Sunday, March 10, 2024

#1041 WL SPEEDRIVE – FORMULA RACERS (Around 1987)

These two models were made by Summer and then by Tintoys. Later, they were marketed under the Speedrive brand and the name “Free-Wheeling Formula Racer”. I have two different which I received from my friend Steven (visit his Motorcade), and what I like most about them is the illustration made for the blister, in the style of the  early 80s (although I think these blisters are from the late 80s). It is always very difficult to correctly identify formula 1 die-cast models from Hong-Kong and China, as they tend to be generic casts reused for decades (with maybe several distinctive features of real cars) and exist in several colours and decorations each. Some collectors classify the cars on the stickers and race numbers (whenever possible), others simply discard all cars which do not clearly represent a real model (fantasy models, so to speak).


Let´s speculate a bit. This is what I think. One of them is supposed to be the John Player Special Lotus 72 from 1975, although with oversized exhaust pipes. The other one could be a Brabham BT46 or BT46B, as the illustration with RN7 and red/blue colour seems to suggest. The toy is painted blue and carries “PAUL” stickers that do not relate to any known racing car or pilot. In both cases, the models are older than the toy, which I guess was made in the mid to late 80s.

The Speedrive brand sold toy cars based on casts by MC Toys, Realtoy and others under different subcategories, such as the mentioned “Formula Racer” (formula ones), “Super Truck” (short trucks), “Heavy Cab” (trailer trucks) or “Speed Wheels” (generic, may also include trucks). The steering wheel logo was updated in a more 90s style (with a big “S” in blue) at an unknown date.

I also have this Ford Escort Cabrio by the same brand. I bought it a flea market, because I recognized the Matchbox knock-off. In other conditions, I would have left the car where it was, because the quality is not very high.



FACTS AND FIGURES:

  • Name: FORMULA RACERS + FORD ESCORT CABRIO
  • Scale: 1:64
  • Year: Around 1987
  • Company: Speedrive (Hong-Kong)
  • Size: approx. 7 cm

Sunday, February 25, 2024

#1040 KINDER SURPRISE – TRAKTOR POWER RACE (2003)


This a complete series (it comprised only three models) of fantasy tractor dragsters made by Ferrero for their famous chocolate eggs. I do not collect them and they are too new for this blog, but I liked them so much, that I decided to keep them.

They are relative simple and carry plain bright colours. They are all made up of three pieces that fit each other (one of them chromed) plus the wheels. They are inexpensive (as most Ferrero surprise toys currently are), but not very easy to find…

Not much to more to say about them, except that they recall me to some Micro Machines, such as there here. There are not many scale models of drag tractor vehicles, either real or fantastic ones.

FACTS AND FIGURES

  • Name: TRAKTOR POWER RACE
  • Scale: unknown scale
  • Year: 2003
  • Company: Ferrero (Italy)
  • Size: approx. 4 cm

Sunday, February 11, 2024

#1039 BRAVESTARR – MARSHALL BRAVESTARR (1987)

There is not much I can say about Bravestarr which has not been told already one hundred times. We all know more or less what this toyline (and the corresponding cartoons) is/are about, and which the characters that were made into a figure are.


I do not collect this specific figures, but as I usually get many figures in lots, exchanges, flea markets and so on, I have come through them many times. I have a couple of figures and many accessories, and I decided to keep this one, as 1) is complete, 2) is the main character of the story, also the one that gives name to the series, 3) I have very few figures in this size. As it usually happens, once you have a figure, you want more, and I’d really like to complete Tex Malone/Tex Hex or get more characters for my collection.

And maybe the size is its most interesting feature, as these were completely out of fashion at the time. Mattel was about to discontinue Masters of the Universe and needed something new. G.I. Joe was among the most popular lines of the day, and the Ninja Turtles were about to appear. That is why these figures were so amazing when you saw them in 1987, they were different from everything else. Of course, Action Man came before (and also after), or many other action figures had this size (or even bigger) before, but most children were not aware of this. 

