SONIC (TRAIN) ROBOT

Maker: Masudaya

 

Possibly the last of the Gang of 5, but that's a matter of conjecture, is the Sonic Robot or Train Robot. This red robot with brightly coloured inset panels has a unique and less graceful head design: it is a squat, no-neck head with plastic dome, ears and eyes. The bump'n'go action combines with flashing eyes and ears. The robot makes a noise like one of those Japanese tinplate trains (the ones you can't give away!), hence the nickname. The Sonic Robot was available in the 1963 Masudaya catalog.