I am going to be posting my most recent garage sale finds as well.

Gundam stuff.  Not a collector, but NEAT.

Zoids, I think.  Again, just neat animal robots.

Yay Joes and Star Wars!

So, well, yeah, life.  Here's some interesting bits that I have found in the past few months.

Odious Ogre - a PVC Dungeons and Dragons figure.  UGLY sucker.  But, if you're playing, probably serves as a good addition when your adventurers need to be in over their head.

This thing was WEIRD.  Mid-90s Transformers knockoff.  Well-made, couldn't quite figure out what it was.  Almost hated parting with it, but some of these kids at the flea market...and I had made my fortune on the other Transformers I sold...

Yeah, yeah, been a while, blah, blah.

Came across this little gem lately.  Not sure what it is.

It's some sort of Wonder Woman figure, mad similar to your standard army guys, just a little bigger.  No markings or anything.  I've run across a popular line from the 70s of Marx Marvel figures in a bigger scale with a base, but that's the closest thing I can think of.  I don't think that it's a gaming piece, as those usually have bases as well.

I dunno.  Nifty, though.

Yes, I know that it's been a while, but life has been busy.  I HAVE picked up a few occasional bits and pieces here and there, though.

First is this beauty.

It's tagged as "1995 Toy State Industrial, Inc."  The best I can tell, it's sort of Chinese company which has a few licenses (like Caterpillar).  This was a generic attempt in the 1990s during that figure boom.  I have yet to see any packaging.

And this car is SPECTACULAR in the oddest sense of the term.

It's the LOUDEST toy of just about any that I have ever seen, blaring alerts like "DEFCON FOUR" and flashing a tremendous amount of lights and such.  The gatling gun on the front rotates as well.

The large gun on the side raises and lowers by hand, and it probably had a missile that shot out at one point.

It's solid in construction, but has one glaring fault.

 GI Joe-size figures, like the 1980s CORPS figure above, do not fit.  By MILLIMETERS.  A MINOR design change and it's perfect.

Over at www.Joecustoms.com, we christened it the Sky Force Chromey Futurecar, and the name is a good fit.

Anyway, there you go.  Generic oddities abound.

My Top Ten favorite diecast cars my in my son's toy box

Okay, I admit it.  I REALLY like to play with my son when he plays with his toys.  It's part of the reason I wanted a son in the first place, I think.  He has a small box full of Matchbox, Hot Wheels, and a few other brands that I picked up in good condition at yard sales and flea markets   He has his favorites (mostly trucks with larger wheels and his Lightning McQueen stuff), but seems to enjoy the quantity.

Here are my ten favorites in his box, in no particular order.

1. Matchbox Superfast Dump Truck #58 FAUN.  1976.

He's got two of these.  Nice large bed, solid construction, just an overall good design for a dump truck.  The bed practically stands vertical when dumping.

2. Matchbox Superfast Green Planet Scout #59

Another fun design from Matchbox.  Good solid car, and I have always enjoyed space and sci-fi themes.

3. Maisto GI Joe Jeep.

 I've never been big on Maisto cars - their larger stuff is better, but the Hot Wheels-sized vehicles tend to look good but have poor quality.  Their GI Joe collection is a little bit better made.  The wheels have a little "give" to them, and though it does not roll all that well, it's a fun, authentic design.

4. Hot Wheels Baja Breaker van - 1978.

 I had a green one as a kid, and found this to be my favorite diecast van design.  High wheels, a hood that opens, and an overall fun design.  I just picked up a later orange one at a flea market.

5. Ertl Ford F-350 Service Truck.

 Just a fun truck with solid construction by ERTL.  There are not too many like this one out there, particularly in details. 

6. Matchbox Ruff Trek - 1983

A modified Subaru pickup.  A tan truck which was actually one of my favorites as a kid as well.  Lots of nifty details.

7. Hot Wheels Torino Stocker - 1982 "The Hot Ones."

Another one I found in mint condition at a flea market.  Good, clean lines and fun paint.

8. Majorette Explorateur

It's missing a cover, but Majorette made some quality, well-built cars in the past.  This is a neat safari off-roader with some guys in the back and some nice detail.

9. Matchbox Rolomatics Badger - 1976.

A hefty little truck with a rotating satellite dish.  Matchbox tended to make broader vehicles than Hot Wheels, and this one came out nice.

