Vintage 12" figures

[_Lee_]

Id actually forgotten im only two figures away from completeing this set. IG88 and Ben are on my hitlist now, although i know IG88 is damn rare.

Anyway, who here remembers these in the shops back in the day? I certainly do, and i remember my dear old Nana buying myself and my brother a trooper each. I always thought they were excellent pieces myself. I know many dont have much interest because of the size, but they seem to still be relatively cheap compared to some of the smaller figures MOC. Obviously when you step into Basa / LL territory it gets a tad harder, both to track down and financially.

I know Lee has a huge collection, but dont know of many others who do the 12" route. Heres a question though,what would you rather have? A full 12" mint/ boxed collection or a set of 12 backs moc?

Id go for the large figures myself

 

[SublevelStudios]

I've noticed something of a spike in prices for 12" figures recently, good examples are fetching serious money now.

But I'll never understand why prices have been stagnant for so long though - say compared with MOC prices. I remember Jim Stevenson having a MIB IG88 at Donington toy fair 20 odd years ago and was asking £350 back then! Prices have barely budged in that time. Most MIB complete figures can be bought for under £200 and that represents good value for money IMO.

 

[steve obi wan]

Hi Lee ,

I have a full set of graded 12 backs and now I am starting to collect the large figures . I only have 3 , a Star Wars Boba Fett , a sealed Ben Kenobi and yes an IG88 ,

Personally I like the 12 back better , as more nostalgia for me , but like the large figures aswell

 

[Matthieu]

I managed to score a full Kenner 12" set (MIB and MISB) on ebay for EUR 1200 in 2012!! A couple of those had a tough box but all the dolls were complete with paperwork, a couple were MISB and IG88 is in perfect condition.
As I am a Meccano collector I have been replacing each doll by it's French counterpart every time I've been able to find one. I am now two 12 inchers away from having a complete Meccano set (it being recalled that there is no Meccano release for R2-D2 and IG88): I still need the tough ones, namely Stormie (has at least 2 variants) and Boba Fett (who is an ESB version).
I have always loved the 12 inchers! As a kid I enjoyed playing with them although I only had 3PO, Jawa and Ben. I have a clear memory of when my mom bought me the Jawa while we were on holidays on the "Basque" coast in the south west of France
If I had to keep only one of my Kenner 12 back set or my Meccano 12" figure set, I would keep my Meccano 12 inchers any day of the week!! (and I would display them next to my Meccano 12 back set... )
-Matth

 

[Robstyley]

I think they are cool, although some have bad sculpts and I'm not as keen on the human ones as the others. They look a bit barbie doll, it's just not my thing. The first one I got was a beater R2D2 at a boot sale, only bought it cos it was there. I also have a nice minty loose Jawa I got off ebay for about 50 quid, I really like them. Recently got a boxed C3PO off Iain which I really like too. I would quite like a full loose set all together in a pigeon hole in my cabinet, think that would look the nuts. I'd still go a set of 12 backs over the set of 12 inch though :wink:

 

[x-pack]

They do seem to be popular but I don't remember ever seeing 12" figures as a kid. In fact I only became aware of their existence in the early 90's upon picking up a 12" Chewie on a carboot sale. It's a matter of opinion but to me 12" are cooler with that ESB logo

 

[Ian_C]

I had Fett, Vader, and 3PO as a kid. My sister had Luke, Leia, and R2.

I now have a full set of all the standard Kenner 12" loose. Having said that, given the choice, I'd rather have the 12 backs.

Ian

 

[sith-smith]

I don't remember seeing them in the shops.

Have only recently become interested in trying to complete a set. I'm 3 away

DF Stormtrooper
Mecanno Ben and Jawa

However I still prefer the MOC hands down

 

[steve obi wan]

I had Ben as a kid and remembering feeling he was a bit crap ! :lol:

But wanted to get him again , now he's :shock:

 

[chrisfnx]

They are good. I have a boxed Meccano Jawa, Clipper Luke and Leia, Canadian Boba Fett, Kenner Vader and Chewie, also a few loose ones. I never had any as a kid, I can remember seeing them though. The first one I got was a loose Jawa, years ago from a toy fair, then I wanted to get it boxed etc etc. I love the carded figures, but the dolls (large figures) are good though.

 

[mumbo]

Don't recall them myself and didn't take a particular shine to them when I first got back into collecting, I then managed to pick up a free loose & complete Stormtrooper and I now have a complete loose set

 

[Palifan]

I completed my loose run of them this year although did get stung with all repro accessories for IG 88 :evil: I'm pretty shure the seller knew this even though he claimed they were real at the time of listing but in the end I kept hold of it and accepted a part refund ( due to the fact that the figure was in good shape). Not sure if I'll bother getting original parts for that one now as they're very expensive and he's to big for me to display at the moment anyway.

