G.I. Joe U.S.S. Flagg Restoration: Part 1 - Raise the Flagg Vintage Hasbro 1985

[@gusbaker4u]

I'm surprised no one has built a full size wooden coffee table shaped like The Flagg

[@WyldstaarStudios]

While none of my cadre of friends had a USS Flagg, my best friend's uncle built a carrier out of plywood for him. Instead of the USS Flagg, it was the USS Nimitz from the movie The Final Countdown.

[@rictusmetallicus]

I just had the same idea

[@sgf129]

I loved that movie because it reminded me of G.I. Joe's USS Flagg.

[@marcothommen2484]

cool! :)

[@UnitSe7en]

You mean it was the U.S.S. Nimitz from Real Life.

[@WyldstaarStudios]

@@UnitSe7en No, I meant exactly what I said.

[@GroviteVideo]

One of my friends used the money he had saved from mowing all summer to buy it. The only place it would fit was out in his parents' garage. It was all fun and games till his dog peed on it, lol.

[@Sportimus]

This is beyond a simple restoration. This is a full-blown improvement for the purpose of preservation. Well done. If you have the space for displaying this classic beast of a set, this is the way to do it!

[@Papa-eb1lt]

And twisted sister playing in the background, I approve 👍

[@jakfuki]

My dad got me one. I had to cram it into my room. Once we moved to a new house, it went into an empty, spare room. I loved that damned thing. I’m debating on dragging out of storage, and putting it together.

[@PatrickLink]

The 'Joeburg refit' is a must for every Flagg.

[@therealdeadpen]

I seen the box one time in the back of a K-Mart located in a little town called Marion, Va. The K-mart is no longer there and long after ALL K-marts are gone the Flagg will always be remembered.

[@peterj2890]

Just came across this awesome video. I too just happen to have a USS Flagg. A guy I worked with in the early 90’s gave me a complete in the box Flagg for my kids. Two of the boys assembled it in their bedroom but was just to big so after playing with it for a short time took it apart put in boxes and up to the Attic for 28-30+ years. TWO Days ago Went up in the attic to check on it! You see after 20 years as a eBay buyer have decided 3 weeks ago at age 76 to become a Seller on eBay and started looking for stuff to sell. That’s when noticed old toys such as GI Joe were valuable. Five years ago we moved but my sons (in their 40’s) didn’t want any of the toys in the attic so unfortunately most were tossed except I kept the Flagg! The box it came in we tossed. Recently I was wondering how it survived and was surprised it was in fairly good condition. The deck wasn’t warped, lot of yellowing on the light grey top parts but most the others parts were put in a large storage container and have faired well. In a few weeks it will come out of the attic so I can assess what to do with it. Most likely assemble, inventory, then sell on eBay. To conclude I didn’t know there was no hull until I saw it on eBay. Cool idea to fab a hull for it.

[@avatarofkomma2525]

The shout out to FormBX which in turn was a clip giving a shout out to RetroBlasting gave me a chuckle. Great resto project, can't wait to see the finished result.

[@kristopherlafountaine2098]

Was it a shout out, or beef? It sounded like a little bit of a jab from FormBX to me.

[@creepingdeath9795]

Me and my brother had one, my friends all teased me for asking for it for Christmas. When they seen it for the first time, they all went wow!!

[@MoparMcNeer]

That's an amazing way to fix the original flaw. Very slick. Can't wait to see the next episode...

[@WishItWas1984]

I was one of those lucky ones that had a friend who got a Flagg. My best friend wasn't rich, but was pretty well off and we both lived on the water. His family was very much into boats and everything nautical. I remember heading to his basement and being stunned when I saw the U.S.S. Flagg in all it's glory. He had a Skystriker on it and various other Joes and vehicles. It was insane. My only memory was of us trying to play with it for some time after, but you quickly realized there was nothing to DO with it. Eventually it just wasn't there one day and that was that.

[@vandanrosario2473]

I never owned the Flagg when I was a kid so seeing you guys restoring and even modifying one I have to say I'm a tad jealous awesome job can't wait for part 2

[@jakfuki]

I still have mine. My dad got it for me for Christmas 1985. I’m thinking of putting it together and putting it upstairs. Back in the day, I had an empty room upstairs that I kept it in. Before that, we were in a house where II had a bedroom that could barely fit the thing in. I couldn’t even walk through the room. I had to climb over my footboard to my desk and closet. I couldn’t even launch the dog off the deck until we moved into the bigger house.