Unfortunately, the toyline didn’t make it very well, and there were not many references made. Probably it was the price, and also the concurrence from the actions figures mentioned above. It was a hard time for new figures, especially being not compatible with the other toylines. However, Mattel did a good work and gave this toys great action features, nice packaging, cool accessories, vehicles and playsets, not to forget that paperwork that imitates a newspaper.

The figures, may look a bit bulky and not so well articulated today, but they are still very cool. They are also very sought after collectables, especially since 5-7 years. Before that, it was common to see them boxed for sale on eBay or similar websites.

In this entry, I am presenting the main character Marshall Bravestarr, a Native American with superpowers when he calls upon the power of spirit animals: the strength of a bear, the eyes of the hawk, the speed of a puma and the ears of a wolf. The figure came in a box with a window and included the following accessories: vest, cowboy hut, rifle, gun (called neutra-laser pistol, that can be attached to his right leg) and two pieces of kerium, the mineral that was extracted in the planet New Texas. The kerium is an energy source and it is one source of conflict between the evil characters and those representing or standing with the law. All characters came with one or two pieces of this transparent red material.



The figure has a button on the back that is used to lift its arm, as if it was a gunfight duel in the Wild West, and is articulated with swivel arm, although there is no hips articulation and the legs’ one could be improved. I took some pictures outside, and I think they are great.

And last but not least, a VHS tape with adventures from was the very first tape I rented on a videoclub, maybe around 1991 or 1992.

FACTS and FIGURES:

  • Name: MARSHALL BRAVESTARR
  • Toy Line: Bravestarr (Wave 1)
  • Year: 1987
  • Company: Mattel (U.S.A.)
  • Size of the figures: 25 cm approx.

Wednesday, January 24, 2024

#1038 PILEN – MASERATI GHIBLI (MOD. 507) (1973)

This model is the original one from 1973 and it looks great, as most models from this manufacturer and that approximate year do. As a matter of fact, the Pilen models from the 70s are comparable in quality to other European brands of the time. This is acknowledged by most collectors, and is reflected on the prices that are paid for models in mint condition.

This model was found in Austria, which also shows that Pilen was also successful beyond the Spanish borders at a time, when other better known players were stronger as they have ever been.

The car is a Maserati Ghibli and it is done out of the Politoys’ cast, as Pilen at some point bought them from the Italian die-cast manufacturer.

This version is painted in burgundy red and as the same detail level as the first Politoys model, although some parts are different (the wheels for example are casted without real radii/radiuses). Looks great with its opening doors!

FACTS AND FIGURES:

  • Name: MASERATI GHIBLI (MOD. 507)  
  • Scale: 1:43
  • Year: 1973
  • Company: Pilen (Spain)
  • Size: approx. 9 cm

Sunday, January 14, 2024

#1037 EFSI – MERCEDES LONG TRAILER “SHELL” (around 1985)

I have presented in the past several Efsi trucks and trailers, but this is my first “long trailer” made by the Dutch company. I found it in a flea market, and I liked it a lot. It represents a long tanker from Shell, in bright yellow and red.

The truck is identical to the ones we already saw, so I am not going to comment on it. The trailer is, surprisingly, not very well done. The metallic base is reduced to a few long stabs to fit the axles and the wheels in a more or less stable way, and the tank itself is made of plastic. It looks great, but it was probably made to be sold for a rather low price. 

It is, however, a lot of fun to play with, as all die-cast long trailers are, and displays nicely along with other trucks and cars from this brand.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

  • Name: MERCEDES LONG TRAILER “SHELL”
  • Scale: 1:87
  • Year: Around 1985
  • Company: EFSI (Netherlands)
  • Size: approx. 15 cm

Friday, December 15, 2023

#1036 FIGURAS EN ACCIÓN (F.E.A.) Nr. 29 + ¡¡¡ME LO PIDO!!! + MOSQUEPERROS Y PIRATAS


This is the cover from the latest issue of Figuras En Acción (short: FEA), and, as you can see, we bring a mixture of topics as heterogeneous as it gets.

