F is for Fleet Fell Flat!

Like Never Before!

This summer just past's hook for getting people up the High Street during the quiet month of August was very disappointing compared to previous years, and the reason seemed to be corporate laziness, relying on 'the Internet' to make the job easy?

Instead of a search for ten dinosaurs, ticking them off in your little guide-book/leaflet thing, as was the case in previous years, there were only three dinosaur models, some interactive crap, a post-box for a colouring competition (but no colouring sheets!) and a complete lack of interest in the task at hand, from Fleet BID, some retailer-funded marketing gimmick, like the old trade associations, or chamber's of commerce, but with money-grubbing Tory dogma written all over it!

You get the same problem everywhere now, we saw it here with the party covering the World's Apart - Horrible Histories figures a few years ago, young things, full of enthusiasm (and a still wet degree in marketing) on the phone, or in eMails, but with no knowledge or love of the product, losing interest and giving-up far too soon, because it’s not their product, it's not their problem and it's not their money . . .whack an invoice in, for services-rendered, and move on!

The annoyance was that everyone, including me, was still going to the council box-office to ask about the flyer, they said "We haven't got any this year, try the Library?", as it happens the library is next door, so off to them, they say "We've had loads of people asking, but we've been given no literature this year, and there's nothing on the website! But someone yesterday said there's something in the photographic shop?".

Then off to Kevin Wibbly (I think he's called, the only hint of 'community' I have - in this Stepford dormitory - is half-knowing the name of the owner of the photographic shop!) we go, where his assistant points out that yes, they do have an unhelpful flyer in the door-glass, but she knows nothing, and has been sending everyone who asks, up to the Library!

At this point, you can lose the will to live, but my life at the moment is the odd minutes of panic and a few hours of worry interspersed with a lot of spare-time, and this was that afternoon, where an answer would be found!

First thing to do was head on to the 'Glass Menagerie' as Mum's generation call it, our itty-bitty excuse for a mall, where there is usually one of the model dinosaurs/wild animals/nutcrackers situated, only to find that the station is unmanned, and there are no flyers, no colouring sheets and no model dinosaur, just an enlarged version of the window flyer!

So . . . off to the internet, ladies and gentlemen, off to get to the bottom of this phuqfest of ineptitude!

Opposite the Library, it was the Velociraptor which alerted me to the fact that this summers 'retail event' had started. It was a very good model, reflecting the very latest thinking on feathered dinosaurs, as is currently coming from the finds, out of the smooth sedimentary beds in the Gobi Desert.

Call Me Karen!

So, I found the Fleet BID Faceplant page, and the following exchange took place;

Me - So, I asked for the dinosaur map/leaflet at the Harlington Centre, they sent me to the Library, the Library had had dozens of enquiries but no promotional paperwork, then someone suggested Kevin Wibbly at the camera shop, his assistant has had to turn away six people today, and they got their poster late! Where are the dinosaurs, where is the map, where are the painting things, why do you need a QR-code reader (not everyone has a bloody i-phone) and what's going on? Get leaflets to the library! Get leaflets somewhere, anywhere, there are none with the picture post box in the shopping centre, nor is there a dinosaur? Get a grip . . . thank god it's gullible traders' money, not taxpayers!

Fleet Bid Spokesperson - There are four elements to this summer's activities which are all detailed on our website: [link] The colouring sheets can be downloaded from this webpage. The shopping centre have some and we will also be delivering some to cafes etc who have spare space to display them this afternoon.

There isn't a trail booklet as the Augmented Reality trail is QR-code based so does require a phone with the ability to scan a QR code. The ten locations are detailed on our website with a map and by scanning one of the locations this opens up the entire trail. The trail posters were delivered to businesses on 29th July.

There are 3 large selfie dinosaurs (at Pedal Heaven, by Sainsbury's and by [redacted to prevent publicity - tossers]) - again these are listed on the website. These were meant to have signs which explained the trail but unfortunately we only received the signs this morning.

There will be a dinosaur show on the weekend of 19th and 20th August with more details to be shared once we've finalised show timings.

