It was eons between the Second World War and then. I say that time 'stopped' in 1988, so the "decades" which are referred to since the 70's and 80's are not the same as those previous.
I had the Airfix Coastal Defense Fort and 4 or 5 of the Gun Emplacement sets. My brother had a habit of finding these things in clearance bins or buy them off his friends when they got tired of them.
I was born in 65'. I remember seeing the Naverone mountain in the Sears catalog. Always wanted it, never got it. That thing looked so cool. I had a bunch of other cool toys though. Like army sets. Loads of fun.
One of the most played with toys of my childhood. The landing craft, the buildings and of course, the rocket launcher. The vehicles didn't matter because we had so many WW2 models and soldiers in our house. Just a fantastic toy!
I had a town in a plastic suitcase when I was 7. When opened all four sides unsnapped and laid down flat to make a town with roads and a bridge, various affixed buildings and a car storage box. Everything within the case was part of the town. Me and my brother and sister would play with this toy for years. Eventually we would add more things outside of town and take up a large area of the floor. It was an off brand toy and I have never seen it again on ebay or the internet. What fun what memories.
My uncle, who was just a few years older than me had a bunch of these collections when I was 4 or 5. This was 1975 so these sets were new. My gramma saw how much I loved to watch my uncle set it all up. She bought me a bunch of different ships, vehicles, figures, etc. Me and my uncle would set up all of our stuff and recreate battles. Kept us busy for hours.
I very nearly got my hands on the matchbox rocket attack set a couple of years ago. I paid £640 for it, only to be told by the seller after I’d paid for it, that it wasn’t complete. I got a refund. This is the only time I’ve seen it in the 20 years I’ve been collecting.
The mat and a couple of significant parts that could not be replaced. Even if it was complete, over 600 pounds is still too much, even for something so rare.
This is so cool. I had a Matchbox brochure back in the days where this playset was advertised. I loved it, but here in Germany these were not available. And my mum didn't allow those toy soldiers anyways. But when I bought a pack of Airfix troops, I built this playset myself out of cardboard, that was great fun I can still remember 40 years later.
I have been waiting for this, it's like Christmas 1978 all over again. I loved this play set....used it complete and pieced it out for use in other scenarios and games. Thanks for the Christmas memory I didn't use the vehicles supplied with the set I used vehicles from the matchbox plastic kits as they were more accurate to the era and the matchbox and airfix troops to add the extra play value. Didn't use the rockets much as they tended to knock every thing down.
I got BHA when I turned 9 back in 81. It is still the most awesome playset ever!!! That rocket launcher blasted everything under the sun ha ha. The buildings were top notch and the details on the little troopers- especially the Germans was incredible.That playmat is in EXTRAORDINARY condition!!! That is pretty rare- congratulations on this fantastic set!!! I dont think those are the correct troops though- I seem to recall mine were a dark blue (Germans) and the plastic on those look rigid.
Thanks. I figure still using my imagination is just part of my personality. Probably why I like all these toys so much. Brings back some of that childhood creativity and imagination. Great way to escape the every day hustle. Some days of blow of steam at the shooting range others I tinker with toys lol.
I'm as excited as you are opening the boxes and im only watching. I had many of those toys but all lost over many years. Seeing many especially the Airfix toys brings back lots of memories. The western Forts i never got any. I remember i did have seperate western buildings like a saloon, sheriff's Office jail i think a bank and they we're 1/32 scale. Pieces just snapped together. Don't remember the brand. But i did have lots of those Hong Kong made cowboys and Indians i collected a lot of in a western town set up back in the day. Its just memories now.😥😥😥👍🇭🇲🦘🐨✌️
I Was an airfix soldier fanatic as a kid in 1970s Wales! I remember having the coastal defence assault set,gun emplacement,pontoon. The Waterloo set was also a brilliant set. All of them are still boxed and up in my mother's attic!!
Wow!! Happy memories come flooding back 🥳 Got this for Xmas in the 70’s … and have a very vivid memory of playing it into the night to the point of falling asleep on top 😂 (in 🇮🇸 we do presents in the evening of December 24th) - Man, this is making this +53 year old dude very happy ❤🎉❤
I had those bags of army men hanging in grocery store. Also had some tanks, trucks and artillery, both American and German. I played with them well into my teens. Good old 70s toys.
Yes - they went cheap on this set by including 3 of the standard matchbox war vechiles which were not 1945 vintage. LOVE your grade with 1.72 scale airfix and matchbox tanks. Another great video. Thank you and well done.
Instead of putting in 3 standard matchbox cars in this set - they could/should have put in 2 matchbox battle tanks that would have worked for that period@@toysoldiernostalgia
I am from the interior of Argentina, and I remember that I had three or four boxes of these soldiers, smaller than the other 1/32 scale ones. In Argentina this material was very expensive, logically. So I never dreamed of buying a kit like this one. I mixed scales to assemble the combats, with plastic tanks that were not "imported", synonymous of very expensive. Thanks for your work
This takes me back! I always wanted one of these sets. I did get one from a family friend which was more generic but better pontoon bridges! Very nostalgic, thanks.
