We received an absolute treat today when we checked on our door step and found a package from Mattel waiting for us. As you may have seen on our
Facebook page, we got our
MattyCollector.com Ghost Trap from Mattel. It was completely unexpected and we immediately went to work to
carefully tear the box to shreds to get to it.
Opening the white mailer, we saw the crated box theme from the PKE Meter was continued to the
box of the Ghost Trap. There are all kinds of little details and notes on the box alone that are very fun to read. Opening the box, we don't see the cascade of packing peanuts like the PKE Meter had, but instead a
secure fitting Styrofoam form. We started by pulling the center piece of Styrofoam out carefully. You will want to be careful because these are very tight inside the crate box. Once free you are exposed to
Ghost Trap, Pedal, Hose, Manual & Accessories wrapped in plastic. Pull the plastic off and you finally have an
accurate Ghost Trap that we all wished we had when we were kids.
Like all toys you had when a kid (with the exception to the PKE Meter) this Ghost Trap is batteries not included. You will want to stock up on packs of 4 AA batteries for the day when your Ghost Trap arrives, and make sure you have the appropriately sized Phillips screwdriver. The hose plugs in easily into the trap and the pedal, and will be required if you want to use the functions of the trap. We recommend checking out the instruction manual before diving in and trying to step on the pedal as there are a few settings that need to be set to get the desired effects. The manual, as with the PKE Meter, is full of funny comments from Venkman Inc.
There are two modes available on the trap, which can be set by the switch on the front of the trap cartridge. Movie mode and prop mode. Prop mode was tricky to get into and figure out how it worked, but it allows for different settings (set by the trap pedal) that allows you to display your Ghost Trap in different ways. Movie mode is the one you will want to play with the most. With movie mode, the trap will be the most animated and fun. There are lights, sounds, and movements that the trap makes when you press on the pedal. It would be easy to tell you about them, but you should experience them in our video on our
YouTube account:
As you can see, there is some movement from the wheels shaking, that we weren't able to see in our previous
Comic-Con video. The movement takes some time for it to happen, maybe 20 seconds after the doors close. It would have been nice to see that happen right away. The
Ghost Trap cartridge comes apart using a release button built into the front of the trap. Do not just try to pull it out, or you might break it. There are no other details on the inside of the trap, or on the hidden parts of the cartridge.
The other details of the trap and pedal are absolutely amazing. There are some discrepancies here and there, but overall, the trap is perfect in almost every dimension. Even the Ghost Trap pedal is as detailed as the trap it self. Mattel accurately
recreated the ITT Relay on the pedal, as well as the various fittings and vector plates.
Comparing the project boxes on the Trap pedal reveal that they are nearly perfect, with the exception of a few liberties that needed to be taken to ease manufacturing. The
pedal's shape is also virtually identical to the plans we have available in our
Equipment section.
The details on the trap are the same way as the pedal. We
compared the silver knob on the side and the size is exactly the same, but Mattel once again took liberties to ease in the manufacturing process. The
black knob on the other side is very accurate, though its placement is a little off. The vector plate and resistor on the side are also very close, though the
Cal-R Resistor is slightly over sized. The switch and red light on the back of the trap are also slightly different. We took one of our
red lenses and compared them side by side, there is a difference in size and height, but you can
install the correct lens over the red light with some modification.
A nice detail included with the Trap are the interchangeable rods on the side. They include a
silver and red set depending on whether or not you want GB1 or GB2 style. (But they do not include different knobs, which frankly isn't very important to us). We prefer the look of the
red rods on the Ghost Trap.
Frankly. We are absolutely amazed at the quality of the Ghost Trap. The electronics, the lights, the sounds, the movements are all awesome. The features and details are all there and are
really nice. Well worth the $130 price tag, and CERTAINLY worth the $300-$500 fan built Ghost Traps have been selling for on eBay during Halloween. That being said, keep in mind that this trap is completely plastic. It looks like it, and feels like it. Despite a lot of
really good attempts at making the plastic look like metal, please keep in mind that at this price it is absolutely incredible for what you
do get. As for being plastic, there are a few liberties with appearance that do affect the way the trap looks, which were necessary to put it together with all the features.
The Ghostbusters Ghost Trap will go on sale at
MattyCollector.com this upcoming Monday October 17th at 12PM (Noon) Eastern Standard Time for $130. Unlike the PKE Meter, we hear they are in fact shipping these internationally. But be prepared to pay big for shipping. The weight of the entire package is over 6lbs and the size is quite large with the Ghost Trap box being 16" x 16" x 8".
Take a look at all
49 photos we took of all the details of the Ghost Trap on our
Facebook page.
This trap will be given away in our Halloween Costume contest! Look for more details about that toward October 31st!
