Jefe's Pistola Submarina

 I'm in love! 

It's a Spanish metal toy harpoon gun!

 Seen in Todocollecion.

I don't think I've ever seen anything as beautiful!

James Bond's harpoon is paella!

Captain Space Solar Scout Rifle

I had to look twice at this old 2013 Hakes auction. I thought it was a Captain Scarlet rifle - the red lettering is very similar at first glance.

Turns out it's a prototype, all either rather fabulous, on a mock-up if I'd understood the blurb. See if you understand it:

11x28.5" mock-up card for 26.5" long plastic prototype 1950s space rifle. Fully painted prototype mock-up card features large "Captain Space" name and image of spaceman w/rifle. Additionally, card show three views of the rifle, demonstrating that gun shone three different colored lights - "White Spotter Beam, Red Signal Beam" and "Green Ray Signal." Card also advertises that gun had a "Sonic Buzzer Sound" that was activated by pulling trigger. Small paste-over Marx logo also on card. The actual production gun came boxed, not on a card like this. Card shows obvious wear w/noticeable warping and heavy dust soiling. Lettering at upper right shows some wear and card is VG overall. Rifle prototype is a production piece that has been painted over, w/painted "Solar Scout" logo applied to one side of stock. Nicely detailed scope has "Captain Space Solar Scout Official" recessed text/logo. Gun has some moderate dust soiling/aging and scattered paint nicks/scratches. Fine overall. From the John Bowers Collection.

This is the link.

https://payment.hakes.com/auction/ItemDetail/84306/CAPTAIN-SPACE-SOLAR-SCOUT-RAY-RIFLE-MARX-PROTOTYPE-GUN 

Arto's Dan Dare Cosmic Ray Gun as advertised by Telex

Whilst delving deeper into the history of the Finnish toy manufacturer and importer Telex, I came across this advertisement in our main newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, date November 18th, 1958

The grainy illustration is clearly taken from the box of the Palitoy Dan Dare Cosmic Ray Gun (1953).

(Palitoy Dan Dare Cosmic Ray Gun photo - courtesy of internet)

Incidentally, this discovery may shed some light on the surprise find I made last summer at the Loimaa car boot sale. Laying among all the bric-a-brac on a simple plywood table in bright sunlight, I spotted the same Dan Dare gun (yellow version)

(Loimaa photo)

Missing some bits but with body intact, it really seemed so out-of-place not only in regard to all the other items, but also in regard to everything I previously knew about Finnish toy imports. My first thought was that the toy must be a homecoming gift from Britain for some lucky lad.

The ad above, however, puts the question in a different light. Was Telex importing the original Palitoy gun, box and all, or did they produce their own box for the toy? The gun is marked "Made in England" on the grip.

The Finnish launch comes full five years after the gun first came on the market in Britain, which is a long interval between issues. 

Dead stock perhaps?

Arto

Helsinki Base

Just Visiting

This Argentinian Knockoff toy pistol caught my eye.

Two reasons: it says V on the grip sticker along with a small spacecraft from the show, a TV show I did watch and enjoy. Did you?

The card art may not be from V at all. Does anyone know?

Chipolino Automatic

 This caught my eye.

A large boxy toy rifle that reminded me of something else.

I was thinking of my Action Man machine gun.

Not that similar but interestingly the white toy rifle was used as a prop in a 1973 Soviet film called Chipolino.

The toy itself came in a simple Soviet box.

There appears to be a year stamped on the box side: 1969?

Is this a toy rifle or film you know?

(All photos and info: eBay)

Lone Star Saint Luger

 

This Lone Star the Saint toy pistol was new to me when I saw it.

It's looks to be die-cast and a 100 shot repeater. Would those be caps?

I like the silencer and the scope.

Did the Saint use a Luger-style gun on TV?

Roto Jet that Cyclops!

I adored the little silver accessories like these from the Major Matt Mason range.

I especially liked the rifle at the top.

It was only as an adult that I found out it was a miniature copy of the mighty life-sized Lost in Space Roto Jet Gun. What a toy! I would have loved it.

Turns out too there were more like this, especially in Japan, who seemed to really go for the style of rifle.

 Did or do you have anything like this? 

My other Car is a Jaguar!

 Yesterday I saw a battered old Jaguar car at an auction house.

It made me think of the black jaguar on the Avengers Shooting Game target set.

A proper black vintage jaguar would look like these old beauties as found on the web.

Cor!

