I think you are right!

I had one of those, btw. It was almost perfect. It was used with all my other stuff, Joes and Star Wars and Crystar or whatever was about the same scale. I can’t really imaging “playing Battlestar Galactica”.

A common misconception (maybe because the Shockwave/Shackwave versions were made in Korea for some reason), but ToyCo, the original designer, was/is indeed a Japanese company, founded in Tokyo in 1981: https://tfscraps.blogspot.com/2017/06/f ... ntecs.html

Interesting read, thanks!

I agree the idea of him being Korea is a weird one, especially considering relationships between the two countries back then. Korea wasn’t as famous for bootlegs as Taiwan but it certainly made a few. Shockwave must have been one of the first toys where they knew the exchange rate was going to kill them so they set up manufacture in cheaper countries right away. It was still optional in 1984 but by 1988 it was already impossible to make something as nice as a Convoy in Japan for international sales. The yen doubled in value in a decade.

It matters when you're 10 and your friends have only seen the cartoon. When you show them the toy that you have and the colors aren't right they're like "THAT'S NOT RUMBLE!!! RUMBLE'S BLUE!!!" And if you didn't have the box to show them that's it says, they think you're a liar

Even kids know who the mouth breathers are and not to listen to them.

That being said, for whatever reason cassettes were never once in my town. I found Omnibots and Roadbusters and red Bumblebees but the only cassette I ever had was Buzzsaw because he came with Soundwave.

I mean officially, of course. I had several bootleg cassettes but I’d imagine the concept of bootlegs would have split your friends heads in half. The only seeker I ever had was a white and burgundy one from some off brand. I can’t remember which wings it had but I’m thinking it was probably the original ones because I’m pretty sure this was before Thrust and Ramjet.

No laserbeak? That's the only casette I remember kids having in '80s Australia.

I had this cool brown fighter with an angular/pointed canopy from Toys R Us in '82, I always thought it was BSG but now I'm not sure.. It looked alien and it was the same scale as my Star Wars stuff. Can anyone ID it?

I need to watch the original BSG, I have vague memories of seeing it on TV

It’s the best show about Space Mormons that will ever exist. I recommend it. Everything that guy did was fun. Knight Rider, The Highway Man, Buck Rogers, Automan, the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew thing with the cool music. He was a real entertainer.

In the US at least Lazerbeak was only for sale in a two pack with another tape. Soundwave came with Buzzsaw. The only difference is the color of paint they used on the die cast bits.

One of my favorite DJs is named Lazerbeak.

https://youtu.be/vWB-V5SCOD0

I used to collect Classics or whatever Hasbro used to call the G1 homage line at the beginning, but at some point something changed. I realized they weren't doing anything for me, emotionally; they didn't tickle that nostalgia bone in the same way the handful of actual G1 toys (both reissue and not) did, so I finally decided to sell the whole lot and replaced as many of them as I could with their OG counterparts and apart from one toy, haven't regretted any of it.

There's something to be said for the originals' relatively simple transformations too, compared to the modern figures' origami-like approach to the transformations. Plus I will never not love the Ironhide/Ratchet mold.

I love Ratchet/Ironhide! It’s not the best example of a transforming robot maybe but it’s one of the most potent Diaclone ever. It’s like a Micromaster that doesn’t suck, so much to do and so much shiny!

I think we also agree on other things. I bought a Rod Rod a while ago who could be both Hot Rod and Rodimus Prime. It took me 30 minutes to get to all the modes. I can’t imagine any scenario where a kid could “play” with a Transformer like that. No recess is long enough. I gave it to my friend. $40 down the tubes but a lesson learned.

The worst of course is Super God Fire Convoy who takes me 30 min just to put him in combined mode. I keep them because their separate Super modes are really good. The combined one takes forever to make and looks naff.

In general, yeah, I’m usually G1 or maybe some premium release like MP-01 or SoC Golion. Most of the best new Transformers stuff is sadly the bootlegs.

That's it!

Draconian Maruader、great toy!




Loved Buck Rogers when I was a kid, "biddi biddi biddi"!

