BAYKO in 'Which?' Magazine - November, 1964
Constructional Toys Report

It's odd for me to include this, given that it's none too complimentary about BAYKO, still, accuracy above all things! However, at least I can level the score, given the inaccuracy of the BAYKO-related bit. Regardless, we should bare in mind that the published date of the article places the test, and report, as being well after the TRI-ANG takeover of MECCANO, and the decision to 'milk' BAYKO as it died.

Is it just me? Until I found my first pre-war BAYKO set, c. 1985, I'm pretty sure I'd never heard the word “Constructional”.

Anyway, I'd better get on : -

Before I do, a small detail, the dimensions [left] apply to all the pages shown - well it is a printed magazine!

Firstly, there is one very odd feature about this report - its date - November, 1964 - given that normal marketing and production of BAYKO ceased several months earlier, probably in January!

Even if you take into account that BAYKO was still included in the January, 1967 MECCANO products price list - it wasn't being advertised or promoted anywhere that I can find!

There's a second issue, which is one of judgemental - the report is with respect to children of 5 and 7 years old, which is probably a bit on the young side for BAYKO. The BAYKO Collectors Club operate an age limit of eight years old in their self-build section at exhibitions.

BAYKO had long since dropped references to “children of all ages” from their literature - though, no doubt BAYKO was bought for kids in that age group. I was living proof of that, in the 1950s, as my first BAYKO set was bought as a Christmas present, when I was Six in 1956.

Still, onwards and upwards - 'Which?' is the widely respected, flagship publication by the independent Consumers' Association in the U.K. Testing products is their 'raison d'être'.

I'm not going to retype the entire 'Which?' Constructional Toys Report / article [life's way too short for that!] but the images [below] show the entire piece. Just click anywhere on any of the images to see a larger version of it - but, be warned, there are only a limited number of mentions of BAYKO, all of which are included in blue below, underneath the image of the page on which they appear.

Somewhat surprisingly, there isn't a single mention of BAYKO on either of the 2 opening pages!

A data page mentioning the following : -

The meat of the review : -

BAYKO is the left hand column above.

Again, there isn't a single mention of BAYKO on this page.

Well, that's that I'm afraid - not BAYKO's finest hour!