boomerang will benefit one or more charities that provide
relief to the victims of the 2004 Tsunami Disaster in
South-East Asia. The price will be slowly reduced every week
until it is sold.