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What are the differerences between the Playing Mantis and Poof-Slinky versions and which one is the best?
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You are a bold and courageous person, afraid of nothing. High on a hill top near your home, there stands a dilapidated old mansion. Some say the place is haunted, but you don't believe in such myths. One dark and stormy night, a light appears in the topmost window in the tower of the old house. You decide to investigate... and you never return... -
Well, both have their drawbacks. The Playing Mantis version, really doesn't go very far, even after winding like 20 times. The Poof-Slinky version is made w/ all plastic parts, (as opposed to the original that had metal parts you had to oil w/ 3 in1 Oil), so the gears wear down faster. My Daredevil set trail bike won't even wind now. But given a choice, I'd go w/ Poof-Slinky b/c it works closer to the original. And I love the extra loud winder sound!Last edited by HardyGirl; Oct 9, '09, 8:56 PM."Do you believe, you believe in magic?
'Cos I believe, I believe that I do,
Yes, I can see I believe that it's magic
If your mission is magic your love will shine true."
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Cool! Thanks for the info. Much appreciated.
I forgot to ask, which looks more like the vintage one? The Playing Mantis ones I've seen looked to all have blue jumpsuits and the Poof-Slinky with the white like the Ideal version.You are a bold and courageous person, afraid of nothing. High on a hill top near your home, there stands a dilapidated old mansion. Some say the place is haunted, but you don't believe in such myths. One dark and stormy night, a light appears in the topmost window in the tower of the old house. You decide to investigate... and you never return...Comment
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The Playing Mantis EK bodies are very top heavy. The Poof/Slinky figures are better. As for the bikes, the molds are pretty much the same, but the Poof/Slinky bike is slightly lighter."Do you believe, you believe in magic?
'Cos I believe, I believe that I do,
Yes, I can see I believe that it's magic
If your mission is magic your love will shine true."Comment
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Thanks again! I'm totally going with Poof-Slinky one.You are a bold and courageous person, afraid of nothing. High on a hill top near your home, there stands a dilapidated old mansion. Some say the place is haunted, but you don't believe in such myths. One dark and stormy night, a light appears in the topmost window in the tower of the old house. You decide to investigate... and you never return...Comment
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Good choice, have fun w/ it!"Do you believe, you believe in magic?
'Cos I believe, I believe that I do,
Yes, I can see I believe that it's magic
If your mission is magic your love will shine true."Comment
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The Poof-Slinky ones are made from the original Ideal molds (as with most classic toys, Jay Horowitz owns them) albeit with cheaper materials, so they should be the closest to original.
The PM ones always seemed a little "off" to me."Crayons taste like purple!"Comment
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Wow, I didn't even know there was a Poof-Slinky version. When was it released?Comment
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According to the Betty's Attic catalog I ordered it from, the PM version was also supposed to be made w/ the original Ideal molds. But they just missed the mark somehow.
I think the first Poof/Slinky version (Daredevil set) was about 5 years ago. There have been other sets since then, (and I have them both), The Funny Car/ Dragster/Stunt Bike set w/ DVD, the Robbie and Evel Father/son set. The only one I don't have is the friction bike w/ no winder."Do you believe, you believe in magic?
'Cos I believe, I believe that I do,
Yes, I can see I believe that it's magic
If your mission is magic your love will shine true."Comment
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I would probably go with the Poof-Slinky one, as well.
I did a somewhat thorough review (with pics comparing it to the 70s Ideal original) on my vintage toy blog, Yesterville Toy Room.
Yesterville Toy Room: Almost Vintage: 2006 Poof-Slinky (Ideal) Evel Knievel Super Stunt Cycle set
I also did a piece on the original Stunt Cycle set, as well:
Yesterville Toy Room: Ideal Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle
There will be many more posts on Evel Knievel toys to come.Comment
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You are a bold and courageous person, afraid of nothing. High on a hill top near your home, there stands a dilapidated old mansion. Some say the place is haunted, but you don't believe in such myths. One dark and stormy night, a light appears in the topmost window in the tower of the old house. You decide to investigate... and you never return...Comment
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According to the Betty's Attic catalog I ordered it from, the PM version was also supposed to be made w/ the original Ideal molds. But they just missed the mark somehow.
I think the first Poof/Slinky version (Daredevil set) was about 5 years ago. There have been other sets since then, (and I have them both), The Funny Car/ Dragster/Stunt Bike set w/ DVD, the Robbie and Evel Father/son set. The only one I don't have is the friction bike w/ no winder.
Cool. I assumed the PM one was a recast...didnt know Jay was involved.
The Daredevil set...apparently the most popular---is still being made but I think they produced the last couple years worth under Jays "American Classic Toy" company name.
Sudoku Cube Information by American Classic Toy
Are the other sets still in production? I've only seen the Poof Slinky stuntcycle set."Crayons taste like purple!"Comment
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Are the poof-slinky ones still available? If so where can I order some? Evil was one my favs as a kid.sigpicComment
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I don't think Poof-Slinky is making Evel Knievel toys anymore. In fact, I don't think they've produced them since around Evel's death in 2007. That's the year that the Evel and Robbie set was released and nothing new has come out since.
The Super Stunt Cycle set (with the chrome bike) was probably the most popular set they released. It would sell out fairly quickly whenever it would come in stock somewhere (like KB Toys online, for instance).
Now, they are no longer being restocked.
I think any of the Daredevil Stunt Sets (with the ramp, bricks, fire hoop, and reproduction trail bike) that are available now are just left over stock from a few years ago.
I could be wrong but that's been my general sense of the situation. Poof-Slinky used to release a new set each year for a few years. That stopped after Evel died. I was REALLY hoping that they would get to the Super Jet cycle and Skycycle but it didn't happen.Comment
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