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Mr Atomic Box


NovoRobo

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Hi!I've acquired a Mr.Atomic Box.How do i tell if it is an original or a MTH reproduction that came with that repro robot.thanks.a novice collector!

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An original box will look old (55 years old). It will have worn spots, dents and scratches. It will smell "old". That musty, old basement/attic/closet smell.

The MTH repro will look (and smell) new, unless of course, it has been artificially and unscrupulously "aged". It was released in 1994.

A photo of what you have will help tremendously. Any chance you could post one? 

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Looking at my original, this one looks a bit too high contrast on the robot images. Contrast often goes up when images are reproduced. The box is whiter too, though that could just be better storage. I'd have to climb up in my attic to get out the reproduction boxes, but at first look I'd guess it's one of those. I've never seen the Osaka ones, so I don't know if they're different at all from the MTH.

 

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The Osaka box is easy to spot, David:

mr atomic box otti.jpgmr atomic box cragstan.JPG

On the lid, lower left hand corner, is printed Osaka Tin Toy Institute the TIN AGE collection. The original and MTH versions have the Cragstan wording.

My first impression, NovoRobo, is that this is a MTH reproduction. It looks in too good a shape to be an original. For one thing, the staples appear much too shiny.

BTW, how does it smell???

 

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I believe this is an original:

https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/51457939_japanese-battery-operated-mr-atomic-robot

Compare that box to yours:

mr atomic box original.jpgmr atomic box nr.jpg

Perhaps the definitive "tell" is, again, that lower, left hand corner of the box. Look at the word Cragstan.

On the original the print is thinner; more delicate. The top of the letter C comes closer to the edge of the red background. The tail end of the letter N is longer.

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Hi Joe and David,Thanks both for your input.I suspected it was a reproduction box by MTH. I bought it on line for a small sum as a speculation .It will come in useful if i ever get a Mr Atomic.Speaking of which how much would I need to spend to pick up an original Mr.Atomic in very good working condition?Many thank.

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My original box is like the one on the left, though mine's in better shape! I wonder if it was ever as white as the reproduction. I think the lack of warmth makes it less appealing. Can't you get a pretty good original at this point, when you're lucky for a couple of thousand? If you want a good box it's probably six or eight. I haven't paid much attention since I got mine back.

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Burn the box, if the flame is blue, it's a repro, if it's red, start crying to take out the fire.

 

 

The Day of the geek......................Xris

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Does the Osaka Mr. Atomic run any better than the MTH version? My MTH versions just run in little short circles - always have. They don't get going long enough to bump into anything.

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Osaka ones drives straight into Fukushima central & must be removed from the chessboard because of the radioactive:cheers:beer they share with most of the european dromers, more seriously, the Osaka has a good mystery action, a tad better(more vehemous) than the original one

 

Geek²

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