As you can guess from this blog I collect Project SWORD and Spacex toys and related ephemera. I know many readers do too. But I'm aware that people collect more than one thing. For instance, I also collect old Big Box videos from the early 1980's, vintage horror novels and C21 annuals, most of which I find in second hand and charity shops and the odd Car Boot Sale. It's fair to say that the recession has made me a more frugal collector, with an even keener eye for a bargain!
What do you collect and how do you come by your finds?
I collect plenty other stuff, so if you have an hour to spare..? :)
ReplyDeleteIt's a bit cyclical, but the main things are Spacex & co, Major Matt Mason, 0-gauge tinplate trains (and now a bit of 1920s Bing 00-gauge coz it takes less room), odd bits of militaria with an emphasis on WW2 maps, few 1:6 figures. etc. etc. etc.
Finding stuff online or off is mostly a case of stumbling upon it (tho sometimes through trawling that takes the whole evening). And being part of a circle of friends (like your good self) that point stuff out to each other.
Best
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Paul
Debts? Trouble? Enemies? I seem to have collected lots of those. (laughs)
ReplyDeleteI used to collect lots of stuff, among which was SpaceX, cereal-related things, 12 inch dolls, girls' comics and annuals, Buffy-related magazines. But I ended up with a house so full of things that it was beginning to look like the home of a hoarder.
So recently I have been giving lots of it away (and selling one or two items), and instead going for "virtual" collections, ie piccis on a computer ... and more lately, just collecting experiences.
At least I can sit down now!
Grew up with Gerry Anderson stuff and Star Wars just blew me away as a teenager in the 70s so I've always been fascinated by SF machines.
ReplyDeleteCollect toys/models of Anderson machines and anything that looks Anderson-esque, Star Wars spacecraft and other TV series spaceships - Galactica, Buck Rogers and so on, Japanese anime mecha (space ships, fighters, but not the robots which to me are just action figures). Also TV21 comics (Anderson again).
Apart from Major Matt Mason and my early Action Man I've never been interested in toy figures- always wondered why there are so many action figure toys as I was always more interested in having a toy/model of the machine than having a toy of the pilot ;D Just me I suppose as the action figure market grows and grows.
Maybe part of the reason action figures are so popular is linked to the cult of Celebrities? ie, with shows like Buffy, Doctor Who, etc.
ReplyDeleteYour comments are very interesting, Yorkie. I'm pretty-much the polar opposite: I'd much rather have a toy of the pilot than the machine ... although both together is better. When toys or models are shown on this blog my immediate action is to look at the figures (if there are any). The little golden astronauts which come with the SpaceX craft are a LARGE part of the attraction for me.
I detest current gender politics, but maybe this IS a girl-thing? (I hope not). I watch the programs you mention, and others like Star Trek, Doctor Who, etc., more for the people and stories than for the technology. And I am the same when it comes to collecting toys. The people are more central than the machines, although as I said already, I do like the machines a bit too.
I don't think it is a girl thing as for example (certainly going by activity in toy forums) it's mostly males that are into the Star Wars figures, and there are far more figures than machines. I love all the Anderson shows (OK Space Precinct is pushing it a bit even for me) and love both the characters and the machines, yet would still rather have a TB1 toy than a figure of Scott.
ReplyDeleteI used to buy the Galoob Action Fleet Star Wars vehicles which came with tiny figures which added fantastic play value.
Ironically the Transformers toys are figures AND machines but they still don't appeal to me. ;D
Good, I'm glad that perspective appears to be wrong. Thank you, Yorkie.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree with you regarding Transformers. They leave me cold.
Count me as another who never really saw the appeal of Transformers, but that may be at least partly a generational thing.
ReplyDeleteRe figures versus machines: it always bothered me to have a car or other vehicle that didn't even have a driver or pilot inside, just an empty seat. I don't believe I'm entirely lacking in imagination, but I always felt like I was supposed to pretend the car was parked, or being remote controlled. I could never wrap my head around having it drive around while empty.
My collecting mania was comic books, but there came a point where I'd acquired all the ones I'd been looking for and pretty much stopped. When I worked at Marvel Comics, I got free copies of everything they and their competitors published, and nothing kills the collecting drive like just being given stuff without any searching or effort.
I only collect what I build.
ReplyDeleteI too mainly collect what I build (there just isn't the room). I do collect Spacex, Project Sword and Anderson toys but I do have most of what I want now (just as well as I keep building bigger and bigger models!).
ReplyDeleteThat's a very good point about collecting, Richard, and Desmond Morris would agree with you.
ReplyDeleteAs well as writing The Naked Ape (and numerous other books) he wrote a superb book on happiness, called, "The Nature of Happiness".
His premise what that happiness comes from satisfying out natures as Humans. Part of that nature is that we are hunters. But thanks to the complexity of our brains (well, not MINE, obviously *laughs*) that hunting can be symbolic: it doesn't have to be the hunting of Wooly Mamouths.
He says that collecting can satisfy that hunting part of out natures. (He himself collects hard-to-find books). So, when items are just given to you, then the hunting aspect isn't satisfied, as you rightly pointed out.
I love being reminded we are animals, don't you? Gives a nice sense of grounding.
I'm not quite sure how Desmond Morris explained creating ... it's a long time since I read the book. (But I recommend it highly - it's not a self-help manual, but a very accessible study in the nature of happiness in Humans). But I suspect making things (which would included solving problems) is something else which leads to satisfaction, so I can quite understand what you are saying, Kevin and Warren.
Of course, making things leads to satisfaction ... I meant to say it satisfies some aspect of our nature as a species. Sigh. I will, I will, I will learn to form an argument some day.
ReplyDeleteAs a matter of fact, toad, Desmond Morris was precisely who I was thinking of when I wrote that comment! I often thought of that description when I was at a convention or a flea market, walking the aisles, my eyes darting from side to side as I scan the underbrush for my prey, prepared to pounce -- yep, people with something to hunt for are fulfilling a biological urge.
ReplyDeletegreat minds, eh, Richard? Makes me want to re-read the book now. Sadly all I have are scans of some of the pages which particularly interested me at the time. Wonder if the local library still has a copy? ... hmmm, must check.
ReplyDelete