strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)

Discussion in 'Vintage Vinyl' started by vintagevinyl, Sep 15, 2007.

  1. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)
    I found some more pics of one of these, but again, not sure if the fangs are slightly broken, or if that is just the way they were made - man do I wish YJA sellers would post better quality photos. @Mr. Humphreys Grace you can see that it is indeed the 'collapsing' type toy just as you described (I myself still have a wooden horse/donkey/unknown somewhere from childhood I think), as these pics show some action shots. Interestingly as well, this was just last week [ha, I just noticed it was even the same day as the one you posted, go figure], and look at the price difference!

    Guess someone might have got a steal with an immediate buy price maybe, or else the one above just had the right mix of people bidding against each other. This one does have a broken antenna, alas, but it's not the end of the world (to me) and you can see that it works at least. I do really like the toy, but you got to acknowledge there are a lot of small parts here that can get easily broken on it or the mechanism, so I can't say as I would spend quite as much (the 5k though, I would be happy with). Another thing I wonder is, how does the battle actually work, if both are collapsing? I guess you just keep putting them down and up and a different outcome each time? Or maybe you can slightly push one side up/in more than the other?

    * Oh, and according to the title on this one, it is indeed Aron. You can check out this page here and see that they made it with at least three different Maguma Taishi/Ambassador Magma villains.




     
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  2. Alebrije

    Alebrije Line of Credit

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    strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)
    Ultraman / Figure / Soft Vinyl / Retro ★ 21 cm
    I am not a specialist in Ultraman so I would appreciate your help on this, the only difference I see in this is that it does not have prints on the feet and the ears a little different.
    Something has the face that draws my attention
    Went for: 61,000 yen
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG] [​IMG] [​IMG]
     
  3. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    Yes, that guy is pretty special. It is the earliest Ultraman sculpt from Marusan (typically referred to as type 'A'). The face is noticeably different, he has sort of an 'old man' look it is sometimes said, but if you can't tell, a dead giveaway is the different style 'ears' of his mask, as you mentioned. This version has a type of cylinder, whereas later designs had squared off-shaped ears. I believe also looking at the colouring (both colour and application), as well as the eyes being yellow, that this was the second release, which Marusan put out as a paint-your-own kit. The earlier, i.e. very first version, had non-coloured eyes.

    Here is a pic from Mark Nagata's (he of Mr. Ultraman fame, if anyone is deserving of such an honour) blog that does a better job of showing the types than I could probably explain in words.

    [​IMG]

    So short answer is basically, yes, it is a pretty sought after early version of the figure. Even in the shape it is in, I am not surprised it went that high at all. I doubt many collectors, once they had one, would easily part with it, so you kind of have to rely on a rare one popping up on the market.
     
  4. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)
    And, since we are on the topic of OGs, here is another very early character. This is another one of those, 'wow, I can't believe how cheap this went auctions.' A nice Bullmark Gomess from Ultra Q. Okay, he has a bit of paint wear, but these early characters are easily some of the most popular of any of the lines, and overall I would say this is a nice one. I don't really know for sure, never having examined one in person, but this guy has the old style lined feet (which you can still see on the Marusan repros that Nostalgic Heroes did), and only carries the Tsuburaya trademark. As such, I don't know if he is from a 'transition' period, or just never had the Bullmark stamp; and I cannot see any between the legs or in other usual spots. I don't know where Marusan hid the original circle either, if there was one (I assume there was). Maybe someone else can chime with expertise on this guy. A good buy I think, regardless, so it's nice to see not all vintage is going bananas. And frankly, I just love this guy. A really lovely sculpt, it doesn't get much better than that original old face, and I am completely taken by that nice deep red on the blue vinyl.





     
  5. deafmetal

    deafmetal Comment King

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    strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)
    Steve, those are both excellent early Marusan figures, and I appreciate your insights on the pieces. I would love to own an original Ultraman some day. Who knows, maybe I will cross over to the Tsuburaya side? ;)

    This bagged Nessie really caught my eye, what a nice beauty product!

