Picked up a couple of weeks back from ebay a set of the Thunderbirds Mechanic Collection by F-Toys. I grew up watching some episodes of that 60's hit by Gerry & Sylvia Anderson known as the Thunderbirds.
In the show, the Thunderbirds are a secret group more commonly known as International Rescue who go about saving people (and sometimes the world) from disasters. One reason why it still appeals to me now is because of the mature storyline of the show.
Set B of the collection was the iconic Thunderbird 2 flown by Virgil Tracy. Thunderbird 2 served as the general purpose transport of International Rescue, ferrying needed equipment for each mission. This set can be combined with Set E which consists of Thunderbird 2's Pod 5 and Thunderbird 1 along with the drilling vehicle and 2 rescue vehicles. The pod at the belly of Thunderbird 2 can be detached like in the movie by pressing down at the top with your finger and gently sliding it down.
I have to point out that these aren't toys, but rather display models. The miniscule size means that it can easily be broken (as I have experienced) or parts detached. Also the edges of the wings of Thunderbird 2 are pretty sharp, so I'd take extra caution when handling this. Despite that I can't help but say that I am truly impressed with the craftsmanship and details that F-toys put in these models
I bought this off an ebay seller in HongKong and the boxes that they were in were stuck together using packaging tape and stuffed in a mail envelop. Thankfully the display toys was placed by F-toys in a vacuum plastic container so it wasn't easily crushed. The condition of the box box however is not something you can be proud of. The contents however came out okay despite the packaging condition, still if you are picky about your toy boxes, I wouldn't recommend purchasing from them.
One other thing I found amusing about this display toy is that it came with a small piece of chewing gum in a plastic wrapper. The first time I saw it I thought it was chewing gum but then thought, "naaah", why would they do that? Its probably desiccant silica gel to keep moisture out. Only when I saw the product page did I realize that it really was chewing gum. Still, I wouldn't go about consuming it because I don't know how long this toy has been in storage so as to ascertain the age of the chewing gum.
