Author: Topher

I've always enjoyed writing. I see this as an opportunity to share my love of movies, action figures, comics, music, and just about anything else. As much as I enjoy writing, I also enjoy interacting with other folks online. If any of my stories or articles spark an idea for discussion, let me know. I read every email and comment I get! So look around, make yourself at home, and above all, enjoy your visit to my virtual discussion page!

You Silly Goose

I got my first car in late 1983. I drove the hell out of it, and my dad finally sold it when I was in college (only after the transmission stopped permitting movement in reverse.) We had to push it out of parking lots. It wasn’t very dignified, but I was still under 20, so I wasn’t very dignified myself. So, doesn’t count, right?

Anyway, that first car fit me perfectly. It was a 1972 Jeep DJ-5B. That’s the official designation for a Post Office Jeep. It was one of the first Jeeps to have an inline 6-cylinder engine. It had the slide open doors, and was very ‘bare bones’ on features. And by that, I mean no AC or heat. It was painted primer gray. My dad helped me put in a radio with a couple speakers in the back. The stereo was an 8-Track, so I had to have one of those Kraco cassette adapters. Oh, and the speedometer didn’t work. So there was that.

Not my original, but online, it looks A LOT like it!

 

 

 

 

 

Cool, but it never did much for me.

Owning that vehicle sort of set my course as far as transportation preferences. Some guys are into muscle cars or big trucks. Some have classic vintage autos or sophisticated, luxury tastes. Others are motorcycle types. From age 16 forward, I was an SUV guy. I’ve certainly owned other cars, but I always gravitate back to the old go anywhere, do anything. 

Now THAT’S more like it!

I also love the Jeeper lifestyle. I’ve come to accept that Just Empty Every Pocket is a harsh reality. I give the ‘Jeep wave’ to the Wrangler drivers with whom I cross paths. I take it camping. I like bumpy, muddy trails. And I never wash it. It has dirt on it from 10 years ago. If it needs to be cleaner, Mother Nature takes care of that for me when it rains. And my dog loves it almost as much as I do. I installed an old baby gate to keep him in his own space.

There’s a (relatively new) Jeep activity that doesn’t really fit my lifestyle. The Jeep ‘ducking’ seems incongruous with my 210,000 mile dirt and rust monster. I can’t really put them on the dash without them falling out into the street (my doors are off.) So I decided to share them all. If you’re one of the fellow Jeepers, and you got one, it means I think your Jeep is cool. There’s a pretty good chance it’s shiny and clean. Great! If it happens to be more like mine, it means I’m showing respect for another rough around the edges, hard-core off-road.type. And if you found this article because you got one of my ducks, shoot me an email. It’s a Jeep thing. I’m sure you understand!

-Toph

Yo Ho Ho, and a bottle of glue

As you may know, I really like old toys. A lot of the models I build are either exact re-releases of 50+ year old kits, or new ones that are inspired by them.   Tamiya constantly creates fresh models (with much higher detail and more accurate scale), while simultaneously continuing to offer ones that were first tooled in 1974. And Aurora (who ceased operation decades ago), still sees re-releases of their classic favorites under new brands. The line-ups are also frequently augmented with new, but related subjects, sometimes referred to as ‘what if’ kits; ‘What if Aurora had continued their Universal Movie Monster series?’

I have several of these on my shelf, waiting patiently. And several others in various stages of near completion; two things that scale model builders are notorious for doing – collecting kits they hope to someday build, and starting new projects while others remain half-done. The saga continues. As an example, a little over a year ago I started a figure kit of Blackbeard (the pirate captain). He is currently marooned on just such an island.

I hate you, Toph.

But I found a deal on a model I clearly remember from the early 1970s. I never personally owned it, but a neighbor across the street had the whole series of them, and I always thought they were cool.

Like the gunfighters of the old west, pirates have a certain mystique.

To quote Bernard Williams,

“The average man will bristle if you say his father was dishonest,

but he will brag a little if he discovers that

his great-grandfather was a Pirate.”

The original 1972 Pirates of the Caribbean

MPC produced a series of models based on the Disney theme park ride Pirates of the Caribbean. The initial release was 5 kits in 1972, with 2 more added later, for a total of 7. Those originals can easily be found online, if you’re willing to dip into your treasure chest to the tune of over a hundred doubloons each, and that’s for one of the cheaper ones!

New, with minimal improvements

My Round2Models re-release (under the ‘Jolly Roger Series’ moniker) was just under $30.

I suspect the lower price-point is a result of the missing Disney branding. In fact, the actual kits have been renamed. “Freed in the Nick of Time” was the original title. My reissue is “Escape the Tentacles of Fate.” The scene is the same, but the name and box art are slightly different. I was really more interested in the contents than I was the box, so it’s a non-issue for me.

They all feature a simple rubber band mechanism to make the assembled pirate skeleton characters move. It’s a cheesy, cool gimmick that simulates the ride’s animatronic pirates, and sails the fine line between model kit and plastic toy – bringing out what I think is the best of both worlds. The kit is molded in glow in the dark plastic, giving the builder the option for unpainted glow finish, or a more colorful, ‘realistic’ look. (At least as realistic as animated ghost pirates can be.)

It is this dichotomy of realism and whimsy that I intend to exploit. I’m making the scene dank and gloomy, with a sense of mold and decay, while leaving the skeleton bones unpainted and glowing. A thin dark wash on the assembled and painted pirates should help define the textures, while allowing the eerie glow feature to come shining through.

A personal goal this year is completing projects. I’m already seeing some of that effort pay off in home repairs and landscaping jobs. In the very near future, I intend to have both the animated ghosts and the Blackbeard kit completed. Then perhaps, a grand reveal.

Shiver me timbers!

-Toph