PetranekDesigns Retro Playsets

*oldmanwinters* · 07-18-2025, 11:49 AM

Wanted to show some love to the retro-inspired playsets and accessories of PetranekDesigns. A few weeks ago, I bought a Channel 6 News Building and Display Base off their etsy shop. The package was waiting for me in the mail this week and I opened it up for construction and have been amazed with it!
https://www.etsy.com/shop/PetranekDesigns

Spoiler:

Structurally, it reminds me a lot of Kenner's The Real Ghostbusters Firehouse, but this is very-much a Turtle-iffic take on the Channel Six News building that would have been a likely route for Playmates Toys back in the 1980s/90s: three stories with "half walls", interior & exterior detailing, along with a surprising number of accessories. Although it works well as a stand-alone product, it is designed to be an extension of the original Playmates Sewer Lair playset, and the shop also has a 2nd-Time Around Shop with Sewer Lair base which can be used with the News building too. Didn't buy that set but now I'm thinking about it whenever it comes back in stock.

The seller explains most pieces are created through 3D printing and vapor smoothing. I'm not an expert on identifying variations of plastic/polypropylene, but I think it's a little smoother, shinier, and stickier (hard to explain) than what the vintage Playmates would have used back in the day. That said, it seems to be fairly sturdy and so far, everything is holding together in place after construction. Almost every piece and section is built to slide or snap together and the only thing that required an external tool were the illustrated paper inserts that slid into the monitor panels of the set. It ships in an unexpectedly compact cardboard box with more layers of internal padding that most retail stores (or NECA) would bother with these days.

For the price (less than $100 after a shop discount, free shipping, and taxes), this is an incredible piece, especially to be a limited quantity product produced by a one-person hobbyist shop. At present, all of the full playsets have sold out, and PetranekDesigns is waiting on a resupply of materials coming at the end of July. Interested collectors can send a message to get on the waitlist for new orders or if you want updates:
http://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FA...s7syQ/viewform

07-18-2025, 11:49 AM	#1
oldmanwinters Overlord Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Between yesterday and tomorrow! Posts: 15,471	PetranekDesigns Retro Playsets Wanted to show some love to the retro-inspired playsets and accessories of PetranekDesigns. A few weeks ago, I bought a Channel 6 News Building and Display Base off their etsy shop. The package was waiting for me in the mail this week and I opened it up for construction and have been amazed with it! https://www.etsy.com/shop/PetranekDesigns Spoiler: Structurally, it reminds me a lot of Kenner's The Real Ghostbusters Firehouse, but this is very-much a Turtle-iffic take on the Channel Six News building that would have been a likely route for Playmates Toys back in the 1980s/90s: three stories with "half walls", interior & exterior detailing, along with a surprising number of accessories. Although it works well as a stand-alone product, it is designed to be an extension of the original Playmates Sewer Lair playset, and the shop also has a 2nd-Time Around Shop with Sewer Lair base which can be used with the News building too. Didn't buy that set but now I'm thinking about it whenever it comes back in stock. The seller explains most pieces are created through 3D printing and vapor smoothing. I'm not an expert on identifying variations of plastic/polypropylene, but I think it's a little smoother, shinier, and stickier (hard to explain) than what the vintage Playmates would have used back in the day. That said, it seems to be fairly sturdy and so far, everything is holding together in place after construction. Almost every piece and section is built to slide or snap together and the only thing that required an external tool were the illustrated paper inserts that slid into the monitor panels of the set. It ships in an unexpectedly compact cardboard box with more layers of internal padding that most retail stores (or NECA) would bother with these days. For the price (less than $100 after a shop discount, free shipping, and taxes), this is an incredible piece, especially to be a limited quantity product produced by a one-person hobbyist shop. At present, all of the full playsets have sold out, and PetranekDesigns is waiting on a resupply of materials coming at the end of July. Interested collectors can send a message to get on the waitlist for new orders or if you want updates: http://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FA...s7syQ/viewform __________________ Experience the TMNT Fan Commentaries! Check out my TMNT fan comic, "Nothing to Fear"! View my sketch work! I'm selling some of my hard-to-find TMNT items!