wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 (edited) Hurin, we need more pics! I'm not Hurin but I'm pretty sure this is one of the pics Roger is talking about: this may be another (not as sure about this one of the top of my head): Carl, correct me if I'm wrong on this: There are prototype Gakken Tread/Tleads that were designed for future distribution in Japan and are stamped "Gakken of Japan." Some of these were used for marketing purposes and are decaled up but there's no official Gakken of Japan boxed Tread/Tlead as it never did make it into full production for the Japanese market. Gakken of Singapore however did receive an order from Lansay and shipped a bunch over to France. How much is a bunch? In all likelihood, a "bunch" is pretty darn few but I don't think anyone knows. These toys are all stamped "Gakken of Singapore" though and are almost always what you see up for auction. Yes, that all looks correct to me. I once heard the number 1000 tied to the Lansay order but I really have no way to know if that is correct or not. Another difference I've been told about several times is ALL the Lansay Treads are blue. I've been told the "Made in Japan" versions exist in blue, red, green, and black. The person I bought mine from wanted to also sell me a Red one but he would never send me a picture of it. And there is another well known toy collector that has seen the black Shadow Tread and the 1/72 Shadow Legioss that also was never released. I don't believe he has ever talked about them publically so I'd rather not give his name out and again I personally have never even seen a picture of them. To date I have yet to find someone that has actually seen a green one but I've talked to several that seem sure they are out there. Carl Edited October 24, 2007 by wwwmwww
Roger Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 I guess that depends on what you mean by 'sold'. There are a few Tleads or Treads that I don't think have ever stepped foot in Fance. Mine is one. Check out the picture here: http://macrossworld.com/mwf/index.php?show...mp;#entry337153 Ah, that's what I was wondering about. Thanks. By "sold," I mean actually sold in Japanese toy stores to children. We all know a couple of these walked out the back door at the Gakken offices, but I've never seen one for sale in a store in Japan, or on Yahoo Japan Auctions, with or without Japanese packaging, so for now all we know is that they were sold at retail in France, nowhere else. By the way, how are things going with getting that Mospeada art published? Any updates...No updates, sorry.
wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 (edited) I think this is the kit Roger mentions above: You beat me by 2 minutes... This is the Monocraft kit by the way: Carl Edited October 24, 2007 by wwwmwww
jenius Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 So Carl, does your Japanese Tread/Tlead have a manufacturer stamp at all?
Roger Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 (edited) I'm not Hurin but I'm pretty sure this is one of the pics Roger is talking about:Yep, that's the kit. I think it was bootlegged to high hell over the years, too, but the original manufacturer was Monocraft. EDIT: And I see you posted the box, too! There's the foil license sticker that says "legitimate." ;p I once heard the numer 1000 tied to the Lansay order but I really have no way to know if that is correct or not.It sounds right. Factories that make injection molded styrene stuff won't bother with orders unless they're in the thousands, and it's not cost-effective in small numbers, either.Another difference I've been told about several times is ALL the Lansay Treads are blue. I've been told the "Made in Japan" versions exist in blue, red, green, and black. The person I bought mine from wanted to also sell me a Red one but he would never send me a picture of it. And there is another well known toy collector that has seen the black Shadow Tread and the 1/72 Shadow Legioss that also was never released. I don't believe he has ever talked about them publically so I'd rather not give his name out and again I personally have never even seen a picture of them. To date I have yet to find someone that has actually seen a green one but I've talked to several that seem sure they are out there.I think Matt Alt may be one of the people who you're referring to, and IIRC he told me he saw a red and a black TLEAD. I'm skeptical that the black one was supposed to be a "Dark" version from the final episodes. Tommy Yune told me that the model packs for the Dark Legioss designs were delivered very late in the game, very close to when the final two episodes of MOSPEADA were being animated. I think at this point, it's unlikely that Imai or Gakken intended on producing any more toys from a show that lost so much money for them, and if I had to speculate, I'd think the TLEAD protos that Matt saw were shot in those colors because that's the plastic the factory had on hand (as is the case with most test shots), rather than by design. Matt also saw a box mock-up for the 1/20 Blow Superior, and two die-cast Inbit toys (Gurab and Igaa) that he believed were to be sold alongside the teeny non-transforming ride armors. We tried to find the person who owned these to get pictures for the Super7 article, but unfortunately he is "off the grid." Edited October 24, 2007 by Roger
wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 So Carl, does your Japanese Tread/Tlead have a manufacturer stamp at all? Yes. The picture was in the link I gave Roger above. Here is the picture: Carl
wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 Ah, that's what I was wondering about. Thanks. You are very welcome. By "sold," I mean actually sold in Japanese toy stores to children. We all know a couple of these walked out the back door at the Gakken offices, but I've never seen one for sale in a store in Japan, or on Yahoo Japan Auctions, with or without Japanese packaging, so for now all we know is that they were sold at retail in France, nowhere else. I agree the only place these were ever available for retail seems to be France. There have been 1 or 2 on Yahoo Japan though. I got mine off Yahoo Japan. And I think I even once saw a Lansay Tread on Yahoo Japan. No updates, sorry. Please don't give up. I'd really love to see all that stuff someday. Carl
wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 I think Matt Alt may be one of the people who you're referring to, and IIRC he told me he saw a red and a black TLEAD. I'm skeptical that the black one was supposed to be a "Dark" version from the final episodes. Tommy Yune told me that the model packs for the Dark Legioss designs were delivered very late in the game, very close to when the final two episodes of MOSPEADA were being animated. I think at this point, it's unlikely that Imai or Gakken intended on producing any more toys from a show that lost so much money for them, and if I had to speculate, I'd think the TLEAD protos that Matt saw were shot in those colors because that's the plastic the factory had on hand (as is the case with most test shots), rather than by design. Matt also saw a box mock-up for the 1/20 Blow Superior, and two die-cast Inbit toys (Gurab and Igaa) that he believed were to be sold alongside the teeny non-transforming ride armors. We tried to find the person who owned these to get pictures for the Super7 article, but unfortunately he is "off the grid." Yes, Matt is one of the people I'm referring to. Has he ever released this info publically himself though? If so I haven't seen it. Regarding the black Tread and Legioss being the Shadow design... I simply don't know. Regardless I'd LOVE to see pictures of them someday either way. Same goes for the red and green versions. The Japanese that have these items sure seem to go out of there way to hide them. I wish more Japanese collectors would share pictures of their collections on the web or at least let others take pictures. Carl
Roger Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 Yes, Matt is one of the people I'm referring to. Has he ever released this info publically himself though?When I was writing the Super7 article, he said that I could mention that he handled the protos in case anyone followed up on the subject.The Japanese that have these items sure seem to go out of there way to hide them. I wish more Japanese collectors would share pictures of their collections on the web or at least let others take pictures.Well, you can generalize and say that Japanese folks tend to be private people, but if I had this stuff I probably wouldn't show it off too much, to avoid people pestering me about it all the time.
Totoro242 Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 Yeah, the difference in canopy colors was pointed out to me before and I think the orange color is a result of the light shining through it. Look at it this way: if it's a completely different item than the garage kit shown on the following pages, why didn't they show more of it than just relegate it to a blurry background image? You're assuming the picture was taken for the book For all we know, the picture was taken for promotion or an advertisement in 1984 or 1985.
wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 Well, you can generalize and say that Japanese folks tend to be private people, but if I had this stuff I probably wouldn't show it off too much, to avoid people pestering me about it all the time. I don't really think pestering would be a problem. I have one and went public back before it was widely known that a Gakken Tread even existed. I really enjoyed sharing the pictures and the little article answers 99% of the questions most people would have. Sure I get a few questions emailed to me from time to time but to be honest I see far more questions here in the forums like this very thread for example and I'm always happy to answer. I'm a fan of Mospeada and I enjoy talking with other fans, its that simple. In all this time I've never had to deal with rude emails or comments and everyone has been very friendly. The exchange of info is usually two ways too. For example... shortly after I posted the pictures I was contacted by Yvan who wrote an article for Animeland magazine that you see here: http://www.macrossworld.com/mospeada/lansa...y_tread_toy.htm And he supplied me with that picture from the Lansay catalog that I've already posted in this thread. In short, by sharing info myself I've gained access to info I might not have found otherwise and I've really enjoyed the whole experience. You have gone public with some very rare Mospeada line art... has your experience been any different? Genuinely curious, Carl
wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 My theory is that this is a prototype TREAD that attaches to that prototype non-transforming Legioss. Scale is unknown. I'll post pics later of the prototype Legioss. Please don't forget to post those pics. I'm really eager to this prototype Legioss you are talking about. Thanks, Carl
Roger Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 You have gone public with some very rare Mospeada line art... has your experience been any different?Yes, and to be quite honest if circumstances were different I never would have gone public with it. But that's water under the bridge now.
wwwmwww Posted October 24, 2007 Posted October 24, 2007 Yes, and to be quite honest if circumstances were different I never would have gone public with it. But that's water under the bridge now. I'm sorry to hear that. What you have there is a real treasure. Its so easy for a few rotten apples to ruin the basket for everyone. I hope you are able to push on and find a way to share the fruits of all the hard work you've put into this. I can assure you true fans will appreciate it. Carl
Hiriyu Posted November 3, 2007 Posted November 3, 2007 Please don't forget to post those pics. I'm really eager to this prototype Legioss you are talking about. Thanks, Carl Bump... Any progress, Totoro?
