# Remember when..........



## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

Hey foks! Remember when you went down to the local Drug store or Ben franklin's and picked up a model, got home layed out the main parts on some news print, got out the ol' rattle can gave it a good shot.....started in on the interior, landing gear etc and had that bad boy together before that night or the next day? 

So what if the canopy wasn't perfect the wheels did not retract, the decals were not perfect.....ok they were less than perfect ( most of the time ) but it sure was fun!

What are your MODEL MEMORIES from way back?

When I wuz in 4th, 5th, 6th grade 75-77 I would go down to the local golf course...craw, scamper and hike all around the course ( including a small pasture with a cranky Bull ) collect up all the missing good quality golf balls I could muster then clean'em up, take them inside the pro-shop and make ( on a good day ) 12.00 to 22.00 bucks! ....run home, get changed, take the bus into the next town that had 'REAL' shops and hit Ben Franklin's ( at that time they had a whole isle just for kits...Tamiya too! ) get a kit and well....see above.

No research, no DVD', NO internet.....just memories of John Wayne's Flying Tiger movie etc etc AND NO CONTESTS!

"Those were the days....."


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

i remember when....Sears and JCPennys had models!!
in fact i got most of my Aurora Prehistoric Scenes for a JC Penny store!

yeah....my work table was my bed!!!!!!


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

I had this handme down small desk from my older brother that I used for my models all the way up till I left home.......

Oh yes the memories....I can still hear dear my ol' dad say....What the heck are ya doing in the bathroom all day and night!?...get out of there and give some one else a chance! 

an awkward silence fills the board.....


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

i remember beggin my mom to drive me to the drug store because i could not get this certain car model out of my head!! she was mad but took me anyway!!


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## kaos (Apr 5, 2003)

life was good ...


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

I remember buying my original Seaview model at a 7-11 in Springfield, VA. I guess it was 1966? I think it was 3 bucks. I got a Slurpie too!!


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## Capt. Krik (May 26, 2001)

For me it was the G. C. Murphy store in the nearby plaza. You would go down to their lower floor (read as basement.) They had all kinds of toys and models down there. Purchase the latest Aurora kit for 98 cents. Pick up a few bottles of Testors paint which I believe were 10 cents a bottle and a tube of good ol' Testor's glue. Rush home and start slathering on paint and glue and be finished by that evening.

Life just don't get much better than that.


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

oh man!! FLUKE!!!!! now you have started the memory machine!!!

oh those were the days....................

you could get great stuff at the local mimi mart!!


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## Steve244 (Jul 22, 2001)

Used to pry the quarters and dimes out of my coin collection to buy models. That and pilfer from the sunday school collection envelope (that went on till tax time when my dad got a statement. sheesh).

My life of crime didn't continue; good thing: I wasn't very good at it.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

Remember the Digi-Comp? I had one of them too! LOL

Renwalls "Visible Cricket"?

Great Garloo?

Mousetrap game?

Capt. Crunch treasure chest?


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

VISIBLE CRICKET??
tell me about that one!

i remember at one time as a kid i had :

Aurora's :
complete set of Prehistoric Scenes
Moonbus
Voyager
Captain America
Spiderman
Hulk
Pan Am clipper
Seaview
Flying Sub
Spindrift


dont ask why i dont have them anymore! it's nothing but a tragedy!

can you imagine those on a store shelf?

yep.......


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## beck (Oct 22, 2003)

there was a Sterling's 5&10 store about a block from where we lived . got most of my Auroras from there .
but for the really big model selection ( and all those other cool toys ) it was K-Mart .
i'd start my whine around thursday to try and get Mom to take me all the way accross town to K-Mart on Saturday . 
i'd look at all the cool Marx stuff and GI Joes and wind up getting a model anyway . She'd roll her eyes , "you could have walked up to Sterlings and got THAT " . 
great memories . 
hb


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

The local pharmacy always had some car models. Usually no more than five in all.

The local luncheonette had a stash of various kits in the back too. I recall getting Hawk's F-5 there once. I had to ask Mr. Grundy to get it for me 'cause it was on the top shelf.

I would occasionally ride my bike into the next town, Wyckoff (quite a haul by bike when I was 9 or 10!). I remember one day I found Aurora's Fokker triplane in the stationary store there and bought it for about a buck. Then I zipped over to the bike shop, where they also had a shelf of models. They had Monogram's Hawker Hurricane! And I spent my last buck on the fokker! I rushed back to the stationary store and returned the Fokker (I still remember how mad the guy at the register was when I told him I found something I wanted more at the bike shop). Then I went back to the bike shop and got the Hurricane.


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

i know where Wyckoff is!

nice town!


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Of course, HiWay Hobby House was always there too. Dad would drive me there. I went with $5 once and came home with 6 models. That's when Monogram's 1/48 fighters retailed for a buck, and HHH always sold them for 70 cents.

I remember wheh Monogram's big B-52 came out and I opened the box to check it out. Back then the boxes weren't always shrink-wrapped, and only occasionally taped shut. John, the owner (and he's still the owner) yelled at me to not open the boxes if I wasn't gonna buy it. I think it wasn't too long after that they bought their own shrink-wrap machine. :lol:


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

I miss the seventies in general  

My very first kit was a revell 1/72 scale Navy hellcat, my second was the old Monogram 1/48 P-40 Flying Tiger.

I do remember building the Lindberg German Donier (rear and front prop ) fighter in 1/48 scale.

It seemed I bought a lot of those Lindberg kits...not bad of selection and they were cheap too!

I have an older brother who was my 'guide' into model kits ( he bought me the Navy Hellcat ) at the local Air show ( thats when the mosel booth at the show was run by Air Force personel...pretty cool huh?


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

Hiway Hobby is awesome!!!!

i lived in Mahwah for a few years. strange man in a strange town and THERE IT WAS! 
an Oasis on rt 17!


how long has that place been there??


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## The-Nightsky (May 10, 2005)

.....gas was $1.80 a gallon.


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## spe130 (Apr 13, 2004)

I don't miss the 70s...I don't even remember them  I do miss the days when Wal-Mutt actually had a decent selection of kits, including the old AMT/Ertl Trek kits.

I remember $.97 premium (93 octane) for a while when I was in undergrad. I drove like crazy those few weeks, my car hated anything less than premium.


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## Scorpitat (Oct 7, 2004)

I can remember sitting at my desk, gluing together an original Spindrift, or completing a Seaview sub. But my fondest memory was building a mail-away kit of the original t.v. batmobile, and sitting there, on the floor, in front of the t.v., watching Batman and Robin as I built it. ( damn, I wish I still had that kit <sigh> )

Yea..those were the days......long since past, but that's when modeling was for enjoyment, and not the profit-hungry model companies.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

john guard said:


> Hiway Hobby is awesome!!!!
> 
> i lived in Mahwah for a few years. strange man in a strange town and THERE IT WAS!
> an Oasis on rt 17!
> ...


 Since 1953 - four years before I was born!


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

I remember after the 1979 gas crisis, when prices were still edging up, pulling into the gas station and freaking out that it had hit 65 cents a gallon. :freak:

There was a time you could ask for "a buck's worth" just to get a few gallons to make it through the week. Hell, I even remember one night after a date I was so flat broke I scraped the change off the car floor and bought 47 cents worth. It was almost a couple of gallons at the time!


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## Brent Gair (Jun 26, 1999)

spe130 said:


> I
> 
> I remember $.97 premium (93 octane) for a while when I was in undergrad. I drove like crazy those few weeks, my car hated anything less than premium.