Me - There were no colouring sheets in the precinct at 16:50 yesterday, but that aside, you have established a pattern over a half-dozen animal-dinosaur-nutcracker things, and now you've totally broken it in favour of the posh Miranda's of the Blue Triangle, at a time when money's tight for everyone, and you haven't kept the participating locations up to date . . . there are dozens of people, every day for at least a week, already, going to the Library, going to the Photo' shop wanting to know A) where are the ten dinosaurs (there are only three?), where are the maps (there isn't one?) and where are the colouring sheets?!! Not everyone has a printer, not everyone has a QR Code reader, you're supposed to be encouraging people to come to Fleet, not alienate them!

Fleet Bid Spokeperson - More colouring sheets are being dropped off this afternoon. We have chosen to do something different this year with four elements rather than just one. We have dinosaur shows happening on 19th and 20th August as well as the AR trail and 3 large dinosaurs for selfies. This information has been published and these locations have been kept up to date and published on our website since the end of July. All of this is available free of charge to people visiting Fleet. We are sorry if you feel that this is not what you would like to see, but we hope by doing more things that are free and incorporating the interactive AR element that families would enjoy something different and have more activity to keep people entertained over the summer holidays.

I can't remember if this was a 'Dippy' or a Bronty (I think it says Brontosuarus?), but it was a bit cartoony compared to the other two, and much smaller, in scale, maybe a baby! Also, I thought it was a bit pink and mammalian . . . Hippogriff!

Conclusion

Now, aside from the fact that I'm clearly turning into a grumpy-old-git in my dotage (a left-wing one, I hasten to add!), and allowing for the fact that my interaction did result in some quick updates to both the BID's and the Council's Faceplant pages, and hoping the colouring sheets were delivered (I wasn't after one!), I think you can see where the problems are, it's all-singing-all-dancing tech'y bollocks for people with the right kind of 'smart' 'phone, time to be where they need to be, at the times they need to be there, and therefore suffering under the twin burdens of spare leisure time and disposable wealth, i.e., the 'trophy wives' of the Blue Triangle and the larger town-houses of Elvetham!

The BID spokesperson sticking to the scrip and not really realising how they have broken a contract, established by repeat actions over several years, and somehow thinking that for five- or ten-year olds, three dinosaurs in plain site, is in some way equitable with ten you have to go search for, with a MAP!

Our civilisation is falling apart, through the thoughtlessness, selfishness and lack of imagination of the establishment, unquestioned and not countered by the complacency of the citizens. And it was clearly going-off half-cocked, with elements not in place, late, you have eight months to get ready and . . . ! Phuq!

 

By far the nicest of the three, ONLY three, was this rather fine Triceratops, with a metallic, rainbow-sheen on it, like oil on water!

 

All this saddens me, as how do you get people back to your retail hubs, when you water-down the very idea you have been establishing over the previous few years, to attract people? And no sign of a Christmas campaign yet?

 

And, good retailers of Fleet, if you are subscribing to BID, can I suggest that if you spend the money on Sainsbury's excellent generic four-packs of mince-pies instead, and offer one for every purchase over £5, you will probably have a better effect on your footfall, than BID's shenanigans is going to deliver in a month of Sundays!

 

I must check the Library for their seasonal toy exhibition, that can always be counted on! Underfunded, and mostly volunteer staffed, what would we do without them? And the Tories have closed 800+ in the last 14-years.

D is for Dino-Mag - 3 of 3

For those who don't like dinosaurs here, you will be pleased to learn that's it for these, but - no doubt - gutted to learn the next post will be on the same subject!

Another issue of Andy's Amazing Adventures (not!), with a decent head-count of dinosaur models, this time two bigger and four medium-sized, including metallic polymer being used for both the larger models. The Kerthunkersaur's are not the same species, but are similar sculpts.

 

While I've suggested some may have commercial origins, re. tooling, others may be copied from more commercial makes, like Scleich or Papo, I'm not familiar-enough with them to recognise them in the same way I might instantly recognise Airfix or Britains toy-soldier knock-offs, and they will be much reduced in size?

