Product Miniature Company

Product Miniature Company, or known by the acronym PMC, was a company that manufactured pre-assembled plastic promotional models cars, banks and toys in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was started by brothers William Edward "Ed" and Paul Ford in 1946. Car model production, the company mainstay, ended about 1965. In 1958 or 1959 the company moved to Pewaukee, west of Milwaukee, and remains there to this day, now producing other plastic promotional products, but not vehicles (Timm 2010 Product Miniature page).

In the late 1940s and early 1950s, PMCs main rivals in promotional vehicle models were Banthrico, National Products, AMT, SMP, and Jo-Han. PMC's vehicle products were called "Tru Miniatures".

PMC introduced its first models about 1947, around the same time as Ideal Models, which later changed its name to Jo-Han. Though Banthrico and the similar National Products models were metal, PMC, along with Jo-Han, were the first promotional companies to introduce plastic models to dealerships, both beating AMT by a year or so. Models were first molded in cellulose acetate, which tended to warp over time. Among automotive promotional model makers, PMC and SMP were the only promotional companies that produced nearly all of their products through the lives of their companies (the 1950s) in warping plastic, as they were largely defunct by the time non-warping styrene was introduced. In the early 1960s, PMC did produce some commercial toys in styrene.

PMC's Chevrolet products, like Banthrico, were in the form of banks. Many bank models had the inscription on the bottom "To help save for a rainy day, or to buy a new Chevrolet" (Hover 2010). Banthrico and PMC set the stage for future manufacturers like AMT and Jo-Han, producing almost exclusively in 1:25 scale, though a few Chevrolets and Plymouths, like the 1953 Chevrolet Handyman and the early Plymouth Suburban, were produced in a larger 1:20th scale (Hover 2010).

International Harvester was a regular client throughout PMC's existence with trucks models produced as late as 1957. PMC regularly worked with GM, specifically Chevrolet, while AMT cornered most Ford products, and Jo-Han most Chrysler products. Still, PMC did make 1955–1959 Ford Country Station wagons (and the 1959 Ranchero). The 1959 Fords were apparently PMC's last promotional offerings.

Apart from Big Three products, the company also made a few promotionals for independent companies, like the 1952–1953 bathtub Nash Ambassador. One interesting aspect of these Nashes was that the 'windows' were a molded part of the body and not clear - the windows came covered with a self-adhesive silver foil that didn't hold up well through time (Doty 1996, pp. 88-89). PMC also made a couple of Trailways buses, including a GMC model 4102 or 4103 marketed by Ideal and issued in about 1952. It had an opening passenger door and changeable destination sign. Later, a larger Trailways Thru-Liner bus with opening side panels and removable luggage was also produced (Timm 2010 'Miscellaneous' page and PC Literature page 5). In addition were Oscar Mayer Weinermobiles in 1954, 1992, and 1996 variations. The 1990s versions were far beyond the time that PMC usually made wheeled promotionals, and were the last vehicles PMC made (Timm 2010, Photo Gallery Weinermobiles).

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