HA! You are WAY too young to "remember when..."

The local ROCO station sold gas at $.34 per imperial gallon when I was in high school. That price didn't change for about two years. Lucky for me because my very first car had a 455 engine. Then I got that hot-rodded Corvette which got an impressive 6 miles per gallon.

Oh...and speaking of premium...my '68 Triumph gets much better gas mileage than the other cars but the manual recommends 102 octane fuel (a common requirement on British cars at the time). 102 octane was also a common requirement of most high performance in the 60's. My poor 'Vette was running 12:1 compression and I was using the entire local supply of Octane booster in 1984. The idea that 93 octane could be called "premium" would have been a joke. 93 octane was the crap we used to light the coals in our BBQ.


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## Refit (Oct 24, 2005)

Woolworth was the place in the seventies. _Big_ model selection. I bought every single original Trek kit there, and _more_ than once. Assembled, Testers paints brushed on, dried and decal-ed in the same day.

Yeah, those _were_ the days!


Wayne


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## CJTORINO (Jan 20, 2003)

*remember when.........*

remember these Old JoHan Kits?
Luckily I put a few unbuilt ones away.
Like these:


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

YOU! .....Yes you would be the guy to ask.....Didn't anyone do a Model of the 1970 and up body style of the *AMC Javelin*?

I had me a *71 SST w/ 304*.....man I miss that ride.

GAWD I MISS THE SEVENTIES! ( well....not avocado green and the Brady Bunch ) thats for sure! but the Partridge Family now they were cool!


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## Steve244 (Jul 22, 2001)

shag carpets, and how they'd hide what the cat did!


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

Hey Steve can you elaborate for us just what is was that the cat did?  :tongue:


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

i really did not like the seventies..............

i found it tacky. but great for finding models and toys!!


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## Steve244 (Jul 22, 2001)

Is it me or does every decade rank high in tackiness when viewed in hindsight? Except maybe the 40's. I think the 40's were an elegant decade in terms of design and fashion.

What the cat did is best left hidden.


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

Well put Steve.

Yes the seventies was a tacky time in many ways but its the *people* and the *attitudes* that I miss the most.....people who knew how to handle things, kept thier cool, didn't fly off the handle cuz you looked at them the wrong way, I remember pin ups in work areas that were considered a MANS area and no one 'seemed' to care. Has most people lost thier sense of humor, is it a learned thing?

*What attracted you to a kit?*

For me it was interiors! the more the better! and when I saw that old Revell 1/32 scale UH1-D Huey helicopter for the first time I freaked! anything Sci-Fi TV/Film I bought it!


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

OK!! I CONFESS!!
i did'nt like the seventies because i dressed badly and my hair sucked!!

i look way better now!


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## Brent Gair (Jun 26, 1999)

Steve244 said:


> Is it me or does every decade rank high in tackiness when viewed in hindsight?


YES!

That is the main reason that I have completely avoided any tendency toward trendiness.

People make fun of green shag carpet (guess what I have on my floor). But what about more recent trends to textured painting, sponge painting and glazes on walls? 10 years from now, people will laugh when they see a house with that "so 90's" glazed wall. Remember track lighting? It was the BIGGEST trend of 1998 and by 1999 it was about as hip as a green polyester suit. Check out the current crop of home renovation shows and see how popular concrete counter tops have become. They are as trendy as heck...and in five years, people will be so embarrassed by them they will be ripping them out. I've watched three renovation shows in the last week with people using travertine tiles. Wanna bet that you won't be able give away travertine tiles by the year 2015?

My personal philosophy is to respect EVERYTHING as a period piece whether it's music, models, cars or furniture. Step in the front door of my house and you will be standing on 1973 green shag carpet. Against the wall is a 1940's "waterfall" style dressing table with a 1955 Philco radio on it. Beside that is a 1940's airplane ashtray stand. Next to that is my 2003 HDTV and sourround sound system.

Everything I have clashes with everything else.


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## Steve244 (Jul 22, 2001)

fluke said:


> For me it was interiors! the more the better! and when I saw that old Revell 1/32 scale UH1-D Huey helicopter for the first time I freaked! anything Sci-Fi TV/Film I bought it!


slobber: interiors. (Is it still ok to say that here?)


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## john guard (Dec 31, 2001)

OK!! I CONFESS AGAIN!!

my house still looks like the seventies.............

lots of ugly wood trim....sob!


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## Steve244 (Jul 22, 2001)

Brent Gair said:


> YES!
> 
> That is the main reason that I have completely avoided any tendency toward trendiness.
> 
> ...


I hope you don't have a cat!


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## Brent Gair (Jun 26, 1999)

Here's actual proof on my personal timewarp. this photo was taken from just inside the front door so this is the first view a visitor sees:



Note all the things I mentioned: the green shag carpet, waterfall dresser, old Philco radio, the ashtray stand. Also notice the tacky brass sculpture over the Tv, the old turquoise "tv lamp", the lava lamp in the corner and the collection of toy robots. Plus some seasonal Christmas clutter which makes it look even worse.


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## NUM11BLADE (Feb 16, 2002)

Remember when everybody had paneling (50s and 60s), Im living in a 60s paneled room right now. In the middle of moving and it sucks, all my hobby stuff is packed up in plastic boxes. Will be sometime before I can build again, have some great kits I cant wait to get into!
Great thread.


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

*FAR OUT!!!*


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## 1bluegtx (Aug 13, 2004)

Brent Gair said:


> HA! You are WAY too young to "remember when..."
> 
> 
> Oh...and speaking of premium...my '68 Triumph gets much better gas mileage than the other cars but the manual recommends 102 octane fuel (a common requirement on British cars at the time). 102 octane was also a common requirement of most high performance in the 60's. My poor 'Vette was running 12:1 compression and I was using the entire local supply of Octane booster in 1984. The idea that 93 octane could be called "premium" would have been a joke. 93 octane was the crap we used to light the coals in our BBQ.


I have to buy 115 octane leaded gas for my GTX, $4.99 a gallon- not to bad and it has been the same price for three years now!

BRIAN


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## spe130 (Apr 13, 2004)

Gotta love fuel injection and computerized spark control...my Cherokee is perfectly happy on 87.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

My previous Subaru required 92 octane or above, but when I bought my Outback last year they said regular was okay. Saved me a bundle this year!

And hey, I have a panelled basement! So what!?


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## Prisoner (Nov 2, 1999)

OK ya' wanna talk 70's. This was my bedroom at my folks house. Check out that cool wall mural scene from Hawaii. The paneling and that Roman rollup blind. And trust me there was orange/black/yellow shag capeting on the floor that I used to _"rake"_ all the time. Even had acoustic tiles on the ceiling to try to keep the noise down from my guitar. 

Most of my models came from Bargain Town/Toys R Us because my mom used to work there. That's when they had big aisles of models as far as the eye could see. My first Aurora kits came from there. 

Most of the building was done in the basement, still have a few undone boxed kits left - Johan '64 Chrysler Turbine, AMT '66 Mustang, AMT Bandag Bandit.
I know were romanticizing the past but I do miss the good times in the 70's.
Not to mention all of the great music that came out in that decade (disco not included). :freak:


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## NUM11BLADE (Feb 16, 2002)

And hey, I have a panelled basement! So what!?[/QUOTE]

It's just that it was hugely popular at one time and not that in style anymore.
I remember stores and lumber yards devoted to paneling, I like it myself. 
John, the pictures that you post of your basement are wall to wall model kits! 

