Most expensive Hensin

[admin1 aka Ed]

What is the most expensive Hensin Cyborg toy?

[rednecktex]

The blue king walder with the clear head.

A guy is trying to sell him with two other colors in boxes

for 340.000 yen on yahoo japan.

I personally like the green and yellow king walder's the

best because the heads are the same color as the

bodies. ;D

The purple with the clear head seems the most common.

[admin1 aka Ed]

So I guess they did not reproduce/ remaster him when the did the Hensin Cyborg re-releases. Right?

I found the re-relases looked so good it was hard to justify an original.

Can anyone compare the quality of the new releases with the vintage toys?

E

[hypnotator]

I have vintage British Denys Fisher Cyborg figures alongside Takara reissue Shonen Cyborgs and King Walder Juniors in my glass case. The bodies are identical and could have come from the same moulds. The heads and inner machinery and guts are different, of course, the Cyborgs being a completely different design, and KWJr's head and brain are considerably larger than Muton's. The British figures have a single, moulded piece of rubber that holds the "ball" hips together, whereas the Japanese ones have elastic ending in metal clips.

[spymagician]

I have a vintage 12 inch 'Android Ace' I bought it from a guy called Rueben Torres from his web site for about USD200. It still has the 'chest engine' and one green missile.

I also have the smaller version of the android issued by Dennis Fisher in the UK. Cost me £40 with NO chest engine and a broken leg!

I'm such a sucker!

Went to Tokyo recently and bought a re-issue shonen Waldar (yellow) for about USD20!

Why am I obsessed with these toys? I'm fairly normal in all other respects.

[hypnotator]

Actually £40GBP is reasonable for an incomplete British Android, believe it or not. I paid £45GBP for a Cyborg with no feet recently (I dressed him as the X-Akron, which is the British Red Baron costume). Android is the rarest of the three. Your Android Ace was a good price too. What is his head like? I've seen a couple of pics and it looked baby-ish but it was probably just the way the light caught the transparent plastic. The yellow KWJr was a total bargain. Very hard to find, as many on this site testify. I paid a lot more to preorder mine.
You're obsessed with these toys because they are beautiful!

[spymagician]

Yeah - that yellow waldar came with a kind of read Demon costume - all rubber with huge ears.

I think if you trace the geneaology of the henshin/microman/micronaut/transformer toys - you will end at the medicom RAH line. There's a beautiful ALIEN toy based on a cyborg-type body with rubber ALIEN costume parts. I saw it in Tokyo for about £30.

I couldn't buy it coz I was on a budget - AAARGH!

The medicom tron figures are also based on microman body cast.

I told you I was an addict.

[hypnotator]

What you have is the Satan King costume. The original 12 inch Walders had 3 costumes which showed their transparent bodies, not based on manga or TV characters, and these were Satan King, Skeleton King and Plant Man. The Skeleton King was scaled down for the UK line in the 70s and renamed the Torg. When Takara did the Shonen and KWJrs recently, they did all 3 costumes (again scaled down) for KWJr. I missed the first, most limited Shonen reissue which was the silver Shonen Cyborg and the blue King Walder Jr., because I prevaricated over whether I wanted a blue KW with a clear head (I agree with Rednecktex; it doesn’t look as good). Then I managed to pick up a Skeleton King Jr. from Felix at Fantasiatoyz and he’s on display next to my Torg. It’s interesting to compare them. Torg has better, “adult” proportions, whereas SKJr has a huge head and chest as he is meant to be “child” proportions. The moulding on SKJr is superior, however, with better detailed teeth and a nice “hammered” texture on the chest. SKJr is glossy and more silver than Torg, who is more matt grey. I cherish them both and could not choose between them. If I had a digital camera, I would post a lovely picture, but all my money goes on toys.
I’m rather jealous of your Satan King Jr.. Plant Man Jr. is a fairly weird design and doesn’t grab me as much.
I, too am a sad addict; I constantly dream of finding Cyborgs and Micronauts in shops. Often they have weird variations.

[spymagician]

You really know your stuff.

My android Ace does have a babyish head now you mention it.

Do you know Eric Larsen? His was the first micronauts site I could find (this was about 1995) He seems to be a nice guy. There was a real ' micronauts scene' going on in the US with himand ron pringle going to micro-cons and all. I'm stuck here in the UK where we don't celebrate these things on such a grand scale!

I just noticed - my android ace has 'Takara Hasbro Japan' etched on his butt. Isn't Hasbro American company? I thought these (12 inch versions)only came out in japan.

