Review: 8640 Polar Helicopter
Posted by Huw,I've been having a bit of a dilemma lately. I'm rapidly running out of space to store and display my LEGO collection. I'm sure I'm not the only one, in fact I suspect those that aren't, are in the minority here.
One reason for this is that I've been collecting Technic since I emerged from my dark ages in 1994 and now own nearly every set made from 1993 to about 2010, and a good few from before and after. Because I like to display them from time to time, plus the fact it takes ages to build them in the first place, I store them assembled, in zip-lock bags or bubble-wrapped, in plastic crates. I suspect you can probably visualise the volume they take up. There's more cool models on the way but no more room in the house, so something's got to give...
My first thought was to sort them out, keep the ones I really like and sell the rest, so I posted a list in the forum earlier this week offering some for sale. But then, thanks in part to forum member Schwallex, I decided against it. Instead, I'll disassemble those I'm unlikely to want to display again or that take up too much volume, and bag them up to save space.
What's this got to do with the Arctic Copter and why am I posting this review? The four Arctic Technic sets, released 28 years ago in 1986, are among the oldest I own. I probably haven't removed them from storage since I moved house 8 years ago, so when I did do this week, I was expecting the worst: peeled stickers and badly yellowed pieces but instead I was pleasantly surprised. The Copter in particular is pretty much in the condition it was when it was new and it's a cracking model so I thought I would take a few photos before I disassemble it and do a quick review.
Arctic sets were the first Technic 'subtheme' and quite a departure from the Technic sets that had gone before. Although most of the Technic elements used in them were introduced with the first sets in 1977, these were the first to be predominantly white and the first to feature 'maxi-figures'.
1980s Technic sets featured plenty of bricks, plates and slopes, in fact Technic elements were often in the minority, largely used to provide functional or aesthetic features that couldn't be made with regular System parts. Lift-arms and half-width beams were not introduced until 1989, and studless beams didn't appear until 1996 so these Arctic sets are about as 'old-school' Technic as you can get.
The helicopter is actually pretty light on functionality: turn the wheel on the side to rotate the rotors and that's it. However the colour scheme and the simplicity of the design, plus of course the maxi-figure make it look excellent, and a vast improvement on the previous Technic helicopter,1981's 8844.
Despite being 28 years old, not a single white part has yellowed and the stickers look as if they were applied yesterday. Those printed on clear plastic have always been less susceptible to peeling which is why I always caution against applying those printed on white. I'll post some horrific photos to illustrate this in the next day or so.
So why is it that some white parts yellow and others don't? Every part in my 8620 Arctic buggy has yellowed except the steering piece. The 1x4x3 white windows and printed panels in my 8660 Arctic Rescue Unit have yellowed, but nothing else has. Thankfully, my 8680 Arctic Base looks as pristine as this helicopter. They've been stored together, never in bright light, so other factors must come into play, such as the composition of the plastic or maybe even how the parts have been stored and for how long in the factory. It's a mystery...
As I said above, Arctic sets were the first to feature maxi-figs. They were last seen in 2000 which is a shame because I think they are great: they are highly poseable and bring an element of playability to the sets they appear in, just like minifigs do to regular sets. The Arctic guys even have skis and poles which stow away neatly on the models when not in use.
Although it looks very old-fashioned compared to today's Technic models, this is a great little set and worth hunting down if you're a Technic aficionado. Whether you'll find a used one in as pristine condition as this one, I'm not so sure...
If this article hasn't bored you to tears, let me know, then before I dismantle other old Technic sets of note, I'll post photos of them too.
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43 comments on this article
Love seeing older technic sets! I remember the excitement of getting one of the old Samsonite gear sets as a child, and recently was also lucky enough to score an 8456 (yes, much more modern than the one you just reviewed, but still an old-school set) in an eBay auction from someone who suspected the set was incomplete and wasn't sure any of the electrics worked. The set wasn't missing anything I could see, everything worked perfectly, and the box was in very solid condition, so I feel like I got quite a bargain! Interesting to see how the techniques and pieces have evolved. The charm of this one is its simplicity and clean style--not unlike the earliest sets in other themes!
As far as I know some cardboards contribute to yellowing. I have the same problem with some sets, which were stored away in the late eighties. Some of them had yellowed parts when I unpacked them recently. Most of the sets were stored in plastic food bags. The yellowed ones were put into cardboardboxes. :o( A bad idea in retrospective. Nowadays I don't mix bricks and manuals or put them together into cardboxes. I only use ziploc bags and plastic containers for storage.
Only a few months ago, I reassembled my own copy of 8660 for the first time since probably the 80's. Neat set, tons of nostalgia (I was 11 years old when it came out).
I've read that the yellowing comes from the fire retardant (a bromine compound) added to the plastic reacting with UV light (which is not only present in sunlight, but fluorescent lighting, too). Retr0bright can reverse it, but I haven't actually used the stuff as it's kind of a pain to brew up.
