#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

#1047 G.I. JOE – S.L.A.M. (1987)

The black catalogue used in Europe for the G.I. Joes corresponding to the year 1987 in the US (which arrived in Spain around one year later), was a trauma for many children like me, as it depicted many references that were not available in Spain (or in Italy or in both). We could see the pictures, we could read a short description of the vehicle, and at the end of this text, we could read "this item is not available in Spain/Italy". Why didn´t they change the catalogue layout, as they did the next year, is something I never understood.

One of the vehicles that was not available for me was the S.L.A.M. a small tank with capacity for two figures. The tank had some legs to fix itself to the ground and convert into an artillery base. Too much firepower for a small tank! The platform rotates 360 degrees and has four cannons on one side and a lot of red missiles that do not fit very well in their places and usually fall down (the slot is too small). One of the figures look ahead, the other back, so all flanks are covered.

The vehicle itself is not a great thing (there are others which I like better in this same size), but I learnt to love it more, since I had seen it hundreds of times in that catalogue sheet. I also have the original box in great condition, with a very fine artwork.

As I usually do with G.I.Joe vehicles, I will display now some diorama pictures of this vehicle.

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: S.L.A.M. (Strategic Long-Range Artillery Machine)
• Toy Line: G.I. Joe (Wave 6)
• Year: 1987
• Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
• Size: Around 20 cm long

#1025 M.A.S.K. – THUNDERHAWK with MATT TRAKKER/ SPECTRUM (1985)

The most popular reference from this toyline has to be the Thunderhawk, the red Camaro from Matt Trakker that can fly in its alternate mode. It was the vehicle that featured most of the comic stories and cartoon chapters, and included the main character of the M.A.S.K. organization, so it was 100% the favorite toy of children, when they had to choose one of the boxes in a toystore.

 

The car in which is based is one of the most iconic American cars of the 80s, and the toy is an accurate reproduction: the Chevrolet Camaro Z28. The transformation, however, is not so great, it just opens the doors, as if they were wings, and the spoiler takes a different position to reveal two afterburners. The wheels do not move to the inside to be hidden, as in other models of the toyline but the interior is well done with two seats, security belts and a nice steering wheel. The security belts are common in this toyline, which I find nice, and, in this case, they are necessary, as the figures may fall down, when the car is flying with opened doors.

Another action feature of the model is that it can drop two bombs. The bombs are fitted in two small compartments in the chassis, and they are activated from behind.

The figure included in the pack is the most iconic representation of Matt Trakker, the main character in the whole toyline. The hero that saves the day in every single chapter of the TV series and the leader of the M.A.S.K. He is also the father of Scott Trakker, the child that usually gets into trouble and has to be rescued. The mask is Spectrum, and it pretends to create radio interference. There are two versions of it. The one in the pictures and another smaller one that fits over the head of the figure but not over the shoulders, chest or back.

Another interesting fact to comment is that the toy is over 35 years old (soon it will be 40) and the rubber tyres are usually in bad shape. If played with it again, sometimes they break into pieces (literally). I hope somebody can create repros for those who would like to play with this toy again. Other fragile parts are the exhaust pipes below the doors and the bomb, which is really small and can be easily lost.

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name:  THUNDERHAWK with MATT TRAKKER/ SPECTRUM (Ref. 37370)
• Toy Line: M.A.S.K. (Wave 1)
• Year: 1985
• Company: Kenner (U.S.A.)
• Size of the vehicle: Around 8’’ or 20 cm
• Size of the figures: 2½’’ or 6,5 cm

#966 G. I. JOE – COBRA FANG II (1989)

 

This is the second version of the famous F.A.N.G. helicopter that was released in 1986 and profusely appeared in the TV series. For some reason, the evolution of that first helicopter lost the acronym (Fully Armed Negator Gyrocopter) and it is simply called FANG II. Later issues of the FANG were again renamed F.A.N.G.

 

The helicopter is not especially appealing to me, it looks nice, has cool colours, but that feature of helicopter that can be turned into a propeller plane has been seen many times before, an the cockpit is too open and it is difficult to fit a figure in it (no matter how hard you try, the figure does not sit properly in it.

 

Nevertheless it is a vehicle from 1989 series, which is the one (or one of the two) that hit harder in Spain and from which I keep the best memories. I never had this vehicle until recently, but at least one neighbor had it, and I had it in my hands.

 

I took these pictures last summer and I’d like to share them now with you all, I could have edited them and remove the threads that hold the toy in the air, but I thought it is OK to leave them as they are. I chose S.A.W. Viper as a pilot, although the artwork depicts H.E.A.T. Viper. I guess this choice has to do with the greater colour contrast with the purple/black/red helicopter.

FACTS and FIGURES:

• Name: FANG II
• Toy Line: G.I. Joe (Wave 8)
• Year: 1989
• Company: Hasbro (U.S.A.)
• Size: Around 20 cm long

#941 STARCOM – H.A.R.V.-7, M-6 RAILGUNNER and LASER R.A.T. (1987)

I made one entry about Starcom a long time ago, with very generic facts about the toyline.

This time I would like to talk a bit about the production design of this toyline, which is for me one of the master works by any toy company anytime.

The starting point is maybe not very original, as it is based in a conflict between the American space military and an evil empire. The design is not suitable for very small children, but for children age 8, maybe 9 and up.

The space marines have futuristic space suits and weapons. Since they are a real military force, each member has a particular affiliation and a grade. The Star-Wing is the aviation, The Astro Marines are the infantry, and since there is no navy in space, the third group is the Starbase Command crew. Each subgroup´s figures are similar to each other, but they differ in the colour of the uniform or the helmet, again with minor variations.

