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Addicted-2Diving t1_jcmjifo wrote

Those were well amaze toys. Those Rescue Heroes were an action figure made much like Tonka, heavy duty

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ryaaan89 t1_jcn6g4f wrote

Wow these bring back some memories, I’ll have to see if I still have mine somewhere for my kid.

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PURPLEPONYPRINCESS t1_jcn7pbw wrote

I used to ride around in my tonka dump truck and push myself along with my hands even after I was much too large for it and it never broke or bent. I have them to this day and intend on giving them to my future kids.

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bmwlocoAirCooled t1_jcn99t2 wrote

Worked with a fantastic human at South Pole. His job? Move the snow around.

He once told me "man, I'm living the life! Pushed around sand with my Tonkas, now I get to use a real 'dozer to push snow!"

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TheBirminghamBear t1_jcnbas7 wrote

They also make hands down the most durable dog chew toys I've ever found.

My dog, who destroys quite literally everything, treasures a thick Tonka tire chew toy she's had for years. It's pretty fucked up at this point, but given every other toy has an average lifespan of a week or less, it's endurance is extraordinary

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thavi t1_jcnbt4q wrote

Yeah? You, uh, still playin with these?

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Yoda2000675 t1_jcnekf4 wrote

Tonka and old school Fisher Price are both indestructible

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CuddlyWhale t1_jcnf4ay wrote

Wow, nostalgia just hit me like a ton of bricks. This unlocked a memory in me OP

I had this exact 3 piece set growing up. Some of my earliest memories I can recall in my life are in the driveway with these toys

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Robobvious t1_jcnho0s wrote

As a little kid the Tonka Construction pc game was excellent.

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armcurls t1_jcnmbl2 wrote

The bull dozer has seen some shit

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aarrtee t1_jcnnwec wrote

ahh memories of the early 1960s....

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marktherobot-youtube OP t1_jcno13l wrote

Replying to Citrus075 (#2,259,985)

Yeah it's strange, you'd think people would be able to understand something as simple as "toys are for fun, not kids"

Because that's really what toys are, a source of enjoyment, passion, and even artist expression depending on what you do with them, they aren't for kids, they are for whoever wants to play with them.

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pillowfightr1 t1_jcnqzp6 wrote

I have a metal one that I just give to my kid from when I was a boy!

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Citrus075 t1_jcnsdqr wrote

Replying to Finetales (#2,260,211)

Holy shit lol, I've got like 75 and I thought that was a lot. I mostly collect American muscle cars and a few JDM or other cars that I like. What do you like to collect mostly?

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Pnobodyknows t1_jcny6qm wrote

Target sells some really high quality toys if anyone is trying to find some. Lots of solid wood and sturdy toys made of all metal. I actually just saw a Tonka truck at Target the other day and it definitely felt well made as far as toys go but it definitely wasn't as high quality as it was when i was a kid in the 90s. They replaced a lot of parts with plastic and foam. Still high quality but not what it used to be.

Talking about Tonka trucks brought back some great memories. I remember my friend had this enormous remote control Tonka Crane when i was a kid and man was i jealous of that thing 🤣

I just had a son of my own so maybe i can convince my girlfriend to let me buy one so i can play with it myself

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dizzyelk t1_jco1bra wrote

Look like the old school metal ones. I remember that dump truck, it was the one that I cut the entire bottom of my big toe off when I accidentally kicked it barefoot when I was a kid back in the early 90s.

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Domukin t1_jco1zv2 wrote

Replying to marktherobot-youtube (#2,259,948)

Good for you. I went through a phase during my late teens and 20s where I stopped playing. Life gets in the way, school and work take over and you have less time. Your attention will go elsewhere, and that’s normal. But, when that happens, make sure you keep some of your favorites around - don’t give away or sell all your toys. You’ll eventually want them back and maybe share them with your own kids / nephews / nieces, etc. I regret getting rid of some of my childhood toys but have been able to buy back some favorites.

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Finetales t1_jco40kr wrote

Replying to Citrus075 (#2,260,231)

Well, I've been amassing them since I was a kid. I don't even try to collect a lot or get all of a specific thing, I just go to the store and buy the ones I like once in a while. There are people in way deeper than me who prowl eBay for specific cars they want and spend $20+ on one $2 car. The whole point of collecting Hot Wheels in my view is that it's the ultimate casual, cheap hobby.

