Soakies

[chrisnurse]

Hi Guys,
I'm after your collected wisdom here. I love the universal Soakies, always wanted a set and keep seeing them come up on ebay (USA), never here in the UK. I want them so bad - I'm going to go after a set (getting ripped off by the UK customs on import duty be damned!)  What in your opinions is a good price for a set? ( Mummy, Wolfman, Frankenstein and Creature). I'm not that concerned about great condition, and I know that this is a daft question, but I'm a man possessed now!

[Toy Ranch]

It depends on how you define "set" and what condition you are willing to accept.  Scuffed up paint is one thing, but since the head is brittle old 60's hard plastic, and they're a little top heavy, cracks around the neck are common too.  Many have chunks out of the neck, and the head falls off with a gust of wind if you don't glue it on.  I've seen beat up Frankenstein's (the most common) for $20 or $30.  Same with the Wolf Man (blue pants version).  The Mummy and Creature usually go for more.  The rarest is the Wolf Man with red pants.  For minty condition, a Creature or Mummy might run you $150 each, and maybe $85 each for a Frankenstein and Wolf Man.  So the high end of price range for a set of 4 would be about $450.  The low end would be about $150.  That's if you aren't looking for boxed ones.  Or the red pants Wolf Man....

[Getter_1]

I bough a set of soakys over the past year or so.  I paid about $40-70 each on eBay.  They USED to go for about $100-125 but the price has come down quite a bit, it seems. 

Also, note that the Wolfman with red pants is the hardest to find.

Good luck!

[chrisnurse]

Many thanks guys,
The blue pants wolfman and a few scuffs and cracks are fine by me, I'm in the market for a bargain basement set.

[monsterphile]

Soakies are one of the Universal monster items that I never managed to pick up either...yet.  Question:  There are 2 versions of the Wolf Man (red & blue pants).  Is the paint on the pants the only difference? 

Rob

[Toy Ranch]

Question:  There are 2 versions of the Wolf Man (red & blue pants).  Is the paint on the pants the only difference? 

Rob

Yep!

[michblk]

I've been on the lookout for a Wolfman soakie (blue pants) for under $30.  For some reason, they have been going for more lately.

BK

[NekroDave]

If my experiences are any indication, you also gotta ask your seller to very carefully inspect them too. I won a Frankenstein for $17 that was supposed to have just paint loss. There was a huge crack in the head. For $17, I just glued it back together and let it ride. Then I won a Wolf Man for $40 and that was fine. But my next, a Creature that the seller specifically said had no cracks, had a cracked neck and head and was sloppily repaired with some sort of brown ugly adhesive! That actually glued the head to the cap, too.  I sent that back and had to get another.Then I won a Mummy for about $25 that was supposed to only have some paint loss. There was a crack on the back in between the legs. Again, it was cheap enough that I just let it ride. Still displays well. But 3 out of 4 times I didn't get what was advertised.  Anyone else had these problems or just me? Could be just me since I've been on a bad luck streak with my auction winnings..

[raycastile]

I had to send a Mummy back once because it had a crack in the neck.  So my track record is one problem out of five Soakie purchases.  I've got a blue pants Wolf Man, Frank, Creature and Mummy.

[zombiehorror]

Convinced the wife that no 60's themed monster bathroom would be complete without Soakies so;



The seller just mailed them out Thursday and I wasn't expecting them so soon but was very happy to see that box on the counter when I returned from the Haunt Show (more on that later).  This thread was really starting to scare me since first thing I usually do when getting a vintage item is check out what the experts here have to say.  I started to get very nervous hearing about the fragility of these (and overlooked damage) but I'm happy to report the only flaws were those described by seller; some kind of stain on top of Creature's head and a 2" crack on the back of the Wolfman's head.  I told Candie that these would probably go for $150 and left the bidding up to her she wasn't going to go that high and came in a penny over the 2nd highest bidder.  Another expertly crafted birthday gift for myself, beats the mp3 player she was planning on getting me.

[michblk]

Congrats, I think I was watching that auction if it was on evilbay.

BK

[zombiehorror]

Yep it was brought to us from Satan's Auction House...

Another thing I forgot to mention about these for whatever reason I did not realize how big these were.  I just always envisioned them being the size of a typical soakie until I read a description on another website saying these were large size soakies (10").  I've no idea why I never noticed their size since they've appeared in several collection photos right here on this board and upon reviewing some I gave myself a big, DUH, after noticing their scale compared to other monster collectibles.

[darkmonkeygod]

Soakies are one of the Universal monster items that I never managed to pick up either...yet.  Question:  There are 2 versions of the Wolf Man (red & blue pants).  Is the paint on the pants the only difference? 

Rob

My experience with them is that the blood on the chin of the head of the red pants version is either a different red than the blue or applied in a slightly different pattern. Can't remember and just moved, so no access, but side by side, you can tell the difference between a head that goes w/ a red pants body and one that came on the blue.

We've talked about it before and I've heard a lot of speculation, but does anyone KNOW why the red pants version was made? Seems like ole' Wolfie gets more variations that others (OK, one other, the Vics wiggler).

[Anton Phibes]

I've had the opportunity to buy these pass through my hands several times through the years, but they never appealed to me.  I was born in 1970, so they were prolly a memory by then.  Maybe that's why.  No childhood memory association?

[Monster Bob]

When I was about 5, we made my only trip to Elberton, Georgia (granite/tombstone capitol of the world) to visit my great grandma, who was in her 90s. I still remember going to the grocery store in Elberton, and on the backside of the front display there was a large display of just monster soakies! It was quite memorable! I got a Frankenstein Soaky-that I loved alot. My grandfather (from Elberton) always reminded me of Boris Karloff, as he had Karloff's eyes/eyebrows. Oddly, that Soaky always reminded me of my grandfather, and still does when I look at one.

As added excellence, the teenage kid that lived next door to great grandma took a likin' to me, and brought me into his hideout in his garage to show me his Frankenstein toy- a Marx Frankenstein robot. The only one I ever saw in person until about 1980-ish. I was in utter amazement.