This was.one of the sets, that set me on a lifelong wargames hobby. I sold this set at 12(when i was obviously too old to play wargames anymore) in boot fair for a pound. Along with all the action man, and star wars top collectables. Now at 50, i regret that idiot i was at 12-18, when i sold everything that all 40+ blokes pay well over the odds to get their childhood back!
Nice!!!! When I was a kid in the 50's 60's playsets were very popular. I remember having Silver City, Fort Apache, Roy Rogers, gas station, Civil War, Cape Canaveral, etc. At Christmas time Sears would convert their lawn and garden area to a huge toy store. The would have playsets, train sets, race car sets set up on a large plywood like boards hanging from the ceiling. A wonderful experience. As an adult I would see these Matchbox and Airfix sets in stores but it just wasnt a thing back then for adults to buy these sets for themselves. I was also fascinated by the smaller, like 15 mm, toy soldiers.
I had a Civil war set I got from Sears. I think it was called The North vs The South or something like that. Very nice set, very detailed. That was in 1972.
@@toysoldiernostalgia Since then Ive wondered what happened to those displays!!! I thinking maybe some employees kid got them or they were thrown in the trash. Back then I dont recall folks collecting things like toys. Maybe stamps and coins. This would have been even before comics and baseball cards were being widely collected.
@@smith1958b Mine was probably more like 1962. I can still remember walking into the room and seeing how Santa had set up a full battle taking place. Ive always liked that light blue color of the union soldiers.
I had tons of Matchbox cars, like the HotWheels track (yellow) unfortunately with my parents dying when I was 11 and 14, I lost all my precious toys. Inc Scalextrics. Now I see the likes of Bargain Hunt and the cars go for £600 a set 😞 Mind I would swap it all for my mum and dad to be alive… Fantastic nostalgia. Cheers!
Looks like I missed out on some toy soldier play sets back in 1975 and after. It was mostly soldiers and out of scale plastic vehicles. But I was happy with what I could get. I do remember seeing a big box set at the toy department but it was unknown brand the soldiers was US marines and German infantry with maybe a couple of vehicles and some building walls broken. But I could not buy it. I was too young no one bought it for me. Family members that is. I'm happy to see the unboxing of what I've missed in my younger days. Now I feel like I'm going to go looking for toy soldiers.😊😊😊. Thanks love these videos. Lots of memories brought back of what I once had a lot of.👍🇭🇲🦘🐨✌️
Thank you for the memories. I totally forgot i wanted one of these so badly as a kid. I remember having a plastic mat like that don't remember where it came from but it was a prized possession
I can tell you I wasn´t that kid back in the 70s. But then again none of my friends were either. So we made do with what we had and dreamed of all the big sets and playsets. Have a great Christmas you to and thanks for watching, cheers.
@@toysoldiernostalgia We was quite a poor family back then but was lucky in another way, our Grandad worked in the Boots shop depot and they always had a big staff sale before xmas, so we always got a matchbox or airfix playset. Great vids mate and what an amzing collection you have built up! Mine is vinyl records, addidas trainers and a few airfix kits, I think the lady boss would go mental if I added matchbox lol
I would have loved this as a kid, these are more advanced than the sets I had (costal defence, and pontoon bridge) I guess I had grown out of it by the time they arrived. I did a brief stint as a printer in the 90's and we actually did the transfers/decals for the Airfix kits. I always got a kick out of that.
Wow, I had one of these as a child. Many happy memories of playing with this set. Still got the buildings and trucks etc somewhere in the loft. Thanks for sharing this
There really was a multiple rocket launcher that fired from landing craft. It fired a lot more than four, though. It was called 'Hedgerow' and was fired in vast salvos at the beaches on D-Day. It was used to destroy the defences on the beaches, so that landing could proceed. A version was designed to set off mines, using shock waves. Film of it in action shows it to be terrifying. The missiles were launched from larger landing craft, simply because firing them from smaller ships, would have destroyed them.
I remember Christmas in early 70’s unwrapping a Sears Roebuck Alamo tin suitcase play set. The large two story Chapel was plastic and had to be assembled along with the main gate, barracks and two canon ramps for two corners (plastic also). I should have enforced my will too parents to keep but every military move each year or two and they sold toys at yard sale. Besides the Alamo I had a three story Vietnam Firebase with Jeep, sandbags, M2, everything for 1:6 GI Joe. The thing was like 4 feet tall. I’ve never found either on EBay after years of looking
One of the best kits I ever had fun building and playing with was Aurora's " Rat Patrol" kit. I included 2 Afrika Corps tanks, 2 of the jeeps with 50 call machine guns mounted in back, a bunch of the characters from the TV show molded as soldiers as well as a bunch of palm trees, sand dunes with track marks, etc. This was a great kit for a 10 year old kit to build, paint and play with. Hey, Atlantis, how about a re- release?
