The toys that made a difference to you...

[68PK21 440.6bbl]

Seems like '66 or '67, I had to have THIS one with the mountains ... But 55 years ago or so today, it wasn't to be. It was another set (can't remember the brand ..) that didn't have mountains.

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BTW ... $19.99 in 1966 money is about $190.00 in 2022 money. not really cheap. could be why i didn't get it.

I had this Sears set, I think I've posted it before, plus we had a bunch of other combined sets when several of us got together in the neighborhood. I ended with a whole bunch from trades/swaps/yard sales.
I got some money for the cars and kits but the haggling really wasn't worth it as many were modified for drag racing to do wheelies, bigger rear tires, rewound armatures, drilled and cut for cooling. Same with the comic books, Mom had put them in the Church Christmas Bazaar many times and had numbered/initialed the covers (small in corner) which freaked out the collectors but one collector that paid $450.00 for a first edition told me that the ink can be removed by a restorer, not only that the whole cover can be redone. The one he paid $450.00 for had a book/guide of $1,500.00 if it was grade A mint condition at the time.


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[68PK21 440.6bbl]

Welp after another day of wasting time scrolling through FaceBook Marketplace getting sidetracked from checking my auto & motorcycle for sale bookmarks, recently I've seen a ton of old trains & train track setups coming from kids selling off their dad's estate, some of the train setups are as 'come and just take it away' like the swip/swap leave it on the curb Yahoo forum of day's gone by.

I just seen this one, a decade or so later after my Aurora HO car days being the AFX version plus the warning "CAUTION: ELECTRIC TOY" that this one gotta be from almost the 90's.

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[Big_John]

I forgot these. Remember when?

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I just found this in the back of a closet. It's empty... Or I'd probably build something just for fun.

 

[68PK21 440.6bbl]

I got one for xmas in the 50's. Now THERE was a chemistry kit.
I remember spending all my time trying to make a bomb.
Now all kids have to do is go on the internet and they can make nuclear bombs, pressure cooker bombs, fertilizer bombs, suicide bomb vests........
Just a few key words in the search box.
Imagination, curiosity, and motivation has been totally 100% sucked out of our youth in the crucial learning years.

Heh ironic, I came across this in the endless FB scroll after reading all this thread and finishing up my bookmark updates, bring back memories Stan?

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[live4theking]

I forgot these. Remember when?

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I still have mine somewhere.

 

[68PK21 440.6bbl]

SnapOn Tools 1950s Garage Display, I can't vouch for the validity of this I was a wee lad in the 50's but I've never seen anything like this.

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[Vaanth]

There were many toys that I had (and still have some), enjoyed, and that made a difference for me.

Perhaps the most important influences came from these Radio Shack Science Fair Electronics Projects sets. I started in electronics at five years old. I got the 50 in 1 set at about nine years old and the 100 in 1 set later:

I began dabbling in chemistry at around six or seven and biology/zoology a little later. The influence of those electronics sets were followed up with these:

Mechanical technology started early on blended with the foregoing, and a fun execution of that was with the following kit which was handed down to me from an older cousin:

Although not a toy, and not my first foray into computers, this was my first computer of my own and aided in the crossover from electronics to computers. It has been followed by many...

My car work and hobby practically began at eight years old on our 1964 Valiant, and there have been all manner of automotive related toys. Real cars of my own came later, but scale models provided something of mine while I learned and worked on my parents' cars. The earliest that I still have is a 1971 'Cuda that I built in 1971. It was repainted a couple of times in the 70s, so it's not the smoothest of finishes:

But possibly the earliest inkling from a toy that made a difference for the car side of me was at five years old with my "Big Blue Car":

I didn't stick with the cigars though.

 

[3175375]

There were many toys that I had (and still have some), enjoyed, and that made a difference for me.

Perhaps the most important influences came from these Radio Shack Science Fair Electronics Projects sets. I started in electronics at five years old. I got the 50 in 1 set at about nine years old and the 100 in 1 set later:
View attachment 709430

I began dabbling in chemistry at around six or seven and biology/zoology a little later. The influence of those electronics sets were followed up with these:
View attachment 709431

Mechanical technology started early on blended with the foregoing, and a fun execution of that was with the following kit which was handed down to me from an older cousin:
View attachment 709432

Although not a toy, and not my first foray into computers, this was my first computer of my own and aided in the crossover from electronics to computers. It has been followed by many...
View attachment 709434

My car work and hobby practically began at eight years old on our 1964 Valiant, and there have been all manner of automotive related toys. Real cars of my own came later, but scale models provided something of mine while I learned and worked on my parents' cars. The earliest that I still have is a 1971 'Cuda that I built in 1971. It was repainted a couple of times in the 70s, so it's not the smoothest of finishes:
View attachment 709433

But possibly the earliest inkling from a toy that made a difference for the car side of me was at five years old with my "Big Blue Car":
View attachment 709435
I didn't stick with the cigars though.

I too worked on my motor skills early on. Here’s a picture of yours truly showing my Mom a Mercury capsule in late ‘64 or early ‘65.
Plastic models were the norm for me.
I made many and the aircraft were hung from my brother Doug’s and my shared bedroom.

