P is for Plunder Post - 3. Friends Reunited

One of the best things about a show like Plastic Warrior is you get to catch-up with people you may not have seen for a year, or since the last major show elsewhere, and when they bring you stuff 'into-the-bargain' as it were; it only helps make the day.

I think I've told the tale of how Trevor Rudkin came to be saving odds and sods for me, but he still does, and has for the longest time and this year he turned-up with several bags I hadn't managed to sort when I did the plunder-post photo-shoot, but I have now and there was all sorts of goodness in there!

 

He also had a whole bag of FG Taylor farm accessories, two 25mm chariots, one (a two horsed articulated) complete, one (four horse, rigid) a bit knackered, but it may be savable if I ever get back to a bit of modelling. In addition there was a bag of post-Giant medievals including a bunch of very useful crossbowmen and a bag of slightly damaged R&L aircraft.

Barney Brown of Herald Toys and Models gave me the four Marx 'HO' Vikings, two damaged and two whole (including the all important archer!), I never say no to these - even if damaged - as being hard plastic; they are easily convertible, Barney also gave me the cake-decoration hunter. While a nice chap (Eric Critchley?) was sent to ask me about the other 3 items by Paul Morehead, and after I'd told him what I know; which wasn't much, he gave them to me!

 

The two types of Cracker Indian we have looked at on the blog (here and here - which is all I know - crackers!), while I've never seen the Marx'esque Indian before. It's hard 'kit' plastic or a very brittle polymer of some kind, has an HK-mark in a release-pin type circular depression which is very 'Marx' Hong Kong, is missing an arm and is about 15mm?

 

I wondered if it had come with one of the prehistoric kits but the Aurora ones had much larger figures, with sort of 30mm cave people (I have somewhere) in the big 'scene' kit, so if anyone knows who made this chap, how many there were in a set/kit, what poses etc . . . I'd be interested and a chap in the Midlands will be more so! Were they 'enemy' in one of the troll sets? Is he a mantelpiece statue from a larger figure kit? Land of the Giants? A Swansea attempt to go up against Airfix? Or just a HK knock-off from gum-balls?

This was all from one table, I don't know the chaps name but he was very reasonable, with these being variously from different bags and rummage trays, some duplication with existing items in the collection but all useful stuff, with another Gygax/D&D chinosaur 'chinamonster', some funnimals, 2nd type Lego trees, two soft polyethylene flat Indians, another Betterware national-costume girl and best of all two more of those gum-ball aliens we looked at - last year some time? And a pink rabbit - everyone should have a pink rabbit, he says; not for the first time!

 

I have a serious problem with the Lego trees (1st and 2nd type); I can't not buy them, whenever I see them, and have a whole forest of them split between here and the storage unit!

As well as the new Indians we saw in the show report I got a set of the lovely smugglers from Peter at Replicants, having missed them first time round, with the aim of showing them fully on TLAPD. It's incredible to think Peter does all these from a couple of sketches and a block of wax, in his back garden shed and produces them one at a time on a virtual antique - one shot, one cavity, hand operated injection-press.

I had the usual sweep of the floor at the end of the show and this year got a Sikh's head in white-metal (I know! At Plastic Warrior - what were they thinking of; the floor's the best place for it!, a Timpo set of medieval reins and what I suspect is a pole from a Britains Tee-pee? Rare like rocking-horse shit, they are! If it is; I'll lay it down like fine wine in the retirement fund!!! I Know - but it's a nice thought . . . it might buy me a burger in 2030-something and keep me Blogging for another day!

PS - Don't forget it's Sandown Park toy fair tomorrow - gonna'be a lovely day!