Caswellbot
Sith Lord
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2010
- Messages
- 3,072
Hi guys, its been a long year without much to report from me on the collecting front but it has been a fantastic end to the year with the acquisition of something I never thought I would own. Before I start I do need to thank Bram on this one. You're a good friend and I owe you.
So here's the story. A few years ago I read an article on Toltoys.com explaining that Star Wars Series 2 three packs may well have been available in Australia for a limited period. These were most likely surplus stock from the US market and were shipped to Australia as an effort to sell the remaining units.
There is only one major difference between the US release and the Australian release and this appears on the reverse of the box. At the time (1979) the US were still using the Imperial Measurement system whereas Australia had moved to using the metric system. This meant that all of the imperial 3 3/4 inch measurements on the reverse of the box needed to be edited out. At first I thought that these measurement had been crossed out with a black marker but on closer inspection, it would seem that this was done as part of the actual printing process. Whether these were made up in the US prior to shipping or knocked up in Australia is uncertain at this time.
The most conclusive proof came when I carried out some research on the price sticker present on the side of my set. It would appear that "Waltons" was a department store in Australia and at it s peak in 1972 it had 92 stores with flagship stores in Melbourne and Sydney. Waltons was sold off in 1987 and became Venture outlets which in turn went bust in 1994. It is quite probable that Waltons was the only department store stocking these 3 packs as there weren't many large department store chains in Australia at this time.
From the article on Toltoys.com it is suggested that only one other example has been found to date. However, hopefully this new acquisition will prove the theory and creates the definitive link between Waltons and the stocking of these sets.
I am obviously over the moon to have this set in my focus. It would be great to see other second series sets turn up in the future. There is no evidence to suggest any of the other waves of 3 packs were released in Australia apart from this second series.
Please see the following links for extra info relating to this revelation:
Toltoys Magazine Advert
http://www.toltoys.com/page/6/
Previous 2009 find of a Second Series Droids Australian Release Droids Set
http://www.toltoys.com/2009/07/star-wars-toltoys-update-our-latest/
Thanks for looking guys!
IMG_3199 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
IMG_3200 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
IMG_3202 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
IMG_3204 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
US VERSUS AUSTRALIAN BACKS by Caswell2009, on Flickr
So here's the story. A few years ago I read an article on Toltoys.com explaining that Star Wars Series 2 three packs may well have been available in Australia for a limited period. These were most likely surplus stock from the US market and were shipped to Australia as an effort to sell the remaining units.
There is only one major difference between the US release and the Australian release and this appears on the reverse of the box. At the time (1979) the US were still using the Imperial Measurement system whereas Australia had moved to using the metric system. This meant that all of the imperial 3 3/4 inch measurements on the reverse of the box needed to be edited out. At first I thought that these measurement had been crossed out with a black marker but on closer inspection, it would seem that this was done as part of the actual printing process. Whether these were made up in the US prior to shipping or knocked up in Australia is uncertain at this time.
The most conclusive proof came when I carried out some research on the price sticker present on the side of my set. It would appear that "Waltons" was a department store in Australia and at it s peak in 1972 it had 92 stores with flagship stores in Melbourne and Sydney. Waltons was sold off in 1987 and became Venture outlets which in turn went bust in 1994. It is quite probable that Waltons was the only department store stocking these 3 packs as there weren't many large department store chains in Australia at this time.
From the article on Toltoys.com it is suggested that only one other example has been found to date. However, hopefully this new acquisition will prove the theory and creates the definitive link between Waltons and the stocking of these sets.
I am obviously over the moon to have this set in my focus. It would be great to see other second series sets turn up in the future. There is no evidence to suggest any of the other waves of 3 packs were released in Australia apart from this second series.
Please see the following links for extra info relating to this revelation:
Toltoys Magazine Advert
http://www.toltoys.com/page/6/
Previous 2009 find of a Second Series Droids Australian Release Droids Set
http://www.toltoys.com/2009/07/star-wars-toltoys-update-our-latest/
Thanks for looking guys!
IMG_3199 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
IMG_3200 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
IMG_3202 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
IMG_3204 by Caswell2009, on Flickr
US VERSUS AUSTRALIAN BACKS by Caswell2009, on Flickr