More paint and a new colour, also the first pterosaur with any realism, I had him on a piece of cotton, I've touched-up, out of the picture! As well as being painted, and one of the larger models so far seen by me, the sauropod is also articulated with moving limbs and head/neck for added play value.

 

This, also a larger model, came in a mixed lot from charity or one of the Blog's donators, however, the black-dot eye says 'probably from this magazine', and clearly I've missed more than I've found, but then I often see them in the Post Office and just think "No, you don't need them, wait for something interesting . . . ".

 

. . . which is why this was the most recent actual purchase of this mag', because paint-your-own, and PYO dinosaurs, specifically, have been another common thread here at Small Scale World, over the years.

 

This one not only had two nice models, but a couple of unusual PVA paints, in both the 'International Emergency' orange and the purple! In fact, the two greens and the muted mustard-yellow aren't the normal colours you'd expect with this sort of freebie . . . so keep your eye out for Andy's crap magazine with occasionally useful cover-premiums!

D is for Dino-Mag - 2 of 3

So continuing with Andy's Amazing Adventures magazine, and I call them magazines because they are not really comics, yet there is very little to their substance! When we were kids we had three types of periodical, straight-out comics, on newsprint, for various age groups, 'bigger boys' magazines like Look & Learn, World of Wonder or Tell Me Why and intermediate stuff, like panel-story fairy tales, or the Disney stuff which tended to be TV-related and aimed at those too-young for the other two types - they were the closest to these modern ones; with puzzle pages and such-like. There is, and always was, the Marvel/DC thing as well, but that's a whole fourth genre!

Now it's all these kinds of things, for all age groups until you gravitate to 2000AD or Judge Dredd, and whether it's this, or the Dr. Who Adventures we followed for a few years at the start of the blog (long gone now), or the stuff aimed at younger kids, it's ALL ephemeral crap, with little to reward beyond whatever IS taped to the cover.

 

Simple puzzles, a sheet of stickers in the middle, some colouring pages and an invitation to send artwork in, is the standard, with maybe an internet portal, all aimed at getting you to watch that programme or that channel, there is no adventure, and nothing amazing about any of the issues I've seen!

Of course, the freebies attached to the covers, need to wind you in, so occasionally, you get an extra-special one to keep you, or parent, buying, and this is a prime example, a substantial card volcano, on several sheets, plus three larger animal models, means this issue would have been sold at a loss, or as a 'loss-leader', to get new 'victims'! Ergo - if You are only buying occasionally, you can stay ahead of 'the man'!

 

This one also had three larger models, and while you may have clocked that the little black eye-dots is a trope with these (not all, but often), this was the first one I noticed with real paint, the spine of the Steggy' having a quick spray of red.

 

This is the same Spinosar as the orange one in the previous post, another thing you have to watch out for with these magazines, and I highlighted it with the Dr Who one a decade ago, is repetitions and duplication, again, by grazing occasionally, you can avoid the worst of that, while building a decent sample.

 

This one just had a decent model-count with three larger and five smaller animals, and another touch of paint . . . the same red! The five smallies look familiar, and will, I suspect, be from standard mini 'toob' dinosaur toys, normally found in more realistic two or three-colour finishes?

 

And this one had twelve minis, six animal models and six to be recruited into a Games Workshop skeleton army! Again, I'm sure all these have had commercial issues elsewhere?

 

The two stegosauruses, though, are from completely different subspecies! But the other five aren't that bad, as matches, with both Dippy's having the head-bump, and the Triceratops horns' being similar.

And, I'm only buying the odd set, as samples, if you are a dinosaur fan, irrespective of the poor contents, or the occasional piece of duff, plastic crap, alongside your dinosaur models, after a year or two, you will have a large tub of many dino's, as most months have at least one, usually multiples.

D is for Dino-Mag - 1 of 3

Another trio of posts! I could have done it as a two I guess, but I had a lot to go on before I did all the collages, and they broke-down easier as three! I've followed this mag pretty casually, only buying it when I feel flush or there is something particularly interesting/worthwhile on the cover, and these posts are what's come-in over the last four years or so.

