Tuesday, September 10, 2024

#1053 LEGOLAND – EXCAVATOR 604-2 (1971)



I got this box in a lot of good old toys, all with their packages and, although used, in good conditions. I was not looking for this model especifically, but I think it is cool, now that I am becoming an AFOL (Adult Fan of Lego) because of my children.


I like the way this box is designed. The model is complete and includes very basic bricks, the ones used by the toyline in the early 70s. The only part which is a bit different is the front shovel of the excavator. and a 2x2 basic brick in blue with a LEGO sticker on it. They are all original, except maybe the towing hook counterpart, which does not belong to the set. The previous owner probably just put it in the box to play with whatever load was available on the next game.



Unfortunately, the instructions sheet is missing. I had to look for it online.

Te retail price of this set was of around 3 euro (in whatever currency you were using at the time), which is amazingly expensive for such a small set of pieces... Lego was always a very expensive toy.



Note that the tractor cannot carry any figure, as the minifigures were introduced later in time (in 1978, although other type of minifigures  was available from 1975 onwards). Those years, there were cars, vehicles and houses, but they were only playable “from the outside”, so to speak, except for some garages or other buildings were you could place a vehicle inside. There was a homemaker series, where the sets depicted interiors, a bit in a dollhouse style: kitchen, school, bureau... Scale was variable from one set to the next.


FACTS and FIGURES:

  • Name: EXCAVATOR (Ref. 604-2)
  • Year: 1971
  • Company: Lego (Denmark)
  • Size: Around 10 cm long