[@cwolf201]

I like how you're showing your love of the stuff you talk about . even with the imperfections. lets me hearken back to my childhood through the videos

[@KBsRetrospective]

Plenty of great info here but hearing 'Holy Diver' in the background really sold me on your channel. Awesome stuff!

[@cf5914]

I had one that was bought for me out of guilt for Christmas. Initially, I loved it but as you said, the fact that it couldn't be moved was a huge problem and my sister who I shared my room with would get angry at it and destroy it. Because of that, I played with it disassembled most of the time. I would just use the bridge in the backyard as sort of a "base." I doubt I even had the whole thing assembled for a month since it just wasn't possible.

[@mws755]

I got it for the Christmas 1986. I was not as overwhelmed by it as my Dad was. It is a toy table lol But I've grown to appreciate it over time. Maybe because everyone seems to love it so much , I decided to jump on the bandwagon with them

[@gijoburg]

Yes! The big day has arrived! It's looking great RB. Gotta echo a fair number of comments here and say I can't wait to see what lies in store. But the groundwork looks very professional indeed! Well done!

[@GamerFox015]

Amazing set of videos on this iconic toy. My friends and I very much enjoyed GI Joe and I had a friend who did in fact get this as a gift one summer. It was semi daunting when you actually saw it. It took up 40% of the downstairs living space that was essentially a kids playroom. I only remember us being let near it once or maybe twice in fact as he was naturally protective of it. :) The raised keel is a really smart idea would have been a HUGE benefit for it. I can only imagine what it would be like seeing it in person again. Great work.

[@maxbrandt6]

So cool to see this taking shape, only the lucky few could ever have a USS Flagg but Hasbro must have lost money on that toy.

[@ericlewis217]

Been looking forward to this series. Keep mine in a spare bedroom on an 8 ft table. I just love it.....kinda interested in the base table create here. 🤔🤔🤔

[@gaspargh]

This is the most AWESOME toyset ever made. Here in Santiago de Chile I have the opportunity to see it fully displayed and it was simply mind blowing. Congratulations for making these series come alive and I can't wait for the second episode of these saga. Adios amigos.

[@ForgeMaciejewski]

I really am looking forward to this series!! I am living vicariously through you two.

[@ShadowcasterZero]

yes! finally! i saw a FLAGG when I was a kid in cub scouts. his name was Jason and we had a den meeting at his house. He wouldn't let me play with it 😓 I've seen some FLAGG reviews on here who've used wheels under their support structures, as well as LED lights to illuminate the extra storage.

[@MrDrokkul]

I had a friend who had the Flagg and I vividly remember thinking as a kid its WAY too big! Then my child mind went to working out how many smaller vehicles I could get for Christmas instead of one giant thing. It was a GI Joe heavy Xmas that year and I was SO glad I passed on the Flagg.

[@No1.OriginalTrilogyStarWarsFan]

Did it have any electrics or actually do anything?

[@MrDrokkul]

No1.StarWarsFan Its main electronic feature was a pa system you could speak through and play some sounds on. It was a repurposed bmx speakerphone mic with a custom soundboard in it.

[@jmsberetta]

Cool can't wait for finished product

[@robertdanker6193]

Wow!!! Great video!!! As a kid my buddy up the street had a flagg!! I brought over all my joe toys to put on the deck! I have to agree that it wasn't a great toy itself, but that upgrade is AMAZING!!!!

[@theroastbeefking]

I absolutely love your channel. I'm thrilled you found the Flagg!

[@1dbanner]

I was a casual G.I. Joe fan at best as a kid; I occasionally watched the cartoon, the only toys I had were gotten 3rd hand at a garage sale, so until you did this, I had never heard of the Flagg. But bravo! This is amazing.

[@kchishol1970]

Imagine what that toy would have been like with proper design reminiscent of what your modification. That would really have been impressive for Hasbro.