Interesting that you brought up the Trash-80. My senior project for my bachelors degree in engineering was to hack the NEW-DOS operating system to address the high resolution black and white VGA display in a TRS-80 model IV.
I had worked at the time as an engineering intern for Vitro Corporation and the computer was used to provide NTDS satellite input data streams to the Tomahawk weapons system to provide erratic data to test the anomaly processing algorithms for jumbled data fields.
That project was tough but I learned a ton that helped me tremendously in dealing with software and software engineers. ;^)

 

[Vaanth]

I too worked on my motor skills early on. Here’s a picture of yours truly showing my Mom a Mercury capsule in late ‘64 or early ‘65.
Plastic models were the norm for me.
I made many and the aircraft were hung from my brother Doug’s and my shared bedroom.

Interesting that you brought up the Trash-80. My senior project for my bachelors degree in engineering was to hack the NEW-DOS operating system to address the high resolution black and white VGA display in a TRS-80 model IV.
I had worked at the time as an engineering intern for Vitro Corporation and the computer was used to provide NTDS satellite input data streams to the Tomahawk weapons system to provide erratic data to test the anomaly processing algorithms for jumbled data fields.
That project was tough but I learned a ton that helped me tremendously in dealing with software and software engineers. ;^)

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Cool! My first aspiration was to become an astronaut, but I soon shifted to being a scientist, which then evolved into becoming an engineer. I explored model rocketry in my teen years. I still have a few, even a couple of un-built kits that I plan to build one day...

My friend and I built one of these, but it crashed. I later got this to replace it, but have yet to put it together.

I put the ruler on the table for scale, but one of my cats jumped up here and shows the scale better.

 

[3175375]

Cool! My first aspiration was to become an astronaut, but I soon shifted to being a scientist, which then evolved into becoming an engineer. I explored model rocketry in my teen years. I still have a few, even a couple of un-built kits that I plan to build one day...

My friend and I built one of these, but it crashed. I later got this to replace it, but have yet to put it together.
View attachment 709441

I put the ruler on the table for scale, but one of my cats jumped up here and shows the scale better.

Built the Estes Phoenix missile model. It got caught in a high power line stand.
Later, I got to work on the real missile’s launch platform - The F-14 Tomcat’s weapons system. And more, during my 32+ year career with Hughes Aircraft Company / Raytheon…

 

[Big_John]

Since model cars were brought up....

I built a ton of them when I was a kid. I don't have any of them left except for a couple that were never built.

In 1968, my Dad bought the car I learned to drive in. 1968 Chrysler 300. That also brought my love for 300s. I bought a JoHann model kit and started but never finished. I still had the model kit and dug it out this winter. This was one of the last models I ever bought until much later in life.

I have the body in primer and have been puttering with the rest. I'd like to get this done before summer.

I have one other. I had just bought a year old '73 Barracuda and my Mom spotted a '74 model kit and picked it up for me. I was 20 years old and working full time so model kits weren't on my radar, but I so appreciated her buying this for me. I dug this one out too but haven't gotten into it. 1973 and 1974 Barracudas are virtually identical except for the rear bumper guards, so I'll build it like my '73 was. (Basin Street Blue!)

 

[Vaanth]

I like that 1974 'Cuda kit and I have one of the Jo-Han 300 customizing kits, yet to be assembled. I still build models on occasion, and plan to do more, but other things always take precedence. I have over 300 modes and kits. More still unassembled than assembled, but slowly working on it...

Here are some:

 

[3175375]

I like that 1974 'Cuda kit and I have one of the Jo-Han 300 customizing kits, yet to be assembled. I still build models on occasion, and plan to do more, but other things always take precedence. I have over 300 modes and kits. More still unassembled than assembled, but slowly working on it...

Here are some:
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Wow

I had the B-1 kit and gave it to my nephew. He’s now starting as a welder on the SpaceX Starship in a couple of weeks… seed germinated!

 

[Vaanth]

Wow

I had the B-1 kit and gave it to my nephew. He’s now starting as a welder on the SpaceX Starship in a couple of weeks… seed germinated!

Excellent! As you can see, this one still needs to be assembled. I have another assembled one, but it needs some repair.

I was at Rockwell International when they were building the B1-B and expanding its capabilities. I worked in the Missile Systems Division, but we co-worked with the aircraft division on a multiple bomb launcher that sat inside the B1, The launcher was for the GBU-15 guided bomb unit, which we made, mated with the Mark 84 2000 pound bomb.

 

[Big_John]

I like that 1974 'Cuda kit and I have one of the Jo-Han 300 customizing kits, yet to be assembled. I still build models on occasion, and plan to do more, but other things always take precedence. I have over 300 modes and kits. More still unassembled than assembled, but slowly working on it...

Here are some:
View attachment 709443
View attachment 709444
View attachment 709445
View attachment 709442

I spotted this '69 Barracuda in your pile of models. I started one about 35 years ago and just finished it last month after years of sitting on a shelf.

I also finished a '62 300H JoHan kit this winter. This was a later issued kit I found on eBay and got cheaper because the box wasn't in good shape. It didn't come in the flat box that my '68 is in.

 

[carguy300]

I had a model like the 62 300, was about 8 yrs old. Found it at an old soda fountain shop in elmira ny years ago. I sprayed mine yellow, black interior. I have no idea what happened to it, good memory though!

 

[Vaanth]

I spotted this '69 Barracuda in your pile of models. I started one about 35 years ago and just finished it last month after years of sitting on a shelf.

View attachment 709459

I also finished a '62 300H JoHan kit this winter. This was a later issued kit I found on eBay and got cheaper because the box wasn't in good shape. It didn't come in the flat box that my '68 is in.

Nice work. Cool 'recall' wheels on the 'Cuda. I like both, but lean toward the '62 300. My folks had a '62 300 non-letter car. It was a white two-door with a red interior and a 383 2-barrel. I wish they had kept it.