Every time I work on a model I think about my early model building years and how great a time it was.:thumbsup:


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## bugs bunny (Dec 1, 2005)

John P said:


> Of course, HiWay Hobby House was always there too. Dad would drive me there. I went with $5 once and came home with 6 models. That's when Monogram's 1/48 fighters retailed for a buck, and HHH always sold them for 70 cents.
> 
> I remember wheh Monogram's big B-52 came out and I opened the box to check it out. Back then the boxes weren't always shrink-wrapped, and only occasionally taped shut. John, the owner (and he's still the owner) yelled at me to not open the boxes if I wasn't gonna buy it. I think it wasn't too long after that they bought their own shrink-wrap machine. :lol:


[Sigh] The Ol' Hiway Hobby House, I too used to make my dad drive me there when I was a just widdo tyke. It was a long way from Clifton but boy was it worth the trip. I bought my first model from there. It was a TOS klingon cruiser.Best dang hobby shop in New Jersey, Greatest sci fi section EVER. I have not been there in a couple years now though. I heard that the founder Passed. Is that true? That Hobby shop will always have a special place in my heart.


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

......and who didn't have this or one simular in their bedroom!


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## MangoMan (Jul 29, 1999)

Ah, the 70's. The best time for a boy to reach puberty


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

bugs bunny said:


> [Sigh] The Ol' Hiway Hobby House, I too used to make my dad drive me there when I was a just widdo tyke. It was a long way from Clifton but boy was it worth the trip. I bought my first model from there. It was a TOS klingon cruiser.Best dang hobby shop in New Jersey, Greatest sci fi section EVER. I have not been there in a couple years now though. I heard that the founder Passed. Is that true? That Hobby shop will always have a special place in my heart.


 Good lord, no. The store is still there and still going. One of the brothers who founded it passed away, but John is still running the place. It's still my 'local hobby shop."


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

NUM11BLADE said:


> It's just that it was hugely popular at one time and not that in style anymore.
> I remember stores and lumber yards devoted to paneling, I like it myself.
> John, the pictures that you post of your basement are wall to wall model kits!


 Ah, but the OTHER side of the basement is this:
http://inpayne.com/temp/cellar11.JPG


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## JGG1701 (Nov 9, 2004)

O.K. this isn't excactly a model but does anybody remember this ?................


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

Pretty expenise and COOL toy for sure! Check this one out!

http://cgi.ebay.com/1971-King-Ding-Robot-w-Brain-Box-Topper-Toys_W0QQitemZ6021966803QQcategoryZ19198QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

OK scratch what I said....The sixties! now that would be even better!!.....to be too young for Nam and not old enough by 72 or 74?


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

Who had a "Marx-a-Coptor" long before Matell had theirs.

Creepy Crawlers?

remember the bicycles with the big handlebars, and banana seats?

Before it was a Skateboard, it was a "Surf Skate"

Big Buddy Bubblegum - Buy the foot!

Aurora Slotcars (1/87)


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

*I don't like spiders and snakes!*


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## iamweasel (Aug 14, 2000)

I got all my kits in the 70's at Woolworths and the Revell mail order club. I spent all my time either building kits, playing with my Marx playsets or reading comic books.
My son dabbles in kit building still, it's one of those needs to really be in the mood thing, amassed a nice large Marx collection too and we have battles very much like my brother and I did with them.


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## NUM11BLADE (Feb 16, 2002)

This should help ease the pain...http://www.stuckinthe70s.com/


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

fluke said:


> *I don't like spiders and snakes!*


 But that ain't what it takes....


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## Seaview (Feb 18, 2004)

Every decade has its' own charm, like the seasons. I miss the 70's, but not High School.
I was born at just the right time; to turn 18 in 1976, the year of the bi-centennial, no draft or VN war and it was an election year. :wave:


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

John P said:


> But that ain't what it takes....


you fool you fool!!


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## SteveR (Aug 7, 2005)

Motorific, Johnny Express, Johnny Astro, Major Matt Mason.


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## iamweasel (Aug 14, 2000)

fluke said:


> you fool you fool!!


I was nervous as you might quess, still looking for something to slip down her dress.


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## Just Plain Al (Sep 7, 1999)

Whatever happened to Jim Stafford anyway? Love Wildwood Weed but never seem to hear it or Spiders ans Snakes any more.


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## Seaview (Feb 18, 2004)

According to a quick "google search", he opened up his own theatre in Branson, MO in the early 90's.
If you have your own theatre, I guess it keeps your hands full.
Good luck to him; I liked his songs!


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## Zathros (Dec 21, 2000)

*The Old Stores...ahhh*

Oh , yes...Ben Franks in the sixties had a WIDE selection of Kits..I wish I had
a photo of thier shelf stock from that time..another place in NY on Queens blvd
was a Store called "Stevens"..It was an appliance store, but way in the rear 
thier was a toy department..Aurora galore..Flying subs, Batmobiles, Seaviews,
etc...And the fondest memory was a SKID Full of Remco LIS robots Piled Three High in thier boxes of course, and one dangling from a string from the ceiling..Price: $5.99 each..Next to THAT was another FULL Skid of Remco Seaview playsets ..same price..the last favorite place I remember was a small stationary store that had a Lazy suzan that they kept Spindrifts, and Voyagers on..thats where I bought mine then...I try to make believe the 70's didnt happen. .But the sixties had great Kit & toy memories!


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Back in the day, HiWay Hobby was two levels. Upstairs started with the radio control aircraft near the door, and shelves with new kit releases. The plastic models were arranged on shelves in a library-like arrangement at the back of the store. To the left of the entrance were two large-scale slot-car layouts. One was an oval. I think it had 8 lanes, and was at least 8x10 feet, maybe more. In the back of the room was a LeMans style course with lots of turns and ocerpasses.

In the center of the store was a double staircase down to the basement level, which was trains, trains, trains and more trains. Plus some trains.

There was always a big R/C plane or two hanging from the ceiling.

Since they moved to the new building in the 70s (or 80s?), it's just one level, and not quite so entertaining. Unless you walk in on the afternoon Trek discussion, which I usually do .

I gotta ask scifiguy if there are any photos of the place back then.


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## bugs bunny (Dec 1, 2005)

John P said:


> Back in the day, HiWay Hobby was two levels. Upstairs started with the radio control aircraft near the door, and shelves with new kit releases. The plastic models were arranged on shelves in a library-like arrangement at the back of the store. To the left of the entrance were two large-scale slot-car layouts. One was an oval. I think it had 8 lanes, and was at least 8x10 feet, maybe more. In the back of the room was a LeMans style course with lots of turns and ocerpasses.
> 
> In the center of the store was a double staircase down to the basement level, which was trains, trains, trains and more trains. Plus some trains.
> 
> ...


Back when model building was new for me, I remember getting the urge to ask if that model enterprise-E on display up front near the entrance was for sale. Never had the courage because I new it wasn't, so instead I'd end up buying like 2 model kits of it at a time from there. I also remember being infatuated with the runabout and the Enterprise-C on their display case as well. Just curious, do you happen to know which one of the guys built those models?


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Nope, sorry.


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## Dave Hussey (Nov 20, 1998)

Brent - the robot just to the right of the airplane ashtray - does he walk and then stop while his chest pops open revealing guns as his upper body spins around firing them? I've got one that does that and looks just like the one you have there.

