easter market buy and shocking dollar store find

went with friends to an easter market a couple of hours south. i went last year and i was rubbish. this year was a bit better.

paid $5 for this mountain track and HIT james... amazing score


but what are those yellow packets in the front?

thats right, they are genuine plarail magnetic couplers! found them in a dollar store for $2 each. yes, i asked if they had more out the back and bought the 4 they had instore. the woman said they just came randomly in a delivery and she didnt know where they came from.


i had thought they were fakes, then my friend took one and i saw the tomy logo on the back. absolutely amazing, a total dream come true... buying plarail in a proper shop.

went with friends to an easter market a couple of hours south. i went last year and i was rubbish. this year was a bit better.

paid $5 for this mountain track and HIT james... amazing score


but what are those yellow packets in the front?

thats right, they are genuine plarail magnetic couplers! found them in a dollar store for $2 each. yes, i asked if they had more out the back and bought the 4 they had instore. the woman said they just came randomly in a delivery and she didnt know where they came from.


i had thought they were fakes, then my friend took one and i saw the tomy logo on the back. absolutely amazing, a total dream come true... buying plarail in a proper shop.

WOW I have never seen those coupler replacement packages before so so so awesome!!!! it would be neat to replace the couplers on brand new Tomy trains with those authentic NIB mag couplers I would not even think of it as amodification and you know my feelings on that. But due to their age and rarity i would keep at least one sealed. I havent even seen those for sale I Japan because they never had the big Lego style magnetic Tomy trains that the U.S. and Europe got, because plarail was already established there so the trains sold in Japan at the time were just the same look and size as they still are! awesome find!!

geris, the fact that you havent seen them astounds me!
at this stage, they will stay sealed entirely. i have no real use for them, was thinking they would do for the vintage tomy engines until i realised they were genuine. far as i know, only the engines with retracting nose couplers use magnets and neither of mine need work.

its strange as the store isnt part of a chain, its just a stand alone buck store in a small town on state highway one. the last place you would expect to find anything like this. pity they didnt have another 40+ out the back. i would have bought the lot.

here is a better photo of both sides of the packet.

those are so neat I wish they had 40 of em sitting around too I'd be paypaling you a bunch of money so I could get a couple packets. congats. I love when someone just randomly stumbles on to something in the most unlikely of places, thats why I say it never hurts to look!

[Super]

Those are great for adding to regular trains and use them with a Mr Motorman engine to hook up with cargo cars in sidings. I have only seen them for sale loose, not in the plastic bags. Great find Sunhuntin.

Great find! Nothing feels better than saving one of our friends from a dusty old shop and a few dollars at the same time.