I definitely have a lot of sports cars and exotics, but honestly my favorites to find are the ones that are just normal cars you'd see on the street. Right now the only one I actually have out on my desk and not sitting in a box is a fancy Matchbox garbage truck lol.

Also, I take them all out of the packaging. I buy them because I like to look at them, not as an investment. Eventually I want to do a big stop motion video with all of them, but most of the collection stays on the other side of the country from where I live lol.

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You_know_my_name_ t1_jco8inu wrote

Replying to Addicted-2Diving (#2,257,650)

Got our kids rescue heroes toys starting in about 2011, when our daughter was 1. I was old enough that I’d never been aware of them so I was buying them used on eBay for her. The way those toys interacted with each other - think about the airplane getting close to the airport or the castle and the dragon - was amazing. Kids loved them and I loved that they weren’t commercially tied to some cartoon franchise (that I knew of). Then they became imaginext and everything was tied to a tv or movie franchise like every other toy. Ut the kids enjoyed them and I always loved it when they wanted to play with them. Just sold them all to another family last Christmas. Kinda miss having them all around.

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DuelJ t1_jco8qmw wrote

Omg I loved that crane.

This post brought back so many fond memories.

Ill bet its still out back

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Ted_Clinic t1_jco8uxl wrote

I think their financial director in the UK at one time was Allen Carr, the man who helped many thousands of people escape from the addictions of both cigarettes and alcohol. He eventually died of lung cancer. I owe him.

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Tbagjimmy t1_jco9fje wrote

One of my fondest memory of time at my grandmother's when I was a young boy was spent playing with my uncles Tonka trucks

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ApostropheusDeletus t1_jcocgfr wrote

Replying to Citrus075 (#2,259,985)

Wait a few years and you realise nobody is looking at you and that you're just imagining those looks.

Nobody gives a fuck about what a stranger is browsing for at a store and won't give you a second thought the moment they leave the aisle.

They might care if you're trying to mouth fuck the toys or talking to them in low, hushed tones I guess. You uh... You don't do any of that, do you?

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Beauknits t1_jcoh8bc wrote

Growing up, my 2 brothers had matching dump trucks but the metal ones. They used to haul everything in them-their dinners, clothes, groceries, rocks, ...each other. Ever.y.thing.

They used to even ride them down the sledding hill in the summer!

Now, their Nephews and Neices play with them. 20 years later on.

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PabloEdvardo t1_jcoiaqi wrote

the metal would rust to shit if left outside but otherwise definitely

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jaceinthebox t1_jcom8zb wrote

Thanks for reminding me, I need to get my daughter some of these for her sand pit

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Fairycharmd t1_jcoojx3 wrote

The very first gift I bought for my grandson was a metal Tonka dump truck. We used it for some of his Christmas pictures the first year and this year he’s sitting in it wanting to be pushed around when he’s not trying to drive over the dog or a sister or anything else. Here’s hoping that they make them like they used to and I don’t have to go track down Nylint truck.

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Running4Britton t1_jcop8ek wrote

I never thought about it until now… but wow those are well made. Somewhere there exists a picture of 2 year old me straddling that truck, riding it down a grassy hill. I rode it everywhere I could, and where I couldn’t I hauled all of my daily necessities and pushed it. Lots of good times we’re had with that Tonka truck.

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fanboyroy1 t1_jcor1mw wrote

Bro I have the vintage crane still. Boom is all bent up but I works for my 3 year old!

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Kane-Aloha t1_jcoufij wrote

I remember as a child, I was at my grandparents house, and we went to the attic to grab a new plate set out of storage. While up there I saw a large yellow tonka dump truck and brought it down with me to play… shortly after I noticed my grandmother taking pictures of me playing with the truck on her phone, and she said you look just like your dad at that age, and that’s his truck. So truly these toys last for years!

