New Tonka Off Roader

Grandma had this just lying in the garage. She said I could have it.



First a quick size/scale check.



Looks good so far.

I cleaned one seat (before I clean the while thing).



And it fits just right. She's getting a thorough cleaning now. Watch this post.

Its a 1978 Tonka Mighty Adventure Buggy.

What a terrific addition to the motorpool!. They are terrific vehicles, I have the same one . I am sure the lads will enjoy many an adventure in the future in their new off roader!

Looks fantastic! But... clean it? Nooo.... looks ready for rugged adventure just like that!

Treasures from Grandma's Garage, I love it! Possibly a childhood leftover from an uncle or cousin?

Cracking find AY !

Really great vehicle - not sure I saw those back in the day

SCU_HQ wrote:

Looks fantastic! But... clean it? Nooo.... looks ready for rugged adventure just like that!

I am NOT putting my Joes and AM in that filthy thing.
I cleaned the one seat Rodge sat in just for the scale check. This thing is CaKeD in 40 years or so of Farm dust.

Relatively clean now. Good enough to put my guys in without worrying about ruining their unis.

Just some detail cleaning now.


At any rate, she's got some adventure scars and scuffs, which will be left as is. And I want to figure out how to mount the spare on the back. It is steel, so maybe magnets?

Nice work Ian! the bumps and scratches add to its character!

Okay, you're right, the clean-up was a good idea. Now the real scrapes and scratches and wear and tear show up. So it still looks suitably rugged!
Nice rig! You'll have some fun with this one!

The Mighty Tonka Adventure Buggy is pretty sweet, though I’m a tad biased!



-Nate

I used to have the blue and red street tire versions too.




-Nate

The appearance of those Tonka rigs is growing on me! I would have loved to have one when I was a kid in my prime Joe years! That vehicle strikes the right balance between "toy-like" and "realistic" to be a lot of fun while still being durable and not something you have to worry about damaging or losing parts from.

Amazing that they are approximately the correct scale! 
I have a few other vintage Tonka Trucks but they are definitely a little too small for 1/6 figures.
And although the internet tells me that they are quite valuable, they all seem to lack any interior detail at all.

Scouring eBay for one of these as we speak!

ActionYankee wrote:

At any rate, she's got some adventure scars and scuffs, which will be left as is. And I want to figure out how to mount the spare on the back. It is steel, so maybe magnets?

Might I suggest you use the translucent silicone that is made for sealing guttering etc. ?

I use this stuff to hold things together, specially when there might be the occasion in the future that I want to part them again.
Dob it on where it won't show and let it set. Holds just about anything very firmy but it is quite easy to part the components and rub off the silicone any time you wish.
And it will stand up to a bump, which is important if you want to take the jeep outside for adventure.

ActionYankee wrote:

At any rate, she's got some adventure scars and scuffs, which will be left as is. And I want to figure out how to mount the spare on the back. It is steel, so maybe magnets?

The spare tire originally went (Along with a gas can and the Jack) in a plastic cage that fit on the back. The setup looked like this.



Both of mine are missing the cage and jack. One still has the spare tire; the other has the gas can. I just put them in the space behind the seats.

-Nate

I have a couple of these, they are great 1/6 vehicles. The first one I got was the black one, the decals unfortunately were beat
up so much that I removed them. I haven't done anything else, I thought the scrapes would make it look like it had been used
heavily off-road.





The second is the Chevron version, which the post will not let me share at this time.

Daryl

I agree Daryl, they are fantastic off roaders! I have the black one also, which I took the decals off too

Nice offroaders Daryl!
Cool thread! Have enjoyed all the photos!

Pretty Cool.

I didn't know about these until this year. Watvhing the commercial on YouTube is more proof of how great toys "used to be". They literally say, you can use it "for dolls or those large action figures".

Like two different toy companies that made different products, and one comes out with something that kids can use with their other toys??!! Genius!

Like where has this genius gone? Or right, into coding and animating the next Call of Duty mind mush game... BOOOORING.

ANYWAY. Rant over.

I need to get me one of these buggies and maybe a Tonka Hummer to go with it.

I forgot to do another post with the Chevron version. This one was in great shape when I got it, and if I remember
correctly I won it for $15 on the bay, as nobody else bid on it. I got it some years ago.




This one had the rear rack with the spare and gas can, but it didn't have the jack.

One going here on eBay that seems to be complete, (rack, spare and jack)....unfortunately shipping to Oz is too rich for me!

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Vintage-Tonka-Jeep-Bronco-4X4-Steel-Black-Gold-Tan-Jerry-Can-Rear-Rack-MR-970/274572460106

Here's one that's not too far away from me and is already pre-rusted. It seems like a tempting piece for a post-apocalyptic conversion.

