"Bargain I-Beam system. Get to Target now!" Topic

Found this deal at Target clearance today. Only $2.30 USD for this "Power City Construction Extension Pack".

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Apparently meant as an add-on to the various power-city building and train sets, it wasn't much of an add-on because it didn't come with any wall panels. However, what it does come with is this:
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The fig for scale is a 28mm Shockforce mini.

-1 base
-4 roof or floor pieces
-84 columns (the shorter ones)
-64 beams (the longer ones)
-8 posts that allow you to build a bottom corner without having a beam below

I went a bit nuts and bought all 6 I was able to find. At this price, I'll probably be using some of them just to make stacks of I-beams for terrain. Seems to me that this would be useful for many eras of play from 20th century through sci-fi.
The only drawback is the various nubs that most of us will want to trim off, but that seems like a small price to pay.

Nice find!

I have my father's old version of that same building system from the 1950s!

Cool to see that it's still around.

Wow – I had something very much like that (I think it was called "Girder and Panel" or something like that) in the 70s. The pieces look to be identical, except for the color. I had no idea they still made them.

Doug

That's the name! I was in the store trying to think of which vintage toy this reminded me of. It appears that the "Power City" buildings are all made of rebadged or licensed Girder and panel components.

The line is still being produced and sold here:
link

It looks an awful lot like the old Girder and Panel set.
As I remember when playing with it back in the previous century, it was slightly larger than HO scale, which makes it… wait for it … 28mm?

The nubs are for attaching the panels. Are they included?

EDIT: It appears not. However, they are available from the link cited above.
And it looks like a wonderful source of 40K buildings that are not that godawful Gothic with gargoyles look, the Cathedral of Sanctus Minimus office building.

I've seen them used withS gauge trains. So 25mm.

Well does have potential.

I saw the suspension bridge version in a Canadian Target for $10 USD or so, but I didn't pick it up as I wasn't sure what scale it might work with. Guess I'll have to go back and see if there are some lurking around.

Jon,
It is the old Girder and Panel, just in a different box.
The panels are not included in this set, though there were other Power City buildings that did include them.

BWX,
I'll have to go back and check again now!

Scale and Size

As for scale, the Company currently making them (linked above) says that they are 1/87 (HO scale) and the doors on the panels currently being sold look about right for that. Technically that would make the panels too small for to-the-eye 25 or 28mm figs. However, there are many panels pictured on the website that are very scale-neutral and would look fine for 25 or 28mm figs. Apparently they will sell you packs of panels or other parts separately.

I'm not using any panels,so they work fine for 28mm.

For those interested in measurements
-the vertical columns are 50mm
-the horizontal beams are 70mm.
-All the beams are 5mm thick.
-Clearance under a beam that had been clicked into vertical columns is 45mm.

The lengths above do not include the connecting tabs or studs on the side or ends.

Aren't made from that vinyl type of plastic. You might have to using something like Krylon Fusion to prime it.

8)

I think they are – I seem to recall the girders being slightly bendable and rather slick. Slick enough, in fact, that assemblies sometimes did not want to stay together by virtue of friction alone.

Doug

The plastic is quite rigid, but it has a slick sheen and feel that indicate that it might be polypropylene or one of the similar types of soft plastics. I use Krylon Camo Flat black (has the Fusion logo in small letters) for any softer toy plastics where I'm not sure of the type. It hasn't let me down so far.

The Sci-Fi tenement I posted earlier was half made of soft plastic and the Camo Black worked just fine.

It's not fullproof, but in my experience a good way to test is to apply a bit of plastic solvent glue to an unimportant area. If the plastic melts/bonds then it's a pretty good bet that store brand dollar spray paint cans will work just fine. If not, then Fusion is likely the answer.

Just visited a second Target and they had nothing except for a crane set from the same series, but it had no relation or compatibility with the Girder and panel system.

Was researching Girder and Panel elsewhere and the girders are indeed made from Polypropylene. Get out your Fusion!

Where is the jealous icon ..?

Oh, well, congrats!

"Girder & Panel" and "Bridge & Turnpike."

I got one set with a motor for cranes or elevators. My brother got one with piping and vessels for a chemical plant.

Merciful heavens my mother has made us throw out some treasures.

The online shop has "Make Your Own" panels. 80 panels for $8.95 USD. Cardstock, you can print them on your inkjet and punch them out and stick them to the girders.

They also have free digital templates for various programs. With those I suppose you could print your own panels on any cardstock you have.

wow…good find!

All they need is MOAR SKULLZ !

Yup, Girder and Panel. By Kenner, as I recall. Had that along with Lincoln Logs, Erector Set and Tinker Toys. I also had another plastic building set that I can't recall the name of. It was much more sophisticated than the girder and panel set and allowed you to build the sort of neo-gothic city buildings you find from the early 1900s.