PROJECT SWORD:PHASE 2 20/03/68

DIME STORE ASTRONAUTS

Regular readers will know that I love plastic miniature toys, especially anything relating to Project SWORD and Spacex - however indirect! So I was thrilled when I picked up these vintage American dime store toys. Neither were expensive and in keeping with their pocket-money origins!

 

 

 

 

The helicopter set contains a lovely green chopper and two of our old friends, the Spacex spacemen, in miniature. The helicopter blades remind me of those found on the Spacex P3. The garish plasticy colours just add to thier appeal!

 

 

 

The Dare-Devil set contains a parachutist with folded chute, along with three beautiful small jets. The two Beta-One bombers reminded me so much of the Spacex Supply Force Mercury that I bought them for that.

Being made of similar cheap brightly coloured plastic they all go together really well I reckon. Here are a few mash-ups. OK, they're cheap and not that Spacexy but what do you think?

 

UFO'S: UNIDENTIFIED FLEAMARKET ODDITIES

 

 

This officer of the 12 inch Army has joined me at Moonbase. I bought him for a Euro at a German Flohmarkt over Easter. Not sure what rank he is. Anyone?

 

 

 

 

Closer inspection of him revealed that the military doll is a cheap soft-headed Action Man knockoff. The uniform, complete with shirt, tie and shoes, is from Action Team, which in Germany was from a company called Schildkrot. Does anyone know which uniform it is?

 

 

The three smaller action figures are from a German charity shop called Diakonie. I've yet to identify them. On a nearby shelf in the shop was a huge collection of Masters of the Universe figures with a few vehicles, which were all very tempting, but at 5 Euros each it was just zu toyah [too dear in German!].

 

 

Last and possibly least is this set of plastic cooking toys I found at a local car boot sale last Sunday for the princely sum of 50p. I had thought they might have been from the Sindy doll range, which I used to buy and sell stacks of [my biggest Ebay sale ever was a Sindy item but that's another story!].  The items include food mixers, cookers with strange red containers attached on strings, pots and pans. They are too big for Sindy or Barbie and maybe of Indian origin but once again they remain without a name.

MYSTERY SPACE PATROL TOY TRUCK

I bought this mystery space truck toy at a charity shop last month. It's about 4 inches long and made of plastic.

 

 

 

The arrowhead logo has SPACE PATROL written above it and the bigger blue sticker says CC 21 SERVICE VEHICLE SP SV 21 94. There is no maker's mark underneath.

 

 

 

The front domed window lifts up. there is clearly something missing from the rear turntable but I've

no idea what.

 

 

 

 

I've added another toy I acquired last month to the back of the truck, a small friction drive plastic Mogura I got from my friend Terry Harle. They seemed to fit well together! I have no idea what make the space truck is though or whether it was part of a range? Any ideas readers?

BACK IN THE DAY

Ive often admitted to breaking up classic toys in order to make or decorate a home made creation. This was probably at its height round about 1978, when I was at college, in the grip of Star Wars and space fever again and the possibility of ever finding any more Spacex or Moon Exploring toys seemed an impossible dream. I was also a massive fan of 2000Ad comic and when its shortlived sister comic Starlord ran a few weeks if full page colour shots of Martin Bowers sci-fi models, I was in hog heaven. They depicted various ground vehicles in space war dioramas and I was so impressed by the weathered, war torn look, that I decided to have a go myself. My modelling skills were never great, but not having to worry about painting straight lines or neat detail was a great help. I raided the model and toy box and threw together a few models using a pencil case, some plastic odds and ends and a few Minitank chassis. The results were then used in my college photography classes as these few overexposed examples show. I was quite pleased with my Sword inspired Hovertank and the large Slug transporter had a number of working features. Note the Mobile HQ radar dish on the top, not to mention all the other cannibalised bits stuck to them... Ah the folly of youth.

SPECTRUM CENTURY 21 VEHICLES

Some more photos of the Century 21 Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons toys.

The Spectrum Pursuit Vehicle - a friction drive thing of beauty. Most of the features don't work on mine but it's certainly a great looking toy.

