Town Talk Jewellery Cleaners

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For over a hundred years now Town Talk of Bolton have been creating high quality polishes and cleaners that bring a radiant sparkle to precious metals, rare stones and fine jewellery.

More recently, they have introduced a splendid range of delicately fragranced household cleaning products that put dirt in its place and make everyday chores more fun!

Each and every one has been formulated to have a minimal impact on the environment. None of them have been tested on animals.

They are proud to be a truly English company, producing our exclusive products from our traditional base in North West England, where they are continually investing for the future.

They believe their customers are people of taste who appreciate superior quality, fine style and exceptional service; people who care for their treasured possessions – as thay do – in an environmentally conscious way.

Product History

Well over a hundred years ago – in the early 1890s when life was lived at a more leisurely pace – a certain Mr Pexton, an enterprising English gentleman from Lancashire, developed a number of ingenious ways of cleaning and polishing Victorian silver and silverware.

Blessed with an endless supply of pure, soft Pennine water and an abundance of cleverly woven material from the local cotton mills, this quick-witted fellow was able to perfect one particular item – an impregnated silver polishing cloth – that employed a novel combination of an already successful silver polishing liquid and the high quality cotton material so readily to hand.

Such were the benefits of Mr Pexton’s ingenious product, it brought amazement and delight to the many people who used it. Indeed, such a treat were its ease of use and a wonder its anti-tarnish qualities, it very quickly became the ‘talk of the town’.

It was thus no surprise that, in 1895, a manufacturing company was founded which – to this very day – trades as ‘The Town Talk Polish Company’.

As the Victorian era passed, the company flourished and, with the coming of a more light-hearted and glamorous age, the artist Austin Knight was commissioned to develop a symbol for the growing business.

Drawing on the annals of history and the elegant style of the day, this accomplished fellow developed the animated image we now know as Mr Town Talk, the Polished Gentleman.

Today, many years later and in his own inimitable way, this knowledgeable and practical fellow continues to epitomise our lasting commitment to the utmost in quality and service and all accomplished with polished flair.

Grading Guide

Near Mint (NM):  There may be a few light stress lines on the spine, but otherwise the spine is strong and intact.  Corners are sharp, but can have a little bit of “bumping” or other very minor wear.  In general, no creases should be present, though a slight “bend” that does not create a noticeable stress crease may be allowed.  The edges may have a few very tiny “bumps” or “nicks”.  A few light stress lines are acceptable on the surface, but they should NOT break the color.  Surface colors should be bright with at most a few “color flecks” or some very minimal “color fading” (as usually occurs along the spine).  Any spots of discoloration or staining would be extremely minor (no more than a few pencil-tip sized dots).  In addition, the inside booklet should be complete with no marks, no rust on the staples and all inserts/maps still attached.  At most, a few very light marks may be allowed – such as a pencil note next to a creature’s stats or (possibly) and small price written in pencil on the inside flyleaf (as from a used book store).  Even though, the above flaws are acceptable in Near Mint condition, an item should not contain any more than a few such defects. An accumulation of several of the above will likely drop the item down another grade

Very Fine (VF):  A few light creases may be present at an edge/corner or on the inner surface of the cover (such as when a “thumb” presses down on a module cover and creates semi-circular stress lines).  There should be no folds or hard creases.  Corners can have other wear such as slight “rounding” or “abrasion”.  On modules or staple-bound items, the edge of the spine may have some slight abrasions to the outer surface layer, though the spine itself it still strong and intact (this is a sometimes common occurrence from the cover being opened repeatedly).  For perfect-bound accessories, light vertical stress lines are more prominent (though not extensive).  Staples may have the slightest hint of rust, but should still be at least 90% rust free with no rust stains on the pages.  Maps / inserts may be detached -- there can be a few marks written on the these, but they should still be minor and not extensive (no highlighting or marker).  Again, judgment must be used as each item is unique.  Perhaps two corners may have tiny 1/16” creases at the extreme tips or there could be one very light ½” crease