 

I can't remember if we've done this Mag already, some may be a bot older, but I wasn't paying much attention to the dates, just got on with the images, but they are in the order I took them which should be vaguely chronological!

So this was the first one I noticed (if we haven't had them before), and it wasn't until I got it home that I realised the larger model had a stunted tail! But the fact that the two 'baby' T-Rex's are different sculpts sort of made up for it, and the large one either went to recycling or charity?

 

Another one with half-crap contents, but that's the shtick, isn't it? For the kids or parents of kids who want to follow these mags, most of which are quite short-lived; to get the good ones, you have to pay for enough poor ones to make the thing profitable over its run.

 

I just liked that you got an adult and a baby, even if it is that poor-man's Dimetrodon; a Spinosaur . . . which  - speaking of Dimetrodons - I learnt the other day weren't dinosaurs, but the precursor of dinosaurs, which themselves, probably went on to be mammals or something . . . which might be why the better-modelled ones tend to have that dog-like countenance, they are distant kin?

This one was a bit daft and I thought it might amuse one day (this day!), as it's a capsule toy in which the contents of the - open - capsule are clearly visible! Although all these are in bright, unrealistic colours and look a lot like erasers, they are all modern, environmentally-clean[er], stable (as far as we know, only time will tell) PVC-substitute, polymers.

Note also, it's not the same magazine, this is Cbeebies, the little kiddies BBC mag, I mean they are both BBC mag's, but this title is aimed at a lower-aged demographic, and had dinosaurs as a coincidence, not a regular occurrence, although the eponymous 'Andy' of the other title is there.

 

Another one where the main-item went straight to charity or recycling, pretty sure it was charity, as I thought it was a fun novelty some kid would like to muck-about with on a tedious shopping trip! And with two larger dinosaurs, I was building a more varied sample of the Mag's output . . . more in an hour!

D is for Dinorasers - 3 of 3

The third part of this quick round-up/catch-up, is basically a comparison of older and newer sets, but the newer sets have a couple of extra tricks up their sleeves!

We start with a set which is basically a China-marked green set of the old Diener-rasers (geddit!) or the Total premiums from the 1970's, with a cheaper sub-piracy in blue (with a key-ring/charm loop), in the middle, which have come in recently, and that's it for a minute!

 

I also bought this bulk lot on a clearance price, and they are imported by an old favourite, David Halsall (now HTI). Each pack has one flat/block silhouette dinosaur and one semi-realistic erasersaur, except the pack which has two multicoloured extrusion 'slices' - bottom right.

One of which must be near the end of the run and is totally unrecognisable as an anything, leave-alone a dinosaur! Obviously the streams of different-coloured polymer have shoved each-other out of true? The other though, is a quite clear Triceratops.

The fully round ones are also harking back to the early sets from my own childhood, but again have charm-loop/key-ring holes, which - in this material - wouldn't stand up to a day's wear & tear? There are also subtle differences between the older and newer (these will be no earlier than the mid-1980's) versions.

 

This was the sample just as it went to storage in March '22, and includes all past posted stuff and everything in these three and the Iwako post, but not the stuff in last Thursday's post, which is the most recent stuff to come in.

 

And you can judge for yourself how size differs between the sets, erasers have a small-hand rule and don't vary much (beyond that huge blue lump, in the centre, from Flying Tiger, I think?). But there were those sets of little micro-mini's which were everywhere a few years ago!

D is for Dinorasers - 2 of 3

The second part, which is really of two pairs, or a T is for Four! Looking at the full sculpt/more realistic ones first, as a carry-over from part one, then a pair of 'flats' although 'slabs' is a better description!

Loving these anonymous types; two obvious dinosaurs and two, clearly Kaiju monsters! These are large for Erasersaurs, about the same size as the Strawberry ones, but I'll sort the sizes out in the final part.

 

While after the Taiwanese set in the last post, we are off to South Korea to find the Popcorn Fancy factory these left, however long-ago! They have a lot of surface detailing, but it's a bit odd, and was either early CAD-CAM machining, or the masters were 3D-printed when that tech' was, itself, still new, as the texture consists of lots of little rod-like structures, arranged in what appear to be similar to Fibonacci 'spreads'?