The Angel Interceptor -  the friction drive is removable which adds a little realism.

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The Spectrum Patrol Car - another friction drive toy. All these toys are surprisingly fragile and how they've lasted all these years is quite beyond me.

Another good thing about these toys is their larger scale - perfect for a diorama.

CAPTAIN SCARLET TOY OUTFITS

Last Weekend, in my Captain Scarlet toy guns article, I mentioned the Century 21 Toys Captain Scarlet playsuit. I posed the question as to whether it contained a toy gun, which was impossible to tell from the picture.

I consulted the source of the picture again and noticed the description for the first time, which read:

 

 

"Century 21 Toys, Captain Scarlet; Playsuit comprising of Jacket, Hat, Belt, Gun etc - condition generally Good Plus in Good lift off lid picture box" [Vectis Auctions 2004, picture below too].

 

 

 

Yes, result! Or so I thought. To be sure I consulted Dennis Nicholson's book, The Gerry Anderson Memorabilia Guide, which lists two items, which seem to contradict Vectis and each other:

 

 

"Century 21 Toys UK, Captain Scarlet Playsuit; comprises of zip jacket and trousers selling 68 shillings 11 old pence" [Dennis Nicholson 1994].

"Century 21 Toys, Captain Scarlet Cap; Hard vinyl with movable microphone. Issued either with playsuit or separately" [Dennis Nicholson 1994].

 

 

Now I'm confused!  Does the Century 21 Toys Captain Scarlet Playsuit comprise of just a jacket and trousers or a whole range of gear including a hat and gun?

 

 

To add to my confusion, Metropolis Toys picture the same Playsuit box sold by Vectis and describe it as being by Dekker [Metropolis Toys picture below].

 

 

 

 

Perhaps the answer lies in a further entry in Dennis's book:

 

 

"Montrose Products, UK Official Captain Scarlet Official Outfit: includes Scarlet hat, Spectrum badge and self-retracting toy microphone; foam backed nylon jacket with zipped fastening and pocket, mock flashing shoulder lights, black holster and belt, grey gabardine trousers, scarlet calf-length gaiters; all in picture gift box for 4-8 year-olds selling at 65 shillings" [Dennis Nicholson 1994].

 

 

Now, at last, this sounds like a comprehensive listing of a Captain Scarlet toy outfit, although I couldn't find a single image of the Montrose toy online or in any book. Dennis's book does include a picture of an advertisement for it but the outfit is described in words and not pictures. From the entry and advert there would appear to be no toy gun in this set.

 

 

All in all the situation is confused - or is it just me?  What exactly is in the Century 21 Captain Scarlet Playsuit and does it contain a toy gun? Is it possible that Montrose sets or bits of them end up with Century 21 boxes?

 

 

The rarity of all of these toys and lack of images doesn't help here much but can anyone shed any light on these mysteries [and mysterons!]?

EAGLEMOSS BATMOBILE FROM BATMAN # 575

The new millennium had just begun and for the Caped Crusader a slick and sporty new Batmobile.

First appearing during March 2000 in Batman # 575 and Detective Comics # 742, this cool street machine was packed with hi-tec  features.

Amongst them was an ejector seat for a rapid exit and a roof section which opened by a voice operated remote control for a rapid entry. The car could also be operated by remote control using the same voice operated system.

It had a stealth mode which concealed the fins and front battering ram  giving the car a normal appearance, and on top of that another handy gadget, seats which were capable of giving medical diagnostics!

The Eaglemoss model is another nice representation of this comic version.  Generally it has a pretty good glossy finish with some nice detail, but once again aspects of the build quality are wanting on my example.

The wing mirrors, which do have reflective material on them are set at the wrong angle and one of the tail fins was badly fixed, so much so I had to take it off, drill out the locator holes and reset it.

The 3D lenticular  back drop shows Mr Freeze and a couple of his henchmen emerging from Gotham City Zoo.

Once again, a nice  display model of this super looking bat coupe.

Join me next time when I take a look at the stylised Batmobile from the animated series