If you're a collector of vintage robots and space toys then you've probably bumped into Alphadrome at some stage. The site is the oldest surviving one dedicated to these vintage space toys. Most people think it's American and are surprised to find that it is in fact a British web site. I've hosted it on an American server since the 1990s because it's cheaper over there and it's closer to the main audience. This mattered more in the early days when the internet was extremely slow.
I've collected robots and space toys since the early 1980s. That's the time before the internet, and it's difficult to recall just how different collecting was back then. I like to think it was far more exciting because no one knew exactly what was out there. You had to go with gut instinct and, looking back, I made many mistakes.
At that time the two great robot references were the Kitahara and the Boogarerts books, both of which contained pictures of a wide range of space toys without any sense of rarity or value. I needed more information. Then in the early 90s the world wide web arrived and I realised that it was a game changer.
My job was in computing so I was able to set up a site and post some information. There was no audience back then: it was a vanity project. I began posting articles and slowly began to receive email responses from other collectors. . It's difficult to appreciate just how amazing it was to wake up each morning to read new information about these toys.
My job was in computing so I was able to set up a site and post some information. There was no audience back then: it was a vanity project. I began posting articles and slowly began to receive email responses from other collectors. . It's difficult to appreciate just how amazing it was to wake up each morning to read new information about these toys.
One early contribution was an email from Woodsy. He sent me an exhaustive study of SWORD toys, a marginal area of interest to Yankee tin collectors, but utterly fascinating to me. I posted it in an area dedicated to space plastic and, remarkably, it has been one of the most visited sections of all.
Alphadrome is a collaborative project. It's the result of thousands of contributions. There is a core of highly respected old-timer authorities whose hard work forms the backbone of the site. Without them a decent site is impossible. Then there are countless observations and comments from collectors who move into and out of the hobby.
One development that I'm particularly pleased with is the database of robots and space toys. It's a huge repository of information. I think it fair to say that we've now identified most of the vintage robots that have been produced, have found their boxes and established the maker. Space toys are more elusive and unrecorded items continue to turn up.
There's also a Timeline which for the first time has determined the date of production of a wide range of space toys. You can track the development of the hobby year by year from Buck Rogers' Space Ship in 1932 to the mid 1980s when, arbitrarily, I call an end to the Vintage Space Toy era. Best of all was the work done to prove that the Lilliput Robot was the first toy robot and that it was produced before the war.
What has Alphadrome done for the hobby? Well, like Moonbase, it's emptied the wallets of hundreds of collectors. It's brought people together to buy and sell and to share information. There's even an annual "Botstock" convention in the US where collectors get together to chew the cud. And what effect has the internet had? It's had an utterly profound effect. I have acquired more than I could have ever thought possible, but some of the magic has gone.
On a personal not my interests have changed slightly. I was addicted to the classic Japanese tin robots and I used to buy most of my rarer items on Ebay from the States. This has become more difficult because sellers are increasingly unwilling to post abroad, those that do charge a fortune and Customs and Excise want their pound of flesh. So my collecting habits have changed and I'm much more interested in European, especially British space toys.
We didn't produce robots over here but there's a wealth of great space stuff. I'm a Tudor Rose/Kleeware hard plastic junkie and am still searching for the Space Patrol spaceship (hint) . I love Dan Dare and the early Anderson toys. I hunt out early European space guns and space figures, mainly from Italy and Spain. There's still much out there waiting to be discovered.
My favourite piece? It's a wooden spaceship from Spain, made in the 1950s and populated with a crew of Archer-like spacemen. It is a work of art.
Recently I've retired and have taken a shine to 3D printing. I'm able to make passable versions of the early B Movie robots, and can bring to life prototypes and other rarites. I'm no longer just a consumer, I'm a producer and it's great fun.
Finally I'd like to thank Woodsy for all his work on Moonbase. It's a fascinating site that has a huge overlap with Alphadrome. I enjoy the enthusiasm and the attention to detail that is present on every page and I'm a regular visitor. Here's to the next 10 years, Paul.
Brian Hayes August 2018
