JediJman's Month o' Vintage

[P-Siddy]

Awesome, Justin.  Those are some nice nabs!  Would definitely love a Gonk Droid in the vintage line-up.

[ZevZev]

My daughter was looking over my shoulder and said, "Dad, there's something wrong with the R5D4 card, he wasn't in Return of the Jedi." I then got to explain vintage to her.

I want a Gonk droid/mouse droid 2 pack or something.

Thanks Justin!

[JediJman]

My daughter was looking over my shoulder and said, "Dad, there's something wrong with the R5D4 card, he wasn't in Return of the Jedi." I then got to explain vintage to her.

I want a Gonk droid/mouse droid 2 pack or something.

Thanks Justin!

   Impressive that she knew that!

BONUS ROUND.  Here is figure #51: Anakin Skywalker in his mailer box! For those following along, you will recall that I initially bought 3 figures off Ebay before making this deal for 48 additional ROTJ figures.  Before they arrived, the seller informed me that he also found a Greedo and threw that in at no charge, so I actually consider this guy as my bonus figure.  While I already have an Anakin loose, it was pretty cool to open up a completed, sealed mail away figure from the old days.  The white mailer box included the rolled up toy catalog too.  I definitely had that feeling like I was a kid again opening this thing for the first time.  Not really sure how to display it though - what have others done with their Kenner bagged figures?  This is my first....

If you're good at math, you know that I have one figure left to show.  Tune in tomorrow for the new #1 collectible in my possession.

[JediJman]

To all good things must come an end.  Hard to believe 30 days have gone by already.  I have just one figure left to show you from the now infamous Ebay purchase.  Most of the Minnesota guys have already seen it, but this figure was the tipping point for me.  I never I thought I would own him and when I saw him on the list, I could hardly believe my eyes.  There are certainly rarer figures out there, but if I could only keep one vintage carded figure...well, this would be it.  Without further adieu, I bring you...





Boba Fett!!!

Easily my favorite figure when I was a kid and he still is today.  I have a mock-carded 21back to display with the rest of my bounty hunters, but this guy is the real deal.  Just a small bit of shelf wear, but otherwise the card and bubble are fantastic on this guy. His gun is still taped to the side and the price tag is nicely placed.  He's even part of the Target club, which is a perfect way to wrap up the list.  I suppose you could complain that the card is punched, but honestly if this had shown up on an unpunched card my head probably would have exploded. 

I hope you enjoyed the show.  Thanks to everyone that followed along.  Now to get rid of some duplicates...

[P-Siddy]

Wow! That's awesome, Justin.  I'm jealous of that Fett.  Congrats.  I'll have to drop by and see your collection when I'm in town next.

[JediJman]

Wow! That's awesome, Justin.  I'm jealous of that Fett.  Congrats.  I'll have to drop by and see your collection when I'm in town next.

Absolutely.  I'll bring the Fett along if nothing else.  I have yet to display the others, but immediately stuck him in the acrylic.

[JesseVader08]

Thanks for the ongoing show of figures the last month Justin, I gotta say I'm sad to see it end.  And congrats on Fett!

[JediJman]

Time to add in some new photos of recent vintage finds.  I'm going to kick it off with a pair of boxed AT-ATs.  I had been searching for a loose, complete one that still worked and was really struggling to find a good deal.  I love the box from this thing, so started looking at boxed options as well, but they're selling for around $200 in some cases even with missing parts or untested electronics.  I came across an auction with a BIN option for a guy selling not one, but two boxed AT-ATs from his childhood ().  Apparently he and his brother received these and didn't play with them much.  Both were complete and both still worked, so I bit on the BIN for $300 shipped with a plan for selling one of the two to recoup some of my spending. 

Of course, now that I have them, I kind of want to keep both.  The boxes have aged, but the AT-ATs look brand new.  One came with the survival gear pack (still sealed), and the other came with all the inserts, instructions, and even the sticker sheet!  I tested them both and they work great, so very pleased with this win.  My only complaint is that the seller used packing tape to seal the boxes for shipping, which means I had to tear some of the box printing to remove it, or just cut the tape.  At least it's clear tape, so doesn't diminish the look of the box too much for me.  Here are a few photos of both:

[P-Siddy]

Sweet score, Justin!

[Darby]

Very, very cool. A boxed AT-AT is high on my list.

[JediJman]

Thanks guys.  Pretty happy with those AT-ATs overall.  Now to see where I can squeeze them into the room! 