    [​IMG]

    Unfortunately, she sold for 31,500 JPY, and went way out of my funding range:
    [​IMG]

    The auction mentions "Mabuchi Motor", but does anybody have info about this lovely monster?
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
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  6. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    It is really funny how you sometimes see multiple unusual things pop up right after each other. This was one of those, the second packaged version i have seen in a week. You never know with this vintage toys. :) The 'motor' here is a reference to the fact that this is [also] a bath toy, and has a little submersible prop engine attached on his underside - you can just make it out as the red and white 'rocket' looking thing he appear to be straddling. I think, as a guess, that a good portion of the premium on him, other that simply being packaged, is that you are more assured anyways of getting one that is in working order, as well as one that hasn't suffered from any corrosion damage due to old batteries being left in (I am sure we can all remember this from one time in our lives). What is a bit odd to me is I have seen these packaged before but with the engine inside a paper box with the Mabuchi logo on it. Anyhow, these underwater motors where quite a popular feature on a lot of toys throughout the '70s, even some really great hero figures. Here is a shot of one on the underside of a Marusan Gamera, so you can see more what it looks like, and some pics of the classic Mabuchi enginer with its the internal battery compartment of one.

    [​IMG]



    They still make these today, but they are mostly confined to the model industry (e.g. ships and such).
     
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  7. XVivaHateX

    XVivaHateX Addicted

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    strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)
    Marusan usually put their logo on the instep of the foot (as far as I know). Here is my marusan Gomess. There may be a transitional period version that im now aware of.

    [​IMG]
     
  8. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    Ah, thank you so much Jonathan, that is exactly what I was looking for. A little googling did tell me that, as I had initially suspected, the usual Bullmark stamp is on the later versions (at least) of the Gomess. So, this could have either been an original Marusan, although it seems to bear the paint style more resembling the last Bullmark release, or some kind of transition figure (or possibly a third option I haven't considered? I am by no means an expert). The fact that it could be even earlier than makes me think this really was a steal, unless it is some kind of re-issue, though that doesn't seem the case. So why didn't this get more attention? Ah, many questions, let's just enjoy old toys.

     
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  9. Mr. Humphreys

    Mr. Humphreys Mini Boss

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    strange or rare yahoo auctions post here (after theyre over)
    Thank you @scobot and thank you @ultrakaiju ! Yes, Stevie, that was what I meant! I think "collapsing" toy is a better description than thumb toy. I suppose the arms just move by gravity and swing momentum then. It's a shame you can't control the punching movement.

    That ad is really neat Scott, thank you for sharing it! :D And thanks Stevie, for posting all of those photos! I would be nice to see all those collapsing toys with all the different characters, lined up in a row. I imagine the version in the auction I listed was expensive, as it looks to be still in decent condition, and both antennae are there (although the description hints that one of them was repaired). So many great auctions lately, and it's interesting to see we were all watching the same ones! Those Goji trikes were so cool! And that Nessie ended up way higher than I thought she'd go. Another MIB Nessie sold in Mandolin store for 18000 JPY!

    [​IMG]

    p.s. Thank you Stevie for the Aaron correction. WONDERFUL link too! :shock:
     
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  10. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    I don't doubt everyone has seen these by now, but the type of thing I just have to save for posterity. Not much I need to add really, I think the lot speaks for itself. But basically these are all early Marusans in very good condition, which by themselves would normally fetch a fair penny. Throw them all together in one go (or two, as the case may be) and it is sort of mind-staggering. Basically like someone went into a toy shop in the 60s, grabbed everything that they had on hand, and then kept them in one nice kaiju family. No idea where this secondhand shop came into these, I can well imagine them being donated absentmindedly but grandparents who didn't have children around to play with them anymore. Silly old toys, who would be interested in such things?






     
  11. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    Part the second. And another instant killer vintage collection. Really, it sort of boggles the mind. I wish I could hear the stories of these toys. I wonder if even the store knew what they had, other than that they were 'collectable'. HA,this is a comparative bargain at a mere 250k 円.








    Now if you will excuse me, I just need to take this all in. :o
     
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  12. Alebrije

    Alebrije Line of Credit

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    I was also following this auction Steve and for me this is the winning lot, it seems that the pieces were made a couple of weeks ago. I like your theory about grandparents, sounds good.:D
     
  13. deafmetal

    deafmetal Comment King

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    Sigh, those two Marusan lots are just outstanding. Many of the toys look to be in amazing condition. I also like the idea of the grandparents story, and I would hope that the original family that kept all these in such great shape received a nice payment for the group. I always wonder about that, especially for such a large amount of money. I really wish all these auctions came with stories!

    Personally (of course ;)), I am enamored with the Gojira, and it's an exquisite example of an early Marusan figure with banded silver spray across the knees, and heavy silver spray on the head/spine. Check out the photo from the rear -- you can see that there is no wear at all on the silver paint. Just incredible. I wish the figures had been listed individually... who knows, maybe they will all appear again that way? If so, I would do my best to pick that beauty up. Amazing look back in time overall though. It could almost be a photo from a long-lost Marusan toy catalog.
     
