Archives: Action Figures

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Empire Strikes Black.

Empire Strikes Black. (Vintage TIE Fighter Pilots, Vintage Darth Vader, Vintage Darth Vader TIE Fighter)

Empire Strikes Black.
(Vintage TIE Fighter Pilots, Vintage Darth Vader, Vintage Darth Vader TIE Fighter)

Buying Notes on Vintage Darth Vader

Check out the current vintage Darth Vader listings here.

A nice vintage Darth Vader action figure is pretty much the alpha and omega of any collection. This is true for the beginner and advanced collector alike. A classic toy reaching back to 1978, the vintage Darth Vader has spun countless revisions and imitations but really has never been improved upon.

So I can’t blame you for thinking about picking one up. But because this item is so popular, it can be rough seas acquiring a good (and authentic) example for a reasonable price. Let’s go over some of the main points to consider before pulling the trigger on a vintage Darth Vader.

Once you’re on board at eBay the first thing you’ll notice is that the key words “Darth Vader” are used and abused ad nauseum to get your attention to buy other stuff. Don’t be discouraged and whatever you do don’t be distracted or tricked into buying something else. Your eyes will quickly learn to ignore all of the nonsense and aim strictly for the vintage gold. The links I’ve provided already do it to some extent, but you may also want to play around with the search engine’s advanced function on eBay to filter out the unhelpful stuff. Be especially aware of the new Hasbro toys labelled as “Vintage Collection”, “Original Trilogy”, etc. Their packaging is cleverly retro and aims to steer the newcomer off course.

Important to keep in mind with the vintage Darth Vader is that you’ve got two accessories to contend with: the vinyl cape and the light saber. Both were easily lost and/or damaged by their original owners so it’s common to see reproductions in the marketplace being passed off as original. There are excellent resources to read through at the Imperial Gunnery forum that will help you avoid pitfalls. Read them carefully. Go here for the light saber and here for the cape. This is also a good time to correlate a seller’s claims of authenticity with their feedback score. Have they sold a ton of toys? Do they score 100% with their buyers? If not, you can think twice about believing their claims. Don’t forget to double check the photos closely. Does the cape look torn anywhere? Do the arm-holes look distressed or sharp? How about that saber tip. Does it look straight and strong or does it like a toddler might have chomped on it for a snack once or twice?

As much as any other vintage figure, Darth Vader was a character that saw heavy play at the hands of us grubby kids in the 70s and 80s. If it’s not mentioned in the auction be sure to ask the seller in a message if the figure’s limbs and head are loose or stiff. Let the loose limbed Vaders go to the diorama builders. You want the guy that’s as close to package fresh as possible. The vintage Darth Vader had very little paint applied by Kenner so not much to worry about there. And chances are if you’re buying a figure with loose limbs there won’t be paint loss.

Feel free to add any thoughts in the comments and drop me a line if you run into any trouble!

Check out the current Darth Vader listings here.

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Trouble Bound.

Trouble Bound. (Vintage R2-D2, Vintage EV-9D9, Vintage C-3PO)

Trouble Bound. (Vintage R2-D2, Vintage EV-9D9, Vintage C-3PO)

Hard to imagine, but this photo represents the first proper portrait I’ve taken of the vintage R2-D2 and C-3PO action figures together. With chrome paint these two can be particularly hard to light. Worth the effort though as the results are spectacular when the stars finally do align.

Attention sports fans! If you want to dig deeper into the story of ‘Star Wars Action Figures Doing What They Do Best’, an interview has been published at the excellent Galactic Awesome blog. That blog has a terrific companion as well.

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Two Years!

Rather Childish / Two Years Retrospective Poster

Rather Childish / Two Years Retrospective Poster

What better way to celebrate my first two years of obsessively lighting and photographing vintage Star Wars action figures than a greatest hits poster!

Need a print? Snap it up here.

Profound thanks to everyone that’s helped smooth the road: my wife, my daughter, my friends on tumblr (notably darthambiguous, samuraifrog, retrostarwars, geeklitist, and dbsw), my friends at Rebel Scum, and my friends at The Imperial Gunnery.