Lynx7725 Posted November 3, 2007 Posted November 3, 2007 Well, back to topic -- the auction did not go for $565. Hmm..
Totoro242 Posted November 4, 2007 Posted November 4, 2007 Bump... Any progress, Totoro? Oh, I'm notoriously bad about scanning stuff and posting it I've been super busy with ebay stuff lately, but I will try and get to it this week. I have about 60 anime mags to flip through so its gonna take some time
Totoro242 Posted November 4, 2007 Posted November 4, 2007 (edited) Okay, I really should be on my ebay stuff, but here they are... Edited November 4, 2007 by Totoro242
jenius Posted November 5, 2007 Posted November 5, 2007 Are those just super early prototypes of the 1/35 Legioss and the 1/8 Ride Armor?? Interesting stuff no matter what they are, thanks for the scans!
wwwmwww Posted November 5, 2007 Posted November 5, 2007 Very very interesting. Thanks for following up and posting the scans. Carl
Totoro242 Posted November 5, 2007 Posted November 5, 2007 Are those just super early prototypes of the 1/35 Legioss and the 1/8 Ride Armor?? Interesting stuff no matter what they are, thanks for the scans! Its hard to say. The Fighter and Diver have more in common design-wise with the 3-mode 1:55 scale Legioss than the 1:35:
nightmareB4macross Posted November 5, 2007 Posted November 5, 2007 If you look closely at the figure, you'll note that the joints that allow it to transform between modes, are actually not there. This is more of a puzzle Legioss that required removal and replacement of parts. I'm guessing this is the 1/55 version that transformed only between soldier and diver. ***Look for the swiveling shoulder joints. Nice pics BTW, thanks for sharing.
jenius Posted November 5, 2007 Posted November 5, 2007 looks to big to be 1/55 scale. I'm thinking it really must just be a toy that evolved into other toys... like maybe the 1/35 takes some elements and the 1/55 2x changer takes others.
Totoro242 Posted November 5, 2007 Posted November 5, 2007 If you look closely at the figure, you'll note that the joints that allow it to transform between modes, are actually not there. This is more of a puzzle Legioss that required removal and replacement of parts. I'm guessing this is the 1/55 version that transformed only between soldier and diver. ***Look for the swiveling shoulder joints. Nice pics BTW, thanks for sharing. I personally think its 3 different toys, none of which transform. Look at the decals between all 3. None are the same.
Totoro242 Posted November 5, 2007 Posted November 5, 2007 looks to big to be 1/55 scale. I'm thinking it really must just be a toy that evolved into other toys... like maybe the 1/35 takes some elements and the 1/55 2x changer takes others. You can see the Soldier model on the table and its easily 1:35 scale if not larger. The other two modes (fighter and diver) have nothing for size reference. the gun looks the sameas the Soldier model, but they share very little else design-wise.
jenius Posted November 6, 2007 Posted November 6, 2007 Okay, I think I'm leaning back to my original hypothesis that this is some sort of 1/35 prototype. Here's my thinking. If you look at the Ride Armor toy that clearly is a 1/8 prototype pic. There are certain details that give it away like the yellow circles in the boots and the articulation of the rider. Now, the arrows have to indicate transformation but the prototype bike-mode Ride Armor doesn't look like it can transform (close, but there are some elements missnig from the final version). So, on the other side of the page, I think we're seeing the same sort of situation with the Legioss. I agree that it's three different mock-ups but I believe it's sort of a teaser. "We're making a large scale toy that will transform into all three modes and look roughly like this in each mode." Back to the original photograph though, I think you might be right and we might be seeing this legioss fighter mock-up attached to an incomplete Tread mock-up.
akim Posted November 24, 2007 Posted November 24, 2007 (edited) Hello, seen on Mandarake: Thanks. akim. Edited November 24, 2007 by akim
Ignacio Ocamica Posted November 24, 2007 Posted November 24, 2007 Wow, thanks for those scans, never seen them!!!
Roger Posted November 25, 2007 Posted November 25, 2007 Those are cool. That sheet with the Inbit in the corridor looks like it's from the final episode.
Totoro242 Posted November 26, 2007 Posted November 26, 2007 (edited) Nice! Some of those insignias and emblems ended up as artwork on the Mospeada DVD cases I'll scan them when I get a chance... Edited November 26, 2007 by Totoro242
Recommended Posts