I remember playing with that set,I had real trouble getting the roofs to stay on the buildings but I loved it. Also remember having to really hit the 4 barrel cannon to make it rockets fly. 👍😊
Yes it was kinda hard setting the buildings up. Can imagine that they would be easy to knock them or the roofs of while playing. I would probably have used sticky tack when I was a kid. I remember doing that with parts of my Timpo castle that had some broken tabs and didn´t hold together.
The box art in your thumbnail got my attention. Plus you videos are awesome 👏🏻 thank you! Amazing set! That would keep me busy for years! Sadly I agree, they don’t make toys like this anymore.😢
great video ! i wish Airix would make a reprint of their catalogs of the 1960s and the 1970s, in book form. Just like these books you can buy with the artwork of Airfix kits. Your videos are FAB ! merry xmas and a happy new year to you all !
It would be nice to have all the catalogs in one book. Also a lot cheaper then buying all the catalogs :) Thanks for watching. God Jul och Gott Nytt År.
I never know the had this. I grew up in the 1970s and had tons of 1/72 scale plastic soldiers, tanks, planes ect, I mean tons. I had the bunkers, the pontoon bridge, and all kinds of stuff but never knew this even existed, and trust me I looked.
It's playsets like this that started a lot of people into historical wargaming, back in the 1970's, 1980's & 1990's. 1:76 scale World War 2 wargaming was then seen as the gateway into the hobby, hence the plethora of 1:76 scale WW2 model kits from Airfix, Matchbox, Atlantic, Fujimi, NItto, etc. that were produced to cater to wargamers, back then. Airfix also created playsets coving the WW2, American Civil War, Riff Wars and Napoleonic's. Airfix also published wargames rule books to cover these playsets. Today, it's Warhammer 40K that's seen as the gateway into the hobby, though very few progress past it into historical wargaming.
I never got hooked on wargaming back in the 70s for some reason. But early 80s I started playing Squad Leader. These days a play a lot with my son. Everything from Star Wars X-wing to Memoir44, Wings of Glory and Gaslands. Great fun.
As a boy I'd mix Airfix, Matchbox and Atlantic figures all the time for battle scenes. Then, after a while, I started painting them. Then the paint started flaking off so I switched to metal figures...before I knew it, I was convinced by older guys that my toy battles required rules, dice and tape measures. Tanks now had to be glued together and painted. And here I am in 2024 and still gaming with models (not toys anymore).
Hi, born in 54, I remember having city scenes in card, that you folded and glued together. One of my favourite childhood memories is making one of those up with my brother and All My Loving was playing on the radio. It was definitely Christmas. Don’t make them like that anymore….
Never seen those kits as a kid,did get the tank and APC individually though. Back in the day we were told to get out of the house I did have 100's of the larger soldiers and plastic German and US tanks,trucks,etc. and a 40'dia x 20' tall pile of dirt to set up a battle. The lil finger poppers,squibs,firecrackers made for good artillery rounds going off....lol Set it all up over the afternoon and gather them all up (that you could find) once the sun started to set or maybe the next days "battle". Yes we could even play with firecrackers back then. Today they'd want to stick them up their........NVM.
I've never heard of these before, not sure if they were released in Canada or not. As a child of the 70's and 80's, I don't remember any of my friends or family members having it but then again my parents were tree hugging hippies so the only "war toys" they would ever buy me were of the "Star" variety. I had to save up my allowance to purchase any and every G.I. Joe figure that I ever owned. 8 year old me would have loved to get this for Christmas!
Thanks man. It was fun setting that up. If I ever get a cabinett large enough to display this I will set it up like the ultimate kids ”dream” with tons of cool stuff.
I definitely subscribed! Your enthusiasm was great! I personally appreciate anyone who loves their hobby like you do. I used to collect Die-Cast cars until my health deteriorated quite a bit. Plus add to the that the scalpers empty the shelves here every day. I used to love the old army men sets. I actually never had a Matchbox set however. I did have some of their tanks and Die-Cast jeeps. My favorite set was the massive mountain playset. The scales of these were so varied and different it was hard to line up them with one another so I ended up sticking to racing the cars, and having little battles with my army men. This set was very unique and interesting however. I love the tank, the troop carrier truck and boat, and the diorama of the buildings added a definite unique look. I also love to do dioramas as well, painting the buildings, cars, etc. Customization of this set, the building could make this look so much more "real", BUT it takes away from the classic original look of the set, and maybe the value? This was truly a cool set and your review of it was awesome. Thank you for your time and dedication for these types of toys and collectibles. Take care sir and God Bless you.
Can I take this opportunity to thank you for your videos through the year. We had very similar tastes in toys in the 1970s. Love your videos and jealous over your collection. Have a great Christmas and I wish you and your family a great Christmas. While you enjoy the snow on 24th and 25th of December - my familiy will be on the beach in Australia. Regards
Thanks a lot man. This year it looks like we actually have snow for Christmas. I remember when I lived in Los Angeles in the 90s and it was beach weather for Christmas. Very surreal for a Swede. Merry Chrastmas to you and your family. Cheers.