Among the bad guys, the Shadow Force, there are no subgroups, although they also operate "planes" and ground vehicles. Some of their members are robots (good for cartoon action, since they could be "killed" in the show), other are humans. They are lead by an Emperor named Dark, or Dark Emperor. The Emperor came with a staff and together with the robots are the only figures that came without visor.

Each group has its distinctive logo, represented in vehicles and people's suits or helmets. The weapons are also futuristic, with rather big backpacks and few dozens of small guns that connect to the backpack by a plastic hose. Some are smaller, other are bigger, they look quite good, matching the style of the rest of the elements in the toyline. I won´t go into the magna-lock feature in detail, but it is an amazing feature for little astronauts. So they stand the absence of gravity by magnetically attaching to vehicles, base or somewhere else. The only negative remark I can make to the figures is that all figures within a group are quite similar to each other (this brings additional "realism" to the toyline) and they are not very charismatic (except a few characters), being difficult to learn the names to all figures.

The vehicles also have a futuristic design, with massive vehicles for the Shadow Forces, and more stilized vehicles for the Starcom Forces. The toyline does not priorize weapons or weaponry, but also logistics, communications or mechanics/engineering.

Many vehicles and many accesories have a common shape so they can be inserted, combined, transported by other vehicles. This is one of the fundamentals on what I mentioned before about logistics. Bigger vehicles can carry smaller vehicles, people, fuel, small bases... For me, this is the greatest feature, and seems even plausible to me for future space travel, colonization of other planets and so on. An standarized size would reduce the costs for transport, storage and deployment of space bases, vehicles and goods.

 

The vehicle shown in this entry is maybe the quintessential example of what I am saying. The small battelcrane, is a  light-armoured flying pod intended for transporting those crates, containers and maybe even vehicles (if we consider that vehicles are light enough to be carried, something counterintuitive, since they look so bulky and heavy). When bent, the vehicle is exactly the same size than the crate. Once "activated", it is slightly bigger, and those legs made it double as high as bent.

It has capacity for one person/pilot and it is equipped with two small cannons in the front and a bomb below the cabin. The crate is a simple one, with one door/lid/opening at one side.

The triplet of vehicles shown in this entry are a good example of what I am saying.

 -------------------

H.A.R.V.-7 

The H.A.R.V.-7 (Heavy Armed Recovery Vehicle) is the biggest of the three, it resembles some kind of tow-away truck, or maybe a mobile crane. Its main feature is that it can carry one “unit” of volume, whatever it is. It came with a load that is supposed to be a fuel crate, but it can also carry a small vehicle or mini-base.

The crane arm can be moved to discharge the load, and by pushing the button, it will return to its original position. The load is attached to it by means of a magnet, and if the load is too heavy the feature doesn’t work very well. The detail level is so high, that when you pull the arm to discharge whatever you are carrying, the “stabilizator” opens to get additional stability in the operation. Nice!

Otherwise, the vehicle can carry two figures: a pilot and a gunman, and is heavily armored with five cannons of three different kinds. They are all practicable. It has magnets also in the carrying plane, so figures can be also placed there.

The pilot is Staff Sgt. Champ O’Ryan, H.A.R.V.-7 Recovery Leader.

According to the catalogue, the features described above are:

• Motorized POWER DEPLOY MAGNA LOCK Lifter
• Automatic Cargo Release
• POWER DEPLOY stabilizer, Swiveling Cannons
• Includes Fuel Pod

-------------------

M-6 RAILGUNNER

 

The M-6 Railgunner (Ground Attack Vehicles) looks like a heavy-armored tank, only in miniature. It has space for one figure in the cockpit and another one half sitting in a platform over the cannon. This toy is missing a protective shield for the gunner, so it is not so exposed to enemy fire. The cannon is its most impressive weapon, although it has two mini-guns in the front.

The front and rear axles are also extendable, so the vehicle can be made longer than it is (and more stable for harsh terrain, I guess).

The pilot is Capt. Rick Ruffing, M-6 Railgunner Anti-Armor Commander.

According to the catalogue, the features described above are:

• Motorized Cannon and Cockpit
• Gunner’s Jump SeatExtendable Axles

-------------------

LASER R.A.T.

The Laser R.A.T. (Rapid Assault Tracker) is a small, compact, 4-wheeled terrain vehicle, intended for assault. It comes with a bigger double-barrelled cannon on top (operated by a gunner) and two smaller guns in the front (operated by the pilot). The cockpit is also rather small and the figure fits only when the vehicle is "open". When bent, it has exactly the standard size.

The axles can be extended to be longer and they can be placed a bit further to the front and to the back so the vehicle is also longer. This feature is often overlooked, even in some catalogues is not depicted!

The pilot is Capt. Vic Hayes “Dakota”, LASER R.A.T. Assault Leader.

According to the catalogue, the features described above are:

• Motorized Cannons, Console and Armor Shield
• Extendable Axles

-------------------

All three vehicles belong the Starcom group. They have the Astro-Marines colours. Note also that the secondary colours are also the same through the same sub-group. Further, vehicles look similar independently of its size. The stickers are also sometimes similar to each other. The most curious one is a "no smoking" sign, seen in some of the elements like the people carrier crate.

An interesting element in the vehicles is a small hole to "tank" them. There is a fuel crate in white available with the H.A.R.V. 7, and this crate is intended to be used with all vehicles in the toyline. I think all vehicles have a small "FUEL" sticker to be placed near that fuel cover.

Here are some additional pictures of the Mars diorama.

 

  

 

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Name: H.A.R.V.-7, M-6 Railgunner and Laser R.A.T.
• Toy Line: Starcom
• Year: 1987
• Company: Coleco (U.S.A.)
• Size of the figure: Around 5 cm
• Size of the vehicle: Around 15 cm long the big one, around 9 cm long the small ones.