BEWARE: REPROS FOR 17 YEARS – ATOMIC ROBOT MAN

By Judith Coebly, Plank Road #236
If you think you bought an original robot but ended up having a repro, you will go into space. The value could be $1000.00 or $20.00. Even this post-war toy can fool you. How can you determine if you paid for an original but have a repro? You must study the details. As has been said, the truth is in the details.

SIZE: The original robot is smaller – being only 5 inches tall. If your “antique” is any larger, you know it is a repro.

MARKING: Since the original manufacturer is unknown, some originals have “Made in Occupied Japan” on the left side. The newer Robot Man is distributed by Schylling.

COLORS: The majority of the originals have 2 colors. The body and legs are one color and the arms and head are another. Original bodies are usually khaki with gray arms and heads. The new toys have red bodies.

GADGES AND DIALS: If your Atomic Man has 5 dials it is a repro-the original has 3. Even the location of the dials is different. The original has its dial on the right side – the dial on the repro was moved to the left side.

BOXES: (a) The boxes of the repro do not match the contents. The repro boxes show the dial on the correct side but the toy inside has the dial on the wrong side. (b) There are no UPC codes on the original boxes. (c) The new boxes have child warning labels – never found on the original box.

KEY: The original Robot Man has a plain stamped key. The repro keys are embossed with the distributor's name “Schylling”. Beware!!! Some sellers have changed the key.

REMBEMBER TO STUDY ALL THE DETAILS

The popularity of the vintage toys such as Robot Man leads itself to reproductions. A Quester needs to search for the details on line, in the library and vintage toy books. Research is the key in determining original or fake (reissue/reproduction). References available upon request.