Hi there! I never had this set, as I liked assembling models and used those, and I burst out laughing when you remarked about how long it would take to set up -- that was half the fun! There was also much discussion about who would be who and what could go where🤣, although this made it easy. Good job! 👍
I totaly agree that setting up is at least have the fun if not more. The problem with set was that the playmat/board was a bit wobbely so the buildings and soldiers kept falling over. If I had this set as a kid I think my dad would probably have mounted it on a wodden board or something like that.
It's crazy that it's almost 50 years since the mid-70s now. Back then it was only 30 years since WWII when we were playing with this cool stuff.
I was thinking about that a while back. The 70s are further away in time then ww2 was in the 70s.
I was thinking about that a while back. The 70s are further away in time then ww2 was in the 70s.
Initial GI Joe figures were definitely based on WW2, and they kicked off less than 20 years after the end of the war (1964).
It was eons between the Second World War and then. I say that time 'stopped' in 1988, so the "decades" which are referred to since the 70's and 80's are not the same as those previous.
@@Heliogabalus-t1h Oh yeah, nothing worse than a retired drill seargent as a senior screw in a juvenile detention centre...
I would dream of kits like this as a kid. I had the boxes of soldiers. The playsets were out of my pocket money range.
I had the Airfix Coastal Defense Fort and 4 or 5 of the Gun Emplacement sets. My brother had a habit of finding these things in clearance bins or buy them off his friends when they got tired of them.
Agreed but through the kid barter system attained bits of each set.
Loved this stuff as a kid, born in 72 .
My fav was the Navarone mountain.
Now I play Bolt Action table top.
I have lots of Bolt Action "stuff" but haven´t played it so far. Pretty good game I hear :)
born in '69, bolt action 2ed / konflict '47...
i do use some old play sett stuff as terrain, most too far out of scale however
I got that mountain set in kindergarten. I was so excited when I got that.
I was born in 65'. I remember seeing the Naverone mountain in the Sears catalog. Always wanted it, never got it. That thing looked so cool. I had a bunch of other cool toys though. Like army sets. Loads of fun.
yeah I came here to mention the Navarone mountain. It was awesome.
One of the most played with toys of my childhood. The landing craft, the buildings and of course, the rocket launcher. The vehicles didn't matter because we had so many WW2 models and soldiers in our house. Just a fantastic toy!
I had a town in a plastic suitcase when I was 7. When opened all four sides unsnapped and laid down flat to make a town with roads and a bridge, various affixed buildings and a car storage box. Everything within the case was part of the town. Me and my brother and sister would play with this toy for years. Eventually we would add more things outside of town and take up a large area of the floor. It was an off brand toy and I have never seen it again on ebay or the internet. What fun what memories.
unfolding the play mat took my breath away and me back to my room 40 years ago. oh man thats a nostalgia trip
I had tons of army men and vehicles back then but never saw this in stores. I would have loved this.
I got it. I loved it!
Being born in Scotland in 1971 this is RIGHT up my street...blast from the past doesn't do it justice
This was a fantastic toy.
How your imagination filled in the gaps.
I had a wicked HO scale Afrika Korps set. I think it was Airfix. It went with all the soldiers I had. Cheers for the nostalgia.
I was born in '61 and remember toys like this. One I remember was a missle base with spring loaded rockets,great fun.
Wow very interesting matchbox had lots of cool stuff back then.
My uncle, who was just a few years older than me had a bunch of these collections when I was 4 or 5. This was 1975 so these sets were new. My gramma saw how much I loved to watch my uncle set it all up. She bought me a bunch of different ships, vehicles, figures, etc. Me and my uncle would set up all of our stuff and recreate battles. Kept us busy for hours.
Great to finally see what it contains, as a kid I never got to own one, making up for lost fun now in my older age with a 3d printer.
The condition of this is so beautiful I’m blown away.
I very nearly got my hands on the matchbox rocket attack set a couple of years ago. I paid £640 for it, only to be told by the seller after I’d paid for it, that it wasn’t complete. I got a refund. This is the only time I’ve seen it in the 20 years I’ve been collecting.
Depending how much was missing I guess it still could have been a decent deal.
The mat and a couple of significant parts that could not be replaced. Even if it was complete, over 600 pounds is still too much, even for something so rare.
Yeah without the mat it´s kinda useless@@atae7185
I still live in hope that one day I’ll find the holy grail of little soldiers!
I had this as a kid! Remember it so well, had fsntastic fun with it. Even back then tho i knew some elements were anachronistic which kinda bugged me.
This is so cool. I had a Matchbox brochure back in the days where this playset was advertised. I loved it, but here in Germany these were not available. And my mum didn't allow those toy soldiers anyways. But when I bought a pack of Airfix troops, I built this playset myself out of cardboard, that was great fun I can still remember 40 years later.