And is that Mr. Woodboto I see as well?

Huzz


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## Dave Hussey (Nov 20, 1998)

K Mart.

It had everything! I remember beeing in awe of every single Aurora grail kit on its shelves. All the monsters, 2001 kits, Voyagers, Super Spy Cars......

Sigh!

Huzz


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

In the early seventies other than a few mom and pop drug stores and even the local non chain grocery store that had a 'few' model kits the only place that I remember that was loaded with COOL models was the top floor of the J.C. Penny store in Seattle.....MAN! I remember one birthday around 1974 my older brother took me there 'A bus ride which I thought was cool' so I could pick out a kit.... I found this cool 1/35 U.S. Howitzer with a killer interior ....WWII or Nam I'm not sure? it was a very box like design...I wish I could remember the model but I'm sure it was not a Tamiya, Monogram or Revell.

sigh..........


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## Brent Gair (Jun 26, 1999)

Yeah, Huzz. That robot is quite a show! As you know, he was recently sold under the generic Chinese pidgeon English name of "Space Walk Man". But he is really a very faithfull replica of the old "Rotate-O-Matic" robot. Heck of good buy for about $29.95. And Mr. Woodboto is there. The other robots are mostly Chinese tin plate replica's of old robots. However, if you look very carefully, you can see the Trendmasters Robby...a VERY realistic 'bot with a great sound chip (I have THREE of them).

Speaking of K-mart, I used to go there with my parents every week back in '67-'68. What I vividly remember is a huge, long gun cabinet right beside the plastic models. It was filled with handguns. Of course, back in those days, nobody in Winnipeg ever got shot. Then we got all of the gun control laws which virtually outlawed handguns...now we get about 15 gun murders per year in town.


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## Dave Hussey (Nov 20, 1998)

Hey Brent - Yes, that's the one I have; "Space Walk Man"!! 

I picked it up back in August in a coffee shop downtown of all places. I saved the box because there were a few spelling snafus on it that I got a chuckle out of. The robot has a great retro look but I had no idea that it is a faithful recreation of the Rotate-O-Matic robot. Heck, I didn't even know there was such a thing. I just thought the robot looked neat so I bought him. But it is cool to know that he is a "repop" of the Rotate-O-Matic robot.

And yeah, our K Mart had a gun and rifle desk and rack just to one side of the model and toy section. Bizarre floor layout, wasn't it?

And back to robots, I only have just one Trendmasters Robby which I prize greatly. They now command about $100 US on @Bay. I cringe when I remember the Toy Liquidators store that I visited in 2000 while on vacation in Florida that had a stack of them for $10 US. I didn't buy any because I didn't have room in my luggage!

And my three year old took a real hankering to my Trendmasters B9 robot a while back. But there was no way I'd let him do anything more than play with it a little bit. So I managed to find another on @Bay and got it for his birthday. He loves it! But I confess that when he's finished playing with it I whisk it up on the top shelf in his room so it will survive his childhood intact! So far its in great shape!

Huzz


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## Zathros (Dec 21, 2000)

*K mart...and another old store*

WOW..I didnt know K Mart went as far back as the early 70's..There were NONE in my nieghborhood when I was growing up..There was another store when I was about 6 years old in Brooklyn..It was a Drug /stationary store..It had 
THREE windows ..and they were LOADED with fabulous kits and toys...From Godzillas Go Kart to the Remco LIS robot to Captain Action, Matt mason, etc..
My father went in to buy me my first Remco Robot, and came right back out 
saying "that toy is $8.00!!..I'll get it for your Birthday or Christmas"..LOL..and today , $8.00 might buy a kid a few Paints and not EVEN a GOOD DVD!...
Funny..Maybe its me, but todays Toys for Kids dont seem to have the same charm and attraction as they did from my generation..They were simpler, but had more APPEAL


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## DR. PRETORIOUS (Nov 1, 2000)

The problem with todays kids is they have no imagination.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

I remember seeing the Remco B9's at ZAYRES! in the late 60's. I remember seeing Color TV's there watching Daktari. They were a K-mart type joint too. or was it Kreskies or somesuch?

I remember the toy departments in the department stores in the early 60's and late '50's. Landsburgs had the BIG American Flyer train display, and Hecht's had the Doll's and lots n lot of bikes, wagons etc. Toy's R Us had the best selection of Buddy-L and Tonka metal trucks and construction equipment. Sears had the Marx Bulldozer, and tons or Remco and Mattel stuff, and their was even an appliance store that had a BIG area of Lionel O scale trains and a little American Flyer. 

When I was 5 I had the marx Bulldozer, 2 dump trucks, a street cleaner truck that sprayed water from a tank you pumped up, and a backhoe, and a cool tonka crane with drag-line. My friend had the road grader, a bulldozer(Buddy-L) and a big plastic Cat mining dump druck. His folks didn't care about their back yard so we were able to excavate about 20 by 10 feet and even had 4-5 bags of sand mixed in to our dirt.


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

Man they made some COOL toys back then.

My folks have a photo of my two older brothers around 1967 or so and they are 'behind' this BIG WWII U.S. Tank and one brother has the wire remote unit in his hand. Man! that sucka looks like its three feet long or so!

A neighbor kid had this HUGE WII style U.S. Navy ship ( I do not remember what kind ) but it was about 3 to 4 feet in length, not in scale mind you but it had clear windows at the bridge ( red or blue tinted....but tinted ) it launched depth charges, guns moved, working propellers the works! 

Any one have any ideas on these two items?

Oh yeah and don't forget Johnny Express!


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Me and my Johnny-7 One Man Army, and my Texaco Fire Chief helmet:










Also had the Zero-M Sonic Blaster, and some of the Johnny-Eagle realistic toy guns. In fact, I still have my Johnny Eagle "Lietuenant" .45 automatic.


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## Brent Gair (Jun 26, 1999)

Sorry, John...but this town ain't big enough for the both of us...


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

You guys were bottle fed.....I just know it! :tongue:


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

John P - Ya still got them PINK SOCKS??? LOL


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

You still have yours?!?!? Oh you lucky bastich!!



Y3a said:


> John P - Ya still got them PINK SOCKS??? LOL


 Argyle! They're argyle, dammit! :lol:


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## NUM11BLADE (Feb 16, 2002)

I feel safer knowing you two guys are on watch.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

I had the Man from UNCLE secret briefcase. I remember it shot red bullets out of one end. I wonder whatever happened to it?


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## yamahog (Nov 19, 1998)

I had one of these:










I don't understand the box cover, though. "Johnny Astro Really Flies." I figured that by strapping that contraption to my back that I could "really fly." I'm assuming the boy on the box cover is "Johnny Astro?" Regardless, it was the balloons that fly, not Johnny Astro.


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## yamahog (Nov 19, 1998)

Had this, too:


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Oh god, I had Johnny Astro too!

There was another toy that had a battery-powered prop-driven spaceship on the end of a rod. It rotated around a central control tower, and you had a control stick for fan speed and angle. It could whizz around in circles and pick up things with a hook, or drop lead bombs on a spring-loaded flying saucer.


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## lisfan (Feb 15, 1999)

i can remember woolworths had a few isles it seemed of just models........
those are great memories guys. it seemed growing up you could go into almost anywhere and find models. just dont sniff the glue.....
awwww i love the smell of stryene in the morning..........:lol:


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## lisfan (Feb 15, 1999)

hey guys remember this toy


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

I was surprised a few years ago when Dad revealed he'd saved my Mister Machine, and restored it. It's on a shelf in my living room right now.

