#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

#876 TRANSFORMERS MICROMASTERS - BATTLE and OFFROAD PATROLS (1989)

Another two squads of Micromasters for my collection. 

 

The first one is the Battle Patrol, Note this includes four figures, some of them with movable parts that are sometimes missing. That is why it took me a little bit to complete all of them. I had three of them since a long time ago, but one of them was missing its cannon.

The members of this squad are (left to right): Big Shot, Sunrunner, Sidetrack and Flak.

BATTLE PATROL

• Faction: Autobots
• Subgroup: Micromasters
• Function: Rapid Deployment Strike Force
• Motto: "It is better to strike first, then to not strike at all!"
• Bio: This tough-talking, battle-hardened foursome believes that the best offense is one that's fast, furious, and ferocious! They don't slow down until the enemy has been defeated and thrown into the scrap pile! With this in mind, Big Shot, Sidetrack, Flak, and Sunrunner use their brute force capabilities to hammer their Micromaster adversaries with devastating attacks! .
• Tech Specs for the Rapid Deployment Force:

• Strength: 9
• Intelligence: 7
• Speed: 6
• Endurance: 8
• Team Work: 8
• Courage: 9
• Firepower: 6
• Skill: 8

BIG SHOT

• Motto: "One good shot is worth a hundred bad ones!"

FLAK

• Motto: "Good luck is the residue of good planning."

SIDETRACK

• Motto: "A battle that isn't worth winnin' isn't worth fightin'!"

TUNRUNNER

• Motto: "Rule the skies and the ground will bow before you."

 

The second patrol is the Offroad patrol. Its member are (left to right): Powertrain, Mudslinger, Highjump and Tote.

 This series is simpler in contruction, are usually complete, since they came with no cannons or small movable parts.

OFFROAD PATROL

• Faction: Autobots
• Subgroup: Micromasters
• Function: Covert Activities
• Motto: "Don't follow orders, follow instincts."
• Bio: This quartet has an independence streak that runs as long as the Appalachian Trail. Experts at covert operations. Always work well together in any combat situation. Specialize in going where no one's ever gone and doing what no one's ever done. Continually caught up in some sort of enemy intrigue. Autobot Command trusts them to come up with brilliant counter-measures to be sprung on the Decepticons.
• Tech Specs for the Offroad Patrol:

• Strength: 6
• Intelligence: 9
• Speed: 3
• Endurance: 8
• Team Work: 9
• Courage: 8
• Firepower: 9
• Skill: 6

POWERTRAIN

• Motto: "If I can't go through it, I go over it"

MUDSLINGER

• Motto: "No Road is too Rough. No Foe too Tough."

HIGHJUMP

• Motto: "Keep it Down and Dirty."

TOTE

• Motto: "A rolling Autobot gathers the most Decepticons."

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: MICROMASTERS BATTLE PATROL and OFFROAD PATROL
• Toy Line: TRANSFORMERS (G1)
• Year: 1989
• Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figures: Around 5 cm

#845 TOYS FROM THE PAST - MUSEUM (VIII)

See more of these entries here: http://toysfromthepast.blogspot.com/search/label/TFTP

See you next month!

Important notice: The items on display are NOT for sale.

 

#813 TRANSFORMERS - TURBOMASTERS - BOSS G1 (1992)

Long time since last Transfomers entry! This is one of the few figures I have with all its accesories. It is one of those "European Exclusive" figures from the late G1 years that is not so expensive. Maybe not very interesting for collectors because of its flashy colours. Nevertheless it is not so easy to find complete because of it´s three small yellow missiles and the missile launcher.

Apparently, the missile launcher feature was (or could have been) the cause of the figure not being available on the U.S. It wouldn´t pass safety regulations. This, of course, brings me to another toyline I know much better: G.I.Joe. The figures belonging to the American waves from 1991 and 1992 were released in Europa with missile launchers, but not in the U.S. From 1993 on, the American toys also came with missile launchers (a change in US regulations?). This is a topic somebody should study further.

I had this toy for a while and I thought it was missing the bonnet, until I found out that the turbine that I bought in the same lot was actually to be placed there. With the turbine (also hard to find) it looks vaguely similar to a Batmobile.

The Turbomasters are 4 in total, Boss is the subcommander. I also have two more, but none of them is complete. Those missiles are really difficult and expensive to find, so let´s see if I can find more in the next years at reasonable prices to complete this nice subseries. Despite what many collectors say, I love figures with flashy colours and impossible accesories, both in G.I.Joe and Transformers toylines.

As usual with my Transformers entries, I will finish with the cool tech spec. This one has great ratings, lots of 10s!

