Re-discovering that half-rememberd toy from childhood

Discussion in 'Transformers Toy Discussion' started by stucksomewhere, Feb 29, 2016.

  1. Blot

    Blot The most disgusting of all Transformers.

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    As a kid, I liked all transforming robots. Tracking down the identity of TFs, Gobots, Rock Lords, Convertors, Moto Bots, etc. was relatively easy. But this guy took me forever.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    From what I gather, in Japan it was a Billbine from Tomy or an Aura Battler Dunbine and it was sold in the US (where I am and grew up) through the Sears catalog "under a generic name." I can't seem to find what it was named in the US or even a promotional picture of it or a picture of the US packaging.
     
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  2. Th0r4z1n3

    Th0r4z1n3 PlastiqueBoutique.com Veteran

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    OH WOW! I had that Dukes of Hazzard set as a kid, I totally forgot it even existed until I read your post. My grandma got it for me at a garage sale, I spen so much time playing with that thing it ain't funny... looks like I'll be asking Granny if I can go down in her basement & rummage through my old toys to see if it's still there next time I'm in town. :) 

    For me it was this guy

    [​IMG]

    I remembered getting him at a garage sale as a kid, and taking him in for show and tell in the second grade. I don't know what ever happened to mine, but when I started collecting as an adult I tried finding one for the longest time, but I didn't have a clue where to start other "blue robot space ship"... that wasn't very productive.

    Right before BotCon last year I took the family to VA Beach for a couple of days, and we stopped in this antique store that had a huge selection of vintage 80's toys, and *BOOM* there he was. Now that I know what it is, I see them on eBay all the time, but $8.00 was still a good deal even if it took me several years to find. :) 
     
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  3. EarthGBilly

    EarthGBilly Sucker for a GERWALK Mode

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    I had that guy! But, in black!

    [​IMG]

    I can't help you with a name, because I picked him up at a garage sale as a kid.

    I remember thinking, it must be a Transformer/Fake Transformer (long before I knew the term KO) of some kind, but it doesn't really transform into anything I recognize. Now I know why!
     
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  4. Blot

    Blot The most disgusting of all Transformers.

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    That one's nice! This inspired me to do some more digging and I found one on ebay in box! It looks like it was called a Transposer! Mystery solved!
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  5. WishfulThinking

    WishfulThinking The world has moved on...we've always said.

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    Hmmm. Never had any cases of mistaken identity or long lost toys because there was only a very brief moment in time when I wasn't collecting, primarily 1988 - 1992 (this is where my love for baseball cards took off, only to be curbed when the 1994 player strike cancelled the World Series).

    The only toys that held any mystery were my Godaikins. I figured out in the 90's that Dynaman was a Power Rangers toy, thanks to the trading cards he came with featuring the Dyna Rangers in costume. But I was at a loss over Daltanious and Vavilos.

    It'd be only few years ago that I used the 'net to understand their root animes and tv shows...which has breathed new life into my love for those toys. Unfortunately, I sold Dynaman and Daltanious. :( 

    Although, now that I think of it, there was always one toy that tempted me but the honest part of my brain said it wasn't worth the money for what you end up with. And that's this guy, Transistor Robot Tri-Fly. He was always there...at TG&Y, the mall toy store...hovering near the Transformers shelf was Tri-Fly. $15 that I just COULD NOT pull the trigger on knowing, once I had it, what a piece of junk it'd be anyway.
     
  6. bradam

    bradam Well-Known Member

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    When I was little I really wanted the dinobots but the only one I ever got was a new Slag and a garage sale broken Grimlock I repaired with Lego's. Lol

    As a stand in i had these easter egg sized "eggs", that transformed into dinosaurs but for the life of me I can't find them anywhere. There was a blue pterodactyl and a red apata-not-a-brontosaurs one and a green one I forget what it was.

    Anyone remember those? I would love to know what they were heh
     
  7. stucksomewhere

    stucksomewhere Well-Known Member

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    These guys?
    Dinosaur Puzzle Egg (X)
     
  8. Ramberk Magnus

    Ramberk Magnus Well-Known Member

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    Thank you for making this thread. I've been wanting to make one to ask for help remembering one of my old toys. Here's what I vaguely remember...

    It was a transforming toy that was egg shape, olive green and chrome colored. I think it transformed from robot to some egg shaped air vehicle. It might have had lanky, thin chrome arms. The year I got it must have been 84-88. That's all I remember and the details might be completely off. I hope someone can identify it. I've been wanting to remember for years what it was. I think it had diecast, maybe not.
     
  9. TacticalBacon

    TacticalBacon UT Gang Rise Up

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    I remember when I was waaaaay young (I'm still a teen, btw) I had a Black Optimus Prime and I loved him to bits. I lost him (being the toddler I was) but I eventually found out what he was, Destructicon Scourge. I think he was the only Decepticon toy I had at the time.
     
  10. Matt_M

    Matt_M Snarkabot

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    I loved the Ghostbusters toys of the day that were ghosts pretending to be normal humans and transformed back-and-forth. I assumed they were just Ghostbusters branded TFs...

    This fellow was a favorite:
    [​IMG]
     
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  11. bradam

    bradam Well-Known Member

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    wow yes! my memory was spot on the Pterodactyl but quite fuzzy on the others lol

    Shame it says
    "We are sorry but the manufacturer has discontinued this item and we can no longer buy it. If you are a manufacturer and currently produce this item, please let us know so we can add it back to our line."