Sure wish I still had my Fireball XL-5 Space City playset, though!


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

OT: I've been away for a few days due to "issues" with my DSL service. Also had hernia surgery last Friday and am recuperating nicely.

As long as we're wallowing in toy nostalgia, did anyone have the Kenner "Bridge & Turnpike" and "Girder & Panel" construction sets? Those were waaay cool! You could build all sorts of miniature modern buildings using molded plastic columns and beams and vacuformed wall panels. And all types of bridges and interchanges with the Bridge & Turnpike sets. Those toys actually taught a kid about basic structural engineering.


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## Prisoner (Nov 2, 1999)

I remember having the "Girder & Panel" construction set in fact I remember sneaking a peek at the wrapped package before Christmas. :lol: That thing was a blast. I also remember a toy called Pit Change Charger. It was a stock car that you could take apart and put back together again with miniature power tools.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Good lord, yes! I was still finding those little red girders in odd places around the house well into my teens! :lol:


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## iamweasel (Aug 14, 2000)

John P said:


> Me and my Johnny-7 One Man Army, and my Texaco Fire Chief helmet:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I just watched the commercial for the O.M.A. last night, they showed the Johnny 7 Micro helmet with 30 foot cord that goes to a walkie talkie. Neat little ad.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

My dad got me the BIGGEST girder & panels/Bridge& Turnpike sets. TWO OF 'EM!!! We made buildings for my American Flyer layout. Also used an Erector set drawbridge with Girder&panel additions/details. I wish I still had some pictures. 

I wish I still had my Great GArloo, Marx-a-Power Bulldozer too. and just maybe my Digi-Comp 3.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Odd Ogg
Odd Ogg
Half turtle
and half frog!


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## Zathros (Dec 21, 2000)

*Johnny Astro*



yamahog said:


> I had one of these:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
*I remember that Now!! I had it myself, but couldnt remember The name of that toy!..**Off to E-bay!!! *


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## dgtrekker (Jul 23, 2001)

lisfan said:


> i can remember woolworths had a few isles it seemed of just models........


Yep, living out in the boonies my Mom used to pack me and my brother to Las Vegas once a month to go clothes shopping. I couldn't wait to get downstairs at Woolworths and pick up all the models my saved up allowance would buy!

Anybody remember the old Whirlybird sets?


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

re: Johnny Astro - 
Now I know where that joystick in my spares box came from!


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## ChrisW (Jan 1, 1970)

I remember spending many nights and week-ends building cities and turnpikes with the Kenner sets - probably the most interactive toy I ever had. Damn shame when the vacuform roads started splitting and breaking where you pegged 'em into the girders.


JP - I've got a mint Odd Ogg sitting on the cabinet next to King Zor... had the OMA but never had the Johnny Astro.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

ChrisW said:


> JP - I've got a mint Odd Ogg sitting on the cabinet next to King Zor... had the OMA but never had the Johnny Astro.


 And my mother has the Odd Ogg box - she's been keeping her Christmas ornaments in it for 40 years.


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## qtan (May 29, 2001)

Kenner's Bridge and Turnpike set, and the Building and Panel set! Do I remember them?! I've still got them both safely tucked away in the closet. That, and my Johnny Express truck with the tanker trailer and the bridge set. Hm, not sure if I still have the reefer trailer or the forklift.


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## NUM11BLADE (Feb 16, 2002)

This site can take you back.http://toyadz.com/toyadz/menu1.html


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## Batfink (Jan 10, 2006)

fluke said:


> Hey foks! Remember when you went down to the local Drug store or Ben franklin's and picked up a model, got home layed out the main parts on some news print, got out the ol' rattle can gave it a good shot.....started in on the interior, landing gear etc and had that bad boy together before that night or the next day? Those were the days....


They sure were.................   ....Two places where I could always find a great selection of models....Community Drug in my hometown of Northford,and Mammoth Mart in North Haven....Auroras,Monogram Tom Daniels,Lindberghs,.....I'm sure gonna miss all this when Alzheimer's kicks in.......  .........


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

Back when I was ten or eleven years old, I used to get great deals on models at the local Pick 'n' Save, which was an outlet for slightly damaged or unclaimed freight. They had a whole section of model kits and toys, usually with only minor cosmetic damage to the box, for about one-third to one-half off the standard retail price. And that was when a 1/25 scale car kit cost two or three dollars! That was where I got a lot of the Aurora monsters and Revell's Chicken Little kit (the one showing the stages of gestation of a chicken inside the egg).


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## fluke (Feb 27, 2001)

Cool! but could you eat it? :tongue:


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## lonfan (Feb 11, 2001)

Scotpens- I remember the same Place in Virginia it was called "Salvage Barn" I was able to buy these Revell 'Endangered Animals" Kits for IIRC $.50 Cause they had been in a Fire,I actually had to wipe Soot off the boxes and in one case I think it was a Polar Bear was Semi Melted in the Box Also the Mego Spocks were being sold with somekind of Molding Defect in the Legs that made one of his Legs look like the Stay-Puff Marshmellow Man! lol I probly should have kept him seeing how all these Imperferfections seem to Equal $$ nowadays lol But he instead Became a "Red Shirt" involved in a Savage battle with the Mego "General Urko" and the Apes! lol

John/Lonfan


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## MJB (Aug 3, 2001)

For me, my best model memories are when I would go to what would now be called a 'mom and pop' store to buy my Aurora kits. I remember the place being filled with lots of planes and ships but I only cared for the Monsters or Superheros. I remember taking my my hard earned $1.01 ( $0.98 plus tax) to the store and plopping it down for the newest Monster or the Superhero. I remember being suprised that my $1.01 wouldn't cover the Batman kit and I had to work extra hard for that $0.49 plus the tax. He also had what I know know as the Disney Man in Space 3 stage Rocket. I was able to buy it for a buck or two when he went out of business. It didn't hit me as hard then, sadly, as it does now. Michael


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## roadrner (Jul 21, 1999)

john guard said:


> because i dressed badly and my hair sucked!!
> 
> i look way better now!


 
But didn't we all ? Now some of those styles are back and the kids are going crazy with it. :freak: 

Great post Fluke, some great experiences here. :thumbsup: rr


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

Robot Commando, Big Loo, King Zor, Battle of The Blue and Gray, Fort Apache, Atomic Cape Canaveral, Operation Moonbase, Operation X-500, Astro Ray Gun, Jimmy Jet, "Sold Only at Your Favorite Food Market!" "Two Whole Armies in a Footlocker For 99 Cents! "Own Your Own Life-Sized Submarine for $1.98!" Little Giants, Superior Gas Station, Playmobile, X-Ray Specs, Sea Monkeys, Trik Trak, Crashmobile, Erector Set, Combat!, Tinkertoys, Frogman, Matchbox Cars, Plasticville, Give-A-Show Projector, Play-Doh Fun Factory, Bubble Gum Cards, Jiffy Pop, Rat Finks, Trolls, Flasher Rings, Ben Cooper Halloween Costumes, Superball, Silly Putty, Flubber, Colorforms, Wooly Willy, Cootie, Barrel of Monkeys, Beany Copter, Slinky, Funny Face, Soakys, Silly Soap, Incredible Edibles, Operation!, Fighting Men, Fright Factory, Stony Burke, Mighty Mo, Tiger Joe, Defender Dan, Big Caesar, Battlewagon, Guns of The Golden Agent, Mattel Shootin' Shell, Crime Buster, Agent Zero-M Radio Rifle, Lie Detector, Hamilton's Invaders, Captain Action.


