JoeCanuck

so, you're saying new stuff every day, and you've been showing off an average 2 custom figures a day, you seriously done sixty of these guys?! WOW. mad props for all that work!

Thanks man. After today, I have 3 more Action Pilots (1 tomorrow and 2 on Monday). Since the tribute is for the 1964-1976 years, the first half of the project is more figure heavy. Starting next week, the focus will gradually shift to the Adventure team, so the emphasis will be more on the vehicles and playsets. There will be figures, but fewer of them. That being said, at last count, the project includes about 46 figures (18 of which have been revealed) and a dozen vehicles (1 has been revealed so far - the 5-Star Jeep).

OB

50th Anniversary Day 10: Medic and Tank Commander

When GI Joe was released in the summer of 1964, the product line became an instant hit. Little boys were buying up all 4 basic action figures as well as various uniform, gear and accessory sets that Hasbro released. Hasbro followed up this first year by release yet more accessory sets in 1965. Some of these were to outfit Action Marine into a field medic. This custom represents Action Marine outfitted with the First Aid (7721) and Marine Medic (7719) sets.

The Tank Commander set was released in 1967 and was one of the last equipment sets made for Action Marine. It included a brown jacket, helmet with green goggles, a 30-caliber machine gun with tripod, a jerry can and a portable radio.

Enjoy!

OB

It's classic GI Joe. I had Raginspoon make a cast of the original head and shrink it, so it is identical to the original 1964 head.

OB

Thanks guys! 

50th Anniversary Day 8: Action Marine

The third of the four services, Action Marine represented the Marine Corps. During development, Action Marine was nicknamed Rocky. Like Action Soldier and Action Sailor, the basic Action Marine (7700) came with minimal gear. Released in 1964, the set included a camouflaged uniform, the fatigue cap, dog tags, rank insignia and Marine manual.

Like his counterparts from the other services, a plethora of different accessory sets were made available to outfit Action Marine. For this project, I decided to recreate a few of the most popular. This custom represents an Action Marine outfitted with the Paratrooper Helmet (7707), the Beachhead Field Pack Set (7713) and the Beachhead Rifle Set (7717).

Enjoy!

OB

50th Anniversary Day 6: Shore Patrol and Navy Frogman

The Navy Shore Patrol Set (7612) was initially offered in 1964 to dress up your Action Sailor. The set included a jumper, pants, kerchief, sea bag, armband, pistol belt, pistol and billy stick.

Also available for Action Sailor in 1964 was the Navy Frogman set (7602). This kit included a 3-piece scuba suit, swim fins, facemask, scuba tanks, depth gauge, dynamite and a knife and scabbard.

Enjoy!

OB

50th Anniversary Day 4: Five-Star Jeep

With the success of the first GI Joe line in 1964, Hasbro released the Official GI Joe Jeep the following year. It originally retailed for 10$ (a lot of money in 1965) and included several features:
-   Trailer with working searchlight
-   Rocket Firing recoilless rifle
-   Realistic vehicles sounds
-   Could seat two figures.

I started this vehicle with a Power Team Elite (PTE) jeep and trailer. Initially, I was not going to change it much as it was going to serve as background filling to take pictures. However, I started with small changes and those led to an all-new vehicle.

First, I started by adding/modifying the hubcaps. Then, I moved the spare tire from the back to the side. After that, I removed the radio and antenna from the original jeep. I used a 30th Cobra Viper rocket launcher as a base to build the recoilless rifle. After that, I added the searchlight in the trailer. Finally, I cut and added some styrene to change the shape and size of the windshield.

Enjoy!

OB