Main Menu Index Page About SWTNZ Links Creative Build a LightSaber The Vacuum-Saber DIY 12' Bandolier Inside the X-Wing Restoring Toys Creative Reviews Inside RC R2D2 Broken 12' R2D2 Prop Reviews The Hildebrandt's Collecting Vintage Collectibles Collecting & Pricing Toy Concepts Wampa Revealed Behind the Beast Behind the Vehicle Droids & Ewok From Steve to Star Death Star Play Sets Downloads Video Edits Rebel TieFighter Wallpapers Star Wars Browser R2M-Player Toy Company's Kenner Toltoys Palitoy Remco SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - ROTJ Chewbacca Bandolier Strap 1983 Kenner's Chewbacca Bandolier Strap was one of those items that never really caught on so well, developed back in 1983 under the "Return of the Jedi" logo the strap was meant to be used as a figure holder. Up to ten 3 3/4 inch figures can be pressed inside the strap divisions which were are held in place using a light black foam, the divisions are made of flexible plastic with nylon straps leading away from both ends. The packaging used for the strap is strong and great for display, this is probably one of its best attributes as a collectible. Above, Front & Back of Box, (Click To Enlarge) The strap also boasts two blue weapon containers that have their own special place alongside the divisions and each box bares a ROTJ sticker. As a collectible the Straps are fairly cheap and not a rarity, the one major draw back for this item is the foam that lines inside of each division.. Above, A loose strap with both blue storage containers. The foam used to line the divisions has a limited life span and most straps you will find today have lost or are losing their foam already, the reason for this is its basic degradation. As time goes by the foam reverts back to a very crumbly and often sticky mess and at this stage its time to consider the unthinkable. Above, An example of Foam deterioration.. If you find a strap with sticky crumbling foam it is recommended that you remove what's left of the foam all together and do this especially if you have one in its box. You can easily hook out the remaining foam using a small blunt knife and you probably wont want to use your fingers as it can stick to everything it touches including the furniture so best to pick out the foam over a sheet of paper. Once you have taken out as much as possible you can wash it in some warm soapy water if you need too, use a small scrubbing bush to loosen the worst area's and unclip the orange/red backing to get behind the divisions, you can undo the backing only so far because it is held on with two black rivets either end. Without the sticky foam you are less likely to ruin the inside of the packaging and the strap will be much better to handle, the foam could possible be replaced with a similar more modern foam but you would have to work around the old rivets. SWTNZ Toy Review - How to Identify, The Vintage 3 3/4 inch Vinyl Caped Jawa There are various ways of Identifying a true vinyl caped jawa from a fake weather it be loose or carded, the following was compiled by Gus Lopez and Chris Fawcett and re-formatted by myself for SWTNZ. When buying a loose vinyl caped jawa, check for the following: *The cape should match the color of the Jawa *The arm holes should be very tight. *The cape should be the same thickness as a Ben cape. *The cape should have a faint crosshatch pattern on the inside. When buying a carded vinyl caped jawa, check for the following: Above are three different bubbles that were used for the carded Jawa, but the bubble on the left is the correct and only bubble used for the vinyl cape Jawa. It is thin and flat and If you see any other bubble on a carded vinyl Jawa, it is fake. SWTNZ Toy Review - The Vintage R2-D2 AM Radio - Kenner Above, Production Model (Left) and Early Concepts, (Click To Enlarge) Very little information can be found in relation to Kenner's Vintage R2-D2 Am Radio, but there are some photographic evidence from their early test shots and conceptual designs. In the above images you can see the final production model on the left and on the right we have some different concept models and even a package design to match. The suggested prototype is actually better visually with more detail to the dome including some rather unusual dots and tear drop shapes alongside the eye. Above, An unfolded image of the concept packaging, (Click To Enlarge) SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - The Sonic Land-Speeder - Kenner 1978-1980 Kenner's Sonic Land-Speeder is controlled by sound, looking much like kenner's former vintage speeder but slightly larger, the toy bears a drive-wheel that can lock into four different positions. As the user clicks the R2D2 shaped controller the speeder can be made to change its direction from up to 16ft away, if the unit is moving forward a single click of the remote will send the vehicle into a right turn, a second click will change its motion backwards, a third click left and then forward again. The wheels are hidden away to help create the illusion of floating and it can seat standard 3 3/4 inch figures. The speeder originally cost around twice as much as the standard version with no common parts between them, It was available through J.C. Penney's Christmas catalogs of 1978 through to 1980, although the toy is prone to malfunction its still one of Kenner 's rarer toys. Click To Enlarge SWTNZ Toy Review - Vintage Plush Chewbacca & R2D2 - Plus New Mini-Plush Plush toys were first manufactured by Kenner back in 1979, the first two soft