BOSS

• Faction: Autobots
• Subgroup: Turbo-Masters
• Function: Force Leader
• Motto: “Never underestimate your enemy... he's always worse than you could ever imagine."
• Bio: Leads with courage and cunning, whilst being fearless in front line battles. Is able to outwit even the smartest Decepticon with the sheer skill of his combat strategies. As vehicle, his central, forward facing turbine elevates to fend off attack from high fliers. As robot, armed with a powerful hand-held turbo defender.
• Tech Specs for Boss:
• Strength: 7
• Intelligence: 10
• Speed: 8
• Endurance: 7
• Rank: 10
• Courage: 10
• Defense power: 9
• Skill: 10

UPDATE 1 (Nov/2019): I got another Turbomaster in the same size, so I thought I'd better put it here than in a new entry.

This white race car is:

HURRICANE

• Faction: Autobots
• Subgroup: Turbo-Masters
• Function: Defence Tactics Specialist
• Motto: “Give it all you've got. There may not be a tomorrow."
• Bio: Brilliant analyst. Super intelligent. Pins his defence plans down to the minutest detail. Almost clairvoyant in his forward thinking. As vehicle, rear facing turbine elevates for all round defence power. As robot, an imposing turbo-armed figure on the battlefield.
• Tech Specs for Boss:
• Strength: 10
• Intelligence: 5
• Speed: 9
• Endurance: 9
• Rank: 5
• Courage: 9
• Defense power: 8
• Skill: 6

 
FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: TURBOMASTER BOSS
• Toy Line: TRANSFORMERS (G1)
• Year: 1992
• Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figures: Around 10 cm

#800 GUIDED LAUNCHING BASE – 2 IN 1 POWER PLAN (TRANSFORMERS ACTION MASTER PROWL with TURBO-CYCLE KNOCK-OFF) (Around 1991)

MONTH OF THE BOOTLEG AT TOYS FROM THE PAST!

This box contains a Transformers Action Masters knock-off (KO, as the Transformers collectors like to call them).

The Action Masters is not one of the most popular sub-series of Transformers, so one Action Master KO is maybe not the first choice for collectors, that's why this toy is kind of surprising.

The figure is Action Master Prowl. The original Hasbro figure was released in 1990, although this one has a different colour scheme. The Hasbro figure was sold in a box including exactly the same content. The box of this KO is made of very low quality cardboard and the inlay is made of very thin plastic, as you can see in the pictures.

The figure comes with a motorbike called Turbo-Cycle that transforms into a missile base called, according to this KO box, "Guided Launching Base". As you know, the Action Masters characters do not transform, but their accesories do. I didn't want to open the bag with the small bits and additionally, the motorbike and the robot have very stiff joints that I fear may damage if I move them somehow. That's why the pictures are only the pieces as they came in the box, without transforming or moving anything.

The Hasbro toy is actually based in the same cast, so if you are curious about the transformation, you can find many pictures of it on the internet.

And about the name… well, the guy who made the box had no idea what to write and probably copied things from here and there in different sizes and places. I just titled this entry with the words written in the biggest font size I could find. The “Power Plan” is actually a picture of the Action Master displayed in the box/blister of the Hasbro original transformers that indicates some fictitional features of the robot.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: GUIDED LAUNCHING BASE – 2 IN 1 POWER PLAN (TRANSFORMERS ACTION MASTER PROWL with TURBO-CYCLE KNOCK-OFF)
• Toy Line: Unknown
• Year: Around 1991
• Company: Unknown Manufacturer (China)
• Size of the figures: Around 10 cm

#689 TRANSFORMERS – MICROMASTERS HOT ROD PATROL (1990)

This Micromasters squad comprises 4 “Hot Rod” cars. This type of cars are really interesting, I am curious about them, since I never saw any. I guess it is something you can just find in America.

The four small robots are (left to right) Big Daddy, Trip-Up, Greaser and Hubs. As you notice fom the pictures, I have the card and three of these Micromasters are still attached to the card inside the blister, while one was removed by its previous owner. I bought first the card with the three cars at a flea market, and then I found the fourth robot on eBay. It took me a while to complete this squad.

It is also the first 1990 Micromaster’s patrol I complete. Previously I showed sets fom 1989 an 1988, but those from 1990 are somehow more scarce and also more fragile, since they contain small parts (for example propellers, tow hooks, tank guns…) which are easily lost. Finding the other sets complete is usually a difficult task (considering you are not willing to pay a lot of money, of course). Notice the other two squads depicted at the back card.

And this time, I do not have to copy/paste the filecard of the robot patrol, because I can publish a picture instead. I always like that Hasbro/Takara included “how good” each character was in different categories, like speed, intelligence and so on. I like even more, when that data is somewhat hidden and you need a piece of red transparent plastic to read the stats. In this case you can read it plain, and has not such a high impact as the “secret” stats.

UPDATE 1 (Feb/2022):

I got a second set of the Hot Rod Patrol, loose, so I can now offer some special pictures of the group.

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: MICROMASTERS HOT ROD PATROL
• Toy Line: TRANSFORMERS (G1)
• Year: 1990
• Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figures: Around 5 cm