Ertl (formerly, the Ertl Company) is a former American manufacturing company and current brand of toys, best known for its die-cast metal alloy collectible replicas (or scale models) of agricultural machinery. Other products manufactured by Ertl include cars, airplanes, and commercial vehicles.
The company was based in Dyersville, Iowa, home of the National Farm Toy Museum.
History
Ertl has been producing farm toy replicas since 1945. For over 60 years, the company has produced farm toys for industry brands such as: John Deere, Case IH, New Holland, and AGCO. Ertl has also, on different occasions, acquired the licenses to produce die-cast vehicles and figurines as well as model kits for Looney Tunes, Garfield, Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends, Tugs, Theodore Tugboat, Super Mario Bros. DC Comics