[@batangbatugan]

I think Hasbro unknowingly designed the Flagg to appeal to older collectors. Because you gotta admit, it doubles as an impressive diorama and display base. I also was impressed with G.i. Joburg's custom base and I'm delighted that you guys made your own. =D

[@antiquariancrafts2454]

I was able to get the Flagg at Christmas for £500. Living in England, I never thought I'd be able to find one.

[@thunderrobots1980s]

that's awesome ,a perfect upgrade something Hasbro should think about

[@daggysretroadventure4936]

Sssooooooooo JEALOUS!!! I love what y’all are doing with it.

[@hazehendrix7133]

This I so awesome I have one of these sitting in my shop I had as a kid. I would love to get it back together one day!

[@kingerikthegreatest.ofall.7860]

Sorry I missed these Michael. I’m rectifying this oversight.

[@ldisc66]

I've had the fortune of seeing it with my own eyes. My cousin had it and it was so huge and took up so much space, his father fashioned a hoist for it lol

[@No1.OriginalTrilogyStarWarsFan]

My cousin had a truck made out of wood that was nearly 5ft long looked ace but was so big couldn't do anything with it. Do remember one time it fell over and hit him on the head. Ouch.

[@kejaris949]

My brother had one, man that thing was big as hell.

[@JediDB]

SWEET!! This is going to be EPIC when are finished with it. Looking forward to pt 2.

[@theviking6052]

I can still remember seeing 6 of them at child world in the 80’s

[@JesseH76]

I had a friend who won this, not only did she win the 7 foot battleship, but she appeared in one of the PSA. Her name was Stella Fox, and it was one about her wearing sunscreen, they use her first name and it's a blonde girl. I would give the episode number, but I don't own the whole series. Yeah, I don't know if this was a state to state contest or what. When GI JOE was on Netflix it was like episode 80 something. It took up her whole room, it was amazing walking into her room and seeing this thing.

[@YomTube]

it’s a great day when i wake up to a new retroblasting video! great work as always.

[@BossRedRanger]

My cousin had one. It sat in the unfinished addition to his family home. I was never interested in it because it didn't do anything and was huge. But it was cool to look at.

[@stefanschanzenbacher9513]

If I may shout out a future toy line review: WINSPECTOR. Beautiful, beautiful shiny toyline . had almost all in my childhood. Love your channel

[@betterthanu3148]

Im really excited to see this toy being completed from the ground up

[@frankdavf4599]

Wow!! and if you atach some wheels could move as it was at the ocean. hehe. great restoration so far.

[@skabcat242]

Can't wait to see the finished results.

[@josemontano7767]

Great episode

[@somarriba333]

RetroBlasting Soundtrack 1. Holy Diver 2. We're Not Gonna Take it

[@severindrax]

somarriba333 pretty sure there was a bit of Taylor swifts bad blood there too....guilty pleasure?

[@somarriba333]

I didn't catch that one. That will be a hidden track.

[@n2legos]

somarriba333 I also heard Danger Zone at one point I think

[@rex-2036]

Awesome! The base foundation looks great. I wonder if adding caster wheels underneath would be good or not. Looking forward to the rest of the series!

[@outlawjar01]

Michael mercy did that here on KZbin

[@mahatmarandy5977]

I worked in a toy store the Christmas this came out. I do not remember us selling a single one. Everyone wanted it, but it was just too expensive. Allowing for inflation, it was the equivalent of $250 in modern money, which was just way the heck too much for most parents to plunk money down on. "We can get our kid this one toy, or we can get him like 10 other toys." That seems to have been the thought process.

[@chrisbrewer9942]

Already looking forward to part 2. Well done as always.

[@adamhuskey6790]

Hey you guys!!! Another great video! I remember the only time... I ever saw the flagg as a kid..... My family was very poor so of course I didn't have it ... however far away in another state my cousin... the only son of my well off uncle had one.... it was amazing.. but I would like to share that even then ... they had taken Lego Blocks and built on and added to the flagg... of course it was that way around the entire toy room but still... the need for something more was apparent :D

[@BomberMonkAssassin32]

I didn't have many GI Joe figures but after looking at the USS Flagg playset that should've a decent piece of strong hard unbreakable plastic pieces for the base part of the flagg playset when this was manufactured and stores back in 1985(i was 7 yrs old back then)that had to cost around or close to $100 or above it when it was in stores......

