Local builds successful business from his farm toy collection

After starting as a high school project 20 years ago, Jason Dalton’s farm toy business has grown to ship thousands of toys a year, sometimes up to 100 toys in one day during the busy season. Specializing in 1/64 scale toys, Dalton Farm Toys prides itself on having the largest selection of that size on the Internet.

“It has been a crazy season. We shipped 1,000 boxes in 10 days,” Dalton said.

Along with a booming business, Dalton has also modified his headquarters with a new display room. That, he said, helps separate his collection and those toys for sale.

“I started collecting as a kid. My grandparents farmed, and I enjoyed it. I actually started collecting when I was 6 or 7 years old,” Dalton said.

He said that he still has toys in his collection from when he was 2 years old, complete with the box they came in. That does not mean he didn’t play with them.

“I had tons of them that I played with,” Dalton said. “I just didn’t beat up my toys.”

One reason he started selling his collection was because it was getting filled with duplicates. Dalton still keeps a large collection of his own and has had people offer him more than $2,000 for a single toy.

“I have one of everything ever made, there’s literally not a toy in the smaller size that I do not have,” Dalton said. “If I don’t have it, I keep it.”

Dalton has more than 2,400 farm toys in his Online catalog with about 15,000 total toys in supply. Although the business has grown to an impressive size, it started out with a few toys Dalton received as a child.

“Although we specialize in 1/64 (scale) items you will also find a nice selection of 1/16, 1/8, 1/32 & 1/43 scale farm toys,” Dalton said. “We specialize in older and out of production items but also carry a full line of new releases as well.”

He said the Internet really changed his business from when he only attended shows to now selling daily through his own website and eBay. Through those sites he ships to every corner of the world including Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and Great Britain with a busy season from November to February He gets his new toys directly from the makers and is still a regular at farm and toy shows mostly buying older toys now.

“In the toy world I am kind of known,” Dalton said. “There is really no one else out there that does what I do with the older stuff in the volume that I do. If somebody is looking for something I probably have it.”

To view toys for sale, head to Dalton's website at www.daltonsfarmtoys.com.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson at
641-792-3121 ext. 6534
or jpierson@newtondailynews.com