The main articles deal with toys from the TV series Maple Town (with a special focus on Spanish merchandising), the off-road Scalextric STS 4x4 made in Spain by Exin, an extensive article about Matchbox´s Regular Wheels era, never-seen before paper documents from the manufacturing process of Laser Light Skeletor (the European exclusive figure that closed the vintage Masters of the Universe toyline) and another article about the rare vintage action figure toyline Ninja: Assassins vs. Defenders.

We include again an interview with Jon Diez de Ulzurrun, that deals mostly with the third volume of the Informe Madelman books.

There are several other sections which may interest you as well, such as news, vintage advertisements, museums and book comments, so the contents are even broader.

The magazine can be downloaded for free (no registration required) from the official blog of Figuras En Acción. Search for the download link here: https://figurasenaccion.blogspot.com/2023/12/revista-numero-29-diciembre-2023.html


Other publications worth commenting:


!!!Me lo pido!!! (Jorge Navarro Fortuno)

This book was issued last Christmas and I was lucky to get one copy at the time. It is a collection of pictures, like a giant Christmas catalogue, sorted by toymakers, but, on top of that, there are long descriptions of the history of each of the companies mentioned in the book, as provided by great specialists, collectors or the owners (the their heirs) of those companies. It is therefore a must for everybody who would like to learn more about Spanish toys from the last decades, or for people willing to discover those jewels, unique to Spain, which were designed and manufactured mostly before the country was open to fluid commercial relationships with Europa and the United States.

The book has around 400 pages and deals with around 150 toy companies. Some of the companies, of course, are more important than others, so, wherever there is a toyline which was especially popular, you will also find notes about it in particular, additionally to the history of the company who was responsible for that success. For example, in the pages dedicated to Exin, you will also find subchapters talking about Exin Castillos only, Tente, Scalextric or Ibertrén.


Mosqueperros y Piratas... (Álex Algarra)

This publication is the third volume of a series dealing with Spanish PVC figures. Volume 1 was dedicated to Comics Spain, volume 2 to Comansi, Yolanda and Novolínea (all three are actually the same) and this third one deals with all the other manufacturers there are (or have been) manufacturing this type of toys in Spain.

I only own this third book, as I wanted to see if I could find more information on those smaller companies that made figures I like, but from which there is no information at all on the Internet. This books partially succeeds: the figures made by those companies are ALL reproduced in these pages (so it makes also a good collector´s guide), but the information is only to be found partially. I guess many of these smaller companies operated only for a couple of years and disappeared or changed names and production, so there is no place to investigate or no person to be contacted. Still, the book is great and collects everything that is is currently to be found about those companies, plus the comments and facts that the author gathered through decades of collecting plastic figures and commenting them with a group of fellow collectors.

It still surprises me how less is known about these toys. Many things I read in German catalogues or in older articles on the Internet is wrong, and even today, people are discovering figures nobody knew they existed, as it happened last October, when a tyrannosaurus from Comics Spain was found for the first time, and later sold for over 370 euro on todocoleccion.net. To this respect, I think it is great that Alex Algarra put everything down on paper as a landmark for all future enthusiast and collectors.

Sunday, December 3, 2023

#1035 FOREST FAMILIES – CAT and TIGER FAMILIES (Around 1989)

 
 
Forest Families was the cheap knock-off to Sylvanian Families or Maple Town (La aldea del Arce in Spanish, Les petits Malins in French, a powerful license of the late 80s.) made by MC Toy (May Cheong) from Hong-Kong. At the time this company had already some major success with cheap, but qualitative die-cast cars that were sold worldwide. With the time, this company would change its name to Maisto, and would later purchase Bburago and Polistil among others (just the names, as the production sites in Italy were shut down completely).