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## beeblebrox (Jul 30, 2003)

Had these from the time I was four. 
http://www.chem.sunysb.edu/msl/lego/apb6.jpg
I think the set I had was called the "Bucket-O-Choking Hazard". :thumbsup:

That's me on the right.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Crashmobile!!
Damn, that was fun. Nowadays it'd probably be banned so as not to "send a message to children that traffic accidents are acceptable" or some such nonsense.


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

John P said:


> Crashmobile!!
> Damn, that was fun. Nowadays it'd probably be banned so as not to "send a message to children that traffic accidents are acceptable" or some such nonsense.


The TV commercial for Deluxe Reading's "Jimmy Jet" probably wouldn't pass muster either. It featured a gleeful 10 year-old tiggering bomb release levers while looking at the plastic TV Jet Screen which lit up and revolved an aerial view of various landscapes. Each time the kid pulled a lever, the commercial cut to actual WW II documentary footage of the bombing of Dresden!!! Talk about "authentic" toys!


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

John P said:


> Crashmobile!!
> Damn, that was fun. Nowadays it'd probably be banned so as not to "send a message to children that traffic accidents are acceptable" or some such nonsense.


Yeah, I had one of those too. It was fun in a retarded kind of way. Of course, you're right — today, the Crashmobile would be about as politically correct as chocolate and bubble-gum cigarettes!


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

I have a distinct memory of my mother buying me commercially produced "Flubber" - a viscous motor oil colored slime with which you couldn't really do anything in particular beyond letting it seep through your fingers. It _might_ have picked up newsprint like Silly Putty but I remember that it didn't "bounce" like the stuff in the Disney movie. A couple of days after Mom bought it she made me throw it away because it had been taken off the market due to some potentially dangerous "properties". No telling _what_ that stuff was made of. Maybe they buried it at Love Canal.


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

IIRC, "Flubber" was alleged to have caused a skin rash in a handful of kids who played with it — probably about the same percentage of kids who are allergic to peanuts (A quarter of one percent? A tenth of one percent?), resulting in peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches disappearing from thousands of school cafeterias across the country. Isn't it the parents' job to teach their kid what to avoid if the child has an unusual medical condition? The same thing happened with lawn darts — after a couple of freak accidents involving lawn darts, they were no longer sold for fear of lawsuits. As long as we're waxing nostalgic about our old toys, how about some nostalgia for that obsolescent value called PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY?

Not that I meant to give a speech or anything. . .


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

scotpens said:


> IIRC, "Flubber" was alleged to have caused a skin rash in a handful of kids who played with it — probably about the same percentage of kids who are allergic to peanuts (A quarter of one percent? A tenth of one percent?), resulting in peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches disappearing from thousands of school cafeterias across the country. Isn't it the parents' job to teach their kid what to avoid if the child has an unusual medical condition? The same thing happened with lawn darts — after a couple of freak accidents involving lawn darts, they were no longer sold for fear of lawsuits. As long as we're waxing nostalgic about our old toys, how about some nostalgia for that obsolescent value called PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY?
> 
> Not that I meant to give a speech or anything. . .


Well, the problem is - how does the parent _find out_ that that the kid has an allergy to peanuts? I've got a six year-old daughter who loves Reece's Pieces but until she discovered them about a year ago I don't think she had ever consumed any peanut products. I think caution is the better way to go in a case like this. Parents can pack a PB&J sandwich for their kid if that's what she likes.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Our coffee table had a Flubber stain on it for YEARS after we threw the stuff away! :lol:


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## AFILMDUDE (Nov 27, 2000)

I'm pretty sure the Creepy Crawler Thingmakers were taken off the market - not because they were a hot plate capable of inflicitng some pretty serious burns - but because the plastic creatures you made would slowly start growing some kind of weird mold/fungus that made some kids sick. I can remember the creatures I made slowly turning a fuzzy gray over time. Don't remember ever getting sick.


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

AFILMDUDE said:


> I'm pretty sure the Creepy Crawler Thingmakers were taken off the market - not because they were a hot plate capable of inflicitng some pretty serious burns - but because the plastic creatures you made would slowly start growing some kind of weird mold/fungus that made some kids sick. I can remember the creatures I made slowly turning a fuzzy gray over time. Don't remember ever getting sick.


I had the "Fighting Men" version of The Thingmaker. I definitely remember drawing blood by poking myself a few times with those wire armatures.


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

My younger brother had a Creepy Crawler Thingmaker, and it used to tick him off that I played with it more than he did! Loved making those plastic bugs and lizards and stuff -- and leaving them around the house to gross out our parents.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Five or so years ago, my wife saw a reissue of the Thingmaker at TRU. Trouble was, it was "updated for safety" by replacing the hotplate with an easy-bake-oven-style lightbulb. It just wasn't the same.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

It was a nice little hot plate! I musta made hundreds of them. I remember going to Sears and buying the BIG bottles of red, yellow and black goop. i remember making about 30 spiders one weekend, so I could decorate my window for halloween. I ended up using mine as a cup warmer! I didn't throw out the metal molds until the mid to late 70's.


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## Zorro (Jun 22, 1999)

Any of you old enough to remember when you had to buy your rubber creatures from vending machines? Spiders, centepedes, crayfish, and snakes?
If I remember correctly, they cost 25 cents - a _lot_ of money when you're 5 years old. I also remember when the most expensive balsa wood glider - the one with the red plastic wheels and propeller - was a whopping 25 cents.


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## Agar (Oct 5, 2000)

Don't forget the miniture rubber Ratt Finks. I used to get those along with the balsa gliders that were 2 for 5 cents down at the mom and pop store a couple of blocks from my house. Man, would I love to see that place again. They had everything from Famous Monsters of Filmland to models to Marx army sets. The old store was torn down a few years ago and is now a car wash. All I can say is "Reality Stinks!"


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## Syme (Jan 9, 2005)

Around age 5 ('73 or so) I was home alone one afternoon (Mom downstairs) when I saw the Frankenstein kit on my brother's bookshelf move by itself. I can picture it now and even recall that light plasticky *skreek* it made as it moved an inch or two as if someone nudged the front of the base from left to right.

No joke.


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## AFILMDUDE (Nov 27, 2000)




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## wolfman66 (Feb 18, 2006)

I remember as a kid running down the toy isle by passing the mego dolls and hitting the model section of Two Guys dept store and grabbing my first PS scene kit the sabertooth tiger and then grabbing a couple bottles of testors enamel paint and and laying all the parts out on the floor and hitting them with all different colors.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

I used to go to "Al's Magic Shop" in DC and on one occassion I bought a BIG rubber snake about 5 feet long. It looked pretty real. I Scared ALL my friends with it! LOL 
I still have my magic stuff. linking rings, multiplying billiard balls, hippy-hop rabbits, Zombie, Sucker Die Box, and even a Deceptive squared circle! Magic was fun when I was a kid.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

wolfman66 said:


> I remember as a kid running down the toy isle by passing the mego dolls and hitting the model section of Two Guys dept store and grabbing my first PS scene kit the sabertooth tiger and then grabbing a couple bottles of testors enamel paint and and laying all the parts out on the floor and hitting them with all different colors.