[hypnotator]

I am in the UK too. There is so little interest in Cyborg/Micronauts here; I reckon we serious collectors number less than twenty. Interest in toys in general seems to be limited to tie-ins with people’s favourite movies and TV. I am strictly into sci fi toys and books and I have no interest all that screen stuff. For this reason I like the fact that Cyborg has no tie-in.
I have heard of Messrs Larsen and Pringle on the net. The first website I found was Tom’s Microman Zone in about 1999 and it blew my mind to see all the Micromen and Acroyears that I had never imagined existed. I can’t remember Tom’s surname but he’s another name that comes up a lot.
Do you go to the Memorabilia event at the NEC, Birmingham? It’s the only toy fair I bother with. You sometimes find a few Cyborg and Micronaut items hidden among the mountains of Star Wars stuff. Thank goodness for the internet.
The 12 inch Henshin Cyborgs were only ever sold in Japan. They paid a licence to Hasbro because Henshin Cyborg was based on Combat Joe, who was in turn based on Hasbro’s G. I. Joe in America (Palitoy’s Action Man as we know him). British Cyborgs also have “under licence from Hasbro” in the smallprint on the boxes.

[spymagician]

I don't bother with the conventions. Unless you're into collecting WWF wrestling 'foil-embossed' trading cards or X-Files posters - I can't see the point. I used to go to Westminster central Hall in London in the 80s when they actually had mainly vintage toys - they were good then. I think the last one I went to was Cheshunt about 6 years ago. Never been to the NEC . There's a good shop in Caterham called Modellers Loft that specialises in Action man that often has Micronauts and Muton/Cyborgs (it's where I bought my android).
When is the next convention? Do you think maybe we could start a microman- con in the UK?

With only 20 of us, we could get away with hiring a pretty small place - there's money saved right there!
What an elite bunch! I like it. I'm in the UK 'cyborg-scene'.

[hypnotator]

The NEC is the biggest event I know of in the country with 1,000+ tables, usually. Yes, you do have to wade through lots of other stuff, a lot of it utter kack, and there’s usually someone dressed as Darth Vader swanning about. There are a lot of stalls with nothing but cards or autographs, so you can walk straight past these. I’ve been going for about five years, and they went through a bit of a dry spell when I could find nothing to spend my money on, but the last couple of years have been good and there’s usually some Cyborg stuff, but it ain’t cheap. One guy even had a vintage Japanese Shonen Cyborg, but I have the reissue which will do for me. He let me look at the enclosed catalogue.

I once went to a toy fair right next to Big Ben; I presume this is the Westminster one you mention. My brother picked up a Metal Man Roton. This would have been late eighties.

I have mail ordered from Modeller’s loft (smoked black Neo Henshin Cyborg very reasonably priced at £30) but I have never visited. My friend Cliff (London based Cyborg collector) told me they stocked them so I rang, and got some shop assistant who didn’t know the stock and the boxes are all Japanese of course. I tried later and got the manager, fortunately.

Next NEC will probably be June but I probably won’t be there as my lift goes to Glastonbury. After that there’s usually one in November which I should be at. I would be more than happy to meet up and compare toys if you made it there.

I want to know more about your Android Ace, specifically his chest engine. From the pictures I have seen, there are at least two variations on the engine in the Japanese figures, but there were three figures, so there may have been a third. The ones I have seen are one like British Android‘s, with two circles near the top, and one with two green panels near the top. British android had only the one, but one of his alternate heads, the Hypnotator (my handle of course), looks very like the Japanese chest engine with the green panels (they become eyes). It seems to me that Denys Fisher stuck the chest engine on his head! Talk about artistic licence! The chest engine shown on British Android’s box appears to be a prototype and is different from the one you actually get. The missiles appear to fire from much lower down in the engine. Can any Japanese collectors out there help with Android chest engine descriptions?

I don’t know about starting a convention. It would be a micro-convention in more ways than one. It’s great to communicate with others about this most obscure of interests, though.

[spymagician]

The missiles don't fire! I couldn't beleive this! There is simply no firing mechanism- just 2 holes.

Another difference from the UK version are exterior crome palstic 'engine' parts protruding from the 'smoke' clear skin on the arms, legs and feet giving it a much more 'robotic' appearance. Also there are chevrons etched into the thighs (front) and shins.

The chest engine has an atomic logo etched into a small protruding sphere at the top - a tiny kidney-shaped inset of transparent green plastic and the 2 'firing' ports at the bottom.

My small UK version is missing the chest engine so I don't know if it's the same.

Also on checking the fine detailing on the head (Always reminded me of an Inca god-idol) It's EXACTLY the same! But the small one looks like a slightly degraded copy of the exquisite detailing on the big baby-head.
The assembly of the figure (hip joints etc) seems to be identical to the small version.

I'd post a picture but I don't know how! Are you allowed to give out personal emails on this board??

