Accurate toy guns are pretty much a thing of the past now but there was nothing I wanted more when I was 7 than one of those M-16 replicas that made a firing sound (kind of clacker on the inside) . It must have been the popularity of SWAT that influenced my decision. I had to settel for a revolver that fired Caps, which really wasn’t that bad. The type of caps I used are banned now too….
AKA Brian Heiler author of "Rack Toys: Cheap, Crazed Playthings" and co-editor of "Toy-Ventures Magazine". Co-Host of the "Pod Stallions" podcast. Host of the Brick Mantooth Youtube channel, painter, designer, writer, mental health advocate, toy collector, Mego, and Mego Knock-Off enthusiast. I have large feet, ADHD and I live in Canada. Talk toys, not others. 
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Sweet! I have a relevant anecdote!
When I was about ten I saw one of those in the store (The Fair) and HAD to have it. I was shopping with my mom and my two aunts. They’d all split up, so I checked the price of the gun and went up to one of my aunts and told her that my mom wanted to borrow X dollars. She gave me the money and I bought the gun.
It seemed like a foolproof plan, except that my ten-year-old logic neglected to remember that I wasn’t exactly driving myself home…
So, I had to return the gun. I later made my own from sawing one out of a piece of plywood and painting it black.
Also, Edison Giocattoli cap guns were the things to have back in the day in my neck of the woods.
classic piece of Kid Logic, arkonbey.
“hey kids! buy our guns, and if you send in enough proof-of-purchases, we’ll send you our Dealey Plaza playset!”
In the movie The Green Berets, there’s a scene where John Wayne smashes an M-16 against a tree. You can tell that it is a toy M-16 (I believe it was made by Mattel). If you ever stumble across the movie on TV sometime, look for the speaker holes in the clip where the “rat-a-tat-tat” sounds came out of.
neal –
somebody posted the entire Green Beret film on Youtube in 16 parts. Any chance of you figuring out which part that scene is in? Would love to see it, but don’t have the time to watch the whole flick!
That’s a great story, arkonbey.