 You did all that in the _store_!?! They must have been pissed! :lol:

Hey, was that the Two Guys in Hackensack, or the Two Guys on 46 in Totawa (or was it Wayne?)


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## wolfman66 (Feb 18, 2006)

John P said:


> You did all that in the _store_!?! They must have been pissed! :lol:
> 
> Hey, was that the Two Guys in Hackensack, or the Two Guys on 46 in Totawa (or was it Wayne?)


The two guys in hackensack!Every friday my mother use to bring me there.I got most of my Aurora models there,and the only one to survive my childhood some what was the Rodan kit from the monsters of the movies.If only we knew then what those kits would be worth today,we would all be rich!


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## ChrisW (Jan 1, 1970)

Ah, time to reminisce...

On Saturday morning if the weather was nice we'd walk to town, otherwise take the bus. We would debark at S.S. Kresge's (the precursor to K-Mart) and go in to check the model aisle, as well as G.I. Joe and the other cool toys we saw advertised on TV. From there we'd head around the corner to Woolworth's, and check out their model collection. Then it was The Boston Store, the Globe, American Auto and whatever other store carried models. Invariably we'd end up at Antracite News, a shop thaty had a wall of practical jokes and novelty items - if you needed fake doggy doo or itching powder, they were guaranteed to have it!
During the better part of the school year my parents enrolled me in the Catholic Youth Center, where on Saturdays we had sessions like swimming, gym, wood shop, etc. For two years they had a Model building session - of course I was under the impression that you had to finish the model within the hour alotted...


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

Grand Central Dept. Store. In the very back, opposite of the front door, was 2 aisles, both sides, of PS kits. Nothin' but. That's when I got hooked. I pleaded with my dad for a Allosaurus. I asked him about that time, he remembered the price was $2.25. "We can't afford it" he said in 1970, of the summer.
I also remember going into Skagg's Drug Store and seeing all the MS and MOTM kits on the two bottom shelves. 
AHHHH! the memories!

P-S2


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Teah, I had to beg Mom for the $2.50 for the Phantom Mustang when it came out. Were we that bad off? :freak:


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## Capt Kirk (Mar 4, 2006)

Remember when you could buy the glue yourself? Didn't have to have or Mom or Dad get it? The only time you sniffed it was as you were glueing something up!


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## Old_McDonald (Jul 5, 2002)

I can remember when stores actuall "had" glue. These days, I can't seem to find anything I want unless I order it.


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## Capt Kirk (Mar 4, 2006)

Most of the hobby shops around here carry it, but you have to be 21 to buy it. The last time I bought any they actually carded me for it and I'll be 62 next week! That was only a couple of years ago too.


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

In California, you can't buy spray paint either if you're under 18. It's a stupid law -- it certainly hasn't made a dent in the graffiti problem.

Where spray cans are outlawed, only outlaws have spray cans!


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Same thing with those spray cans of air you get at computer stores for keyboard cleaning. At least they noticed the gray in my beard and asked if I was over 18 with a wry smile.


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

I remember going downtown, on a public bus (whatelse), most of the time alone, from my quiet neighborhood, to a, in my opinion, a popular hobby shop. This started around the age of 10. I now have 5 kids, oldest 14, and I won't let them travel alone or ride public transportation without some sort of supervision! Over protection? or different times?

P-S2


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## Old_McDonald (Jul 5, 2002)

PRE-SCENES 2 said:


> I remember going downtown, on a public bus (whatelse), most of the time alone, from my quiet neighborhood, to a, in my opinion, a popular hobby shop. This started around the age of 10. I now have 5 kids, oldest 14, and I won't let them travel alone or ride public transportation without some sort of supervision! Over protection? or different times?
> 
> P-S2


Definitely different times. These days, with kids pushing dope on the streets, you just can't be too careful when unsupervised. In my day, our local theater had a Saturday afternoon film festival. I went to the movies and got the following every Saturday afternoon when my mother dropped me and my friends off.:

1) Cartoon - usually Tom and Jerry
2) Serial - Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers or an episode from the Radarmen from the moon type stuff.
3) Main movie - Usually a current B SciFi or Horror flick
4) Second movie - usually an older classic flick. These were movies like Abbot and Costello meet the xxxxxxx.

A great way to spend a Saturday afternoon on just about 4 dollars that also bought up the local junk food.

Yes, yes, yes, it's definitely different times these days. I have no kids..... I can't even imagine what they do besides go tot he mall these days.


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

Old_McDonald said:


> Definitely different times. These days, with kids pushing dope on the streets, you just can't be too careful when unsupervised. In my day, our local theater had a Saturday afternoon film festival. I went to the movies and got the following every Saturday afternoon when my mother dropped me and my friends off.:
> 
> 1) Cartoon - usually Tom and Jerry
> 2) Serial - Flash Gordon, Buck Rogers or an episode from the Radarmen from the moon type stuff.
> ...


Man you brought back another memory!!!! :dude: 
Saturday Matinees at the local theatre and 7-11 penny candy. WOW!
"The Lost Continent" with the Funky Scorpion and Giant Crab fighting and man-eating seaweed. But wait...that's for the Movies for Modelers forum!  

P-S2


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

For me, it was the Saturday kiddie matinee at the Encino Theatre (yes, _that_ Encino — the one mentioned in Moon Zappa's "Valley Girl.") A double feature, a cartoon, sometimes a short subject or two — all for 35 cents. Of course, the films weren't exactly first run — _The Treasure of Pancho Villa_ and _Beyond the Time Barrier_! _First Spaceship on Venus_ and _Journey to the Seventh Planet_!

BTW, growing up in the Valley wasn't even _partially_ bitchin’.


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## AFILMDUDE (Nov 27, 2000)

I miss the drive-ins. In the entire Los Angeles County we've only got one left that is still operating...


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

Whose bright idea was it to build a drive-in right next to a railroad track? How could anyone hear the sound with trains roaring by? Then again, judging by the young couple in the foreground, nobody was paying attention to the movie anyway.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

Ah, yes... the famous O. Winston Link nighttime photo of "A" class 1242, a Norfolk and Wesern designed 2-6-6-4 high speed articulated freight loco. The automobile in the forground was Link's car. Willie Allen and Dorothy Christian were in the car. The drive-in was the Iaeger Drive-in. The Train was the 77-78 "Time Freight" 

The photo was taken with a 4X5 camera with over 1000 flashbulbs and reflectors placed in the gully between the tracks and drive-in, and more, closer to illuminate the cars at the drive-in. Because the flash actually obscured the image on the screen, Link added one later. I Know...Too Much Info.....


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Y3a said:


> *brain droppings* .....


 :freak: !!!!!


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

Sorry! I can't help myself. I'm a member of the Norfolk & Western Historical Society, and a steam loco buff first and foremost - even over sci-fi! Even "Y3a" is a steam Loco designation for their 2-8-8-2 heavy articulated "mallet" type engines. By the way, you can't even get O. Winston Link's books anywhere except the Link Museum in Roanoke, VA.


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

Y3a said:


> Sorry! I can't help myself. I'm a member of the Norfolk & Western Historical Society, and a steam loco buff first and foremost - even over sci-fi!


"Loco" is definitely the right word!


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Y3a said:


> Sorry! I can't help myself. I'm a member of the Norfolk & Western Historical Society, and a steam loco buff first and foremost - even over sci-fi! Even "Y3a" is a steam Loco designation for their 2-8-8-2 heavy articulated "mallet" type engines. By the way, you can't even get O. Winston Link's books anywhere except the Link Museum in Roanoke, VA.