Made by the same guy as BSG? Cool.

my dad was a career truck driver as far back as i remember. he worked for an Airfreight outfit based out of PORTLAND, OR's PDX from about 1985 through 1990.

he used to take lease rigs down to the local KENWORTH/PACCAR PARTS dealership for service on a regular basis,
and often browsed the shop they had there. he found this SHINSEI SUPER ALLOY KENWORTH W900 for me there, once.

it was easily the nicest model truck i ever had. unfortunately, as a rather ham-handed boy of perhaps four or five at the time,
i managed to wreck the thing in short order, "CHOGOKIN" all-metal composition and all...







a few years later, a nephew gave me his badly painted/finished "ROBOTECH CHANGERS" US market version of the early-80's IMAI 1/72 VF-1S "Focker" VARIABLE TYPE model kit.
this was my first introduction to what eventually became a lifelong passion for MACROSS and the ever-iconic VF-1 "Valkyrie" Variable Fighter;

That is a beautiful thing and I would've been over the moon if I'd gotten that as a kid, just because of that little side door on the trailer opening as well. I loved the movie Convoy and I've always loved toy trucks with more moving parts than just the wheels.

Also 1:64 is the same scale as Hot Wheels isn't it?

I like that truck! So is this the “trashed” version or did you replace it? It looks pretty good.

There is quite an industry for collectible versions of things people do. Your truck for example, threre are lots of great die cast truck driver merch. Also farmers. There are sooooooo many die cast tractors and farm implements. I got a weird catalog of this stuff last year. I think maybe they somehow found out my kid gets Bruder stuff* for Xmas.

I have some very early child memories. When I was very young, still in diapers, I had toy semi truck with a car carrying trailer. It was extremely cheap, like an A-OK toy or something. Very low end for the 70s but I didn’t understand that stuff. One day I stepped on it, right across the trailer, completely smashing all of its works which were both delicate and garbage (toys like this aren’t made anymore).

When my grandpa came over the next time I asked him to fix it like he fixed everything but he just looked at it and said, “Let’s get a new toy” because he understood it was beyond hope. He got me a Tonka Willy’s MB and that outlasted my childhood and then some.

I’ve tried to dive into my memories and Google what I recalled but I can’t find anything that seems like it was that truck. It was roughly 1/64 scale and the car carrying part was largely modeled in orange plastic.





*Bruder is one of my favorite toy companies. They get it!

I just found my Small Soldiers toys back, I know they are quite rare and since they came out in 1998, then I guess they are kind of a collection item now, with them being 21 years old.

Pics :
https://www.noelshack.com/2019-20-3-155 ... 183141.jpg
Yes I thought it would be funny to have the Chip Hazard ride Bullseye

https://www.noelshack.com/2019-20-3-155 ... 140808.jpg

A little scenery I made for your eyes https://image.noelshack.com/fichiers/20 ... 192141.jpg

I think they are, especially those really big ones. They'd be worth more if you had the boxes obv.

Apparently the definitive 90's toyline to collect these days is Street Sharks for some reason.

...barf.

Such strong opinions!

I’m only barfing on Street Sharks or any other sub-He Man grade ripoff of a bootleg of a Ninja Turtle like it.

The soldier dudes seem fine.

I think Thundercats is the definitive He-Man ripoff. Street Sharks was definitely more of a TMNT ripoff. Hell, they all even did that weird gimmick in the cartoon where they all had some weird favourite food, imitating the turtles' love for pizza.

I kind of wanted to collect Street Sharks at one point myself, having passed them up as a kid because I was getting into that age where I thought I was too old for toys so I completely passed them up then, but I couldn't find any in an acceptable condition because they were mostly painted rubber so every sample I came across had a ton of paint wear...well, I STILL can't find any, and yet everyone is paying loads for them anyway, so I don't know what the hell happened there. Guess it's just me living in a country with a nearly nonexistent toy collecting scene. Seems like Star Wars and He-Man are only fandoms here substantial enough to provide a consistent output on the marketplace.

I think I'd rather collect Biker Mice From Mars anyway, unfortunately the actual motorcycles seem to suffer from a similar problem.