[@No1.OriginalTrilogyStarWarsFan]

That looks ace well done mate. Can't wait for the other videos. Great info Mike, not a collector of GI Joe at all but still ace to watch and great info. Imagine if they had done a Star Destroyer like this instead of that thing we did get. It would have been ace. Like the Flagg a thing of mystery, lying and bragging. "I have that 8ft Star Destroyer at home".

[@weprin2]

Wow, I can't wait to see when it's finished.

[@jedipoodoo]

Oh damn! Can't wait for part 2, must find a way to time travel to a time when the video is out lol! Love it, love it, love it.

[@peterbanderas8184]

I remember getting mine for christmas, my mom must have saved for months to get it for me and it was the only gift I got that year, but man I loved that toy. I remember that it was so large that they dis not wrap it, they just threw my blanket over it lol. I set it up in my garage and played with it all the time. Unfortunately, years later after i had moved out, I decided to trust my dad and take it out if my storage unit and keep it in his garage... One day my dad decided to clean the garage and he decided he knew what was of "value" and what was garbage... I came back to discover that he went through my boxes and tossed any small piece of plastic he found... So while I have nearly all the large components, almost all the smaller parts were thrown away, including the plastic skirt... So I only have 80% of the USS flag now...

[@JR-yf1ri]

Fighting the urge to pull the trigger and purchase a Flagg!

[@No1.OriginalTrilogyStarWarsFan]

Whats the price of a boxed one these days $4000?

[@No1.OriginalTrilogyStarWarsFan]

Wow

[@deadaccountlol9189]

Oh my god! You finally got one!

[@KevinMayle1974]

Beautiful!

[@SteelbeastsCavalry]

7:00 TWISTED SISTER IN THE BACKGROUND! Feels like a scene out of Iron Eagle!

[@Patmanx1]

Another guy on youtube built this same thing. He actually went into detail showing that by doing this it actually makes the USS FLAGG proportionate to how the ship is suppose to be. IT also made the Bow look like a real Bow. He dressed up the *new* lower decks by adding/drilling doors to make rooms. Sadly, I can't recall his name or channel. I'm sure someone has seen it and knows what/who im talking about.

[@Biorythym]

Remembering looking t toy catalogs that would show 20+ Shipwreck figures manning the ship...it's a wonder there were any left on shelves

[@SpiritedSpy]

whoever did the one dislike didn't grow up in the 80's

[@marcusluera89]

Now I'm thinking maybe an us Flagg coffee table.

[@jenniferlaskowski38]

Nice video! Enjoyed. What was the dimensions of the wood you used for the plywood? How thick. Also did you use the remaining scrap pieces of the plywood for the supports or buy 1x4’s? In addition was casters used and how many? Thanks

[@cliffyk3380]

I can't help but feel you could get someone to make cardboard/sticker sections to fill in the areas underneath to make it look even more like an interior to an aircraft carrier. Awesome job though.

[@jedi69outcast]

Fiber Optic Lighting or LED strips or both will make it pop

[@bocephus2112]

You guys are awesome I collect vintage 1980s toys! Go #GiJoeandStarWars! GiJoe is awesome I watched it when I was a kid!

[@bartdman95]

The only time I saw the USS FLAG was in a mall in Ayala Makati. I was done with toys ( Or was pretending not to be interested. These were my toy collecting / toy interest dark years which was the 4 High school years and 2 years into college) It was in 1996. It was leaned on a shelf of toys, that were not G.I.Joe. In fact there were no other G.I.Joe toys in the toy section. ( not even the horrible 90's ones) I'm only 5.3 tall, and the box was obviously taller than me. the price tag was 2,000php or around $40 US. Although it was on clearance with the box all banged up. It was still expensive for the regular joe. ( no pun intended ) The minimum daily wage at that time was less than 200Php. I even shook the box and heard parts moving in side. The box was tied together by a plastic straw. ( i'm not sure if in the states this kind if tieing material is available there. ) Anyway, I still regret that I didn't beg my parents or big brother to lend me extra cash. I had some money but not enough. I just bough some Cassette tapes and some cloths. Coz, they said I was too old for toys.