I kinda did the same. Built, rebuilt and painted civilian vehicles into military just to get some more military toys.
I have been waiting for this, it's like Christmas 1978 all over again. I loved this play set....used it complete and pieced it out for use in other scenarios and games. Thanks for the Christmas memory
I didn't use the vehicles supplied with the set I used vehicles from the matchbox plastic kits as they were more accurate to the era and the matchbox and airfix troops to add the extra play value. Didn't use the rockets much as they tended to knock every thing down.
You´re right I would probably have done the same. Had a few of those kits.
❤❤❤😊😊
I got BHA when I turned 9 back in 81. It is still the most awesome playset ever!!! That rocket launcher blasted everything under the sun ha ha. The buildings were top notch and the details on the little troopers- especially the Germans was incredible.That playmat is in EXTRAORDINARY condition!!! That is pretty rare- congratulations on this fantastic set!!! I dont think those are the correct troops though- I seem to recall mine were a dark blue (Germans) and the plastic on those look rigid.
Born in 74, remember toys like this. Kids imagination, fun and excitement... It was a privilege and no internet thankfully.
i just done drugs !
This is the kind of toys that I dreamed of when I was a kid.
Great memories - love watching your channel as one of the Airfix Generation… who loved Matchbox too!
Thanks man. I think we were a toy soldier generation :)
This brings back memories, I ued to love this set. Had so many toy soldiers back then.
This 1 grown man has more imagination than half the children in all of America right now. Hilarious!! Keep it up!!
Thanks. I figure still using my imagination is just part of my personality. Probably why I like all these toys so much. Brings back some of that childhood creativity and imagination. Great way to escape the every day hustle.
Some days of blow of steam at the shooting range others I tinker with toys lol.
yes its infectious,
I'm as excited as you are opening the boxes and im only watching. I had many of those toys but all lost over many years. Seeing many especially the Airfix toys brings back lots of memories. The western Forts i never got any. I remember i did have seperate western buildings like a saloon, sheriff's Office jail i think a bank and they we're 1/32 scale. Pieces just snapped together. Don't remember the brand. But i did have lots of those Hong Kong made cowboys and Indians i collected a lot of in a western town set up back in the day. Its just memories now.😥😥😥👍🇭🇲🦘🐨✌️
I Was an airfix soldier fanatic as a kid in 1970s Wales! I remember having the coastal defence assault set,gun emplacement,pontoon. The Waterloo set was also a brilliant set. All of them are still boxed and up in my mother's attic!!
You need to bring them home :)
Very cool 👍.
I had the king tiger and troop carryer with the little seated figures when I was young.
I had the King Tiger as well. Still have it but the tracks are gone :)
I had this one: loved it a lot. The air-powered rockets were glorious.A 40+ year-old memory risen up from the depths.
Oh wow, me too. What a dredged memory!
I was so excited when I picked up the Iwo Jima set at a garage sale. This brings me back over 40 years, wow!
I had this and loved it. Found it again in my parents attic but the box and play mat were wrecked. Passed all the bits on to my son last year.
I remember playing war with these toy soldiers in the 70s. Hours of fun.
Wow!! Happy memories come flooding back 🥳 Got this for Xmas in the 70’s … and have a very vivid memory of playing it into the night to the point of falling asleep on top 😂 (in 🇮🇸 we do presents in the evening of December 24th) - Man, this is making this +53 year old dude very happy ❤🎉❤
What an awesome christmas present.
wow, I remember having this set, me and my brother would have hours of fun playing with this. Thanks for the trip down memory lane
That rocket launcher goes with one of the landing craft, making it into an LSMR, landing ship medium rocket. Neat piece.
Back in the time when toys were really toys ☺️👍🏼
I had this set as a kid. Thanks for bringing back some happy memories.
As a longtime toy collector I can appreciate this video, I always loved playsets and own a lot of them...
What`s some favorites from your collection?
Love the way you set it up and gave a rundown of the units
I had those bags of army men hanging in grocery store. Also had some tanks, trucks and artillery, both American and German. I played with them well into my teens. Good old 70s toys.
I had this as a kid, so much nostqlgia here.
Yes - they went cheap on this set by including 3 of the standard matchbox war vechiles which were not 1945 vintage. LOVE your grade with 1.72 scale airfix and matchbox tanks. Another great video. Thank you and well done.
Thanks. Yes I think for what this must have cost back then they went a bit cheap. But most of us had enough toy soldiers to get this set up right.
Instead of putting in 3 standard matchbox cars in this set - they could/should have put in 2 matchbox battle tanks that would have worked for that period@@toysoldiernostalgia
That set is amazing fella! Many years spent playing with 1:72 Airfix in the garden with mums knives digging trenches love it. I want one 👍
Wow!! Great memories. Got one of these for a song at a Blue Peter bring and buy sale in about 1978. Great fun!
