I came across an eBay listing a few weeks ago, now ended, for a vintage LEGO space set, the Space Transport, model no. 918, from 1978.
Via eurobricks.com
It caught my eye for several reasons. First of all, the eBay listing price was $875.00. Second, this was one of the sets that I knew about in my youth, and it is very evocative of childhood memories. The 918 Space Transport set was actually never available in the U.S., but two similar sets were: the Space Cruiser, sold in Europe as model no. 924 and in the U.S. as no. 487; and the Galaxy Explorer, model no. 928 in Europe and 497 in the U.S.
I had the Galaxy Explorer, which was by far the coolest of the three, but could never find the Space Cruiser—even though LEGO made a point of showing it in their catalog, flying alongside the Galaxy Explorer.
The Galaxy Explorer was the biggest LEGO set my parents had ever gotten me. I remember that at age 5 or so, it was pretty overwhelming, so my dad helped me put it together. (I don’t have kids, but if you do and you’re reading this, build stuff with them. Lots of stuff.)
That pretty much kickstarted a fascination (obsession?) with LEGO that persisted for years, and continues still to a certain extent. I don’t feel the same sense of wonder when presented with a pile of bricks, which makes me sad, but I still enjoy the nostalgia.
I put together an Imgur album of the three spaceship sets, if you want to relive some memories, too:
