1988 vehicle drivers breaking their t-hooks?

['86 Digital Fire]

Hi, I've had this question on the backburner for a long time.

Three of my vehicle drivers from 1988 have had their t-shaped metal pieces mysteriously break apart. Despoiler Destro exploded in my hands when I was a youngun, and that left an emotional bruise for a long time after. I first assumed the rubber band had broken, but it was the hook. Armadillo did the same thing years later-- when he got shot by some Cobras, his waist flew up and over him into space, and his legs flew straight at the shooters. I was never so fond of him, so on the upside it was an amazing way for him to go out. Still more years later I picked up Ghost Rider by his right leg and just looked at him, and a moment later the rest of the figure fell in seeming slow-motion, away from the leg onto the floor. By this time I'd bought some spare Battle Corps figures for rubber-band and metal-piece transplants, so he was back on his two legs in no time.

So what I want to know is was it just my lousy luck, or is there something to this? Any similar anecdotes out there? Is their metal extra-brittle or are their rubber bands extra-strong? From my autopsies, both theories are credible. What say you?

[sfzdk]

I have only experienced one broken t-hook so far. That was on a mail-in Serpentor w/Air Chariot I opened a couple of years ago. Found it rather odd at the time, you would think that the rubber band or plastic would be the first to give in. According to YoJoe that mail-in was available in 1988 so I guess there was a bad production run of t-hooks then.

[Lt. Night Viper]

T-hooks that break aren't rare, I would say it's the next common thing to break after the o-ring. Some might have internal flaws in the metal, making it weaker. Also corrosion would be another factor, it just eats away at the metal making it weak also. I've had a few broken t-hooks over the years, so I wouldn't be alarmed by it.

[Net-Viper X]

I had the T hook break on my Ghost Rider too, not the hook itself but one of the ends with the ball joint on it snapped off along with his leg, and his other leg and upper body stayed attached. Windmill also broke a leg off his T hook the same way, but none of my Cobras from that year have, which I have many more of.

Both figures from the Defiant had broken hooks within a few years, and the yellow repaint that comes with the Crusader also was quick to break his hook. These all had the hook part break off so the upper body came off, not like the 88 models where a leg breaks off. I have even seen a few with broken hooks still in the package, so I guess it happens to all the years, just some more than others maybe. 88 did seem to be unique with the leg breaking off due to T hook failure, I have never seen that kind of break on any other year, its always the hook itself that snaps off.

[Pit Viper]

I had this happen with my Nullifier figure. The o-rings used for 1988 vehicles drivers are thicker than normal o-rings. They are also covered in a mysterious white powder. Not sure if this is what is causing the problems or if it was some attempt by Hasbro to remedy it.

['86 Digital Fire]

T-hooks that break aren't rare, I would say it's the next common thing to break after the o-ring. Some might have internal flaws in the metal, making it weaker. Also corrosion would be another factor, it just eats away at the metal making it weak also. I've had a few broken t-hooks over the years, so I wouldn't be alarmed by it.

True that, it's just that those figures who broke had not been exposed to the elements in any major way. I have lots of other figures who were left outside overnight and weathered by the sun and the dew, and they never saw that kind of breakage. Rubber bands wore thin enough to give out sometimes, but not the metal. Except for poor Dodger, who got left on a rock then stepped on. But that was an obvious cause for his leg to come off.

And it might just be a bad batch, in fact that's exactly what I'm suggesting-- the 1988 crop being uniquely problematic. I'm trying to be a GI Joe detective.

I had the T hook break on my Ghost Rider too, not the hook itself but one of the ends with the ball joint on it snapped off along with his leg, and his other leg and upper body stayed attached.

That was how my Ghost Rider broke too. Not at the t-hook but the metal at the hip joint. His leg stayed in my hand while gravity took the rest of him down. (The other two figure breaks were at the t-hook.) Hence my theory that it was the metal piece failing rather than the rubber band being too strong.
I enjoyed and valued the rest of your information. Thank you.

I had this happen with my Nullifier figure. The o-rings used for 1988 vehicles drivers are thicker than normal o-rings. They are also covered in a mysterious white powder. Not sure if this is what is causing the problems or if it was some attempt by Hasbro to remedy it.

Hmm yes indeed, and this sways me back to the theory that it might not be the metal piece particularly, but that batch of rubber bands. I think you've convinced me. I remember taking notice that Destro's was extra-thick too. It makes sense that those sorts of bands would be metal-piece killers. And then there's the way Destro and Armadillo exploded. It wasn't like any other o-ring break-- there was a force exerted from the inside out. My Golobulus spontaneously exploded too, but there was no rubber band involved-- I'm sure it was the constant stress from that rubber tail-piece stuck in his torso. As for Ghostrider... maybe the long-term tug of the band weakened the metal bar's integrity, and that was just the part that gave first because of whatever miniscule strain I applied by picking him up by that leg.

My anecdotes make it sound like I was playing rough with these guys, but I really wasn't. I was always pretty gentle with my figures. Not too wise to the effects of outside exposure, and they went for lots of outside romps in the dirt, so my earlier childhood collection is mostly unsellable by modern collector standards, but I loved my toys and in a kid's way I took good care of them. Never had any broken thumbs except on the Slaughter's Marauders, knew better than to yank on the rubber bands and learned how to replace the worn-out bands before there was anyone around to tell me, and hated the occasion I might lose a weapon. That's why I was so freaked out when these figures blew up!