Station to Station

 I've always liked the rare three-legged space station by LP or Lik Be seen here top right in Wotan Bill's old collection.

It's composition is described in detail by Bill n MC and our friend Paul V's Triang SpaceX site (link to site in the labels below)

Such a cool and simple thing, I love the two flat circular platforms the most.

Another structure with circles are these futuristic buildings with Saturn-like rings on the old cover of the US Tarheel Project SWORD catalogue.

Here it is in close up. Again, simple but effective.

The busy cover brings to mind a Worlds Fair like this artwork for Seattle in 1962 with it's iconic double-ringed needle.

Or Mike Trim's Car Vu, with those spiral ramps and the saucer tops, seen in the first episode of Captain Scarlet, where an SPV drives to the top!

Another rare toy is the card space-port tower found on the back of the Golden Astronaut gift pack described again on Paul's fabulous Triang SpaceX  site ( the only place I've ever seen it).

In close-up it's a central spike topped with another ring structure and a final smaller ring like the LP station.

Again it recalls the Seattle Century 21 Needle

Or even the Tracy Island roundhouse from Century 21's Thunderbirds, seen here being worked on by Mike Trim back in the day.

Another Century 21 building I like is this yellow Century 21 Toys, where Agent21 gets all his deadly gadgets in TV21.

That huge glass sweeping front could be straight off the pavillion at New Yorks World Fair in 1964.

My final sweeping structure is this excellent building and skyway on the box of Bichi's Carlos V Batmobile released in South America.

There is a black and white sweeping cityscape with FAB1 too but I can't find it.

Can you think of any circular space stations, ringed towers or sweeping future scapes you like readers?

THOSE PUPS JUST KEEP ROLLING THEIR EYES

 Years ago my friend Paul V discovered that LP Lik Be re-used their toy puppy eyes as space domes. You can read about this fascinating discovery on his fab SpaceX website.

https://www.triangspacextoys.info/SpGAderv/LPHK/LPhkSmTy/LPdomes/LPdomes.html

Those domes are a mindworm. I just cant help coming across rolling dog dome eyes. I've spoken about blow moulds before and here's another one in the US, a large ball visible underneath that propels the pooch along.

This is a big puppy at 12 inches long, much bigger than the LP Space Dog but the same principle.

Paul V has just found one of these doggies pictured in a French Sitap toy catalogue too!

Can you spot any dome eyes readers? Keep your eyes peeled.

Let me know.

BLOGGIVERSARY PARTY PIECE : ARTO'S FANTASTIC LP SPACE EXPLORING BOX SET #234

The otherwise dry summer of toy scouting saved the best for last. The Juthbacka mega fair which attracts more than 400 sellers from Finland and Sweden provided this rare Space Exploring set by LP, or Lik Be Plastic and Metal Factory of Hong Kong. A photo of its contents can be found in Hong Kong Toys '72 magazine (photo courtesy of Paul V's Triang Spacex Toys website).

With an item number 234, this beautiful space diorama includes a LP 104 Space Rocket with a chromed double-disc nose antenna and spaceman, white/orange moon base station, red Mercury capsule (missing hatch), two moon rocks and four golden astronauts. A bit odd an addition is the miniature army jeep (or "moon buggy") with a mounted gun. The box measures 23 x 10 x 10 cm.

What’s new about the box are the small promotional pictures of boxes of other LP space toys, namely LP 102 Moon-Explorer Car with a missile launcher (item number unknown for this variant), LP 103 Space Explorer, and LP 104 Space Rocket included in this very set.

Arto

Helsinki Base

ED'S NEW KNOCKOFF CRICKET

Woodsy and Fellow Moonbaser's,

I managed to score this nice little knock-off of the Spacex Cricket. 

After looking at Paul V.'s SpaceX toys website it appears to be from an unknown manufacturer. My sample is missing the grill, one hubcap, and the gun mechanism has been glued in place but it's still a nice little piece.

 The photo editing gave it a more yellowish hue than it has up close and personal. It's more of a cream color with yellow mixed.

From Vegas Base

Ed

THE PROJECT SWORD TOY THAT NEARLY WAS!

 Over the last 15 years there have been many revelations about Project SWORD toys.

Like all SWORD fans the prospect of finding a new SWORD toy has enthralled us above all.

One of my absolute favourite revelations was the research my friend Paul Vreede did into the Hover Tank and his efforts paid off spectacularly when he unearthed registration documents for an actual Hover Tank toy!

Sadly, the toy was never produced but you can see the results of Paul's fantastic sleuthing on his own brilliant SpaceX Toys website.

Enjoy!

https://www.triangspacextoys.info/SpGApapr/rUKdsgns/MA944883.html

ORANGE AND WHITE: LEMS THE RIGHT COLOURS!

Remember the beautiful Tri-ang SpaceX LEM we've featured in the past? 

A wonderful old plastic toy in detachable white and orange parts. Along with its companion Apollo capsule Its one of the larger SpaceX toys. My friend Paul Vreede covers it beautifully on his Triang SpaceX website

https://www.triangspacextoys.info/SpGAtoys/Apl8/SpLTApl8.html

BILL BULLOCH

Well look at Etsy's 3DStuffUK's Elon Musk's SpaceX Falcon 9 crew dragon capsule, a 3D printed model rocket. They could be from the same SpaceX! This model is 22cm tall assembled and it looks great!

3DstuffUK also make a Dyna-Soar! For the Project SWORD fan on a tight budget!

You could get anything 3D printed I imagine these days!

Have you got anything readers?

My own Two Fleet

 Ages ago my friend Paul Vreede treated us to his website he'd created to celebrate Triang SpaceX toys. I thinks it's fair to use words like definitive and beautiful to describe it.

In it was and is an image that captured my imagination so much that I always wanted to recreate it.

The image is Paul's group photograph of his genuine SpaceX II toys, a terrific feat of collecting and feast of Seventies space plastic arranged fabulously on a black background. It's stunning and shown below, borrowed from Paul's website.

Here's my own attempt at the SpaceX II fleet done in 2019. I've posted it before on MC but this version I've tidied up with a blacker background. 

All the vehicles I made from scratch. 

They include the presumably never produced red crash tender and yellow rocket carrier. 

I plan to restage it with more models at some point. It's always fun to celebrate Paul's picture, which inspired me so much.

But for now .....

Operation Soap Dish: The Spacex Moon Base: Completed!

 With the arrival of some HO figures, my model Moon Base HQ is done!

It's been a fun soapy ride!

Below is the REAL Tri-ang toy [not my model!] and the main reference picture I used for research; my friend Paul V's fabulous image on his superb Tri-ang SpaceX website.

Here's my own version; more of an impression than a copy.

Outside.

Inside.

.... and some detailed snaps of the whole base.

The rec room

The screening room

I like this final pic. Before the night shift arrives, the lone resident considering what to do tomorrow.

Good question!

Hope you enjoyed this moon base project readers. Thanks for watching.