Fine (FN):  Many “high grade” items are actually in Fine condition.  At first glance, a Fine item may appear to be a higher grade, but on closer inspection flaws can be clearly seen.  There may be several smalls creases or even one slightly larger (1” or 2cm) crease.  The top/bottom of the spine may show some abrasion, perhaps even a small 1/8” (3mm) tear.  Other possible flaws include: several heavier spine stress lines (either vertical or horizontal), a “scuff” to the surface that removes some of the color, rust to the staples (though at least 75% should be rust free), a tiny tear or very small piece missing from a corner (no more than 1/16” or 1 ½ mm), or a few small stains.  Though inserts / maps may be detached and have some minor writing, they should still be intact (i.e. character sheets should not be “cut out”).  Often, Fine items simply have an greater accumulation of lesser flaws

Very Good (VG):  The “average wear” grade.  Spines show stress and may be slightly frayed or have minor tears.  Module covers can have “splits” as long as 2” (5cm).  Corners are often rounded, creased, or frayed, and edges may show similar wear.  Other common flaws are “color fading”, small stains, small tears, and writing on interior pages (perhaps even some highlighting).  A slight warping and/or faint “musty odor” (usually from storage in a basement) may also be allowed.  Tape may have been used to “repair” the item, but it should be (at most) one or two small pieces.  A Very Good item can simply be an accumulation of several minor and moderate flaws or it may have very few minor flaws and one major detractor (such as a fold that goes the entire length of the cover, heavy rust on the staples, a page separated that was not designed to be “detachable”, a large spine split, or writing on the outer cover

Good (GD):  Shows heavy wear, but is still solid.  A few large flaws plus several smaller flaws may be present.   Conversely, Good items may have one or two major flaws: spine splits up to half the length (typical of modules), several large and heavy creases, a small amount of water damage, heavy writing, multiple or large tears, a noticeable odor due to either “mustiness” or “smoke”, significant staple rust & staining, etc.  There may be several pieces of tape on the item.  On staple-bound books, the cover can be separated from the staples (staple pulls), and on perfect-bound books, some pages may be loose from the binding.  A Good item should be relatively solid and intact and still retain some basic appeal to a collector.

Imagine Magazine

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OD&D Supplement 1 - Greyhawk

1st Print

11th Print

2nd Print GK logo

Greyhawk is a general rules expansion, with new combat rules, additional character classes (paladin and thief), as well as new monsters, spells, and treasure.

Errata Sheet

The First printing of Greyhawk (with the "GK" logo), when compared to later prints, shows the following differences: it has the words "Additional" and "Supplement I" in a different, expanded-style font, the cover artwork is slightly larger, and the internal typeface is much more condensed (similar to that of the early Original D&D Set booklets). Also, the price for a "Multi-Dice Set" in the rear catalog has "$1.75" scratched out, and "$2.50" hand-written in pen next to it. The booklet is 56 pages long, and was printed by Graphic Printing of Lake Geneva. The inside cover does not have a printing date, though we believe it was printed in February 1975. Being released in roughly the same time frame as the Second Print of the Original D&D Set (of which only 2000 copies were printed), it is easy to surmise that the print run of this version was 1000 copies or less.

The Second print of Greyhawk bears either a GK logo or a Lizard logo, with cover text/artwork size differences as depicted in the scan to the right, and is now 68 pages long (due entirely, it appears, to the new internal typeface). Though both versions state "Second Printing, July 1975" on the copyright page, the Lizard-logo version was actually printed between September and December 1975. The Second print (and all later printings) were printed by Heritage Models of Dallas, Texas.

Second prints and later of Greyhawk have multiple textual errors. These errors were never corrected in the main body of any subsequent print; however, an errata sheet appears on the last page of the Third and later prints. Beginning with the Third print, the cover illustration was slightly enlarged over previous prints. All prints reference "Hobbits" on page 5, even though that term should have been corrected at least by the Eighth print.