Marvelous @Mr Fox ! They all look to be in wonderful condition too! They are definitely getting harder to find. The times they pop up on auction and on online shops, are not as frequent as they used to be. They are still worth going after, AND completing your toy garage. It's great to see them all, and play with them on the living room floor (cats have to be locked up though, because of prying claws and especially fangs!). Quite jealous of your Red-Car Booska! He's evaded me a few times, and definitely worth some serious moolah now! Thanks for sharing!
I've had to give up the search for racers because the prices are so insane now. 5 years ago they were around $30, though still hard to find. I got most of mine in lots I bought on yahoo.
@animator please post your collection! Yep, I think when I was first trying to corral them, they were going for $70, but quickly rocketed through the years! p.s. I went back and restored some of the photos I originally posted, for handy reference
I blame your mass acquisition for the price hike! when you have to use a large blanket to layout your collection, you know you've decimated the supply in the market place Joking aside, the prices are going up BUT looking at some of the prices contemporary pieces are selling for, I don't mind buying what I like for fair market value. I've always gravitated to older toys and sofubi is no different; many of these pieces are now 14 years old and therefore, whilst not vintage, they are hardly new and the market will dictate the price. One footnote on this - I have noticed stickiness starting to creep in on the bags. It would seem that the Japanese climate and owners leaving pieces in the bag may end up biting people on the backside. Although they are asking top money for NOS/unopened, I'd rather have a mint piece that has been able to breathe and doesn't have a layer of stickiness all over it, than one in a bag, priced at a premium, that is slowly degrading.
Unfortunately, secondary market only. There is one for sale on eBay but the price is HIGH. I found mine via YJA but I think I was just lucky regarding timing. Perseverance and patience is the name of the game.
With the help of boardies, YJA and a few other channels, the racers are multiplying like wet Mogwai eating after midnight!
Fantastic collection! I can only drool over these from afar because their aftermarket price point is beyond me.
Thats a nifty collection there! Congrats! I've been after a Gamera racer since it came out and I strike out everytime it pokes in my radar. Jelly of all the racer owners out there. And yeah, collecting anything toygraph is ridic expensive these days
Speaking of collecting Toygraph vinyl toys, does anyone know how feasible would it be to get someone to produce those toys again? I know that the owner of Toygraph sadly and unfortunately passed away (R.I.P.). So my question is, what happened to all of the molds and masks that Toygraph had made? Are they just sitting somewhere collecting dust? Is it possible for another company or someone to purchase the molds/masks or rent them to produce some more of those lovely vinyl toys including these fantabulous Toygraph racers? I really loved Toygraph's chunky and charming style, and I miss these toys being accessible (and affordable). And I would love to see someone bring them back as a tribute to the company and creator. <3
Not sure if this is the right place, but since most of the recent Toygraph discussion is here, here goes. I saw this beautiful 1954 Goji in clear vinyl with gold and silver glitter on YJA recently: It's still up there, but the price is $2k Anyone have some background on these clear glitter releases? I lurked around the Toygraph section of Club Tokyo quite a bit while the site was up, and don't remember seeing any mention of these. I've seen other Goji sculpts in clear and/or glitter vinyl that weren't documented online too.
Came across another version of the clear Zegaron racer on Mandarake... https://order.mandarake.co.jp/order...240&categoryCode=200104&keyword=トイグラフ&lang=en i may be wrong, but i don't remember the clear one having blue and pink highlights?
Alas, no . This was listed a long time ago (if you sort the listings from new to old, it appears at the end of the toygraph listings), I was just looking through Mandarake to see if they ever listed the Sunguts Racers. Nice pink and blue highlights on that clear Zagoran, but then again I have mixed feelings about adopting the clear version, as the blood spatters are very pronounced, and it's not really to my taste. I have not seen this version appear on JYA, so I'm wondering if it's a one of a kind. I may be mistaken, but even the header card looks out of the ordinary too.
Funny you mention the blood splatters because that is what has put me off those versions as well. IMHO they don't feel like they suit the design and sit uncomfortably alongside the whimsical nature of the sculpt. Each to their own but I'm glad my Zeg doesn't have them. The Sunguts Racer is one I've been looking out for too and I only know of it because of @spacemonkey66
@Mr. Humphreys Couldn’t agree more on that splatter. It’s just a level of violence that is really unnecessary to the sculpt. Dunno what mr. toygraph was thinking but definitely a minus for me. a gamera toygraph racer is all I need, but I’m afraid that that would only be the gateway into obsessing over getting them all.
Mr. Fox, I've yet to adopt a Sunguts Racer, but did see 3 versions on Mandarake... I wouldn't mind adopting one, but the Toygraph Racers are nicer imho. I just need #4 -white pigmon and #7-orange Booska, to complete the collection. I believe there is an Orange Booska being listed on an auction site, but the price is too high for my liking. BTW, it's interesting to hear that I'm not alone in the aversion to the blood spatters! ... and yes, Martin does indeed have a marvelous collection of Racers, and beautiful paintings of them too! https://www.martinharrisart.com/gallery His paintings can be found on Etsy (the shop is on a momentary break right now, but keep checking!) https://www.etsy.com/shop/MartinHarrisArt
I think this was a normal release at one of the toy shows back then. I'm not sure on the reason for the blood splatters, but these were produced around the time that the Space Troopers started up, so maybe it is related.
Thank you Daniel! So very nice to see that Racer clearly (vs Mandarake's bagged photo). Except for the spatter, it looks great. The gold teeth is an added surprise. Thank you for the info!
@Mr Fox , I was taking a closer look at your Zegaron, as you mentioned it had no spatter, and I'm a bit puzzled, as I thought all of the Zegs have it! Yours also looks purplish blue (perhaps it's the lighting?), whereas the "solid" Zegs I've seen are greenish blue. Would you mind obliging us with a closeup of you Zeggy? Do you have the leg piece as well? Just wanted to say that your display looks very nice, and they are all so pristine!
@Mr. Humphreys as per your request, here are some detailed photos. My Zegoran Racer is defiantly an overall shade of blue but has gold paint on his belly, purple spray on the tail and back spine and around the face, as well as silver highlights on the teeth, claws and other small embellishments.