Micro Action Jets - A Collector's Guide

Funrise made some of their single-axle jets in a color-changing plastic. I do not have any examples in my collection but have seen some in online auctions. They were supposed to change color in warm and cold water. The packaging photos all show greenish jets that change to a yellowish color. Despite the photos on the packaging, the actual jets I’ve seen appear white in color, almost like glow-in-the-dark plastic. I’m not sure if this is due to a degradation of the color changing plastic or if they were originally this strange white color. To date, I’ve only seen 4-packs of the color changing jets and all packages were marked “1988.” The following jets are pictured on the back of the packaging (those marked with an asterisk I can confirm as being produced as color changers): A-4 Skyhawk* F-4 Phantom* F-10A Thunderbolt II F-14A Tomcat F-15 Eagle* F-16A Fighting Falcon F/A-18 Hornet F-19 Stealth* SR-71A Blackbird* MIG 21bis Fishbed* MIG 238N Flogger* TU-26 Backfire Bomber* ...

Funrise produced eight different military helicopters and I have seven of them in my collection (I’m still missing the Apache). They seem to be much less common than the jets and they seem like they’d be more easily broken than the jets. While they lack wheels they do have main rotors that turn. Two of the ones that I have (the Lynx and the Defender) came packaged with a version of the aircraft carrier playset. The helicopters seem to lack any manufacturer/date markings. The names of the eight helicopters are listed below as they are shown on packaging, errors and all... American: Kaman SH-2F Seasprite McDonald (sic) Model-500 Defender AH-64 Apache Sikorsky SH-60 Sea Hawk (sic) Bell AH-1J Sea Cobra Soviet: MIL MI-24 HIND-D Kamov KA34 Hokum Gunship British: Westland Lynx

Funrise produced this large transport helicopter "playset" for use with its line of Micro Action cars and trucks. While not really intended for or very compatible with the Micro Action jets/helicopters, I thought I would include it here as it is a Funrise aircraft itself. The version I have in my collection was packaged in a a white box with a black and white photo of the contents on one side. While I cannot say for certain, this type of simple box was often used by companies for merchandise sold via catalog (rather than the more eye-catching packaging used for merchandise sold in retail stores). The helicopter came with 24 various Micro Action cars and trucks (I've not photographed them as of yet but they are pictured on the box). These vehicles could be loaded into the helicopter via a variety of opening hatches and doors. There were two large hatches on either side (behind the cockpit), two smaller hatches on either side (in the tail) and a door/ramp at the rear o...

Name (as shown on packaging): Westland Lynx Versions: 1 Color Scheme: blue Left Side: "NAVY" Right Side: "NAVY" Date Stamp: None Size comparison to other Funrise Micro Action aircraft

Name (as shown on packaging): McDonald (sic) Model-500 Defender Versions: 1 Color Scheme: green with brown camouflage spots Left Side: blue and white roundel Right Side: blue and white roundel Date Stamp: None Size comparison to other Funrise Micro Action aircraft

Here are the complete contents of a "Micro Action Jet Ring Squadron" set. These sets contained the same single-axle jets available in other packs with new wheel blocks. These larger wheel blocks had sockets that allowed them to be plugged directly onto rings or onto clear plastic "flight posts" which could then be plugged onto rings. The jets could then be worn on the hand and flown around. Based on packaging photos and online auctions all 23 single-axle jets were supposedly available in this style. To my knowledge, only 4-packs were released. Each 4-pack contained 4 jets, 4 clear plastic "flight posts" and four rings. The rings came in two different styles (2 of each in each pack) and were available in red, yellow, blue and black (colors varied). Contents of a "ring squadron" 4-pack (note the two different ring styles)   Jets could be placed directly onto the rings (far left) or onto a combination of "flight posts" and the...

The "Micro Action Jet Aircraft Carrier" is both a playset and a carry/storage container for your fleet of jets. The top deck can be removed revealing a 4-compartment storage area in the hull. The deck connects to pegs on the hull via a clip at the bow and a pair of clips at the stern. I have seen examples with these clips broken off so care should always be used when attaching and detaching the deck. There are two rubber band-powered catapults on the deck (pull back the catapult until it clicks in place and press the black button to release). These rubber bands can be replaced (should they break or dry out) by unscrewing the mechanism from the underside of the deck. The island can be removed from the top deck as it simply pegs into four holes in the deck but be careful as these pegs are fragile and are often broken on loose examples (mine is missing two of the pegs). There are three black plastic accessories (a gun turret, an antenna array and a radar dish) that peg into...