Jason T. spotted something pretty interesting on Bumper Save … It looks like he found a “different” mouth on his … look at the pics, look at yours and let’s piece this mystery together …

So, check yours along with these and see if yours matches or does not match (okay, there is a third option where you ignore us & this post but the only acceptable circumstance to that third option is if you are taking live fire or there are no more than two naked people in the room …, um, including you …  🙂  ).

Bumper Save’s expression can be be best described as a sneer and you can see a hard line where his upper lip is … and there is a line so you can see his “upper” and “lower” teeth.

This is the one that came with WM Black Friday Mack Car Carrier and a little hard to tell at this angle but essentially the same.

Jason T. however found one where the mouth differs …

As he notes, “Teeth BS has a production stamp of 1908 EA and No Teeth BS has a production date of 1278 EA.”

My Mack Carrier Bumper Save above “with teeth,” version has a production date of 2128 EA.

So, if I had to take a guess off the top of my head, there are a couple plausible scenarios based on the earlier production run of BUMPER SAVE on 1278 (or Day 127 of 2008):

The old Bumper Save mold was getting worn but they decided to press ahead anyway to get a few thousand out before junking it and replacing it with the newer mold with the teeth area more clearly defined?

The factory used the wrong mold by accident – using one of the other Piston Cup racer with this “Nitroade” body?

Or they used the wrong mold on purpose Maybe this other racer mold has a few thousand pressing left so they thought they’d use it up before switching to the “correct,” one?

Apparently the “correct” one* …

Not the correct one …

* we have to presume the MSOS one is the “correct,” one …

So, based on mine & Jason T.’s Bumper Save’s we bought at WM, it look like after Day 127 of 2008, the factory corrected the error … I have an extra Mack Carrier Bumper Save and it’s hard to tell since it’s still in the box but it looks like it matches the “correct” one.

This definitely falls under variant since it involves the mold and not paint or tampo decals where quantity determines variant status.

But check your Bumper Saves – do you have one with a production date of 1278 or EARLIER and does it look like the one on the left? Or one on the left buy BEFORE 1908?

Of course, the mystery would deepen if you had with the “soft” mold and a date AFTER 1908?

Jason T. two Mack Carrier Bumper Save’s …

My Mack Carrier Bumper Save …

Thanks for the pics and intrigue, Jason T. 🙂

So, what say you?