# Christmas, 1972...



## Dushkwoneshe (Apr 27, 2012)

.
_What's with the Dushkwoneshe guy talking about Christmas in April?...

Here's the story, for those interested..._


I got married the 1st of October, '72... Had just been back off patrol for
a couple of weeks...

As things were, would have to go back out before Christmas, so the
wife and I discussed what *to do about* gifts and celebration... We
decided to postpone Christmas, until I came back in the last of March
or 1st of April...

*When I did come back, this was wrapped under the tree... $39.94 from White's Stores...*









*I loved the Banked Esses... The 6"R 180 Banks?... Not so much...*









*My 1st (*) AFX cars... Ferrari 512M & Porsche 917K*









*Some track from this set would be used in layouts for the next 25 years...*




















*Sneaky girl bought this and hid it while I was still in off-crew... She knew
I would go nuts leaving this behind the next day, if we had celebrated
Christmas in December...*









.
*** - First AFX Cars - It's foggy here... I really believe the wh/blu # 3 Camaro
was in the set, not the wh/gr Porsche 917... Which would have been an
odd combination, for sure... Just not sure... Time has stolen a good
number of details in my life... The cars pictured here are not the original
cars... the Ferrari 512M is still kickin', although it is severely race-thrashed...
The Porsche 917K fell victim to my failed attempt to make a
Ford C-100 out of it... The mentioned Camaro has the headlights and
grill drilled out and otherwise abused...

Regardless of what cars were in the set, this one Christmas would change
my life for the following 43 years... More so than SlotCarChristmases in
the Sixties...

*I became an Unrepentant HO Slot Junkie that day in '73... Vive la HO...*

John
.


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## Gear Head (Mar 22, 2005)

^like^


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## alpink (Aug 22, 2010)

great story
Merry Christmas


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## Bubba 123 (Sep 10, 2010)

alpink said:


> great story
> Merry Christmas


WOW!! Fantastic :thumbsup:

I got My 1st Eldon (International-500 1/32 set) That Same Year , for Christmas...
(to replace My worn-out Gilbert 1/32 '40 coupe' set from about.. 1963-ish..)

Later that year, (summer-ish) I "Discovered" Aurora HO (the small fig. 8 Sand Van set)...

Bubba 123 :wave:


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## jeffaary (Dec 11, 2004)

Looks like a great set. I used to drool over those big layouts with cool turns in stores and catalogs, but never got one as a kid. I'm making up for it big time as an adult, though...

Thanks for posting.


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## swamibob (Jan 20, 2009)

Very GROOVY!!!!!

Also thank you for your service.

Tom


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## Dushkwoneshe (Apr 27, 2012)

.
Thank y'all for the comments... Makes a guy feel accepted...

Tom - Thank you for that... I just did my 6 yrs & got out...

Pete - Started out on Eldon & Strombecker... Added Vibes (Buzzerds)
and T-Jets... Just the guy down the street and I were the only ones of
*The Gang* to have slots... Took off to 1/24-Land in '66... Until my
Brother-in-Law destroyed my car... And I mean destroyed!... Could
have killed him...
AFX were the ones to *land me in the boat*, though...

John
.


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## super8man (Jan 29, 2013)

*Monza*

It's a great set, here's mine - Dog shown for scale!


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## Dushkwoneshe (Apr 27, 2012)

.
Dang... All I got with mine, was a cat...

.


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## slotcarman12078 (Oct 3, 2008)

Back in the day, Aurora would mix car types in a set. I recall getting a Baja Bronco and a 57 Nomad in one. The reasoning behind it, as the story goes, is it was done to get the purchaser to buy single cars to match up what they got in the set.


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## Dushkwoneshe (Apr 27, 2012)

.
Hey, thanks for the info, SCM...

I feel 99.99% sure the wh/blu #3 Camaro came in the set, but it
didn't make any sense paired with a wh/blu Ferrari 512M...

I went on a buying frenzy that 1st weekend at a hobby shop
in Northwoods Mall... Told the wife we had to live on tree bark
and tasty weeds to save money, 'cause we *NEEDED* the
cash for more slot cars :lol: ... I just figured I purchased the
Camaro from there... We got other Navy couples and singles
buying them, too... 

The last of our friends got out*/*transferred by '77... Pretty much
ended our race nights... Just the wife & I continued to race... One
of the neighbors joined in sometimes, but it was never the same...

Miss those times, for sure...

.


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## swamibob (Jan 20, 2009)

Super8man that's a GREAT picture! Very cool. 

Tom


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