ARTO'S BATCOPTER!

 Arto recently got himself a cool carded Batcopter.

At first glance it looked like the Ahi - Azrak Hamway - version, seen below, but Arto's has a globe maker's mark! You can see it bottom left above. Is that a C wrapped round one side too? Anyone recognise it? It's from 1977.

The card art reminds me of Mego Comic Action Heroes or similar.

Anyways, here's the Ahi carded original from 1974.

and Ahi's later 1977 card

However, Arto's version has the same backing card as the 1979 UK version of the toy by Jotastar, seen here third from the left listed on an old Heritage Auctions auction.

Here's a closer look at the 1979 Jotastar.

The Jotastar Batcopter was available in 1978 as seen in this comic ad. It cost £1.15p!

There is at least one more version of this toy, this time adhering to Ahi's backing - the LHT or Len Hunter Trading toy seen below.

Len Hunter Trading is an Australian company and also re-issued the magnificent Ahi Batmobile and Batboat. Their address appears clearly on the side of its box.

In France it was Pin Pin Toys who got the Batcoptere in the shops.

Ahi themselves recycled their copter for many other Super heroes such as the Hulk and Spidey, seen below.

They also issued a different card and handle,

Not to be confused with their Batscout!

Have you any Copters readers?

*

[images courtesy of Ebay, Hakes, Heritage Auctions, Plaidstallions and Arto]

THE ACE TEAM

 At Sunday's boot sale I had great fun rummaging in a box of old stuff  - all 25p each!

Having bagged my booty, as always I've begun to think about what I left behind! The booter's curse!

The box contained a a couple of cheapo helicopters labelled Ace Team and I think Air Team. Clearly A-Team knockoffs, both were small black die-casts.

These were not the toys I was looking for and I left them behind in their dusty casket for someone else.

Looking up these cheapo choppers I could only find Ace Team and only the van, which wasn't at the sale. 

There's one on Ebay and it says the maker is Szetoys, which is new to me. 

Googling further there's even a version of this with Mr. T pictured on the roof.

What I did get from the sale was the real McCoy, a Rough Riders A-Team Enforcer van, which needs a bit of TLC. Here's one I saw on Worthpoint.

Have you got any A-Team toys or knockoffs readers?

ED'S TIN: Haji USAF Gyrodyne

Here's a fairly large 'helicopter' that used to be in my collection (having sold it years back) the Haji USAF Gyrodyne XRON-1 Rotorcycle.

This odd-looking craft was built by the Gyrodyne Corporation of America under contract by the Navy with the intention of being deployed on destroyers. They were meant to carry one small torpedo or be used as unmanned drones. 

Utilizing coaxial rotors and an open framework it first flew in 1955. It was also being developed for the Marines who eventually decided it was too heavy and too difficult to fly and canceled the project. 

The Navy on the other hand liked its small size and load carrying capacity and continued development. The Navy went on to designate it as the QH-50 but changes mandated by the service essentially killed the program and by 1961 all testing had stopped.

In typical toy company fashion, the Haji Gyrodyne sports incorrect markings. 

Gyrodyne's were never flown by the Air Force, but for whatever reason Haji chose to have this thing piloted by a U.S. Air Force pilot vs. a Navy pilot. The toy is decent enough representation of the real thing that a helicopter enthusiast would recognize its lineage having the contra-rotating props, rotorless tail, and open framework of the original XRON-1. 

Unfortunately my example's pilot was missing his right arm on which the control stick was attached. It measures 9 1/4" (23.49cm) L. The 'fuselage' is 5 1/2" (13.97cm) L x 2 1/8" (5.39cm) W and the overall height is 7" (17.78cm).

As nice a vintage toy as this was, I just couldn't maintain any kind of emotional attachment to it - it didn't 'float my boat' as we say, so I sold it off.

From Vegas Air Field

Ed

Goodbye Ingenuity

 NASA's Martian copter is no more.

It's reddened  rotoring is sadly over, joining Man's scrapyard of dead space tech.

So long chopper.

ED'S TIN: The Japan Straco USAF Sikorsky UH-19B 'Chickasaw'

Woodsy and gang,

Here's the latest offering from my tin-litho fleet of air warriors. This is another rather small one and unfortunately doesn't work but displays well. Unfortunately, it worked for like, 10 seconds and gave up the ghost! It measures 7" (17.78cm) L x 2 5/8" (6.66cm) W at the wheels / 1 1/4" (3.17cm) W at the widest part of the fuselage x 7"(17.78cm) rotor span x 3 1/8" (7.93cm) H.

From Vegas Air Field

Ed

US

SPACE STAR: IT COULD GIVE YOU A HEADACHE!

 

Its chunky, its bulging, its the Space Star!

As iridescent as a peacock, this bad boy is determined to be seen!

You Like?

Ed's Tin: The Sanko 'Y' Piasecki YH-16 USAF Helicopter

Woodsy, et al, here's another helicopter for your enjoyment!

This one isn't nearly as large as some of my other's but is marked for the U.S. Air Force so it's right at home with the majority of my air fleet. 

I believe the trademark is for 'Sanko' because that's how I've seen it sold before. Maybe the MB Crew can confirm that. 

The cover art is a pretty decent depiction of the YH-16 helicopter but the toy itself - like many toys - is a caricature and has been 'selectively compressed' into a much shorter version. 

The toy has a friction motor which makes the rotors spin when it is pushed forward. The fuselage measures 8 1/2" (21.59cm) L x 1 1/2" (3.81cm) W (the wheelbase = 2 3/8" 6.03cm) x 4 3/4" (12.06cm) H. The rotor span is 7 1/2" (10.05cm).

Hope you like?

From Vegas Air Field

Ed

USA

NEW YORK CHOPPER SQUAD

Hello,

Three generic helicopters from the same Korean firm, MTU, from the late 80's.

Terranova47

NYC

ED'S TIN: DAIYA'S VERTOL 107 HELICOPTER

Hello Gang - Y'all ready for Christmas?? Not me! The tree is up, the train is running underneath and the stockings have been hung up but are still empty. I still need to get stocking stuffers - mostly just chocolate Santa's and such - and presents for the granddaughter (the others just get a few dinero in the stockings - gone are the days when I drive all over town for presents!!!).

Today's tin isn't some flashy, sleek airliner or jet fighter. Nope. Today we feature a workhorse of an aircraft: Daiya's Vertol 107 helicopter.

In 1955 Piasecki became Vertol and work started on a new medium lift tandem rotor helicopter first dubbed the Vertol 107 which first flew in 1958. In 1960 Boeing acquired Vertol and the company became Boeing Vertol. The 107 was then developed for the Marines as the CH-46 Sea Knight with the rear landing gear housed in two nacelles jutting out from the fuselage.

The Army wanted a heavy lift transport helicopter and ordered the larger spin-off of the Vertol 107, the Model 114, which eventually became the CH-47 Chinook. The box art would lead you to believe the toy helo has a rear loading ramp, but in fact there is none. 

The entire fuselage bottom - up to where it meets the top of the fuselage near the rear motor housing - is a one-piece stamping with no provisions for a door. The toy measures 14"L x 3 1/8"W x 6 5/8"H. The rotor span of 10 1/2" adds additional length - actually from front rotor to rear rotor it's about 18 1/2"L.

From Vegas Air Field

Ed