If I had one of these I'd just sit in it all day on the driveway! Ha ha

The black one on the Merit toy box is similar. Here's one on the Vectis site. I assume that's Emma Peel with Steed. What a fabulous toy. I'd have loved it as a kid.

Did they actually use an old Jag like this in the TV show?

Birthday Jollies: a Jolly Seven XL5 Update

It's been a tradition of mine to do an update on the toy rifle range I call the XL5/ Tommy Buster/ Jolly Seven family tree each bloggiversary. All previous updates can be found clicking the label below. 

Here's another short patch.

This is, if memory serves, a box new to the blog for the Leizer 200, the Greek clone of the Japanese Tada original. A some package with illustrated box art and to my mind a very handsome effort by Alpha.

And so back to where it started on here,even more glorious that the Lone Star Captain Scarlet rifle, the incredible Fireball XL5 toy rifle, the king of Anderson's toy armoury!

And as if we needed more plastic glory, a real TADA! moment is seeing it's likely origin, the lustrous Tommy Kick by Tada of Japan. 

Tada!

And with further browsing, I found some real sound of one of the family tree's toy rifles. This clip on Facebook allows us mere mortals to actually hear the Lone Star ricochet toy gun. How cool is that! 

https://www.facebook.com/100057185301301/videos/james-bond-lone-star-ricochet-gun/484588009026717/ 

That's this update. There'll be more I'm sure. If I had the money I'd collect these toys! Anyone got anything like this?

Ancient Weapons are no match for a good Blaster at your Side! A Birthday Bootleg

 The Star Wars eternal knockoff machine went into stellar overdrive from the off and toy guns were no exception.

Yep, you're our only trope and then some!

Take this for instance. How brazen can you get to simply slap a photograph of Mark Hamill on the side of the box, deftly replacing his blaster with the Space Saucer!

If that wasn't rip-off enough then just scatter some Star Wars craft throughout and use the typeface too!

A more subtle but no less obvious lift is Kusan's Sonic Fazer. This is actually a tin plaque on auction, so it gets even more modern shelf life!

Yep, there's old Harrison Ford's Han Solo, with all but his face, posing in his classic blaster pose. The little picture of the kid below adroitly captures Carrie Fisher side-on too!

And just what is that spacecraft?

A lesser global sensation that Star Wars but a muscled cash cow nonetheless, Rambo had his platoon of admirers in knockoffsville too!

Here's the Kes-Uzi and the Sly Sta-clone has two of them! He'll give you a bootleg you won't believe!

It's not only screen icons which garnered faking fans. Top toys did and still do too. 

In fact Topper's mid-Sixties Mega-seller Johnny Seven had quite a few including a whole decade later, Remco's ..... wait for it ..... System 7!

Really! C'mon, Remco, you're better than that! 

I do really like the spinning rotors ammo though. Johnny don't spin!

And a toy rifle I would have adored as a kid, the mighty Mitraglia Spaziale.

Looking at this I think the butt is upside down!

It's one chunky blaster and I love the background box art. What is that?

I read the words Battlestar Galactica in the old Spanish auction. Surely there's no connection?

And last but not least, my favourite space weapon name this week, the Super Trembling Space Gun! 

No need to be afraid, the pistols trembling anyway! Ha ha!

Do you like any of these readers? Have you any knockoff toys?

Blog Birthday Party Favour: JR21 Dart Pistol Update!

 Since first being made aware of the JR21. Dart Pistol with Periscope by a reader 16 years ago I've loved it. In fact it was a prize here for the blog's first birthday back in 2009!

 I don't own one but covet it's simple obscurity from afar. Yep, I'm a sucker for it!

As such I've updated sightings of it and it's clones/ forebears here on MC a number of times.

Well, in birthday fashion, here's another, an absolute dead ringer. 

The SA 17 Dart Pistol with Periscope.

It's all there, the gun, the target, the Sean Connery lookalike graphic. Just JR21 missing! 

Here it is in its auction bundle seen earlier this year.

Is it a clone or the original?

A final observation is the resemblance of the famous Japanese Sekiden toy pistol, a toy I adored as a kid. Me and bigger brothers had running battles with these things, the compressed powder balls flying everywhere. Daft really but that was the time. Did you have one?

Have you any toy dart guns?

Ray Fan

 There's something classically beautiful about this Astro Ray design. Evoking a golden age of space adventure, the design took hold and influenced countless toy Ray guns.

Here are just a few.

Have you anything like this readers?