What is your best "adult" discovery of a childhood toy?

[PNGwynne]

Much of my collection consists of reacquiring childhood favorites: Mego, AT GI Joe, Clash of the Titans, SMDM.

But as an adult, some lines have caught my interest, like Big Jim.

My best (re)discovery, though, is Matchbox's Fighting Furies. I had one outfit set & Hook when I was a kid, but now I have a complete set & think it's one of the most beautiful and playable lines of the '70s: Great action features, beautiful details, & terrific playsets. The Ghost of Cap'n Kidd is the best glow-in-the dark toy ever made IMO.

What toy did you discover, or appreciate anew, as an adult collector?

[enyawd72]

My greatest toy discovery as an adult has to be Sectaurs. I have the entire collection, and they are light years ahead of everything else that was being made at that time IMO. The combination of action figures/puppet insects is nothing short of brilliant, and their detailed sculpts still hold up today. The combining of humans and insects was original and just a fantastic concept for a toyline.

[nvmbrsdoom5]

When I was a kid, I had quite a few of the die-cast Star Wars vehicles that came out after the first film and many of the Micro Collection sets that came a couple years later. But I wasn't a big fan of them at the time, they were often bought for me as gifts, and I think they were supposed to be cheaper alternatives to the larger vehicles I had asked for but didn't get. So while I thought they were ok, they couldn't carry any of my figures and were viewed with a disappointed eye since I really wanted their larger scaled versions.

But as an adult, I have revisited these toys and now I am extremely hooked on them. The design and packaging of the die-cast vehicles is wonderful, not to mention less space-consuming to display. Same with the Micro Collections. I'm far more likely to spend my dollars on those SW toys these days than the 3-3/4 inch series of figures and vehicles.

Another line that I discovered as an adult collector was Super Powers. I was a big fan of the Secret Wars figures (and still am), but paid little to no mind towards the Super Powers figures when they were on the shelves. Now I think the line is excellent and love the character mix they chose.

[PNGwynne]

Star Wars Micro are so detailed. I didn't like them when released, but I can see how they'd appeal to adults. They assemble into dioramas., don't they?

Sectaurs--awesome! I bought them all as soon as they hit the shelves in '85--I wish they had done wave two which was designed. I received The Hyve playset for Christmas when I was a senior in high school, what a toy nerd lol.

[HardyGirl]

As a kid, I did own some Matchbox cars that my dad would get at the gas station w/ some fill-ups, but I was never really into playing w/ cars (other than my SSPs). Now as an adult, I love Hot Wheels. Thanks to a member here (sorry can't remember which one), I have a LOT of old school track that I like to link to my new track. I have a Rally Case and a Super Rally case full of cars. I'm not a stickler about what kind of cars to collect, but I do own some of the Superhero ones like Aquaman, Superman and Batgirl. There's a long hallway in my house, so sometimes when I babysit boys (the girls don't seem very interested), I break these out. I'm partial to the rubber band launcher, but I'll use a gravity clamp for my heavier cars.

[UnderdogDJLSW]

As cliche as this will sound, but 8 inch Megos if I stop to think about it. Until about 6 years ago, I didn't even know my childhood WGSH still existed in storage. My seven year anniversary of joining the Museum is coming up and the amount of knowledge about Mego Corp is far far greater than anything I knew prior to.

As for wanting to collect something today that I didn't appreciate as a child, I can't really think of anything.

[Werewolf]

My greatest toy discovery as an adult has to be Sectaurs.

Sectaurs are awesome. The sculpts still hold up and wouldn't look out of place in TRU today. That line seriously needs to be brought back.

[Earth 2 Chris]

The Gabriel Lone Ranger line. I had the reissues of the Lone Ranger and Silver, and Tonto and Scout from the "Legend of the Lone Ranger" movie launch. I had no idea Gabriel had made a friggin' WORLD in this line just a few years earlier! Sometime in the early 90s I picked up Tomart's huge Guide to Action figures, and there was a full-color page of the whole line. My mind was blown. I think that line may be the most "complete" toy line ever created, with just about everything you'd want or think of (and a lot you wouldn't) from the license. Plus the toys AND packaging are just beautifully done.

I've picked up a boxed single Lone Ranger and loose Tonto to go with my surviving childhood horses. I recently got a boxed Butch Cavendish and a loose Dan Reid. I love this line!!!

Chris

[EmergencyIan]

^ Same with me, Chris. I too was born in 1974, so my Gabriel Lone Ranger, Tonto, Silver and Scout were the 'reissues.' Then, I saw some old Sears catalogs (around the same time) that had other figures and horses. I was fascinated and then obsessed. What a great line! At one point, in my adulthood, I had quite a bit from this line including some of the Marx and Hubley (which I think is Gabriel) stuff.

- Ian

[PNGwynne]

The Lone Ranger line is beautiful, it puts the Furies to shame. I could get stuck on it easily. (I do have the Dodge City German playset for my Mego AmWest set.)

From what I've learned, the Gabriel bodies sometimes need work, like vintage GI Joes.

Ian, what do you mean by Marx' LR--do they do tie-ins from Johnny West molds?

[acrovader]

I'd probably say the 'Darth Vader' figure from the Space War series. I had the toy when I was about 5 or 6. My mom bought it for me at some close-out store. I vaguely remember it breaking one time (after all, these toys are cheaply made). However, the toy was lost to time and I hadn't seen it in probably over 30 years. I forgot what the figure looked like, other than it resembling Vader. I still had his shield after these years. Then after doing some research, I found out about him and the toy line it came from. I was never sure of the toy company or the name of the toy line. But alas, I bought him off ebay a few years ago (along with some of the other Space War toys). Then about not quite 20 years ago, I found the Knight of Darkness form Star Team line at a second hand toy store. I remember seeing him at a dime store back in the late 70's and wanting him. I forgot all about him for nearly a couple decades, but didn't pass up the chance to buy him second time around. And I guess, I got reacquainted with the Mini Silver Warriors over the last couple years. I had the silver robot as I kid. But I recently bought him on the card along the other two figures in the toy line. And finally, Enco's Viking 2 playset. I never had one as a kid, but remembered playing with it in Kindergarten.

[hobub]

This hand's down. I'm still shocked...

https://patchesofpride.wordpress.com...d-in-backyard/

[mahseer]

At first I thought the title of this thread was: "Childhood discovery of adult toys". That's a whole other story.

[Gorn Captain]

I discovered women late in life.
Didn't have know any as a teenager.
Does this count?

[Gorn Captain]

This hand's down. I'm still shocked...

https://patchesofpride.wordpress.com...d-in-backyard/

What? No stake through the heart?