7301 Convertible Andro Vehicles - Dah Yang
Shown as Andro-Tank or Andro Tank depending on packaging, this Kinsman robot was originally released by Bandai to the Japanese market as part of their Pokerobo (Pocket Robot) toy line. Some of the Andro sub-series packaging clearly state the toys are licensed from Bandai while others of the same figure and card don't carry this information. It's unclear whether it was added or removed. Andro-Tank with a hyphen is the spelling printed on the toy's chest sticker.
The three Andro toys are based on the same principle. They all have friction motors (push forward repeatedly to spin the flywheel motor up) and high and low gears switched by turning the head. As turning the head is part of the mode change, this cleverly changes the robot from driving to walking speed.
In robot mode the toy's arms move up and down as it rolls forward. Some Kinsman packaging includes the text, 'Andros box and race each other in order to build robot skills'. The Japanese instruction sheet also shows this was the intended play idea.
The Kinsman Andro toys were sold in small, window fronted boxes and on traditional blister cards. At this time it's not confirmed whether this was specifically a regional choice or a change to all distributions. The box designer chose an odd approach to the window. Where traditionally the window plastic would be glued to the inside of the box, the Andro box card is coated in a thin yet reasonably durable plastic film. This covers the entire box including the window cutout. The film negates a need for glossy printing, however all of the specs that appear to be dust on the example below are micro scratches on plastic that catch the light. For the limited time they stayed on retail shelves pre repeated handling, it worked quite well and added a level of water protection.
See Kinsman main index for further details.
Region Codes Used: US United States / UK United Kingdom / JP Japan / FR France / IT Italy - Location codes only shown where items were known to be released.
This list is accurate yet likely to be incomplete. If you are able to confirm release in other regions please get in contact.
Kinsman 7301 US Dah Yang 1985
Kinsman 7301 UK Kingsonic 1985*
Kinsman 7301 IT AL-Es 1985*5*
Kinsman 7301 AVi 1985*5*
Pokerobo JP Bandai (Pokerobo III chest sticker) 1984
* boxes showing regional importers / distributors still featured the Dah Yang logo.
The grey plastic used for the Kinsman Andro Tank version is slightly darker and prone to developing a yellow tinge over time.
Type III Pokerobo like Type II seems to have been a later release. The packaging is different to Type I, only the two plastic colour schemes (matching the Kinsman versions) and one sticker set was released. In contrast, Type I saw many colour schemes and various sticker combinations. The Kinsman Andro-Tank in tank mode suffers a little visually. Without the extra sticker sheet included with the Pokerobo version adding visual interest, there's nothing to break up the otherwise grey block.
Trivia The Type II and III Pokerobo boxes no longer show the company name Mameet; see Pokerobo Type I page for details.
Kinsman stamped
Made in Taiwan
Pokerobo stamped Made in Japan
