MOONBASE CENTRAL: January 2026

Saturday, 31 January 2026

Fallout's Bellringers

I'm thoroughly enjoying a rewatch Of Prime's superb sci-fi series Fallout.

Have you seen it?

It really has got everything I enjoy. The American Nineteen Fifties dream. The Apocalypse. Nuclear bunkers. Wastelands. Cowboys. Goody Two Shoes. Cyborgs, Ghouls and mutated monsters. The super-wholesome fifties American song book is fantastic too - did saccharin songs like that really appeal at the time?

Needless to say, albeit based on a video game, Fallout has a fabulous rich storyline. I'm inclined to say I like it more than Westworld!

Anyways, a couple of fun observations.

The Knight-carrying choppers of Fallout's Brotherhood of Steel .....

Recall the bulbous helicopters in the earlier animated New Captain Scarlet TV show, below.

(I've been to hundreds of car boots and never once found any New Captain Scarlet toys! Anyone own any?)

The Soviet satellite wreck in Fallout, location of the pivotal head scene, really made me think of ...

The dead astronaut and spacecraft on the poster for DeF-Con 4, an old film I'd like to see. Is it any good?

It's the shapes that look similar to the Soviet wreck.

Finally, in Fallout, the anti-hero stroke bad guy is The Ghoul seen here, played so brilliantly by Waler Coggins.

The Ghoul is a zombie cowboy, who was once a big star of Westerns.

He brings to mind the much earlier Tex Hex from the 80's cartoon Bravestarr. I love his buffalo rider. I just can't think what it's called. Anyone got Bravestarr stuff?

THE SPACE CADETS - CADET WALK (2017 cut)

https://youtu.be/zGsZe_uWNjA?si=WUFpknlHDxXFgyOD

another goodie!

South Coast Base

GALAGA

I picked this up in Norwich last December.

A Galaga mini arcade game.

I loved the Rick Griffinesque lettering and graphics.

All new to me.

With new batteries, it worked fine.

It said Bandai Namco 1981 on the side.

But then I spotted the tiny phone cable charging point at the bottom, which I couldn't get to a activate. Good job the batteries worked as a back up.

It's a very well made re-issue. Just unsure from when.

Not my cup of tea at all, I just can't concentrate on games, the arcades and space invader games passed me by as a Seventies youngster. Maybe I was the wrong generation? Have I missed out?

Super Sideral Robo Gear

This an amazing Spanish

robot space costume for kids.

The helmet is terrific!

It looks familiar.

The dart visor is a separate toy too ...

... The Videolaser.

Not sure this arm is connected but I threw it in anyway, as it's very roboty!

Anyone seen this set before?

Friday, 30 January 2026

Super Kings of the Road

More of my die casts in the departure lounge. All bigger Matchbox Speed Kings, a Corgi Unimog and large Lone Star King of the Road at the rear.

My favourite in this group is the blue transporter. It's so Thunderbirds!

T Time

My Fire Chief and Hot T.

I love these Rods.

Do you have anything like this?

The Beatles or Santa?

Watch "FAZER from N-DUBZ raps with UK Rockabilly group THE SPACE CADETS" on YouTube

https://youtu.be/MC3Po8g1sGA?si=CavWgBG5SaQBWppC

Phazer's mum was on the rockabilly scene when I was like 12 😆😆😆

South Coast Base

Painted Love: Terranova's Cars

Hello Woodsy,

Further to Rob's cars of the world, Northern Heights has a few painted samples.

White, blue and green examples crossing a bridge. Maker names can be seen on the boots.

Terranova47

USA

Thursday, 29 January 2026

Bandalero and Shovel Nose

To fund my vintage VHS needs I've been selling off my old die-casts.

It's been really great fun to collect old toy cars over the last decade, especially the hugely relaxing pastime of cleaning and re-touching them, but I feel I can let most of them go now, except my Hot Wheels and a few specials I'm keeping hold of.

Here's the first of a series of snaps I took of them this week, posting here by way of a farewell to these things, die-cast beauties all.

Did you have any of these?

Watch "The Space Cadets - Rockin' With The Space Cadets - Live in London 1996" on YouTube

https://youtu.be/Ywnj7p0bjbc?si=dFJkfIQQImFNTgAp

I was at this gig!

South coast Base

Pogs Anyone?

Remember Pogs?

The slamming discs game. I wuz too old in the Nineties, but my daughter had some. I'm unsure really how you played it. They seem collectable now.

Like phone cards and Tazos, one of those odd 90's creations!

THEN AND NOW: THE TINPLATE MOONSHIP FOR ARTO AND ME

The blog legend that is the Moonship: There was a time in the mid-1990's when, together with Chris Avis, my Project SWORD toy 'finder', that we thought we'd found a Century 21 Toys Moonship.

At that time, circa 1996, neither of us had ever seen one, it's existence only hinted at from a snippet of information from a 1969 toy trade journal courtesy of current blog reader and contributor Will O, whom I've known for years.

Chris A went on to find a tin Moonship and for all intents and purposes it was the Century 21 toy to us for a while, until fresh information came again from Will O. This time it was with a picture of the Moonship, which was clearly made of plastic and not tin! My own tin Moonship, pictured, was as it turned out, a Chinese Kang Yuan.

I went on to make a box for my tin Chinese Moonship and the green American plastic Moonship, the AHI Super Rocket Plane, using small templates printed in the book Future Toys.

Even though a Century 21 Toys Moonship had been seen, I still hadn't seen it's box at that point.

Somewhere I have the letter from Chris A. offering me a loose tinplate Chinese Moonship, which I still have in a home-made box. Before Ebay came along in the UK, in 2000, we used to swap toys and a bit of cash made up the difference. Those were very happy pre-internet years for collectors like me.

And so to now, when we know so much more.

The latest owner of a tin Chinese Kang Yuan Moonship is Helsinki Base reader and contributor Arto, who has acquired a mint example towards the end of last year.

We come full circle, as Arto's ship is boxed!

I'll let Arto take up the story himself.

"it was from Antico Mondo in Köln, an original boxed Kang Yuan Moonship! A long story with a happy ending! Earlier this year, I bid on an original Moonship box which came up on Antico and I lost! Then, in the last auction, a Moonship with original box came on offer with a high ( Woodsy edit) starting price. I did not leave a bid. Upon checking the results, I found out it was left unsold! I immediately contacted the auction house and asked to buy it and they were happy to agree! So now the wait of almost two decades is over! A great conclusion for my best-ever collecting year!"

Arto continues

"I bought a loose Kang Yuan Moonship already some 15 years ago, so now I have two! But it needs all those fabulous box graphics by its side to display it in all its glory.

Researching the Moonship a bit more, I landed on this interesting website

https://www.tintoysofchina.com

Which states that no factory name nor place (usually Shanghai) was printed on the toys or their boxes after 1958. Which would date this boxed Moonship version into the 1950's. Compare it with the other known box version which has © 1965 and word FOREIGN on the box - was that version meant for export only, and what's the reason for changing the box? A new distributor perhaps? There is also a considerable time gap between the pre-1958 and 1965 issues, so was there a gap in production as well? Intriguing!"

The other tinplate Moonship in Arto's fabulous collection is Soviet, the Lunnyij korablj LK-1