My Favourite Breyer Thoroughbred Moulds

Today I thought I would share some of my favourite Breyer Thoroughbred moulds. Breyer have produced so many Thoroughbred models over the years it is hard to pick just a few but this is a great chance to look at the variety in the range and also think about which one's work best as a Thoroughbred. I've split it down by scale so that we can look at each size and which one I think is best.

Traditional

I couldn't pick just one Traditional scale Thoroughbred so instead I have chosen two favourites. There are so many gorgeous Thoroughbred Traditionals that this feels very arbitrary but I had to pick some, so I went with two that are very different in type and reflect the real variety you see in the Thoroughbred breed.

Emerson/Standing Thoroughbred

My number one choice is the Emerson/Standing Thoroughbred mould (although often referred to as Winx). This mould was sculpted by Susan Carlton Shifton and was first released as part of the Premier Club in 2018. It comes in two gender variations with a mare version produced as a portrait of the famous racehorse Winx.

Breyer Collector's Club Appreciate Winx

What I like about this mould is that it is a good fit Thoroughbred. It looks like so many of the Thoroughbreds I've worked with over the years, sleek and fit and ready to race. I also love a good standing model with four legs in each corner. It's just a really nice, solid mould. Nothing flashy or special but just good, and I love that in a model.

Smarty Jones

My second choice is Smarty Jones. Smarty is a very different type of Thoroughbred, he is more of the American style and is far more chunky and muscly than Emerson is with a lot more meat on his bones, but he's still a nice solid Thoroughbred. He also comes in a Polo Pony variation which is one of my favourite model variations Breyer have done (I also love the G2 Thoroughbred Polo Pony variation). Probably because I like a good hogged horse so of course I'm going to love a hogged model horse!

Custom Breyer Smarty Jones by Deborah Brown

The Smarty Jones mould was also sculpted by Susan Carlton Shifton and was first released in 2004 as a regular run portrait of Smarty Jones. He's been available in a huge range of colourways since with lots of famous race horse portraits including the infamous Frankel.

I want to finish by giving a shout out to the Lonesome Glory and Cigar moulds as well. I do love both of these moulds too but I decided I couldn't just make this a list of every Thoroughbred model Breyer have produced (although I suppose I could do that) and should exercise some element of self-restraint!

Classic

Swaps

My Classic choice is of course the wonderful Swaps. There are quite a few Classic scale Thoroughbred moulds but I do think Swaps is the best of the bunch. Swaps was originally sculpted in 1975 by Maureen Love and is also available in Stablemate scale for those would like something a bit smaller. He was last used in 2017 as a web special and frankly I think is definitely due a comeback, we need a new Swaps!

The infamous 'Cloud' on the Breyer Swaps mould

Again what I like about this mould is he is a good, straight standing Thoroughbred. He is a nice mould with some fairly detailed muscling and has huge potential for resculpt glow ups.

Paddock Pal

Thoroughbred Stallion

OK so there is only one Paddock Pal/Littlebit Thoroughbred mould but that does not mean we are going to skip him just because he wins by default! All sizes are represented in this Blog and just because Breyer have decided to only produce the Paddock Pals in the Craft Kits at the moment does not mean we aren't going to cherish this scale and show them all the love they deserve. The Thoroughbred Stallion was sculpted in 1983 by Chris Hess and can still be found in the Paint Your Own Horse kits although has not been released in a colourway since 2015.

Breyer Sport Horse (I don't actually have a Thoroughbred coloured Thoroughbred Stallion)!

I picked this one because by default it was the only Thoroughbred but it's still a sweet little mould. He has performance potential and with a bit of resculpting makes a really lovely custom.

Stablemate

I had quite a long debate with myself about this one but eventually settled on a model. I did think about being annoying and picking Swaps again but decided against it!

G5 Walking Thoroughbred

My choice for Stablemate is the G5 Walking Thoroughbred/Greyson. The Walking Thoroughbred was introduced as part of the Stablemate Club in 2019 and was sculpted by Heather Puleo. Since then he has had quite a few releases and is proving a popular mould in Breyer's line up.

BreyerFest Single Day Stablemate 'Jersey'

This is a bit of an odd mould and is often quite a weird one to look at but I picked him because I've worked with so many Thoroughbreds who look just as ugly as this mould does if you look at it at the wrong angle and yet were amazing little race horses. That's kinda why I like it, it's odd, and weird, and the head is a bit goofy, but that's Thoroughbreds. You look at one and think "that thing shouldn't be able to walk" and yet it goes off like a bullet and wins every race you put it in. They're a strange creature the Thoroughbred, but that's why we love them.

I feel like I need to finish the Stablemate section by giving a huge shout out to everyone's favourite shelf wobbler, the G2 Thoroughbred. If you haven't shouted "I give up" (often with a tonne of expletives) whilst attempting to get a ridiculously long conga of these to stand up, you're not really a Breyer collector.

So there we have it, my favourite Breyer Thoroughbred moulds. Which are your favourite Breyer Thoroughbred moulds? Let me know! Bonus points for sharing cute pictures.