[@detcordxxxi]

This cost $99.99 when I was 9. I couldn't afford it. Now a NIB Flagg cost $10,000.00. I STILL can't afford it!!

[@Thehumblecollectoruk]

cant wait part 2 great video as always col uk

[@williamwortham6691]

Great video. I’m in the process of getting all my parts for my own Flagg. I have most everything but do you have measurements for your base or a more detailed video on just doing the base? Thanks again

[@RhysTheGnome]

Excellent.

[@GIDOJO]

Do you still have the dimensions of the plywood base? I’m buying a U.S.S. Flagg this weekend and I wanted to have the base ready when I brought it home. I mainly just need the length and the width at its longest and widest points. I’ll start out with a rectangular piece of plywood and then make all of the intricate cuts after I actually get the playset here. I saw the video featured some of G.I. Joburg’s dimensions but that diagram didnt have what I needed. Thanks!!

[@thomasmeehan4581]

7:36 Hahahahahaha!!!!!! Looking forward to part 2!

[@nerdsnest7548]

Did you consider putting recessed casters under it or is it's still lite enough to move once fully loaded? Because now you may have the room but you can't be to prepared.

[@docbones213]

My friend had this thing. Yeah I probably walked on it too.

[@Tebok73509]

A friend of mine down the street had the U.S.S Flagg which was set up in his basement playroom. I don't recall us ever playing with it. We always took our G.I Joe figures and vehicles outside and played with them there - most often around a big pile of rocks piled up near the woodline. Yup... Rocks > U.S.S Flagg Playset BTW, what show/movie are those clips with the Flagg from?

[@MartinKronstrom]

...all those plastic trees and flowers that died and melted down into kids fantasy realness.

[@francoisregis2155]

Such a great video I have a flagg but im missing 13 pieces which are really hard and $$$ to get so I wonder if I will complete it

[@matthewstoneback9]

Those crazy Goldbergs! 😂😂😂😂

[@MikeBoardley]

Great job on this video. :)

[@DamienNightmarish]

Amazing!

[@KiKi-gd5th]

This bring back memory...I saw this at our local Sam's club. I was screaming and yelling for my mom to buy this. ($100) Instead they got me the Cobra Terror Drome ($50).. =*\

[@ShinobiShowdown]

The Terrordrome was the ish... back in the day my friend had it no extra parts or restoring required. I never saw the Flagg in real life either looks cool but quite impractical.

[@commandonigward573]

I saw this in my friends house cuz his dad owned one and he had it in a room it was a magnificent sight there was a lot of boxes to labeled extra things but that was a long time ago I think he got rid of it too

[@jeffphillips1832]

Cobra had a massive flying aircraft carrier that looked like some kind of alien mothership. See the intro to Gi Joe the movie. I wonder what a toy of that thing would have been like and if anyone was ever brave\crazy enough to try to reproduce or customize the airship (excluding the Marvel Avengers downsized airship).

[@dansmith1661]

Cobra Airship

[@WhiteysWickedWorkshop]

Love it!

[@bluebeetleupdates1025]

as a gi joe fan what would you think is the cobra headquters because to my kowledge there isnt one playset that says that

[@sXeblues]

Most excellante! 👌

[@lepterfirefall]

I didn't get the paint reference....but I still watched the video cause I'm a geek.

[@jameswayland2339]

I’ve never seen this out of the box , with my own eyes before . My friends and I where way too poor for this . I hardly had figures . If I had gotten it all the times I begged for it , I wouldn’t have anything to play with it . Like I figured out one Christmas when I got “snake mountain “, and had no He man figures to use with it.

[@kennethayers5624]

Hey retroblasing...question... I have a oppertunity to purchase a near complete flagg for 850...That a good deal??

[@dalematiowsky6417]

I couldn't help but notice that your custom base for the toy is a little different than the one used by gi joeburg. is that simply personal preference or , did you feel your set up work better or was the change to better support the damaged sections that you pointed out on the playset?

[@josetheoriginaltoyhunter2132]

I remember the u s s flagg and that thing was big then when I moved back to new york there was a small shop that sold vintage g I joe and it's vehicle and there it was i never bought it but it should is the crown jewel of g I joe

[@birddogg62]

Nice