Off Topic: Robbie the Ballast Robot

DB reminisces: Every model train nerd worth his salt needs good tools, and in the early 1980s, the Batchelor and Bond Empire Railways Infrastructure Management Division were armed with this fine piece of equipment - Robbie the Robot: diluted PVA ballast glue dispenser to the stars. (And a staple gun, and a pair of pliers. And that was about it actually.)Ev just sent me this picture. Apparently, twenty five years on, Robbie has survived (or been dug up) - complete with dried glue stains that probably contain the DNA of long-extinct prehistoric beasts.

Robbie started as an Avon product (my mother having no defense against the strong-arm sales tactics employed by the Waimate sales branch: OK, OK, I'll buy something, just go away!) and he was modified for model rail service with the artistic application of marker pen. The quirky face, toupee, buttons and wristwatch all bear a striking resemblance to Buzz Lightyear. Or, perhaps, the other way around...?

Is that a copyright infringement lawsuit I see approaching over the horizon?