Flats, in that they are flat! Waterslide transfers applied to shaped cartouches? Blobs? Clouds! Barely figural, but look below, at least these are trimmed to a vaguely figural-shape! And we've got a couple of mammals, but as the oldest sets of Dinorasers have Woolly Mammoths in their line-up - that's practically tradition!

 

And yeah! These are just blocks with dinosaurs on them, but once you have established a 'side collection', completist'ism clicks-in, and any dinosaur eraser is a good eraser. It's the same with robots and spacemen, where 'flats' and blocks now feature!

D is for Dinorasers - 1 of 3

Clearing an old folder which was going to be one overview, but in the end it sort of made sense to break it up into three parts, so that's what I've done, and this is the first of those parts!

 

These are imported by Strawberry Design & Marketing, I don't know if they are the same as the more commonly encountered Strawberry Group (Saffron Walden, CB postcode), but CO9 is a Colchester postcode, so the suspicion is the same firm moved to larger (or smaller) premises?

 

These are quite large and well detailed for Erasersaus, so they may have been moulded from tools usually used for actual carpet-play dinosaur models? And - as far as I could tell - there were only the four sculpts, in all four colours.

Modern'ish erasers, which I think we've seen before in other branding's (the Asda and Paperchase set), here is the Chinese (?) parent - Shangxin? And new colours, arguably more realistic, the red one excepted!

These are older, and more mono-horned dino's, who would normally have pairs!  A little smaller that the previous set, and simpler, but still some nice surface detailing, no brand but claimed for Taiwan, which is less usual?

 

Very simple and taken from the 'rubber jiggler' set I've sung the nostalgia-praise of here, in the past, as my favourite childhood set, I think this was an eBay shot from years ago, and looking at it, they may be the smudgy silicon-rubber which makes for crap erasers!

These are credited to Rex London who we've previously seen here importing unpowered (or hand-powered!) gliders, so a consistent novelty importer then! Smaller than all the above, but really nice sculpts. More to come!

R is for Rubbed Out

I know, but I'm in a hurry and they did all go extinct! Back to the Iwako 'Dinorasers' or Erasersaurs, and I did manage to get one of the new 2020-launch sets back in 2021, so as a bit of a box-tick, here they are, and the backing cloth really seems to be that colour, I can't remember what it was, but the erasers are all relatively colour-true!

 

Packaging

 

Parts count

Assemblies;

Spinosaurus (poor man's Dimetrodon!), Sauropod and a Kerthunkasaurus!

 

I think this means I have all the known Iwako dinosaurs now, but not knowing if the Dimetrodon I found, or these above, will have other colourways, while knowing I still have two colour variations of the Paralophosaurs to find, means the search goes on!

I is for Iwako - Toy Fair 2020

Yeap! 2020, because, despite TJF's protestations about "Timely Manner" 's, most of what I shoot at the toy fairs is non-toy soldier, or non-time sensitive, or both, and is as much for my own records as anything else! Particularly with a novelty item like Iwako, who regularly get pirated by Chines producers, so it's as useful to have the record of the right colour-ways to help filter out copies, as anything else!

 

And I did post the new dinosaurs at the time, so this is a sort of bonus post! But to presage the next post, here's what I shot a few weeks before Covid started to visibly undermine capitalism and our trust in capitalists, if we had any?!

 

The main display; showing how this stuff is never actually rare, a row of modern injection-moulding machines will churn that lot out in ten minutes, and they can run for days, weeks or months - if you want, so people getting excited about late-production Starlux or Britains Deetail is just not something I can really get my head round!

Wacky/non-realistic colours were the thing that year!

Larger Paperchase stores had these point-of-sale displays before their recent bankruptcy. Smller stores may have had one of the others above?

That's it, just a bunch of images I took as much for my own amusement as anything else, and with some 45 folders still in Picasa from the 2019, '20 & '22 seasons, and '23's not even sorted/broken-down yet, I'll be bleeding the stuff onto here and the A-Z Blogs for years to come!