I am from the interior of Argentina, and I remember that I had three or four boxes of these soldiers, smaller than the other 1/32 scale ones. In Argentina this material was very expensive, logically. So I never dreamed of buying a kit like this one. I mixed scales to assemble the combats, with plastic tanks that were not "imported", synonymous of very expensive. Thanks for your work
Oh, the fun wars we could have at your house hahaha. I used to love my toy soldier sets and I still have some but mine are 90s.
Wow, I remember being amazed by those.
I couldn't afford them.
I remember getting this for Christmas. Such a great set and my go to for years after.
Nice Christmas present. Must have been awesome.
This takes me back! I always wanted one of these sets. I did get one from a family friend which was more generic but better pontoon bridges! Very nostalgic, thanks.
Oh wow, this is really nostalgic! I never had this set, but I remember that Matchbox little tank and OMG, the dinghies! Thanks for sharing!
You´re welcome, glad you liked it. Old toys and memories are pretty cool.
This was.one of the sets, that set me on a lifelong wargames hobby. I sold this set at 12(when i was obviously too old to play wargames anymore) in boot fair for a pound. Along with all the action man, and star wars top collectables. Now at 50, i regret that idiot i was at 12-18, when i sold everything that all 40+ blokes pay well over the odds to get their childhood back!
I don´t think your 12 year old self was an idiot. Who could have known that these toys would hold such a high nostalgic value to us when we got older.
Wow, that's value for money - I would have beenSO excited to get this as a present.
Nice!!!! When I was a kid in the 50's 60's playsets were very popular. I remember having Silver City, Fort Apache, Roy Rogers, gas station, Civil War, Cape Canaveral, etc.
At Christmas time Sears would convert their lawn and garden area to a huge toy store. The would have playsets, train sets, race car sets set up on a large plywood like boards hanging from the ceiling. A wonderful experience.
As an adult I would see these Matchbox and Airfix sets in stores but it just wasnt a thing back then for adults to buy these sets for themselves.
I was also fascinated by the smaller, like 15 mm, toy soldiers.
Wow I would have loved to see those Christmas displays. Sounds amazing.
I had a Civil war set I got from Sears. I think it was called The North vs The South or something like that. Very nice set, very detailed. That was in 1972.
@@toysoldiernostalgia Since then Ive wondered what happened to those displays!!! I thinking maybe some employees kid got them or they were thrown in the trash. Back then I dont recall folks collecting things like toys. Maybe stamps and coins. This would have been even before comics and baseball cards were being widely collected.
@@smith1958b Mine was probably more like 1962. I can still remember walking into the room and seeing how Santa had set up a full battle taking place. Ive always liked that light blue color of the union soldiers.
I had tons of Matchbox cars, like the HotWheels track (yellow) unfortunately with my parents dying when I was 11 and 14, I lost all my precious toys. Inc Scalextrics. Now I see the likes of Bargain Hunt and the cars go for £600 a set 😞 Mind I would swap it all for my mum and dad to be alive… Fantastic nostalgia. Cheers!
That´s a sad story. Sorry. But if you check out Ebay you can find cars and tracks for way less then £600. Go get some and enjoy the nostalgia.
Cheers!
Looks like I missed out on some toy soldier play sets back in 1975 and after. It was mostly soldiers and out of scale plastic vehicles. But I was happy with what I could get. I do remember seeing a big box set at the toy department but it was unknown brand the soldiers was US marines and German infantry with maybe a couple of vehicles and some building walls broken. But I could not buy it. I was too young no one bought it for me. Family members that is. I'm happy to see the unboxing of what I've missed in my younger days. Now I feel like I'm going to go looking for toy soldiers.😊😊😊. Thanks love these videos. Lots of memories brought back of what I once had a lot of.👍🇭🇲🦘🐨✌️
Thank you for the memories. I totally forgot i wanted one of these so badly as a kid. I remember having a plastic mat like that don't remember where it came from but it was a prized possession
Wow, that set is awesome! I had no idea these existed. How have I never seen these before? Probably another Mandela effect 😂
Your like the kid next door that always had the cool matchbox and airfix toys , have a great Christmas mate cheers for the vids 👍🇳🇿
I can tell you I wasn´t that kid back in the 70s. But then again none of my friends were either. So we made do with what we had and dreamed of all the big sets and playsets.
Have a great Christmas you to and thanks for watching, cheers.
My young childhood all in 1 box.
Nice to see it again, although our mum took the air pressure rocket launchers away lol
Must have been an awesome toy to have as a kid.
@@toysoldiernostalgia We was quite a poor family back then but was lucky in another way, our Grandad worked in the Boots shop depot and they always had a big staff sale before xmas, so we always got a matchbox or airfix playset.
Great vids mate and what an amzing collection you have built up!
Mine is vinyl records, addidas trainers and a few airfix kits, I think the lady boss would go mental if I added matchbox lol
Very cool...never had one of these kits...thank you for sharing...born in 1964
I used to have the exact same thing and I had the rail goods yard. My friend had the pearl harbour one. Loads of fun 😁
Cool. I have both those playset. What you call Pearl Harbour is the Seakings play set.