characters to be released was Chewbacca and Artoo, but It wasn't until Return of the Jedi in 1983 that new plush toys were released again with different kinds of Ewoks to collect, some were close to 14 inches in height and others 9 inch. Above, 20 inch Plush Chewbacca, complete with bandolier and 10 inch Plush R2D2. The vintage plush chewbacca is a fluffy but desirable collectible, its also quite difficult to find one in complete condition.. Grrrrr (Click To Enlarge) Above, Hasbro's Mini-Plush Buddies are perfect for kids 3 years and up, here are four of the more recent characters. R2D2, C3PO, Clone-Trooper and Yoda.. SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - Electronic Laser Battle Game - Kenner 1978 Click To Enlarge Kenner's Electronic Laser Battle Game featured 12 LED lights and eight sound effects, you can play the game solo with the computer or against another player. Whoever had the fastest reaction time was the winner, it was determined by the LED's and the Death Star at the center of the unit. The entire console is around 47cm in length and can be run via mains power or a 9v battery. SWTNZ Rare Item Review - The "Huffy" Ride-On Speeder Bike - 1983 Click To Enlarge In 1892 George P. Huffman was the owner of the Davis Sewing Machine Company, then in 1925 George oversaw the production of the first Davis sewing machine bicycle. After selling the company, Horace Huffman formed a manufacturing company which produced steel bicycle rims and with time the company grew to become "Huffy Bicycles". They produced everything from roadsters, racers, dragsters to radio bikes and medal winning Olympic bicycles. But the one model that grabbed the attention of many Star Wars fans was the "Return of the Jedi" Speeder Bike which was manufactured in 1983. You couldn't buy them as they were never a retail item, but if you were lucky enough you could have won this pedal bike by via the Jedi sweepstakes promotions, It is estimated that only about 300 of these were ever made. The bikes were produced by Huffy for Kenner and given away through department stores and movie theaters. SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - Duel At Death Star Racing Set - Fundimensions 1978 Click To Enlarge Here is a curious vintage racing game made by Fundimensions back in 1978, known as electric "Power Passers" they came with two cars, one was shaped like an X-Wing and the other like a Tie-Fighter. The two vehicles were raced just like a regular car set around an oval track, cardboard backdrops were placed about the track which were glorified with space battle images. The company Fundimensions was a division of CPG Products Corp, another subsidiary of General Mills Inc and this was the only Star Wars themed toy to be released by them. SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - Electronic Battle Command Game - Kenner 1979 Above, Boxed Battle Command & Instruction Booklet, (Click To Enlarge) Star Wars Electronic Battle Command Game, a hyperspace dogfight simulation that you can play by yourself or against three other players, the screen is a grid made up of LED's (Light Emitting Diodes) which shows the coordinates. You can zoom into a particular coordinate as you search for other player's ships, there are basic, intermediate and advanced levels each with their own teaching modes, all accompanied with simulated battle sounds as you play.. SWTNZ Rare Toy Review - Vintage, X-Wing ACES Target Game - Kenner Click To Enlarge The X-Wing Aces Target Game was an arcade-style unit modified from an earlier Kenner toy product called "Aerial Aces", using a video screen it interacted with a machine gun to simulate WW1 air combat. For the modification of the X-Wing Aces game the red outer casing of the earlier toy was substituted with a light gray color and a few Star Wars stickers were added to its outer casing. But the game was not marketed well and had poor sales, so consequently it has become a rare item for collectors to get their hands on.. SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - Play-Doh Action Set's Above, Kenner's Play-Doh Action Set, (Click To Enlarge) Since Play-Doh first hit the shelves in 1956 more than 2 billion cans have been sold, its no wonder that Kenner would incorporate this popular child hood item into their Star Wars toy range. Remember that smell when you opened a fresh can of doh?, the picture above is a vintage set comprised different molds and a plastic x-wing to sit the figures inside. The later French ESB release included a Snow-Speeder making it a little more appealing than the Kenner version which was again released with the x-wing. The figures can be made of various colors, eg by using blue for helmet, white for the head, black for the body and blue again for the shoes etc.. Above, ESB versions including a French Parker Release, (Click To Enlarge) About Parker Brothers Toys The brand "Parker Brothers" is familiar around the world, you would know them for at least several popular board games such as Monopoly, Risk and Clue. George Parker was born in 1867 in Salem Massachusetts, by his teen's he invented his first game called "Banking" and In 1883 decided to have it published. Encouraged by his brother Charles, he founded his own game publishing company at the very young age of 16, the "George S. Parker Company". By 1888, the business was doing so well that George convinced his brother Charles to join the company and so consequently "Parker Brothers" was born. Throughout the early 1900s Parker Brothers released a slew of board