    Now on to ebay heh
     
  12. brr-icy

    brr-icy MP Collector

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    Darkwing and Dreadwind were my reintroduction to long lost childhood toys. So glad I recollected G1, while the MPs are nice and all, I don't see a chance of ever having a complete collection, and I like the originals better.
     
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  13. LeonSteamhawk

    LeonSteamhawk Micromaster

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    Among some other mix-matched toys, I used to play with a little gray space shuttle Transformer. I really liked the figure for some reason even though he wasn't well articuated, and he was one of my toys I used the most in my "adventures". I never could understand why he had a random pole-thing that folded out of his back, I assumed maybe at some point part of him broke off or something. I never had any clue who he was, but that didn't matter to me and my crazy imagination. I made up a non-Transformers-based backstory for him and called him "Iron", probably taken from "Iron Man". My younger self kinda ripped off stuff I liked for my own stories. '^^ Eventually "Iron", along with a lot of my other old toys, was lost to time...

    Years later, I was going on a wiki-walk through the TF Wiki when I saw an image of a familiar-looking space shuttle, but in a different brown color scheme: a Decepticon named Blast Off. Several pages later, I found the identity of my lost shuttle was Movor, member of the Commandos and a part of Ruination! It was awesome to find out the origin of "Iron", discover the meaning of that random pole on his back (it connects him to the other Commandos when combined) and to find out he was a part of something greater, literally! I also even found out he apparently originally came with guns! (Primus knows where those ended up...) Movor is (at least from my experiences) a somewhat obscure character, but he holds a lot of nostalgia for me. I wish I knew where he ever ended up. :(  Maybe some day I'll find a new one online or something for a cheap price. :) 
     
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  14. Warpshard

    Warpshard Well-Known Member

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    One of the tiny train transformers I had turned out to be Micromaster Rapid Run from the Rail Racer Combiner from Universe. I found him recently, and he is so yellowed it's not even funny. He looks like he is partially made from Vanilla pudding, it's so bad.
     
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  15. Rubicon Prime

    Rubicon Prime Member

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    Hello fellow bot-fans!
    I had one of these when I was a kid, and I went on a quest to find out more about him.
    Thanks in large part to the research done by other users here, this is all I've found:

    User "Blot' is absolutely right on the name, they were called 'Transposers' and sold in the US through SEARS. Most people consider them to be bootleg versions of Aura Battler Bilbine or Aura Battler Dunbine, and they are often listed as 'Bilbine Knockoff' or 'Bilbine Bootleg'.

    The company who made them was Zima, sometimes referred to as Ozima, and the bots themselves say "Made in Macao".
    Based on the few photos of boxes I have seen there appears to be only 1 character mold in 2, possibly 3 color variations.

    'Bird Knight' and 'Black Knight' - I've attached a few photos I've found online and re-posted a few photos from earlier posts that seem to have broken links.

    Bird Knight appears to always be a red/burgundy with green wings and feet, but 'Black Knight' appears black with either green wings or blue wings in some photos I've seen.

    I'd be interested to know if any of you have any more information on this line, this company, the bots in this series, if there are any other characters or color variations, and if boxed examples can be found.

    images (1).jpg images.jpg

    0ecd8a5ab99f61ef3cd34cf8c39c5530.jpg 1.jpg 2.jpg 3.jpg 4.jpg 21296865_1748707805422448_9031521203566673920_n.jpg 21984647_1716842161659894_6256032608686178304_n.jpg 21984936_295743587578212_1649848791257317376_n (1).jpg 21984936_295743587578212_1649848791257317376_n.jpg 21985242_284132818757265_1366720703109267456_n.jpg P7206429.jpg s-l1600.jpg Vintage-1984-Dunbine-Transposer-Transformer-Zima-Ozima-Bandai-_57 (1).jpg Vintage-1984-Dunbine-Transposer-Transformer-Zima-Ozima-Bandai-_57 (2).jpg Vintage-1984-Dunbine-Transposer-Transformer-Zima-Ozima-Bandai-_57 (3).jpg Vintage-1984-Dunbine-Transposer-Transformer-Zima-Ozima-Bandai-_57.jpg Vintage-1984-Dunbine-Transposer-Transformer-Zima-Ozima-Bandai1.jpg Vintage-Zima-Aura-Battler-1984-Action-Figure-Transformer.jpg
     
    Last edited: Sep 18, 2019
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  16. DecepticusPrime

    DecepticusPrime "Essential" Personnel

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    I had him too! And one or 2 others as i recall.
     
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  17. Rubicon Prime

    Rubicon Prime Member

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    DecepticusPrime - if the others you had were different from what has already been posted, please try to find photos and upload them here :) 
     
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  18. Soundwavelover2004

    Soundwavelover2004 Well-Known Member

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    Last month whille we were box cleaning mom and and i and my brother found my old animated bumber ratchet
     
  19. Optimum Supreme

    Optimum Supreme Well-Known Member

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    I think I still have my KITT kit shoved in a drawer somewhere around here. Yeah it wasn't a toy, more the "blueprint specs". It was just a glossy paper pamphlet folded up and sent through the mail, not even in an envelope. Not in color, either. I think it might have been blue ink (making it look more like a blue print) but it was a single color on white paper.

    I haven't thought of that thing in decades.
     
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  20. Canbot

    Canbot Well-Known Member

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    Dude, I'm so glad you replied! I knew it must have existed somewhere, lol. If you do ever find it, and post some pics, I'd probably faint! Do you rememeber how you came upon getting it, did you see the commercial and send away for it?