 Dude! I have an O-gauge one that my great-grandfather scratch built from plans in a locomotive design book (which I also still have). You can see it onthe shelf at the bottom right of this picture:
http://www.inpayne.com/models/shelves/shelf_scifi.jpg

And here in its long-gone native habitat, my late Uncle Wally's basement yards:


All these years I didn't even know what Y3a meant, much less that I _had _one!


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

YEPEROO!! Those are the outside pick-ups style of O scale popular in the early 1950's. Most of the "O" Scale equipment was made from simple kits that you detailed to heck out of. I see LOTS of Vanderbilt tenders so it was probably a western railroad he was modeling.

The ONLY Y3, Y3a class 2-8-8-2's were from the Norfolk and Western. LOTS of railroads had 2-6-6-2 and 2-8-8-2, and even a few 2-10-10-2 and 2-8-8-8-2 triplexes.


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

For the record, that railroad was built "from 1939 thru 1959" according to my Dad. It started out as a garden railroad, then was rebuilt indoors, then moved to another house years later. And you're looking at hand-laid brass track on scale ties with scale spikes, over real gravel :freak:.

Here's a shot of the original garden setup:









And here's the other side of the loop on the opposite side of the basement:









There were yards on one end of the room, an oval around the town on the other end, then detailed runs on both sides of the room to connect them. There was a working powered drawbridge at the doorway! Damn, i miss that setup!


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

Y3a said:


> Ah, yes... the famous O. Winston Link nighttime photo of "A" class 1242, a *Norfolk and Wesern * designed 2-6-6-4 high speed articulated freight loco.....I Know...Too Much Info.....


You forgot, there's _Norfolken Way Pal_! :lol:


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

I also miss having the Lionel 0-gauge setup in my fathers basement. Now they all sit in my shed waiting for the light of day or a probable place to be put!


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## scotpens (Sep 6, 2003)

PRE-SCENES 2 said:


> You forgot, there's _Norfolken Way Pal_! :lol:


Reminds me of the old one about the Italian train conductor: "No'fokka Virginia! No'fokka Virginia!"

Okay, I'll shut up before this thread gets shut down. . .


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## DocDann (Feb 19, 2006)

Dunna forget, natives call ir NOR FUKK


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Here's a better shot of great-grandpa's Mallet. I realize of course that I was mistaken, and it's a 2-6-6-2, not a 2-8-8-2. Oh well.










Red Mountain Central was the fictional name of his layout.


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## Y3a (Jan 18, 2001)

PRE-SCENES 2 said:


> I also miss having the Lionel 0-gauge setup in my fathers basement. Now they all sit in my shed waiting for the light of day or a probable place to be put!



GAWD man Get them out of the shed or they might rust!!.. Inside on the mantle is best!


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

Don't worry, they're fine. I checked them and the rust hasn't got any worse!  
Just kidding. 
No, they're store in a moist free environment plus I have silicone bags placed in there to absorb any moisture.

The one most important thing about doing models is the smell in the air of paint, glue, plastic, thinner, sawdust, vanilla...... :freak: The aroma keeps me home-ahhh! When I'm told to get some fresh air, I walk back into my hobby room!!! :jest: 

P-S2


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## lonfan (Feb 11, 2001)

A couple Years ago I tried to have the Mrs. Scan Two Pictures and post them here,My Father took these Pics of an Eight year old Lonfan in the shots I'm Slavating at the Front Window Glass of my neighborhood Hobby Shop "Bob's Hobby" in Rich. Va. circa 1975 (If only you could see the Belbottoms I'm sportin'! and PLAID noless!!!:freak: ) lol Anyhoo, we tried to post these cause the Best part of the Shot was in the Background (Window) The Shop kept all there Built Ups so there was (Aurora) T-Rex (Box) A Spidey, Which I watched Fall off his railing,Apparently the Sun beatin down on him just dried the glue out! lol Supes, Hulk,Kong With a Glow Head,A Factory Display of the Pre-Scenes Cave /With Cave Folks under Plastic Bubble,An AMT Spock,A HUNCHBACK NOT Bellringer! lol a Couple of Disney Haunted Kits (Play It Again Sam iirc I had that one) and a Guy Robbin' A Grave with a Zap Action Ghoul and Finally The Addar Apes and Monogram iirc Snoopy on his Doghouse Kit.Gosh I wonder what ever happened to all those Built Ups? Bob's has moved Twice but last time I talked to my dearest friend still in Va. he tells me Bob's Still has several different Aurora Knights In Armor Kits in long boxes but thin. Anyhoo Yes I remember when I bought an Aurora Flying Reptile and Tarpit (is Tar Pit one word?) Either way I got these a SEARS! lol

Now a about eight or nine years later (83/84) is when as I've told a Zillion times before here I found the little "Mom & Pop" (literly!) "Notion" Store in Yorktown Va. Right on the Beach,since people only went there for Sunscreen and Snacks I was able to find ALL the Aurora Glow Monsters! Several Addar Apes and Space 1999 Dune Buggy thing All for NO MORE THAN $1.25 EACH!!!! That was Amazing to me but I don't count that as a True Modeling Memory cause I feel like although an Amazing find, By this time I was already 16 and was aware of the already developing collectibilty of these Kits. So back to that Picture I mentioned, I now have that Photo Framed and Displayed on my wall next to a second Photo that my wife took in 1992. The First sez in a caption I placed underneath: "Just Starting My Collection Winter 1974" then the New one shows me working on a Ds9 Runabout Kit and sez' "Still Adding To My Collection,20 Years Later!" lol I love it oh btw my Favorite "Building Models Music" was/is stuck in my memory as "Goodbye Stranger" by Supertramp lol and a song that used to say : "People Out There Turnin' Music Into Gold"... Who did that one?

Lonfan/John
Thanks for the chance to relieve these great Memories


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## machine shop to (Dec 10, 2005)

I remember buying 1/48 scale Monogram airplane kits from Kresge's for around $2.75. Now the same ones are at Wal-Mart for around 8 or 9 bucks. 

But I still buy them!

tom


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## lisfan (Feb 15, 1999)

yamahog said:


> Had this, too: bush will give ya real one if you want to fall for his ruse in iraq but no personal body armor


had one of those too. Had this, too: bush will give ya real one if you want to fall for his ruse in iraq


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

> I remember buying 1/48 scale Monogram airplane kits from Kresge's for around $2.75. Now the same ones are at Wal-Mart for around 8 or 9 bucks.


Heck, I remember when the 1/48 Monogram aircraft kits retailed for $1.00, and HiWay Hobby sold them at 30% discount for $0.70! I could go into the store with $5 and walk out with half of WWII under my arm!


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

lisfan said:


> bush will give ya real one if you want to fall for his ruse in iraq


I thought this was a forum for modeling...not politics!


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## John P (Sep 1, 1999)

Some people can't help themselves.


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

A pre-1962 SILVER dollar bought you an Aurora T-Rex at Douglas Models back in '74-'75!
Wish I had it then!

P-S2


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## lisfan (Feb 15, 1999)

PRE-SCENES 2 said:


> I thought this was a forum for modeling...not politics!


 sorry


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## PRE-SCENES 2 (Aug 16, 2005)

All is good!


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## Brent Gair (Jun 26, 1999)

OOPS.. this post is in the wrong forum


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