  14. Mr. Humphreys

    Mr. Humphreys Mini Boss

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    Amazing lots of toys! Yet another reminder to tell your loved one, not to donate your toys to Goodwill or the Salvation Army! :x Had to tell my sis-in-law to sell my toys here, if anything happens to me. She thinks my toys are "ugly things" :lol: So if I disappear from the radar for an extended time, you guys can scour the thrift stores here ;) (unless of course, she throws them in the dumpster--she really has a hard time believing that anyone would want my old "use" vintage toys, or the lovely butas :oops:)
     
  15. akum6n

    akum6n Vintage

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  16. Alebrije

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    @Mr. Humphreys So you wont have problems you can put me in your will and I promise to take good care of those tigers:D
     
  17. deafmetal

    deafmetal Comment King

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    @akum6n - Excellent, great to have more info about the Nessie figure. I will keep trying to bag one. :)

    I saw a Bullmark Neronga with nice color sprays went for big bucks:

    [​IMG]

    Is this a rare version or Hawaiian spray? I don't know much about this one:
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
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  18. akum6n

    akum6n Vintage

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    @deafmetal That looks to be the Enterprise "reissue" from the post-Bullmark era. Paint is in fantastic condition. Not easy to find regardless of condition.
     
  19. Mark K

    Mark K Addicted

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    Simply stunning toy. The seller also had the Enterprise version Gavora.
    The high price is for all that luscious gold spray especially on the chest.
    There is another Enterprise Neronga up for auction now that has most of the chest gold faded away.
    It is neat to compare to see how that gold spray fades.
     
  20. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    It's funny, as I mentioned just above, the timing on these figures can be so odd. That is the third one for sale now in a week, whereas usually they are moderately rare. As you mentioned though Mark, the gold and silver are so much better on this past sold version than the one up now. I think the auction one is being optimistic on the heels of that one. It is such a gorgeous figure with those rainbow colours though, would be a great addition to round out even most hardcore collections I think.

    @akum6n Of course! I should have figured you would have done a great write-up on one of these fellows in the past. Happy to see 'Nessie' getting some love. Funny you mentioned his liberal design; I humourously realised in describing this guy to someone, and his far more traditional dino-like appearance, how I was being critical in the depiction of a completely fabricated monster! Who am I to propose he looked like a plesiosaur? The fact that he has feet and back ridges, and bear almost no resemblance to the package silhouette, maybe this designer knew his secret all along! We can't find him because he is actually not in the loch at all, but hiding out in the surrounding hills and caves; or perhaps underneath the dungeons of Urquhart Castle.
     
  21. deafmetal

    deafmetal Comment King

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    Steve, is that in addition to the one listed at Mandarake for a cool 120K JPY? ;) Other than the crack on the back of the neck, this one looks almost perfect:

    [​IMG]
     
  22. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    Yep, that was the 'other one.' I didn't want to mention specifics, it stilling being a potential live sale and all, but simple fact is he has been there a bit now, and frankly, the number of people who are going to be ready to drop a quick 1200 bucks on a toy is - I am guessing - not all that high, so I would say it is pretty safe. As you said Mark, it is such a shame about that crack because the state of this one is really lovely. Paint on him is just gorgeous, excellent coverage and such beautiful colours. I actually much prefer this non-symmetrical style with the mix of blue/green and gold on his body, and greater red showing through; the first YJA one is just a bit too much for me, but it is purely a personal thing, everyone's got their own likes. A great toy, but given the state and price, I am not all that surprised it hasn't been immediately picked up.
     
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  23. deafmetal

    deafmetal Comment King

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    I'll just put this here..... :shock:
    [​IMG]
    wtf?
     
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  24. Michael Beverage

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    WTF is right....Insider joke of some kind or a computer error with extra zeros...Or the most crazy shill bidding of all time. I can't imagine there is a real buyer on the other end of this auction.

    That's preposterous.
     
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  25. ultrakaiju

    ultrakaiju Die-Cast Staff Member

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    Holy shiizzzzz!!!! What the heck happened there? I mean, I knew he was going to end high, but is that even real? I was watching that auction since he appeared, and he did start to climb towards the last day, but seeing that end price I honestly think there is some mistake. Anyone care to shed some light? The second question I have with these auctions, after the obvious one, is, if someone won this guy at 350 million yen, then who was the guy/gal that was the second highest bidder at 345 million (or whatever the increment is at that high level, I really have no idea)?
     

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