In order to diversify their offer, they decided to release these nice-looking anthropomorphic animals with clothes, accessories and even some bigger playsets in the style of the brands mentioned above. They were widely available, and they had good sales in many countries all over the world. In some places they are known by alternative names, such as "Peach Fuzz Village" in the United States (distributed by Mel Appel), or "Bärenwald" in Germany (distributed by Simba). If my memory does not deceive me, I saw these for sale in El Corte Inglés (Spain) in the early 90s.


The collection included mainly boxes of 4 figures (mother, father plus 2 children), but also smaller blisterpacks of 2 or even 1 figure, including some grandparents. The construction of the figures was simpler that those from the competition. What strikes me the most, is that, while Epoch for Sylvanian Families and Bandai/Tonka for Maple Town made animals that live in the forests of Europe or America, M.C. Toy designed and manufactured many exotic (and even dangerous) animals from Asia and Africa too: Tigers, Hippos, Frogs, Elephants, Crocodiles! mixed with the "ordinary" rabbits, bears, cows and so. This eclectic bunch of characters made the line more fantastic and maybe even more attractive for little boys. Today I will show my tiger and cat families, out of a big bunch of figures I bought a few years ago.


Today, Forest Families are very sought-after, more or less as much as the figures in which they were based. There are still some to be found in their original packages, I guess the prices will start rising after these have been sold, as the rarity and scarcity increase. If you are interested in them, always pay attention to the clothes. All figures should wear some kind of clothes and these should be in good shape. The figures have flocked hair, which, at certain spots, may be a bit (or a lot) worn out. This defect completely degrades the figure.


FACTS AND FIGURES:

  • Name: CAT and TIGER FAMILIES
  • Toy Line: FOREST FAMILIES / BÄRENLAND
  • Year: Around 1989
  • Company: MC Toy (Macau/ China)
  • Size of the figures: Around 7-8 cm

Thursday, November 23, 2023

#1034 VARITEMAS S.L. - ROBIN HOOD (AROUND 1999)

Card manufacturing in Spain has been traditionally dominated by Heraclio Fournier, followed by other brands like Naipes Comas. But there are many other manufacturers, like Mas Reynals from Barcelona, a company founded in 1989 that produced lower quality and cheap decks of cards that looked very similar to other more famous ones.


Their products were sold some "100 pesetas" shops, the equivalent of the modern pound shops or 1 Euro Shops. And that was its price, a very low one. Some of their decks were aimed at the tourist market, although they covered also the children´s/toy market. The company had a second brand called Varitemas S.L. that they used since the foundation of the company. In 2003, Más Reunals changed its name to Varitemas S.L., which is active still today.

Do not try to access this url today, as it is not active anymore.

We have this deck since the very late 1990s, I think we bought it in the classic little town weekly market. These events are disappearing now, as every spot on the map has its supermarket, and an internet connection. There used to be at least a tent with cheap toys, and one of those days, we got this deck of cards. I’m quite sure it costed 100 pesetas (0,60 euro)

It is the classic "Schwarzer Peter" game, with a series of couples of cards, except one that does not fit. The player holding that card at the end of the game loses. The cards that fit together have the same number and one half of an illustration each. Together they tell the story of Robin Hood, although there were other tales  or stories available. The drawings do not look very professional, but they are nice and bizarre altogether. The deck was not played much with, that is why it is still in a very good shape.



There are still many of these available for sale in sites like todocoleccion.net, based on well-known tales and stories, and they are not expensive. Some of them are still sealed. Interestingly, they seem to have been available in blister cards for display.

FACTS AND FIGURES

  • Name: ROBIN HOOD
  • Year: Around 1999
  • Company: Varitemas, S.L. (Spain)

Sunday, November 5, 2023

#1033 DARDA - FERRARI F1, BMW-WILLIAMS F1 and TEAM DARDA (Around 2006)

These three cars by Darda are among the most modern in my collection. Darda is still selling and producing very good-looking cars and tracks, but they are not precisely cheap toys. Maybe that is why they are so hard to spot today. Two of these Formula ones represent the models driven by Michael Schumacher (RN5) in the 2006 season and one of the three drivers that ran for BMW-Williams in 2005, which we cannot identify since the toy does not carry any race number. It could be Mark Webber, Nick Heidfield or Antônio Pizzonia. 