Thanks for the trip down memory lane. This was my first Technic set. I'm still annoyed I never kept hold of the figure. RIP Technic man...
I have this set. And the buggy. I loved them both :) :) :)
am I right in thinking there was a way to add the old school technic motor to this to make the blades rotate? I know you could motorise the seaplane (which I also have but sadly that's all over the place :( )
@Timoonn, yes I've had it since new.
@Obi_G, no I don't think there's room for a motor in this one.
@shirhac, an interesting theory!
Oh, WOW! Memory lane! I had that when I was a kid, and totally forgot about it.
Space.... that's the challenge isn't it?
Lovely set @Huw. I particularly like the maxi-fig and your photography. Look at how polished those skis look, you can see the maxi-fig's reflection in them!
Keep the photos coming, not boring at all. Lovely to meet you on Saturday btw. Thanks for the poly.
Offgassing from cardboard can definitely damage textiles. It hadn't occurred to me that it might also be a problem for storing plastics, but depending on the gas involved, no reason why it mightn't be.
Even more strange to me is the problem of cracking bricks. I read a lot of complaints about cheese wedges cracking (and I've seen photos as well) but I've built many sets with both old wedges and new ones, and never seen one crack. Like Huw's experience with some of his sets yellowing far more than others, it seems like something's involved besides how pieces are handled after purchase by an end user. Different batches of plastic or different handling by the manufacturer might well be responsible for some of the variations we see.
I need to see a photo of your collection, haha
Studded Technic rules.
This is a great model. I got it from my father after a businesstrip to Germany back in 1986. It have never bin disassembled and is good as new! Love it!
Please keep the reviews coming. I'm too young to know these sets so it's great seeing what was around and how things have changed.
I'm not convinced about the 'cardboard' theory of yellowing. Presumably the items stored in cardboard are not air-tight so can react with what's in the air. The zip lock bags are probably air-tight so you don't get any reactions with the air, so I don't think it's a fair comparison.
I'm not sure why in Huws case there was yellowing in some and not others because they were all in zip lock bags. May be Huw had some on display longer than others and hence the difference in yellowing.
I agree that the maxi figure looks great and it could be something that TLG brings back. I have used the Mini-Figure key light particularly Emmet in my Technic models but the old maxi figure would look better.
Great photography.
I feel your pain Huw, I have to 'rotate' sets in an ever-growing collection on a fairly regular basis. The only 'permanent' display is the Battle of Endor, but that's mainly because the Ewok Village will be an absolute nightmare to dismantle!
On the yellowing phenomenon, I had a very unusual experience with a 7166 Imperial Shuttle. It spent a few months on display, where it was in sunlight most days (in hindsight, not a good idea). It was fine for 8 years until I moved house, when it was packed away. When I got around to unpacking it later, the parts that had faced the sun had yellowed while in storage!
I also collect Transformers, and the subject of yellowing plastic is one that comes up regularly. There doesn't seem to be any definitive reason as to why it happens, but exposure to UV seems to be the main factor, but in that case it appears being stored over what was a particularly harsh winter (2009/10) seems to have contributed to it.
Can't believe 8680 was almost in my hands for you to snatch it away........ You are a bad man Mr @Huw ;-)
I've always seen maxi-figure used for the large figures from the 70s. It's fairly interchangeable with the term homemaker figures. For 8640, this is a Technic figure. I've never heard anybody call them anything else. So have I been living under a rock or this a regional difference?
And just when I'd compiled a list of sets to take off your hands... :-) Still, that'll save me a few quid!
This is a charming old set, but I still think 8844 is better, with it's retractable undercarriage. It would be great to read your thoughts on more of these classic sets.
Nice article Huw. A little trip down memory lane for me, as I recognise 8620 as a set my brother had when I was little. In fact I think most of the parts are still in the "Lego box" at my parents' house. I know the Technic man has lost at least one if not both of his arms though :-S
Now I shall have to browse the DB to find out what one of the other Technics models I remember from childhood was too...
Whilst I have most of the early technic sets, your article and photography are most welcome and it really takes me back when these sets were in the shops.
Please keep them coming Huw.
Interesting these appeared the same year as the first Model Team sets, as they look more like they're heading towards that theme than some of the more gear-based Technic sets.
Anyway, eventually you'll get round to my first Technic set, the 856 Bulldozer. Then pair it with 8848. Fantastic. Although I'd still love to get my hands on an 855 Mobile Crane.
We must be living parallel lives as I just put together 8660 yesterday!
^^ Sadly I don't have any of the 1970s Technic other than the fork-lift.
Wow! I never realise the part I think of as a gun in Star Wars sets was a ski pole back then! Sometimes I feel like a still very new AFOL. :)
You should definitely review more of these old-skool Technic sets. That's very cool. I wish the maxi-fig was still around today as well.
