There weren’t many yard sales this weekend, as the summer heat drains away the desire for people to drag out all there junk and sit around all day in the hot sun. We went out around 8:00 and were home by 10:30. I did manage to find a few collectible toys, but not too many. I got another King Kong and a Jurassic Park dinosaur, a cereal box Joker and another McDonald’s LEGO Batman, and one of the new(er) Battlecats.
I also found this large Megaman figure…
…and these two large Transformers. I have been seeing a lot of Transformers out there. I think parents buy these for their kids and then realize they are way too complicated and throw them in the yard sale box. I think the guy on the right is missing his head, but I’m not sure. Okay, Transformers fans (I’m talking to you, Jason!) what are the names of these two?
I love these three guys — Captain America, Wolverine and Spiderman figures that originally came in a large LEGO Duplo set. Figures like this are great to find because collectors might not want to buy the entire kit just for one figure.
After we decided the yard sales were a bust, we went to a semi-flea market that the Boy Scouts were holding. As soon as we entered the church parking lot, a bright beam of sunlight shone down on a table at the far corner. I left the kids half-buckled in to their car seats, while my wife called at my back, wondering where I was going. THIS is where I was going…
An original Matt Mason Space Crawler was sitting all alone on a table. We got to the flea market late, but no one had snatched this up, probably because no one knew what it was, but I knew exactly what it was — and I got it for a DOLLAR!
This Space Crawler was released in 1967 and is a great battery-operated toy from the Matt Mason toy line. The legs spin around, providing a bumpy ride for Major Matt Mason, and it also has a motorized winch. I already own one of these, but it is beat up and cracked, like most of them are, but this one is pristine. I popped in a couple of D-batteries and the motor actually works! Here’s a picture with my Matt Mason figure taking it out for a spin.
Check out this vintage commercial to see the Crawler in action, it’s so cool!
Needless to say, I was thrilled to find that Crawler. I was fearful of getting skunked this weekend, but that vintage vehicle saved the day. The yard sales were not so hot, but I did win some things at the Big Toy Auction and made another Craigslist score. Here’s a sneak peek.
So what cool things did you find this weekend? Show and tell time!
UGHGGGH Dude, how do you find such good stuff on Craiglist? I just find A. Nothing B. People wanting way more for their stuff than they could ever hope to get on eBay or anywhere else.
That GI Joe lot was filled with broken vehicles, but it had a nice complete headquarters, and 80+ figures, some with file cards, so in the end, it will be a pretty good buy.
I had one of those MAJOR MAT MASON Space Crawlers too. I traded a ton of stuff to my friend (who got it as a hand me down from his older brother). I left the batteries in it and you know what happens then. My folks trashed it after the acid leak (while I was at school…not cool mom). I picked up a few action figures from a used toy shop:
RGB SCREAMING EGON $1
THE SHADOW 50 cents
JLU JOHN STEWART 50 cents
4 STAR WARS figs
Oh no! I wonder how many toys have suffered the same battery acid fate? I know I’ve seen my share of corroded battery terminals.
It’s always nice to hear I’m not the only one looking for toys on the weekend! Thanks for sharing.
Those two transformers are from the Armada line from about 10 years back. The guy on the left is Tidal Wave, and is three boats that turn into a robot. The guy on the right is Overlord and is a poorly designed Transport thing that doesn’t really look like anything. Originally it was towed by a little Fire-Engine looking truck that would become its chest and head in robot mode.
Despite complaints about Tidal Wave’s color scheme, and Overlord just generally looking terrible, these are actually very desirable and well sought after pieces from that line, so they are a pretty good find. Overall, not a bad haul at all!
Thanks, Chris! I had a blast at your auction this weekend. Thanks again for putting on a first class event!
What other Joe stuff do you have? Anything for sale?
Frank- I actually just cleared out all my Joe stuff last week. I’m sifting through this new batch now and most of it will be for sale or trade. Are you looking for anything in particular? If I don’t have it now, I might come across it in the future and could let you know.
Hey Brian
I’m mostly looking for accessories and vehicle parts right now.
Great finds! I need to get me one of those Lego Batman someday in my travels. Now did these come in a large set or sold with smaller ones?
The large LEGO Batman figure like the one above came in McDonald’s happy meals. You could get the LEGO Batman minifigs in a lot of the Batman LEGO kits that were released a few years ago, but they’re hard to find nowadays without paying a bundle for them.
Ah thank you for the info on this. : )
How did I manage to miss this. LOVE the transformers and Megaman find. Makes me a little sad because my favorite Megaman toy is missing at this moment…
Well Van, if I ever get my act in gear, that Megaman will eventually go up in my new shop. I’ll get to it some day. Too much to do!
Great finds, better than the UK Car Boots!
Any way you’d sell the little joker figurine? My college roommate and I used to hide one exactly like It around the house, and it became an ongoing joke. I’d like to mail it to him to keep the joke going but lost the figurine. Shoot me an email.