Next up are a few early items from the late 70's:

Sandcrawler: Missing the steps, elevator, and door, but it does include the RC and supposedly works.  I haven't tested it yet though.  Also came complete with authentic Tatooine sand apparently.   



A squad of Vintage X-Wings: Picked up all four from an Ebay seller who didn't get his reserve on these.  They are in fair condition and one is missing the cockpit window, but all 16 blasters were included.  All 4 of them light up, but none of the 4 make any sound.     I did find a site that shows how to dissassmble them and manually get the motor working, so I might give that a shot when I have some time.  One of the X-Wings also has loose wings and doesn't lock in attack position, so kind of a mixed bag on this lot.



Sears Exclusive Cantina Adventure Playset:  I love these old playsets and had been searching around for a complete one in nice condition with all of the pegs.  Prices are typically around $100 - I have seen a few go for less, but they were either incomplete, ripped, or taped together.  I want to display all of my loose figures together, but also stock my playsets and ships with extra vintage figures.  This lot was $200 shipped including the 4 original figures, so something of a no-brainer for me.  Would be even better to have the box or the figures in original baggies, but I was stoked to get Blue Snags, the other three aliens, and all the original weapons included at that price.  I was tempted to buy the playset at $100 alone, so if you figure $75 for the playset, $75 for Snags, $10 each for the other three aliens, and $20 shipped, this works out to a nice little deal.  That's collector's math for you - I think the original set was actually under $10.   

[Scockery]

Neat seeing the AT-AT humping it's cardboard interior packaging. Gotta wonder about kids who hardly played with them.  Maybe they were too old.

I disassembled a vintage X-Wing that's wings weren't locking into attack position. Turned out the ring around the R2 head was broken in the front, so I turned it around (it had to be unscrewed to do that). I didn't check the electronics. I still need a canopy for that one and a few others.

I had the Sandcrawler as a young kid and tore the damn door off and lost the steps, probably ruined the motor, too. Loved the thing, though. Much better than a cardstock backdrop, which I can't even remember even though the land of Jawas base and pod survived...ableit with broken foot peg and torn off hatch (what's with those fragile hinges?)

[JediJman]

Hit up the annual vintage toy show at the Minnesota State Fair Ground today.  I've never been there before, so it was definitely an eye opening experience for me.  A lot of dealers didn't have high ticket items priced, and every price was negotiable if you were friendly and bought a couple of items.  Don't ever go to a toy show or flea market and pay the sticker price is the lesson I learned today.

Here's a picture or what I came home with for just under $200.

Lot #1 - these were already well priced, but I got them all for $100 (initial individual prices below)
 - Blue TIE Fighter $15
 - TIE Interceptor  $35
 - Open Belly Taun Taun with wide-strap Saddle $10
 - ROTJ Carded Luke X-Wing $40
 - Large Hood Jawa & Blaster $10

Lot #2 - this group was a steal at $15.  I picked up the Attack Base for $10 and he actually offered to throw in his only other two Star Wars for $15 total
 - Imperial Attack Base $10
 - Droid Factory Parts $5 (Incomplete, but lots of pegs & a complete 3-leg R2!)
 - Die Cast Vader's TIE-Fighter $3

Lot #3 - Three Lego polybag sets for the kids (2 Lego Friends, 1 Lego Chima @$3 each).  I picked up a $7 Jawa and asked if she would sell it for $5 if I bought the legos.  Done deal.

Lot #4 - I went back to the first guy and nabbed a few more items for $60
 - Dagobah Playset complete except the foam.  I have a nice one, but needed the R2-Drum accessory and he wouldn't break up the set.  $30
 - Vader's TIE (Minty, working) $40
He offered me a $5 credit for the Die Cast Vader TIE, but I decided to keep it.  Not a bad haul.

[Phrubruh]

Now those are the kind of deals I like. Did you get the ice bridge for the Imperial Attack Base and the roof? It's funny how many Taun Tauns I have around here and I still don't have an open belly version. I'm going to have to keep my eye out for one.

[JediJman]

The ice bridge pieces were included - I was shocked to see that price.  Getting the droid parts with a minty 3-leg R2 for $5 was a nice grab too - I was thinking about paying way more for a few I've been watching on Evilbay.  You can find some cheap deals on open belly taun tauns if you're patient, but I don't recall having seen that wide belt saddle before.