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The colours of Swimmer Smurf

Most Smurf collectors adore the colour variations that can be found with Smurfs. Swimmer Smurf is possibly the most popular one, due to the different coloured bathers and swimming rings that can be found.

The Swimmer Smurf #20025 was produced by Schleich from 1977 to 1986 then again from 1994 to 1996. It was during the first five years, where you can find the most colour variations, all with the markings W.Germany Schleich emblem © Peyo.

Swimmer was first made out of blue pvc material, with its red mouth visible. Different coloured bathers or swimming rings can be found. Typically using the colours of yellow, orange or red. With the early ones, the swimming ring’s valve was blue which was later changed to black. It is also possible to find the early version of Swimmer without eyebrows.

Around 1981 Swimmer was made out of Hong Kong for both BP and Wallace Berrie. The Hong Kong mould was quite different to the Schleich made one. It was a much bigger mould made out of white pvc material, its mouth was not visible and it was painted in darker colours.

All of mine Hong Kong verions have dark yellow bathers and a red swimmng ring with a black valve. Not sure if they ever made one with an orange swimming ring.

It wasn’t until 1983 when Schleich changed the mould on Swimmer to be more like the Hong Kong one. But the Schleich continued to be made out of blue pvc material.

When Swimmer was re-released by Schleich in 1994, this time it was made out of China. By now colour variations were considered a thing of the past by Schleich. The Chinese made Swimmer can only be found with yellow bathers and an orange swimming ring.

Swimmer mystery

Everyone likes a good mystery. In the book, Der Schlumpf Katalog IV published in 2003 they list a Swimmer with Macau markings. In my 20 or so years in collecting Smurfs I have never seen this. If does exist I would have thought we would have heard about by now. What do you think?

Or perhaps the Macau Swimmer drowned and is lying at the bottom of the ocean waiting to be discovered.

Keep on SmurfIn
Kath B

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