games, most of which combined education and fun, but they also produced popular card games and jigsaw puzzles. With the introduction of Monopoly in 1935, Parker Brothers had become the leaders of game development and at the age of eighty-six George Parker died in 1953, In his lifetime he invented more than one hundred games. Parker Brothers has since gone through several corporate changes, it was bought by General Mills in 1968 but quickly join Kenner Products in 1985 forming a new company called Kenner Parker Toys Inc. In 1987 Kenner Parker Toys was then acquired by the Tonka Corporation which in 1991 became another division of Hasbro, the parent company for Milton Bradley, Kenner, Tonka, and Playskool. SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - ROTJ Laser Rifle - Carry Case, Kenner 1984 Click To Enlarge Produced in 1984 this carry case is from the ROTJ range and is quite scarce, meaning to be a reproduction of the Laser Rifle as used by the rebels in "Return Of The Jedi", It has a pretend telescopic sight and a compartment to store accessories and secret messages. When opened the Laser Rifle becomes a carrying case for up to 19 action figures. Including a sheet of 66 stickers for labeling the compartments, the case is 25.5 inches in length. A very nice collectible, this was the last of its kind since the ROTJ range was manufactured.. SWTNZ Rare Toy Review - The Takara Wind-Up R2D2 - Canadian Release 1978 Click To Enlarge This Vintage and very rare Wind-up R2D2 was made in Japan by Takara in 1978, It began as a completely unlicensed item but was later licensed by Kenner for obvious reasons. George Lucas quickly discovered the item and liked it so much that he gave "loose" Wind-up R2D2's to many of his employee's. He later tried to convince Kenner into releasing them to the US but was unsuccessful. They were however released in Canada for a short period of time with a sticker on the back of the card near the bottom, Kenner had attached the sticker for licensing reasons. In Japan the Wind-up R2D2's were sold in small plastic bags and came to stores within displays of 30 units at a time, when kenner released the item to Canada they produced a card (Pictured above) for its packaging, carded Wind-Up R2-D2's are extremely rare and have been known to fetch close to $3000us... SWTNZ Vintage Collectable Review - Rare 3 Foot, "R2D2 Toy-Toter" - Kenner Click To Enlarge Now here is an idea that Kenner had back in the 70's and its one item that I think was extremely practical. The "R2D2 Toy-Toter" was basically a drum for holding or storing the kids toys. It measures 3 foot or about 100cm in height, R2's head was the lid and the body was of basic construction which led to the legs breaking off because of its flimsy design. These are sold often with repaired legs because of this reason, it came originally in a large packaging box but it is very rare to find it complete these days. You can store a large amount of toys inside the body and it has castors or small wheels so you can roll it about. Its a wonder later versions were never released, it would be good to see a remake of this unique item with maybe more details added.. R2D2's body shape is very versatile and has already been employed as a container for cookies, cups and bubble bath, there is really no end to what this characters shape could be used for. R2D2 Coolers, Click To Enlarge Above is a picture of modern R2D2 coolers, these are found selling on Ebay for quite a tidy sum, two of which here I know are promotional Pepsi coolers. These could be mistaken for some kind of new R2 Toy Box, they are a little larger though, standing at around 4 foot and with a removable head lid.. SWTNZ Rare Vintage Withdrawn Toys - The ESB 12 inch Darth Vader Click To Enlarge Most people wont remember or even realize that an ESB (Empire Strikes Back) version of the original 12inch vintage Darth Vader was produced way back in the early 80's. Because of poor sales the figure was withdrawn early from stores before anyone had even noticed. The only 12 inch figures that were seen in the ESB box were Boba Fett and Ig88, the 12" ESB Darth Vader was never released in the US, with only a few sold at retailers in Australia.. SWTNZ Vintage Toy FlashBack - Japanese Takara Inflatable X-Wing - 1970's Click To Enlarge Here is an interesting and rare toy that was issued in the 1970's by Takara Toys Japan, its the inflatable X-Wing which looks more like a blimp or giant dart which you threw with some accuracy through the air. SWTNZ Vintage Toy Review - Bop Bags - Kenner 1978 There are a number of vintage toys that went onto the market back in the late 70's that have an odd design appeal, for instance here we have the kenner inflatable Bop Bags. "Let your kids take their frustrations out on a life size inflatable Star Wars character", I could maybe understand some kids wanting to take a wack at Darth Vader but poor little R2D2 is one of the good guys.. The Vader inflatable measures 50 inches and the R2D2 36 inches, The advertising reads "Sock and Bop Artoo Detoo, he comes right back for more!", poor little fellow.. Star Wars Trader - New Zealand , © 2005-2008 Copyright SWTNZ Original photographs, graphics & text etc is the property of SWTNZ unless otherwise stated, "Star Wars" related media including images, video and characters etc are copyright to and owned by Lucasfilm Ltd. SWTNZ is neither sponsored or endorsed by Lucasfilm nor does it affiliate with any other division thereof. 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