Birthday gift, 1984 Ravage and Rumble mint on sealed card

Dylan · Post by **Dylan** » Fri Jul 24, 2009 9:15 am

Hey friends,

For my 31st birthday today, my father gave me a 1984 original Ravage and Rumble two-pack, mint on sealed card.

Now if it were a reissue, I'd open it right away and play with these cassettes. I have been searching for Ravage for years and years, so it finally comes full circle.

But with a 1984 original in pristine condition... would that be the right thing?

Any and all input welcome, thanks!

Dylan

stranger · Post by **stranger** » Fri Jul 24, 2009 1:41 pm

Are you sure its an original. The only reason I ask is because there are a lot of Knock Off's of this very set knocking around, and the differences aren't easy to spot.

If it is original... I'd leave it on card, and buy and knock-off and open that.

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Fri Jul 24, 2009 1:45 pm

WOW, your father sure appreciates your hobby!

Btw - I wish you a happy birthday

I wish my parents were that accepting - I had my 31th birthday on 22th July, but the only TFs I will get will be from my also-collector friend.

As for what to do with the toys? AFA Grade them, then put them on your shelves and treasure them!

If you want Ravage and Rumble loose, you can get the original 1984 ones for a few bucks (they usually go for 15$ complete) on Ebay. Or, buy the upcoming Soundwave 25th anniversary set - that'll have Ravage, Laserbeak, Buzzsaw and Ratbat (the latter is a pain to get for cheap, due to the easily missing ears a G1 Ratbat is usually 70$ complete. I had to settle for a 15$ G1 Ratbat with the KO chinese reissue's ears myself).

Dylan · Post by **Dylan** » Fri Jul 24, 2009 8:04 pm

Hey BB Shockwave!

First of all - belated happy birthday to you! Awesome to hear that we're so close together, agewise.

Then - thanks for your commentsa, they help me understand a little bit more. I had not yet heard of the AFA Grade system. Seems like the site is currently being redone, so I'll have to wait a bit longer.

To be honest, I am not quite sure what I should do. It does feel like a time capsule - an artifact from 25 years ago, in pristine condition.

Thanks again for your advice though! Anyone else with a hint?

Dylan · Post by **Dylan** » Fri Jul 24, 2009 8:07 pm

stranger wrote:Are you sure its an original. The only reason I ask is because there are a lot of Knock Off's of this very set knocking around, and the differences aren't easy to spot.

If it is original... I'd leave it on card, and buy and knock-off and open that.

Howdy stranger!

How would I find out if it's an original? Are there any tell-tale signs I should be looking for? The package seems genuine, including the stats on the back etc. As for the toys, haven't inspected them up close just yet. The rub signs are probably on their other sides, so not visible in the bubble.

Looking forward to hearing more!

stranger · Post by **stranger** » Fri Jul 24, 2009 10:11 pm

With the cassettes there is very little to pick out on the fakes, that gives them away as being such. The sheer number of them available means that if the card is sealed, and in good condition, then law of averages will say its a fake. It's just they outnumber the original sealed specimens that exist today. If you dad paid a price that seemed too good to be true, then its probably was. But even then, that doesnt mean they weren't sold as originals... these are probably the hardest knock-offs to identify without having an original to compare them against.

Dylan · Post by **Dylan** » Sat Jul 25, 2009 8:51 pm

Thanks for the heads-up. Still, tough call to make! In the end, I think I will open the package anyway and transform and play with Ravage for the first time in some 25 years!

stranger · Post by **stranger** » Sat Jul 25, 2009 10:09 pm

Dylan wrote:Thanks for the heads-up. Still, tough call to make! In the end, I think I will open the package anyway and transform and play with Ravage for the first time in some 25 years!

Yeah, I'd just enjoy them regardless. Ravage is still one of my favorite figures...

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:20 pm

Thanks Dylan!

As for how to pick up the fakes - I bought a KO Ratbat/Rumble set, the easily noticable things are:

-The card seems like it's just been printed, no dents whatsoever

-The glue holding the bubbles on the card is very weak and even without touching it can come loose.

But if you go to TFW2005, they have a topic somewhere that compares originals with KOs, just run a search! I just checked the one which compares KO G1 Shockwave with the original (the most glaring difference is the silver eye instead of gold). Oh and Grimlock is also very easy to pic out - the Chinese accidentally put "Dinobot Bommander" (SIC!) on his box and tech specs...

Jazz to moon base 2 · Post by **Jazz to moon base 2** » Thu Dec 10, 2009 9:47 pm

Dylan wrote:Thanks for the heads-up. Still, tough call to make! In the end, I think I will open the package anyway and transform and play with Ravage for the first time in some 25 years!

Good for you! I understand that the idea of keeping them mint on the card is to keep them just that, mint. No lost pieces or broken ears if you don't open them, but it's a TRANSFORMER! Enjoy them! And as an adult collector I'm sure you'll enjoy them responsibly. The two figures that got me back into collecting are RiD Optimus and Magnus. I bought them sealed last month and opened them right away! You just can't resist making them into Omega Prime!