Awesome playset--I was too young for this, but I would have loved it when I was a kid and I'd like to have one now! Thanks!
You should get one for sure.
I would have loved this as a kid, these are more advanced than the sets I had (costal defence, and pontoon bridge) I guess I had grown out of it by the time they arrived.
I did a brief stint as a printer in the 90's and we actually did the transfers/decals for the Airfix kits. I always got a kick out of that.
As a child I dreamed of that set, I had the catalog but I don't think it ever entered my country, very good video!
Thanks man. What country is that?
@@toysoldiernostalgia Argentina, There were many Matchobox products here but I have never seen this set.
lol, love it. I remember having that Tiger tank as a kid.
Love the way you set this up with all the extra figures, awesome👍😊
Kinda just had to check how it would look and that´s what I would have done as a kid.
@@toysoldiernostalgia me too!😊
Wow, I had one of these as a child. Many happy memories of playing with this set. Still got the buildings and trucks etc somewhere in the loft. Thanks for sharing this
Thanks for watching :)
I loved this as a kid, I wish I still had it
Was it fun?
I had this set when I was a child. In the 70's
There really was a multiple rocket launcher that fired from landing craft. It fired a lot more than four, though. It was called 'Hedgerow' and was fired in vast salvos at the beaches on D-Day. It was used to destroy the defences on the beaches, so that landing could proceed. A version was designed to set off mines, using shock waves. Film of it in action shows it to be terrifying. The missiles were launched from larger landing craft, simply because firing them from smaller ships, would have destroyed them.
Cool I didn´t know that.
It was the 'Hedgehog' derived from the naval anti-submarine weapon.
@@christopherfranklin972 - 'Hedgerow' was developed from 'Hedgehog', specifically to destroy beach anti landing defences.
I remember Christmas in early 70’s unwrapping a Sears Roebuck Alamo tin suitcase play set. The large two story Chapel was plastic and had to be assembled along with the main gate, barracks and two canon ramps for two corners (plastic also).
I should have enforced my will too parents to keep but every military move each year or two and they sold toys at yard sale. Besides the Alamo I had a three story Vietnam Firebase with Jeep, sandbags, M2, everything for 1:6 GI Joe. The thing was like 4 feet tall.
I’ve never found either on EBay after years of looking
As a matchbox car collector I’d LOVE to collect this!
@@MisatoBestWoman do it 😀
One of the best kits I ever had fun building and playing with was Aurora's " Rat Patrol" kit. I included 2 Afrika Corps tanks, 2 of the jeeps with 50 call machine guns mounted in back, a bunch of the characters from the TV show molded as soldiers as well as a bunch of palm trees, sand dunes with track marks, etc. This was a great kit for a 10 year old kit to build, paint and play with. Hey, Atlantis, how about a re- release?
I remember playing with that set,I had real trouble getting the roofs to stay on the buildings but I loved it. Also remember having to really hit the 4 barrel cannon to make it rockets fly. 👍😊
Yes it was kinda hard setting the buildings up. Can imagine that they would be easy to knock them or the roofs of while playing. I would probably have used sticky tack when I was a kid. I remember doing that with parts of my Timpo castle that had some broken tabs and didn´t hold together.
Our kids (73 & 74) had loads of Weebles sets.
Just love your passion mate, you are a credit to toy soldier collecting, Merry Xmas Jess from Australia,
Thanks. Merry Christmas to you to :)
The box art in your thumbnail got my attention. Plus you videos are awesome 👏🏻 thank you!
Amazing set! That would keep me busy for years! Sadly I agree, they don’t make toys like this anymore.😢
Thanks and I’m glad you like it. Much more cool play sets coming in the future.
Still got mine and pontoon bridge,costal defence snd gun enplacement all complete played with them every sunday on my mams big table
great video ! i wish Airix would make a reprint of their catalogs of the 1960s and the 1970s, in book form. Just like these books you can buy with the artwork of Airfix kits. Your videos are FAB ! merry xmas and a happy new year to you all !
It would be nice to have all the catalogs in one book. Also a lot cheaper then buying all the catalogs :)
Thanks for watching. God Jul och Gott Nytt År.
Man!...you turned me back in late '70's early '80's!
That´s kinda the point with my channel. So I guess it kinda works :)
I never know the had this. I grew up in the 1970s and had tons of 1/72 scale plastic soldiers, tanks, planes ect, I mean tons. I had the bunkers, the pontoon bridge, and all kinds of stuff but never knew this even existed, and trust me I looked.
It probably wasn`t widely sold and distributed.
This is pretty cool. I was a Star Wars action figure kid.
It's playsets like this that started a lot of people into historical wargaming, back in the 1970's, 1980's & 1990's. 1:76 scale World War 2 wargaming was then seen as the gateway into the hobby, hence the plethora of 1:76 scale WW2 model kits from Airfix, Matchbox, Atlantic, Fujimi, NItto, etc. that were produced to cater to wargamers, back then.