I will almost certainly be registering someone new to the site tomorrow!
@OscarWRG Yes I agree
Huw, Would it be in anyway possible to see how you display your sets?
I am facing the same issue of display space and I'm trying to explore different ways to maximize space.
^^^ Seconded. I basically only know the poles from WV Bakery and Parisian Restaurant, in black, and have a couple in bley from Rockoh T3, a Bionicle set. But it's really only now that I realize just how much they look like ski poles. Funny how it works. BL even flat-out *calls* them "Technic, Figure Accessory Ski Pole" — never noticed that before, either.
Don't have any theories or speculation to add on the yellowing of white parts. Mine are stored in plastic containers (non-airtight but only semi-transparent and with no sunlight or cardboard allowed anywhere close), and they are happily yellowing away, and very irregularly at that.
Even neighboring parts of the exact same type yellow completely differently. And it doesn't seem to matter if they were stored away right out of the box, either. Very strange. I am indeed not too certain TLG themselves could really explain, much less predict. An equation with too many unknown variables.
We have to accept that a white part is a black box.
I think that technic fig is pretty cool, and i like that it has more advanced mobility than standard minifigures. Looks like ill have to make more room in the basement for a technic theme ;)
Say, I also like how the skis are stored on the chopper. Would that not be classed as an illegal technique these days? ;)
Great article, I bought this set on the same day, just a few hours before the article was published, so was extra great for me. I am getting to the stage where I am beginning to think about what I will do in a couple of months when no doubt I will run out of room to display everything as it should be. It's a scary thought...
^^Huw - the beauty of the early Technic like the 856 (US: 951) is that it's fairly easy to rebuild nowadays by just gathering up the parts. There was nothing particularly unique about it as it only used basic gearing and common yellow beams. I think the only old-skule bits of it are the yellow bucket ends, but they're hardly rare. And maybe getting enough (non-cracked) piston knuckle joints together. I did do a complete red re-build of it from parts once. It's a fantastic model, being chock-full of mechanisms but still looking the part.
Later sets like the 8848 are a lot harder to reconstruct; if you want the genuine 2-prong finger-hinges you'd pretty much need to buy the set whole. Though I suppose I should take my own advice and knock out an 855 from scraps now...
I inherited this set from my cousin. Even though I am not much of a Technic fan I decided to restore it to its formal glory. This article just supported my efforts. The maxi-fig is in a poor condition though (broken ankle). Lets see what I can do. The alternative model (some sort of snowmobile) was cool too!
Why does you maxifig has black arms? Supposed to be blue right?
^ Well spotted, it looks like I must have swapped him with the one in 8680 some while ago.
I do wonder at the wisdom of th maxi-figures, though, when in the other sets they are walking around in an approx. 0 degree climate with no hood or gloves.
The Arctic sets never did it for me. They just didn't have the wow-factor of the first wave in '77 or sets like 856, 8860 or 8848. This thing looking better than 8844? Have to disagree with you there...
With the new mini ball/socket joints, you should be able to brick-build a passable maxi-figure nowadays. Might struggle with the head though.
Those skis were ubiquitous in Ice Planet sets and I've seen those poles used plenty of times over as gun turrets & etc but I have to admit, I had no idea of their origins. Thanks for the lesson.
As mentioned, it's probably UV exposure that's accelerating the yellowing. I *have* tried retr0brite; it works, but it's not a perfect process (may need to be applied several times or for longer periods). It does seem to work well on white LEGO, where the yellowing is most noticeable. There's also a risk of retr0brite fading the printing on some parts, although that may also be because those parts are old, and the printing may just be faded with age/handling.
Great Article ! Have loved this set since the first time I saw it in the catalogue back in 86' ! I'm a huge fan of technic maxi-figs, and all of their associated parts however I never noticed that this was the first set with them..
I am really happy that you posted this because I'm in the process of building one, my own version. Still waiting for the red skis to finish it ; )
Check out my version of the 8640-polar-copter
http://www.flickr.com/photos/numo/14726013081/
I think the 3 Arctic sets are designed very nicely, the logo is cool (very 80's) and the theme is very interesting, I always imagined they were rescue / research scientists, it would have been great if it came with some penguins and seals !
Also the B-model looks great too
I know how yellowed the white usually gets, but your set looks amazing and white, and the pics from your whole technic collection on flickr, very jealous : }
I'm pretty sure that model was my first technics set.
^^ That's just the items I was planning on selling, but am now just packing up. The cool stuff -- cranes, diggers etc. -- are not shown :)
Have fond memories about set 8840 and 8820 which I own. Was not able to collect the whole collection including 8660 and 8680, but I did it with the collection 8830/8840/8850.
It is sad that LEGO does not make Technic set with these figures any more.