A Firm Grip or What!

This auctioned Action Man caught my eye. He needs a funny caption! 

Just what is that uniform with a short and tie? 

Lancer Caps Everywhere

I'm seeing whAt I think are Lancer's caps everywhere now I've got one!

Here's one on eBay without it's insignia but no mention is made of the cap in the listing, so is it a Lancer's?

 It's worn by a non-Action Man on an Action Man motorbike, which itself is rather nice.

In another shot the cap is placed with an incomplete Action Man and a uniform.

The Man is armless, the description is capless.

"POLICE MOTORCYCLE & DEAD ARMLESS ACTION MAN 1964 by PALITOY embossed (out of action ie dead ideal for diorama piece) & Action man Cavalry HORSE & unbranded SCOUT CAR & 21st Century American AIRBORNE Paratrooper action figure complete all limbs attached and robust & A small arms kit (MNIB) to construct a machine gun."

A Lancer's cap?

*

By way of a postscript, I found a cheapo Action Man clone in a drawer and he kindly modelled my new Lancer's/ Officers cap for me!

Bill's Action Buddy

 As this round of our MoonBase International custom toys slowly comes to a close, our latest reincarnation is this 1960's Action Man knockoff.

This was Bill's childhood buddy and along with some of the original kit he totally deserves a new lease of life. The buddy that is, not Bill! 

With a good scrub-up and freshly cleaned clothes, Bill's buddy, via the Quartermasters Store, has been sent on one last mission before hanging up his dog tags:

To secure the back garden for the summer!

Mission Status: SNAFU!

After debriefing, The next step in buddy's reinstatement and immediate de-mobbing will be new retirement package, which is currently in pre-production.

In the meantime our plastic chum is off down the NAAFI for some well-earned tiffin.

To Cap it All

 That Palitoy Action Man Lancers cap I found yesterday ( thanks for ID 'ing it Paul) .....

 reminded me of an officer I once found at a German flea market and blogged about 13 years ago.

The new cap would have sat well on this fellow, albeit a cheapo I think. The uniform was by Schildkrot.

The officer has flown along with his She-Ras.

Looking up Schildkrot Action Team I thought my old man was this from their Soldiers of the World range. It looks like the Lancers cap I got yesterday but the uniform is different to the above. 

Is this Schildkrot figure a Lancer?

As it turns out my old officer should have had a cap more like the Foreign Legion.

Oddly enough, all the Schildkrot figures I've seen online  today have the same cheapo looking doll so maybe my original assessment was wrong.

He's Schildkrot too!

What do you think? Have you any Action Team? Is their figure a Lancer? What did I get 13 years ago?

Arto's Action Man Lenticular

Arto kindly sent me this image of his latest find, a neat lenticular postcard featuring none other than our friend..... Action Man! 

It's fantastic and all new to me.

What do you think readers? 

Chutes Away

 Junior and me tried to launch an Action Man parachutist today.

It sort of worked. The chute did unfurl but the height was an issue, not enough of it from the bedroom window.

To check if this was a common problem - which I seem to recall from my childhood too - we watched a couple of You Tube clips. Even the guy from Palitoy said kids would struggle to get it to work.

Another clip confirmed that more height could create a decent billow and a full chute, as a drone dropped the figure from a great altitude.

Interestingly it was a solid figure called Desert Rat that was used. Not an Action Man I know at all. You?

Have you succeeded in launching the Action Man parachute?

Dressed for Action

 Spent a happy afternoon with a friend dressing Action Men.

The Grenadier, the uniform bought in Otley vintage toy shop. The man is a modern Duke GI Joe.

The scuba explorer, a fabulous set kindly donated by blog friend Tony K. The man is a modernish Hasbro figure.

Have you got any dressed figures?

Mooch Ado About Bedale

 A recent visit to the lovely North Yorkshire town of Bedale found me mooching in a toy shop.

This display of military action dolls and vehicles drew me in.

This Lookout Out Tower brought back happy memories of my Action Man assault tower.

I do like the look of these modern figures like these World Peacekeepers.

And this Combat Tank for the smaller soldiers appears to be the business! 

And speak of the devil, good old Action Man made an appearance too! A display of modern re-issues. I was SO tempted at £20 each but my gripping hands resisted! 

Would you have readers?

Dave Barnacle, Palitoy Box Artist

I know there are many Action Man fans among Moonbasers, so I thought this You Tube video would be of interest.

A look at the work of Palitoy box artist Dave Barnacle, who sadly passed away this month, April 2025.

He did many of the Action Man boxes in the 1970s, as well as other lines, such as Planet of the Apes, and Star Wars.

There is even a look at some concept art for figures that never made it in to production.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdkC7yN-fJc

Paul Adams from New Zealand

Vintage Otley Outing

 With the Missus and a mate, visiting my favourite vintage toy shop round here, in Kirkham Arcade in Otley, I was really pleased to bag a few great collectables for the Moonbase collection.

The haul comprised of a smart loose JR21 FAB1, a neat re-issue Corgi Black Beauty and an Action Man Rifle Rack along with the golden grenade launcher. I had all of these as a kid and it was great to get them back and a snip at £30 the lot.

In the town's charity shops I bagged an old hardback copy of Brave New World, a paperback horror by Shaun Huston and a hardback Adventure Annual with Pyro toy designs on the cover. 

My final item was a cool multi-rotational tin globe. It rotates on two axes! 

All in all a great day out.

What do you reckon? 

More on all of them to follow.

The Rugby Post!

 I've had this idea for ages, how else to use a shop rack I have.

Eh voila!

Action Man rugby conversion! 

Behind the scenes! All the action! 

C'mon Castleford Tigers!