Airfix also created playsets coving the WW2, American Civil War, Riff Wars and Napoleonic's. Airfix also published wargames rule books to cover these playsets.
Today, it's Warhammer 40K that's seen as the gateway into the hobby, though very few progress past it into historical wargaming.
I never got hooked on wargaming back in the 70s for some reason. But early 80s I started playing Squad Leader. These days a play a lot with my son. Everything from Star Wars X-wing to Memoir44, Wings of Glory and Gaslands.
Great fun.
This reminds me of a toy soldier kit I got as a kid for a Christmas many moons ago
Pretty neat set up. The buildings are nice. I love the heavy canon weapon!
As a boy I'd mix Airfix, Matchbox and Atlantic figures all the time for battle scenes. Then, after a while, I started painting them. Then the paint started flaking off so I switched to metal figures...before I knew it, I was convinced by older guys that my toy battles required rules, dice and tape measures. Tanks now had to be glued together and painted. And here I am in 2024 and still gaming with models (not toys anymore).
I had this! It was one of my favourites as a kid
Hi, born in 54, I remember having city scenes in card, that you folded and glued together. One of my favourite childhood memories is making one of those up with my brother and All My Loving was playing on the radio. It was definitely Christmas.
Don’t make them like that anymore….
Great memories.
Matchbox kits rocked in the 70s
My 70s childhood right here!
I wish I had that! My hobby stores didn't carry those. But, I did get some wonderful Atlantic kits.
Are you in the US?
Never seen those kits as a kid,did get the tank and APC individually though.
Back in the day we were told to get out of the house I did have 100's of the larger soldiers and plastic German and US tanks,trucks,etc. and a 40'dia x 20' tall pile of dirt to set up a battle. The lil finger poppers,squibs,firecrackers made for good artillery rounds going off....lol
Set it all up over the afternoon and gather them all up (that you could find) once the sun started to set or maybe the next days "battle".
Yes we could even play with firecrackers back then. Today they'd want to stick them up their........NVM.
I've always wanted this as a kid
I've never heard of these before, not sure if they were released in Canada or not. As a child of the 70's and 80's, I don't remember any of my friends or family members having it but then again my parents were tree hugging hippies so the only "war toys" they would ever buy me were of the "Star" variety. I had to save up my allowance to purchase any and every G.I. Joe figure that I ever owned. 8 year old me would have loved to get this for Christmas!
Definitely worthy of a sub,
Really enjoyed your commentary over the battlefield
Thanks man. It was fun setting that up. If I ever get a cabinett large enough to display this I will set it up like the ultimate kids ”dream” with tons of cool stuff.
I definitely subscribed! Your enthusiasm was great! I personally appreciate anyone who loves their hobby like you do. I used to collect Die-Cast cars until my health deteriorated quite a bit. Plus add to the that the scalpers empty the shelves here every day. I used to love the old army men sets. I actually never had a Matchbox set however. I did have some of their tanks and Die-Cast jeeps. My favorite set was the massive mountain playset. The scales of these were so varied and different it was hard to line up them with one another so I ended up sticking to racing the cars, and having little battles with my army men. This set was very unique and interesting however. I love the tank, the troop carrier truck and boat, and the diorama of the buildings added a definite unique look. I also love to do dioramas as well, painting the buildings, cars, etc. Customization of this set, the building could make this look so much more "real", BUT it takes away from the classic original look of the set, and maybe the value? This was truly a cool set and your review of it was awesome. Thank you for your time and dedication for these types of toys and collectibles. Take care sir and God Bless you.
Thanks you for all your kind words. Yeah this realy is a cool set.
Can I take this opportunity to thank you for your videos through the year. We had very similar tastes in toys in the 1970s. Love your videos and jealous over your collection. Have a great Christmas and I wish you and your family a great Christmas. While you enjoy the snow on 24th and 25th of December - my familiy will be on the beach in Australia. Regards
Thanks a lot man. This year it looks like we actually have snow for Christmas. I remember when I lived in Los Angeles in the 90s and it was beach weather for Christmas. Very surreal for a Swede.
Merry Chrastmas to you and your family. Cheers.
In the rare event you have business in Melbourne - make sure you look me up. @@toysoldiernostalgia
That multi-rocket launcher would work with so many sets and games. I want one!
Hi there! I never had this set, as I liked assembling models and used those, and I burst out laughing when you remarked about how long it would take to set up -- that was half the fun! There was also much discussion about who would be who and what could go where🤣, although this made it easy. Good job! 👍
I totaly agree that setting up is at least have the fun if not more. The problem with set was that the playmat/board was a bit wobbely so the buildings and soldiers kept falling over. If I had this set as a kid I think my dad would probably have mounted it on a wodden board or something like that.
Never knew these sets existed. 😢
Funny video and a great playset. I have never seen that one before.
Glad you liked it.
Brings back fond memories!
⛄