I've got this toy. Mine's a Tarheel brand toy.
This version I saw on Ebay is branded Durham.
But Johnny Tarheel is mentioned and the Tarheel Tarboro address, proof positive that Tarheel and Durham were inextricably linked toy brands.
If you have any Tarheel or Durham branded Project SWORD toys like the Glider or the Moon Prospector then you could check if its actually Durham or Tarheel!
Very nice - yet another early model Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter, or Huey. The side of the box says Developed by Durham Industries, A Johnny Tarheel Toy, and Made in Hong Kong. Requires two C cell batteries. Perhaps Durham just designed it, and Tarheel marketed it ? What does it say on the box top ?
ReplyDeleteI've got this Durham version in NOS condition, and interestingly the toy does not have the Durham brand on it, only "Made in Hong Kong".
ReplyDeleteThe box states "Developed by Durham Industries". Since it also is "A Johnny Tarheel Toy", I have considered this as a transitional item between the two. So did Durham come before Tarheel? Or did Durham sub-license (some of) their catalogue to Tarheel?
In my example, the insert for the nose is made of a perfect-fit styrofoam, while the insert for the rear is cardboard as in the example above. A "transitional" item also in that sense.
Superb Arto, a transitional item! Fantastic. All we need now is a Durham Tarheel box for your green Space Glider!
DeleteI have three of the Nova III rockets, the one that looks loosely based off TB2 ;)
ReplyDeleteTwo of them are by Durham and the other is Tarheel. The Tarheel orange is slighty but noticably a different shade when viewed under good lighting. I'm not sure if it is sun fading or just manufacturer plastic mix recipe that caused it. The silver box thingy in the cockpit (computer? beer cooler?)on the Durham models has a noticable ridge down the middle between the rows of dots/circles while the Tarheel one lacks this ridge. Hard to tell but I think the ridge is a molding artifact and not actually a detail bit.
Super observations Lance. Any chance of a close-up piccy of that ridge/ no ridge on the two toys? For the blog. Email at the bottom of the page.
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