10. Majorette Jeep Grand Cherokee

Another solid nice off-roader from Majorette.  The tailgate also opens up with some sort of critter in the back.

BONUS 11: Matchbox Convoy NASA Peterbilt Tracking Vehicle

I'd get in trouble if I started hanging on to some of the NASA diecast stuff I come across, but I hung onto this one.  A fun tracking trailer and truck.  Matchbox made several nifty vehicles with NASA themes in the 1980s, when Space Shuttles were still cool.

Anyway, there it is - my son loves cars, and it has created a little more of an enjoyment that I had as well.

Latest Haul

Good stuff this past weekend.

The wrestler-looking guy on the left is a "Weird Ball G.R.U.N.T. Team Spitball Louie" figure.  MIP the things go for $100+.  I'll just say that that one figure will pay for everything else in the picture.  The line is birthed out of the madballs craze back in the 1980s.

Some of the other figures look like He-man knockoffs.  That's because they are.  REMCO made some pretty good ones, and then some other companies got similar molds and started making similar figures for dollar stores back in the 1980s.  Many are wrestling-themed.  The Action Figure Archive has probably the best current archive, with a bunch more discussed on the forums.

The purple guy is an incomplete "Auger" figure from Inhumanoids, a wholly underrated line with some neat monster figures.

The white guy with horns and yellow bee are The White Knight and Meuton from the Blackstar figure line.  They're okay - the line does have some devotees, as it's more or less a He-man knockoff line in its own right with decent figures.

The red dune buggy in the middle I grabbed because it is specifically tagged as being "Made in West Germany."  Well-made little buggy, too.

Those hot wheels from the 1980s are in VERY good shape.  I target the Stingray Corvettes specifically for my personal collection.

That's all for now.  Good hunting!

New Article up on Toybiz Marvel Super Heroes of the 90s...

New Article up.  I'll be trying for more...

Toybiz Marvel Super Heroes

Been a bit too long...review of the past month or so...

No, I haven't abandoned the blog.  Just been busy.  I HAVE made a few nifty pickups here and there...

Nifty haul from the local flea market.  Transformers, Remco figures, and a Bubble-blowing Go-Bot that I think every boy owned in the 1980s.  The Purple Alien is from Power Lords and is rather nifty.

That robot hamburger in the lower left is from a transforming toyline that McDonald's put out, and from my experience they're the only ones really worth much at all that I have been able to sell from time to time.

Here's a closer look at a few.  NO idea what that red robot horse is from.

Nice flea market find Sept 3

Not a huge haul, but some interesting pieces.


MIP Rambo figure - Nomad.  Try to not be too offended.  I think they were going for every stereotype.  I don't hate this line - I actually think the accessories for it are the best part.  The guns and weapons packs available are pretty good.  The figures are a little fragile, though.  The Matchbox cars are dated 1983, and still MIP.
Quick bit of trivia - the body count in the first Rambo movie: 1.

Next is the interesting bit.  These are essentially knockoffs of knockoffs.  From some of the information I have, these GIJoe-style figures were probably some sort of "impulse buy" items at KMart or similar store checkout counters.  The price on the back of them is .57 each or 2/$1.  They're similar to the early Remco figures, like the A-Team.  I wonder where the molds wound up...

Ah, and Snap and two Crackles.  Didn't someone notice something was wrong...

Here's a Nintendo gaming watch and some Russian tin windup toys.  They're fun and I can't get them to work.

Finally, Some dollhouse furniture, I think from the 1970s.  It sort of fits Joes - as Bo Duke attests, but is a little big.

I may post some more of the furniture as pics get taken, but that was the big stuff this past weekend.  I also managed to unload a TON of my stock, particularly a bunch that I haven't sold in a couple of years for a decent price.

Good and bad?

 Not much this week in the toy realm, just couldn't get out.  Three particulars on the above picture:

• The TMNT Donatello is cool.  Makes me with they had done something better than the figures in the 90s that made the He-man figures look good by comparison.
• That red truck in the lower left is for Spider-man.  Who never drove a vehicle in the comics except as mostly a gag.
• If you're confused over that Batman and Batcycle, it's because it's a cake topper.  Decent quality, though.

Frost cutlery knives.  The less said, the better.  I'll probably get $1-$3 each altogether on ebay.

Not listed is the DeWalt Reciprocating saw I got without the plug and a comealong with cable.

All total: $15.