I do remember this run in the shops though growing up and my nan bought me C3PO which never really got played with much as out of all the figures he's the one that least appealed to me (maybe due to not having accessories and also me not having any others to play with him with).

I think they're a great line and as there aren't many released it's something that can be completed over time. Maybe these will continue at roughly their price point for loose due to their size and space needed to display them but I imagine the ones with good conditioned boxes or still sealed will caring on increasing in value as they have been for a while.

Ian

 

[Lee Bullock]

I had Vader and C3PO as a kid and I have very vivid memories of them. Even though I had lots of the 3 3/4" figures the large Vader always evokes that era for me the best. I also had Action Man too and I used to play with the Vader with them and I was always impressed the the sculpt on the Vader helmet was awesome with its two piece structure. When I started collecting in 1989 I found a loose 12" Vader on a Car Boot sale and it was that which started me off again. I was content having the odd boxed one and the rest loose until I took a break in 1997 when I sold off most of my collection. I restarted in 1999/2000 and the aim then was to get them all boxed in what ever label box came my way which I did in 2 years. In 2002 I decided to research more about them and slowly started to build up a data base of the ones I had seen - and started to try and find foreign ones and to be honest I didnt look back.

The current tally for how many were produced internationally in different boxes currently stands at 85. In my opinion you will put together a Palitoy debut set - 12 back to trilogo before you complete all 85 large size figures. Some of these are INSANELY hard with only single digits known for some - and other that exist in slightly greater numbers are also prohibitively expensive.

There is still so much that isnt known - especially in terms of insert variants, issues from BASA in Peru, Australians releases and there may yet still be undocumented releases that have in some case been rumoured but not yet known to exist. The large size range is very much an old school collecting line with many original collectors from back in the day like Jason Joiner, Steve Sansweet and Jim Stevenson highly prizing these and building insanely impressive collections and many large completest collectors today carry on this tradition. Mark Daniels mentioned an IG-88 that Stevenson had for sale in the 90's - I remember that piece actually and it was more in the region of £650 rather than £350 as this was a holy grail in the UK and Europe for a LONG time.

I too have a large collection as Lee mentioned but I have taken a back seat in recent years due to personal priorities overtaking any large spending in the hobby. I feel that my collection is a slow grow organism and I am happy to document and research as much as actually accumulate. Many pieces that were ignored and underestimated in the past have turned out to be extremely rare and difficult to locate.

I think in closing the large size line is an excellent and rewarding focus albeit a little space consuming (its only real detriment) with some fascinating pieces and stories in them.

Lee

 

[Robstyley]

Great post Lee, thanks for the info.. I've just become more interested in them

 

[steve obi wan]

Great information Lee

 

[SublevelStudios]

It was definitely £350 Lee.

 

[Bootyhunter]

I can't remember seeing them in the shops at all, I did own an incomplete fett which must have come from a jumble sale or something :lol:
My only other memory of this range was finding C3POs leg washed up on a beach on the Isle of Wight...

 

[peekaygee73]

As a kid I had the R2, and my brother had Fett and Chewbacca. I remember one of my mates had a Luke, and another had a Stormtrooper. I ended up swapping my Six Million Dollar Man 'Masketron' figure for the 12" Stormtrooper - my parents went nuts! I remember really liking the 12" range at the time but being disappointed that there weren't as many figures as the smaller range. I think what really sold me on them was that the R2 figure actually looked like he did in the film, though I was always disappointed that he didn't have a third leg. If I were able to go back and get one item from my childhood collection it'd probably be him.

I've shared this picture on here before, but here are my brother and I with some of our collection including the three 12" figures.

Just look at how Mint that R2 is!! It looks like my brother's already lost Fett's gun :roll: and the cartridges in Chewie's bandolier were always disappearing too!

I remember first hearing about the 12" IG-88 figure in the mid-90s and really wanting one... until I realised I'd be blowing the best part of 1 term's grant to get one! :shock: :lol: I still think the Fett and R2 are awesome figures, and I'm not really sure why I haven't got around to getting them again. Once I find a nice boxed example I'll definitely be adding R2 to my collection.

 

[SublevelStudios]

That is one of the best photos I've seen in a long time!

Looks like your little R2 had already taken a bit of hammering. But is that the box to the Palitoy LOTJ under the Quality Street tin I see?

Great pic mate! 8)

 

[peekaygee73]

That is one of the best photos I've seen in a long time!

Looks like your little R2 had already taken a bit of hammering. But is that the box to the Palitoy LOTJ under the Quality Street tin I see?

Great pic mate! 8)

Cheers - it is great isn't it. My Dad was a photography nut at the time and did a lot of his own developing. I'm not sure if this is one of his though.

Yeah, that little R2 would've been bought in 1978 and was my brother's, so it had no chance!! :lol: Yep, that's the Palitoy LOTJ box under the tin, still looking minty! :shock: We kept everything boxed right up until we sold it.