Random set of the day: Fire Chief's Car
Posted by Huwbot,
Today's random set is 6505 Fire Chief's Car, released during 1988. It's one of 21 Town sets produced that year. It contains 29 pieces and 1 minifig.
It's owned by 1,983 Brickset members. If you want to add it to your collection you might find it for sale at BrickLink or eBay.
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25 comments on this article
There's been a number of Fire Chief's car, and it's interesting to see the progression:
https://brickset.com/sets?query=Fire%20Chief
And half of them have become Random Sets of the Day, too!
@MCLegoboy said:
"There's been a number of Fire Chief's car, and it's interesting to see the progression:
https://brickset.com/sets?query=Fire%20Chief
And half of them have become Random Sets of the Day, too!"
Wow 6611 Fire chief just gets a go cart
Apparently, being Fire Chief comes with no roofs attached, and the one I have, 6407, really enforces the lack of safety for them.
I suspect whoever comes after Fire Chief in rank has something to do with it.
I remember this when it first came out! My 7 year old self was more interested in Castle and Blacktron Lego though. The more 'blocky' designs really have that nostalgic appeal of what Lego is at the core for me, to build with the blocks and then you recognise what it is, no need for specifically molded parts, blocks are bricks and bricks are blocks. Classic! ????
Where's the fire hydrant?
The fire department must be a tad underfunded if this is what the chief is driving
My third Lego set ever. And probably also my first set to include 'real' red parts.
Not that memorable though unfortunately, except maybe the old wheel bearings, which rarely had white wheels.
Who needs 'Fire Chief' or 'Fire Dept' markings when you have two blue lights on your windshield?
@allthenamesaretaken said:
"Wow 6611 Fire chief just gets a go cart"
I mean, I think a go-kart would be a step up from this, which is clearly one of those Power Wheels trucks you buy for kids to drive around the yard. Or rather, the driveway, since this doesn't look like it can handle a freshly mown lawn with those dinky tires.
At least he has the fortune of getting in and out Dukes of Hazzard style.
I don’t imagine the fire chief really does much field work themselves, perhaps this hilarious little buggy is just for parades
Love this, 9 year old me was trying to collect as much of each years Town releases as possible and this was proper pocket money level so easily achievable.
Therefore I reckon this was peak Fire Chiefs Car and acquiring this allowed 6611 to be evicted from the garage at 6382 after donating its blue lights to something else, then towed behind 6656 down to the rapidly expanding Lego scrapyard somewhere behind 6394, where it donated its axles and tyres to 6655 after the original parts on that car became too loose after about a thousand wheel changes (yes the novelty of that in the mid 1980s cannot be overstated).
@allthenamesaretaken said:
" @MCLegoboy said:
"There's been a number of Fire Chief's car, and it's interesting to see the progression:
https://brickset.com/sets?query=Fire%20Chief
And half of them have become Random Sets of the Day, too!"
Wow 6611 Fire chief just gets a go cart"
And 602 Fire Chief can't even get inside.
In 6407 he just drives a platform.
@MCLegoboy said:
"There's been a number of Fire Chief's car, and it's interesting to see the progression:
https://brickset.com/sets?query=Fire%20Chief
And half of them have become Random Sets of the Day, too!"
One thing we can see as time goes on, being a Fire Chief means you get women.
My first LEGO System and LEGO Town set, and if I remember correctly my second LEGO set ever.
Probably my first set could be a DUPLO one, the 2619 Helicopter.
@Atuin said:
"My third Lego set ever. And probably also my first set to include 'real' red parts.
Not that memorable though unfortunately, except maybe the old wheel bearings, which rarely had white wheels."
I am curious what two sets in that era you could possibly have had without red parts before this--or what part of arcane colour lore I am missing that differentiated between different shades of red.
Has it been "new red" my entire life?
@MCLegoboy said:
"There's been a number of Fire Chief's car, and it's interesting to see the progression:
https://brickset.com/sets?query=Fire%20Chief
And half of them have become Random Sets of the Day, too!"
6643 also from 1988 is the GOAT SUV design.
You might think this is small, but for 1988 this was basically the equivalent of 8402 with maybe a bit shorter of a profile. You'd think 7241 but that would be the equivalent of 6611.
It was a different time. A lot more peaceful too. Less arson and other crime. The people on the street weren't 40% police officers and 20% firefighters either.
@Ridgeheart:
I suppose that might explain why they got him a vehicle that drives slower than a leisurely saunter. By the time he gets there, even the embers will be cooled off.
@Formendacil:
I'm not really sure, but I do know that pre-ABS red was a bit yellow compared to red from the ABS era.
Lego Fire Chiefs must be really jealous of the Fire Chiefs in the Transformers universe.
https://tfwiki.net/wiki/File:G1RedAlert_toy.jpg
@Formendacil said:
" @Atuin said:
"My third Lego set ever. And probably also my first set to include 'real' red parts.
Not that memorable though unfortunately, except maybe the old wheel bearings, which rarely had white wheels."
I am curious what two sets in that era you could possibly have had without red parts before this--or what part of arcane colour lore I am missing that differentiated between different shades of red.
Has it been "new red" my entire life?"
6530 and 6661. Admittedly both had trans-red parts, but none had any opaque red ones^^ So no big mystery here xD
Town was a different era, but with City, there are still different size vehicles to choose from.
2019 60231 : Fire Chief Response Truck looks giant compared to this, it's still the last official "Fire Chief" labeled car.
However, 2019 still did have "town" sized vehicle with a polybag with 30361 : Fire ATV
And 2023 60393 : 4x4 Fire Truck Rescue fills a nice in-between size.
Somehow, I think the proper police chief's car of the era – 1983-1989 – would have been the fire equivalent of the 1983 police car 6623.
Even though that was a little upper-range in pocket money for the average 7-8 year old in the mid-1980s, I think 6623 might have served better. Then again, a lot of kids I'm sure had fun playing with 6505, and as someone pointed out, well within afforable range.
FWIW: Do these old sets include the retail price for when they were new?
@Ridgeheart said:
"I can only guess as to what the function of the Fire Chief (and their impressive red shopping-trolley) is. Do they just drive around, looking for fire, calling in the actual fire-truck if and when they find fire in the wild? Do they start fires, for the firefighters to put out? Do they go from door to door, informing people about the status of fires in/around their properties?
I suppose we can't discount the possibility that, like most managers, the Fire Chief is functionally useless and largely ornamental. Maybe the actual firefighters just pitch in to buy their Chief a lovely golf-cart so they can putter on and get out of the way, and with that, things actually get done on the workfloor."
I hope that is a good helping of sarcasm right there. If not, you couldn't be much more mistaken.
@Atuin said:
" @Formendacil said:
" @Atuin said:
"My third Lego set ever. And probably also my first set to include 'real' red parts.
Not that memorable though unfortunately, except maybe the old wheel bearings, which rarely had white wheels."
I am curious what two sets in that era you could possibly have had without red parts before this--or what part of arcane colour lore I am missing that differentiated between different shades of red.
Has it been "new red" my entire life?"
6530 and 6661. Admittedly both had trans-red parts, but none had any opaque red ones^^ So no big mystery here xD"
Ah! That does make more sense (I forgot the sheer existence of the trans- spectrum).