Best Motorcycle 2014: First Look: Matchbox 60th Anniversary Ford F-350 Superlift...

Well that did not take long.

When we first saw glimpses of the Ford F-350 Superlift Brush Fire Truck, many of us Matchbox nerds knew is was only a matter of time before we would see it in the non-licensed National Parks or Forest Service liveries that have been so popular. The Forest Service and National Parks liveries both started about 5 years ago, and every year since Matchbox has released at least a couple of models in each. In fact, the F-550 Superduty sported both liveries last year.

These are loosely based on the US National Parks and Forest Service vehicles, which may be one of the reasons they are popular here. I spend a lot of time working in Southern Utah, an area dotted with National Parks including Zion, Bryce Canyon, and Arches. I take a just a bit of pride in where I live. I think it is one of the prettiest areas on the planet. Plus, I have a brother who works for the Bureau of Land Management out of Durango, Colorado, and probably encounters vehicles similar to these often. You might say I have a bit of a soft spot for anything National Park and Forest Service related.

So I have collected all of these models, and I promise to do a full post on both series soon (still waiting on an elusive Gift-Pack model). But for now we will feature this obvious choice for a Forest Service Truck.

How do know it is Forest Service? Well, the logo on the door is hard to read, but the colors match previous Forest Service models, so I am going with it. Scroll down to see the side-by-side pics with the F-550 to see what I am talking about.

The model looks good. The 60th logo needs to go somewhere, and the hood works. The logos on the side are nice and simple, including what I assume is the mandatory Superlift logo. If I had a complaint, it would be that I would have liked to see a little more detail on the front and back, as well on the fire apparatus. The artwork on the box shows exactly the detail I would have hoped for.

But I am very happy to add this to the Forest Service collection. I promise to put all the models together soon...

(Matchbox 60th is available at the store of our Matchbox Monday partner, MVE Collectibles, as well as Wheel Collectors