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Okay, so here's the deal...most of us know the Jumpstarters as Topspin and Twintwist from the American series. Like many toys, they also had a Pre-TF origin:
  In-addition, these Pre-TF Jumpstarters also came in 'reversed' color types (where Twintwist is red/blue, and Topspin is grey/blue).
See also this catalog pic of the Jumpstarters. Nifty original artwork, eh? |
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Then, we move on to the Transformer ones we all know and love: *the* Topspin and Twintwist!
  What is there to say, except that they set the standard.
For more information on American variants of these (including mold, sticker, and package), please see the Autobot page. |
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Then, we have the Antex/Estrela versions, both G1 (known as Salt-Man X and Salt-Man Z), and G2 (known as Robot-Man X and Robot-Man Z). Just a little note...the Salt-Men are Estrela products (Brazil); the Robot-Men are from Antex (Argentina) as you wrote. :-)
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And of-course, the Mexican version (note the red-painted eyes, a must for Mexican-TFs):
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Something I usually don't indulge in are fake TFs; however, since I am a huge fan of Jumpstarters, I'm going to show you my fav fakes. ;-) |
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Fliptrons. A pretty cheap looking likeness of them; however, these actually work. :-) And the company was bold enough to copyright-stamp them. I suppose they felt they altered them enough from the originals. There is no adjustment for their balance when flipping; the adjuster knobs are molded as one piece with the head.
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I don't know much about the one on the left. He's got arms that are molded quite similar to Topspin, but the body is wider, and the legs are longer. This one rolls, but does not have the spring-loaded 'flipping' action. The head-knob is molded as one piece as well. Same with the knob on the one to the right; by far the closest likeness to a Jumpstarter. Excepting the lack of an adustable head-knob, or a copyright, you might be able to pass this one off as as Pre-TF. :-)
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My favorites out of the set. :-) These guys are more than double the size of ordinary jumpstarters. They are completely knocked-off; they bear a likeness to the Jumpstarter toy, but none of the dimensions match. Like the one above, these roll, but do not 'flip'; transformation is manual. They come in two styles, and at least 4 colors (the ones I have come with the same leg color, but the head and chest-colors are reversed).
  Interestingly, this KO molding has been re-released several years later, now in white.
(pic in-process) |
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Donations to the cause. ;-) Here are some pics from people who know I love Jumpstarters, so they torture me with ones that I don't have. I'd love to get them: For example, where the heck do those Dinosaur-jumpys come from? It's totally awsome! They have a third mode: robo-dino, dinosaur, and vehicle (pic of 3 modes on boxart). I *want* these!!
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And then there's these things that looks like a Jumpstarter's grandpa:
  They're actually the Four-Star versions of a Jumpstarter (those guys really know how to knockoff a toy...they nearly completely redesign it). I'd like to get those as well... |