Thanks to Mike D as well for encouraging me to get printed works out there.

Enjoy! And here’s to the next two years…

-Pete

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This Way Out Redux.

This Way Out Redux. (Vintage Luke Skywalker Stormtrooper Disguise, Vintage Han Solo, Vintage Chewbacca, Vintage Millennium Falcon)

This Way Out Redux.
(Vintage Luke Skywalker Stormtrooper Disguise, Vintage Han Solo, Vintage Chewbacca,
Vintage Millennium Falcon)

This is a much-stewed-over rethink of a recent underachiever. Happy to finally have it off my chest and onto yours. Enjoy!

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Unleashing Hell on Hoth.

Unleashing Hell on Hoth. (Vintage AT-AT Commander, Vintage AT-AT Driver, Vintage AT-AT, Vintage AT-ST)

Unleashing Hell on Hoth.
(Vintage AT-AT Commander, Vintage AT-AT Driver, Vintage AT-AT, Vintage AT-ST)

About 4 weeks ago I bought a vintage AT-AT walker off of a local seller who was indeed the original owner of the item. It was a little beat up and in desperate need of a cleaning, but the price was right and the seller actually met me at a location equidistant from our respective houses.

Now it’s one thing to buy vintage toys off of eBay. 99 times out of 100 you’re not dealing with 1st generation ownership. But it’s always an odd thing to relieve an original owner of their childhood toys.

In this situation I’ll occasionally interact with the seller and try to find out why they’re parting with such a wonderful part of their childhood — especially considering that they’ve been holding on to it for 30 years. Other times I don’t want to ask questions for fear that they’ll change their mind about the sale. When I do bother to ask, the responses are typically either the ‘need to raise money’ variety or the ‘just no longer interested’ variety. Either way is sad to me. I just have the feeling they’ll regret the decision down the road.

Anyway, that’s my story. That giant AT-AT now has a loving new home and makes his debut on these pages today. See above.

Have a story about buying or selling childhood toys that have only had one owner for decades? Share it in the comments.

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This is Weequay.

This is Weequay. (Vintage Gamorrean Guards, Vintage Weequay, Vintage Jabba the Hutt)

This is Weequay. (Vintage Gamorrean Guards, Vintage Weequay, Vintage Jabba the Hutt)

It’s Weequay’s world. We only live in it. You got that?

j j j
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Via Beast.

Via Beast. (Vintage Stormtroopers, Vintage Dewbacks)

Via Beast. (Vintage Stormtroopers, Vintage Dewbacks)

Buying Notes on the Vintage Stormtrooper

Check out the current vintage Stormtrooper listings here.

The vintage Stormtrooper is among the most iconic of the vintage Kenner figures. The good news is they’re plentiful and you can pull a gorgeous, like-new one off the auction table for not much dough. Certainly no more than $15 delivered. But you’ve got to be a bit careful as you go.

First it’s common to see reproduction accessories. The vintage Stormie came with a beautiful little imperial blaster that helped him shoot up jawas and rebels alike. But small and fun often equals small and lost. Enter the repro accessory makers and with them a lot of confusion on how to keep things straight. How to tell? Thanks to the good guys over at Imperial Gunnery, this is a nut easily cracked. Check out their awesome guide first before you buy something your unsure of.

Second, take a good look at the photos to spot yellowing. The vintage figures molded in white plastic are the ones most prone to a change in color due to plastic degradation. Some are yellowing and some aren’t, just keep a keen eye on what the seller is showing you and ask for more or better photos if its unclear.

And lastly be sure to inquire on whether or not the figure has loose joints or not. Stormtroopers saw a lot of play in their day and the limbs became loose quickly. If this is important to you (it’s important to me) drop the seller a line through the eBay message system before bidding.

Feel free to add any thoughts in the comments and drop me a line if you run into any trouble!

Check out the current vintage Stormtrooper listings here.

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