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milescowperthwaite t1_jcow6mg wrote

I'm beginning to have second thoughts about shopping at places like Goodwill. My income has gotten much better and I don't need to find bargains anymore. I've begun to wonder whether I am taking an item that a lower-income person might need or enjoy. They can't afford to shop elsewhere, but I can. We're told that the money goes to services, etc for the poor, but I now believe that I shouldn't buy toys, clothes, shoes from Goodwill because I might be taking something a poorer person needs more than me. What if some low-income mom with her last $20 walked into that store to get a birthday gift for her son, but I just walked out with what she could have really used? I could have bought it elsewhere, even the internet. Am I wrong?

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palehorse95 t1_jcoxquu wrote

Does Tonka still guarantee their line of metal toys for life?

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SirRavenTheFourth t1_jcoydtx wrote

I got the mining truck when I was a little kid and it was the best because you could actually put a bunch of rocks in it and it would still roll around.

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QuiteAffable t1_jcp12ay wrote

I hope you have a lot of fun with them! If you ever have kids they will also love them :)

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tallbeans t1_jcp1wp9 wrote

I have the Tonka bulldozer and crane from when I was a kid but they are both made me metal. True buy it for, multiple, lives

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MistRoot t1_jcp327w wrote

It’s for this reason that I named my tortoise Tonka. Little guy is gonna outlive me, so I thought the name was appropriate. I plan to purchase a Tonka dump truck and push him around in the back of it

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fredapp t1_jcp5w9u wrote

My kids have destroyed so many of these…

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sockmonkeymoney t1_jcp7lhg wrote

The tonka dump truck was one of my favorite toys of all time. Used to love hauling dirt around in it in the yard as a little kid.

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er0730 t1_jcp8r5s wrote

What kind of Goodwill is this. The ones I go to have jacked up their prices on certain merchandise. I’d be paying store price for those toys at the Goodwill I go to. It’s become ridiculous shopping at Goodwill.

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eclipse1498 t1_jcp91b2 wrote

Replying to Citrus075 (#2,259,985)

I am older than that and never get weird looks browsing for hot wheels. I think most people know that some people collect them, it’s not that unusual. Even if they don’t, they’d probably just assume you’re getting a gift for someone.

Keep collecting!

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tramplamps t1_jcpew8f wrote

Replying to jXian (#2,261,314)

I married a man that has some beautiful Star Wars stuff. In fact, that’s how we met. I was having an art opening of my Star Wars paintings, and he showed up in his stormtrooper kit. Never grow up.

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SenTedStevens t1_jcpp0qx wrote

I remember having some Tonka trucks in the 80s-early 90s. They were made almost entirely from metal, like the cab on the dump truck. That was metal. I think the only plastic was the tires and front bumper. We used to take them to the beach to make sandcastles. Not even the salt could kill them. They were invincible even after the paint flaked off and the metal started to turn to rust. I got so many cuts from those trucks. But they still held up. I don't know what happened to them.

We had a dump truck, grader, and a digger.

They looked like this and similar patina:

https://www.vintageaddictions.com/listing/733987968/1980s-pressed-steel-mighty-tonka-diesel

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1015813103/tonka-1989-classic-yellow-grader-tonka

https://www.pinterest.fr/pin/271693789990767699/

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mrp1ttens t1_jcptv2q wrote

Falling down the stairs as a kid while carrying two of the old school metal ones was a foundational experience for me as a person.

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Cpl_Locklear t1_jcpueya wrote

The toys boomers got to play with before buying the factories and turning them into junk for their grandkids.

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stabmydad t1_jcpwngl wrote

These will literally last generations no matter what abuse you put them through. The municipal landfill in my county has a collection in the yard at the main office. Every time a dump worker finds a toy truck, they add it to the collection. They just sit there in the sun and rain, year after year. There are trucks that I remember from going there with my dad as a kid. The paint is a little faded, but the wheels are still there and they could still be played with just fine. Every time I drive past, it brings me back to the times I had with my tonka trucks. It saddens me that the toys my kids connect with don’t even last the year. It’s almost as if planned obsolescence has stolen a part of their childhood

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UnitedCitizen t1_jcq5v3u wrote

Replying to dizzyelk (#2,260,734)

Yeah those old ones were more rugged than the pictured ones. Even had more metal and more details on them, like two rubber exhaust pipes, etc. Even Tonka seems to be cheapening out these days.

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imakesawdust t1_jcsjn2y wrote

Man, I remember when Tonka toys were made of metal...

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