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The American Wild West
Other Playset Themes|
Marx Playset Figures, Structures,
and Accessories of the American Wild West Manufactured from 1951 to 1980 (now with added pages for other playset themes) Table of Contents |
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| Introduction to Collecting Marx Toy Soldiers |
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from
leaking out (hopefully) and painted the top with a can of light brown
paint I had in the garage. Painting is one of my least favorite
things, but I kind of enjoyed this job, as preciseness was not a
requirement. The paint is just to provide a backing for the sand
in any thin spots, so I pretty much slopped it on with a brush.
My sealing job was not all too swift either, and I'm sure anyone
seeing it would never allow me to caulk their bathtub. But it
does the job...and will be covered with sand. Actually, I think I
could be a good table top painter, as long as I didn't have to paint
anything else. If I decide to put on a second coat --which I
won't! -- I'll probably just pour the paint out and spread it around a
little! Anyhow, the table is now in its proper place and ready
for the sand, and I hope to get that in the last weekend of the month.
I still need to do a little "finishing" work and paint the rest
of the table, but otherwise it will be ready for the toy soldier stuff.
Update as of 1-30-12:
The sand is on the table, so I can finally start experimenting
with how a display might look. I used play sand from Home Depot. No rush now, just idle
play until I get it "right." (Needs a little paint around
the edges there!)
toy
soldiers on Ebay is December...when everyone else is spending their
money on Christmas presents! I've been looking for a Marx 60mm
Captain Hook with sword still attached to the base for a few years.
My experience is that they are hard to find. So when I
recently saw one on Ebay with what looked like an attached sword --
though that was not mentioned in the write-up -- along with one other
Marx cartoon character, I put in a bid. And I won them for $12
(including postage). When they arrived, I found that not only was
the sword attached, but they were in what I would call near mint
condition. So I thank Ebay seller the300spartans for letting
me have Hook so inexpensively! 
often enough to go much faster. And there are lots more things to do out there also -- chopping down overgrown bushes,
getting rocks out of the would-be yard, dropping by Starbucks, etc.
Two of the three shelves in the front area have been added, as
well as the floor-level shelf in the back. The specific playset
items I have added to the table for the time being are discussed with
close up photos on a separate page,
as well as notes on my proposed work on them if they actually make it
into the final display. I welcome any ideas that might add
to or improve the steup! What I really need to do now is caulk
the side boards to make sure the sand does not leak out onto the rug
and then add sand to the top. At that point, I guess, the "fun"
work starts. I have done very little work on model buildings, so
it will be a challenge for me. I also still hope to add more
facing on the sides of the table and do a little painting to make it a
bit more presentable as a piece of furniture rather than a toy table.
A work of art it isn't, but it seems to be practical and
presentable. 
a reasonable
job in completing it. If all goes well, I will have it ready to
start adding scenery, buildings, and toy soldiers by the end of this month (November 30). If you want to read and see a few more specifics about it, click here.
It's in sort of a modified U shape with the longest side
measurements about six feet (to the left in the photo) and 5-1/2 feet
(at back of the photo). Widths of those long branches are about
2-1/2 feet, allowing me to reach every area on the table except for
perhaps that upper left corner. I'm thinking about placing a
removable scenic piece there with a 90-degree-angle at its back side in
the corner. I plan to add a shallow covering of sand to the table
and use various scenic pieces (both bought and self-made), so that I
can easily change the display as desired.A couple of sort of toy soldier-related cartoons popped
up in the newspaper one recent Tuesday that I just have to distribute
here. My apologies to Russell Myers (of the comic Broom Hilda) and
Wise and Aldrich (of the comic Real Life Adventures). In my mind, these
are just too appropriate to not include here. |
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| One of these guys is me. Who's the other one? | Marx Johnny Ringo Figure, Year 2050 |