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Vintage-Large-Tonka-Bronco-Jeep-SUV-Black-Pressed-Steel-Metal-Truck-MR-970/164515384913?_trkparms=ispr%3D1&hash=item264de18e51:g:w3QAAOSwZzNfsYx3&amdata=enc%3AAQAFAAACoBaobrjLl8XobRIiIML1V4Imu%252Fn%252BzU5L90Z278x5ickkfOCvCjTOBWK8pwriaolq5lad2vStQeOnRpgrhwaASUWIXcPMEXX%252FXL6n6Pd2aT3yBZ5MTqqXwX%252Fk%252FnBQk%252FpN%252Bm8S902L10dwRcm2uTZm4cPbKvT37I1eV%252B7vJ0M%252FYCgjw6QwMcxNKinfectErjov16uNJxoYeXkOHq1kY1Am3uH9HtELQr9JCl0%252FNxWcA86TpKg%252FCV%252FRYro2lDf1z7nwuhOkL1kJrV59dglZtGzmDyOt9YbDKxuRMxqijlbUgyMh16fGs3GE5iT9pEv19l2HLmPh2rr1JVF5s1e497Sb9kQfcS47Xe%252Fqccew3r8CMyoDIeK8I%252FHbqvHwF%252F3ee4KpmByLh%252F5BYTKzfvUo%252F4KPjefkrUb%252FkQS9Lo5UCBeMWRWXNYKQOaLRmULwRSJTHBXR%252Fgm%252F1z8lxG%252FZPcUjWKnvZ6jIDNTYsut0qxc4OHgQzLKf4rN6eyfN%252FozgmG0Uvg2GDByhV7uMLapA3SnTaWJAbe8iS1vx9es%252BHh4Urg9WEWZErAJA%252BTgpErGMbQX%252Fd3tB5zi7ew2m2Yut7Z9OfZ7StKLz%252B%252FHLQ9n2Xohygktv8whyJSmF2alzU2xeSnlAV%252BoswzvKTdnpFYYryPTDrL1f%252F1jtOSlAVwkWLAAHwSQcVAdjpvNL0yOhslaqM0E1lCmYNs%252BzpmFeKiBec6DtGCyrWDCVWjPCtvt8YG0rP%252FeMFRjZDm8JItD%252BQFINQePMxNo%252FfkkQsLmD7g0Jfkz3EdfNMrnOKyPfXvwFbxWSXrHHhntIXT6qLMc8I6%252BfTpvz9%252FHd2YloUUinUFs2irCG0XM9S6%252BagXPmAFnMw4QMopKeJa%252BHC84XP4R0RHPo9IIv8aBRLw%253D%253D%7Ccksum%3A164515384913b24691e45583438596b7c638be7e1c78%7Campid%3APL_CLK%7Cclp%3A2334524

It's "make an offer" too! 
I've usually done quite well with those!

Kimono Troop Command wrote:

Here's one that's not too far away from me and is already pre-rusted.  It seems like a tempting piece for a post-apocalyptic conversion.  

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Vintage-Large-Tonka-Bronco-Jeep-SUV-Black-Pressed-Steel-Metal-Truck-MR-970/164515384913?_trkparms=ispr%3D1&hash=item264de18e51:g:w3QAAOSwZzNfsYx3&amdata=enc%3AAQAFAAACoBaobrjLl8XobRIiIML1V4Imu%252Fn%252BzU5L90Z278x5ickkfOCvCjTOBWK8pwriaolq5lad2vStQeOnRpgrhwaASUWIXcPMEXX%252FXL6n6Pd2aT3yBZ5MTqqXwX%252Fk%252FnBQk%252FpN%252Bm8S902L10dwRcm2uTZm4cPbKvT37I1eV%252B7vJ0M%252FYCgjw6QwMcxNKinfectErjov16uNJxoYeXkOHq1kY1Am3uH9HtELQr9JCl0%252FNxWcA86TpKg%252FCV%252FRYro2lDf1z7nwuhOkL1kJrV59dglZtGzmDyOt9YbDKxuRMxqijlbUgyMh16fGs3GE5iT9pEv19l2HLmPh2rr1JVF5s1e497Sb9kQfcS47Xe%252Fqccew3r8CMyoDIeK8I%252FHbqvHwF%252F3ee4KpmByLh%252F5BYTKzfvUo%252F4KPjefkrUb%252FkQS9Lo5UCBeMWRWXNYKQOaLRmULwRSJTHBXR%252Fgm%252F1z8lxG%252FZPcUjWKnvZ6jIDNTYsut0qxc4OHgQzLKf4rN6eyfN%252FozgmG0Uvg2GDByhV7uMLapA3SnTaWJAbe8iS1vx9es%252BHh4Urg9WEWZErAJA%252BTgpErGMbQX%252Fd3tB5zi7ew2m2Yut7Z9OfZ7StKLz%252B%252FHLQ9n2Xohygktv8whyJSmF2alzU2xeSnlAV%252BoswzvKTdnpFYYryPTDrL1f%252F1jtOSlAVwkWLAAHwSQcVAdjpvNL0yOhslaqM0E1lCmYNs%252BzpmFeKiBec6DtGCyrWDCVWjPCtvt8YG0rP%252FeMFRjZDm8JItD%252BQFINQePMxNo%252FfkkQsLmD7g0Jfkz3EdfNMrnOKyPfXvwFbxWSXrHHhntIXT6qLMc8I6%252BfTpvz9%252FHd2YloUUinUFs2irCG0XM9S6%252BagXPmAFnMw4QMopKeJa%252BHC84XP4R0RHPo9IIv8aBRLw%253D%253D%7Ccksum%3A164515384913b24691e45583438596b7c638be7e1c78%7Campid%3APL_CLK%7Cclp%3A2334524

They are a great little vehicle Gary! well worth an offer. I reckon it could be ideal for a conversion too!

Well, I made an offer of $65.00 which I still think is over-paying for a rusty toy in that condition, but we'll see what the seller says. He had no luck at all selling it $100.00 dropped the price down once already. I think he was dreaming in Technicolor. I doubt any toy collector or Tonka collector would have payed anything like that much for something in that condition. The only reason I'm willing to pay the amount I offered is that i would convert it to a post apocalyptic mad-maxian survival vehicle. See some of the designs in the link for inspiration.

https://fzdschool.com/blog_posts/for-students-contained-sets