[cybermuton]

Hey ho - add me to the 20...
And my brother..

As for the most expensive henshin cygorg, I sold an Invader/interceptor last year for £450...It was nice to be ion the receiving end for a change!

And at the last but one NEC-fest I went to (November '03, I think) there was a rough invader for £40 (OOP, no missiles, and with a cracked top - funny how that 'fused diamond' cracks so easily...).
Speaking of the NEC - I agree with Hypnotater. I always get something there - although it's usually 'pound a dollar' value - you pay for that instant gratification!

Also in the UK20 is someone to whom I sold a few MicroChange toys, some Henshin 98s/2000s, the gashapons, and a Denys Fisher Muton last year.

Now his house was unbelievable. Every square inch was covered in boxed and unboxed mutons, androids, and cyborgs. UK Denys Fisher, Japanese Takara - take your pick. Or if Major Matt Mason was your thing - he had the lot of them too. And Jumbos. And early Action Man/GI Joes, etc.
This guy totally ruled.

Anyway, he paid me well for my toys, so we were all happy, but if you ever wondered where any of that NOS Denys Fisher stuff went....well, that's where!

I am left with only one shonen now. And his story is one to make you gape.

I was looking around a small comic shop, and spotted the Invader on a top shelf. When the shopkeeper got it down, we opened the box to find...
Mint (really!) Invader and interceptor, and...
All the packaging was mint and complete - even the Strawberry Fayre packing slip, and...
All the literature was complete and mint - short and long leaflets, and...
There was a Mint cyborg still sitting in it, and...
Every single cyborg accessory was in the box, and...
Every single cyborg accessory backing card was at the bottom of the box.

Bear in mind that this was about five years ago - pretty much at the zenith of pricing for these things - the reissue 98s had just come out, and people were paying £150 for a busted cyborg with no feet and a yellow head.
I paid £90 for the lot. I knocked him down from £100.
Can you imagine how fast I ran out of that store?

Anyway, it's pretty much all gone now - I displayed it for a while, and then sold/traded all of it except the literature and the shonen.

My brother still has his original mutons, androids, cyborgs, and a couple of Walder Jrs that his wife bought him on a trip to Tokyo Toys R Us.

Then there's my old business partner.
He has more mutons than you can shake a stick at, at least four androids - boxed, and with all the accessories.
He's got at least five cyborgs, all the muton suits, all the cyborg accessories, every color variant '98, a 12 inch Cyborg/Walder giftset, all the vinyl Walders, all the Gashapon Cyborgs and Walders, including the chase Satan King and the boy figure. He also has vintage and reissue shonens, the Cyborg Bike, the Sidecar, and a vintage 12 inch Android, vintage carded Cyborg accessories - the list goes on. you name it, he's probably got it.
He's also one of the UK 20!

This has got me thinking...has anyone got the cyborg scientist or that clothes-shop limited '98 (I forget the name..)?

I always fancied one of the Jaguars myself...


It's nice to ramble on about these things...

[hypnotator]

Spymagician, you have an Android Super-A or Chojin. The three types as I understand it are:
1. Android A or Ace which is all smoked black transparent with a transparent humanoid head with a mechanical brain inside, much like Cyborg’s. This is the baby faced one I referred to, but I’ve only seen a couple of pictures. I was outbid on a boxed one on Ebay about a year ago.
2. Super A or Chojin with silver head and silver chromed machinery protruding from the smoked transparent arms and legs. He seems to be the hardest to find, and is my favourite of the three.
3. Robot A with fully chromed arms, legs and head. Only his chest/pelvis is smoked transparent. I’ve seen this for sale a few times; it seems to be the easiest to find, which isn’t saying much.
British Android is a scaled down version of 1. with the head of 2. Buy all the annihilator sets and you can make him into 3. Confused yet?

Thanks for describing the Chest engine for me. It sounds completely different from British Android’s. There are no insets, sphere or atomic logo but the missiles really fire. The firing lever protrudes through the hole in his back. Cliff once had an Android A but I couldn’t afford his price at the time and he sold it on before I could see it. He said that the torso was slightly wider.

Cybermuton, I want to reply to your posting too, but I really must get on with some work or I’ll get myself sacked. I’ll reply tomorrow. Til then, fellow Cybo-obsessives.

[spymagician]

OK- I really want to nail this UK20.
So far:
me- that's your ever-lovin' SPYMAGICIAN
The great HYPNOTATOR
New recruit: CYBERMUTON
Cybermuton's BROTHER
Cybermuton's FRIEND

We need 15 more.

I'd love to see some of these collections!
I am a novice comared to you guys with only:
5 henshins (only 2 vintage)
A bunch of boxed micronauts and microman stuff