The second red formula, with white stripes is more difficult to identify, I am not sure if it represents a real model or not, mostly when it carries number 1, it had to be a world champion driver, and with those colours, I cannot recall any racing team from the 2000s... Also it is decorated with "Team Darda" tampographies, unlike the other two which have logos of real companies and products. This is not definitive, as sometimes cigarretes and alcoholic beverages were not represented on toys at that time. 

I would conclude that this car is slightly more modern and just a way to reuse a cast that they kept.


Both cars are based in the same cast, only the colours and decorations are different. They look great, but, unlike older Dardas, they are completely made of plastic. I have seen other formula one teams represented with this same cast: some more decorations of a red cast (none of them seems to be a real team), a yellow model that seems to represent the Jordan from 2001 or before, and a white and black formula, which, with some imagination, could be a McLaren-Mercedes. As a matter of fact it carries RN9, which in the year 2005 corresponded to Kimmi Räikönnen. Of course, there are several variations of each model, with different tampographies or slight different colours. I'd love to have them all!

Here pictures of one car only, maybe you can see the cast details better this way.



FACTS AND FIGURES:

  • Name: FERRARI F1, BMW WILLIAMS F1 and TEAM DARDA (1617-040 and 1631-001) (Numbering according to www.dardamania.de) (Team Darda cannot be numbered, as this website is gone private and I cannot check the references anymore)
  • Scale: 1:64 (approx.)
  • Year: Around 2006
  • Company: Darda (Germany)
  • Size: approx. 3’’ or 7 cm

Sunday, October 22, 2023

#1032 TRANSFORMERS – POWERMASTER DREADWIND with HI-TEST (1988)


It took me around 15 years to complete this toy. I found the plane/figure first so many years ago, then the two guns around 5 years ago, and finally, last year, I got the Powermaster figure in a lot where it was not depicted! It was a “gift” from the seller. I had actually bought other Transformers stuff, but not this part.

This model is one of my favorite transformers in my collection (I do not have too many), not just for the difficulty of completing it, but also because both the plane and the robot look great, it is easy to transform and has nice accessories. The colours are also interesting, with grey and light blue for a plane plus deception-purple. 


The Powermaster Hi-Test is also a nice cute little robot that transforms into a simulated motor that fits into the upper part of the plane, and, due to its size, is very difficult to find. It has a chromed part on the back, and it is only roughly articulated. Its arms move and its legs fold up to fit in the slot.


Dreadwind couples with Darkwing (a very similar jet, but made in darker shades of grey) to form Dreadwing. Also their weapons combine.

DREADWIND

    Faction: Decepticons
    Subgroup: Powermasters
    Function: Air Defense
    Motto: "Fear is a friend whose presence is felt long after he's left."
    Bio: As ominous as a storm cloud and as chilling as a winter breeze. Grim and gloomy -- always acts as if his best friend just became permanently inoperative. Binary-bonded to the Nebulan, Hi-Test, a thrill-seeking, over-achieving perfectionist, constantly striving to keep Dreadwind's morose mind on his evil work. Equipped with two thermal melters and two air-to-air missiles. Combines with Darkwing to form Dreadwing.

    Tech Specs for Dreadwind

        Strength: 6
        Intelligence: 8
        Speed: 7
        Endurance: 8
        Rank: 6
        Courage: 7
        Firepower: 7
        Skill: 8

FACTS and FIGURES:

    Name: POWERMASTERS DREADWIND with HI-TEST
    Toy Line: Transformers (G1)
    Year: 1988
    Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
    Size of the toy: Around 20 cm in Jet mode