So, due to somebody mentioning it in a Youtube video about the Kenner RGB figures, I found out about this place:
Charlie's Custom Toy ShopHe makes replacements/upgrades for old Kenner proton packs (and has just started to make some for the new Hasbro repops, which use a slightly different connection peg); as the above pictures show, I still have proton packs...but one of them started to fall apart when I took the above pictures and, dammit, his packs look so good. So I ordered six:
Snazzy, right? The packs can be manufactured in Series 1 blue, Slimed Heroes purple, or movie-accurate black. After some consideration, I went with the Kenner blue. Streams are available in the four classic Series 1 colors (red, orange, yellow, green) as well as pink and glow-in-the-dark white. Hm...why, since I need six proton packs for six characters, that worked out perfectly:
(I know...kinda sexist to have Janine using the pink one...but she did wear pink some, even in the Season 1-2 days, and it's kinda close to Egon's red. If Charlie'd offered a more purplish beam I'd have gone with that...or if he'd offered a blue one I'd have gotten that one for Louis and let Janine have the white one)
(Also, you can order them in any ratio you want. But like the old school packs, I wanted a separate color for each character.)
Oh yeah...here's the part that makes them 100% better than the old Kenner pack, and even the new Hasbro ones:
The proton beams are removable!!! Why the hell didn't Kenner think of that in 1986??? The packs can have beams, but you don't have to mangle them to have the Ghostbusters wear them "properly".
Here's the back of the CCTS pack, with an old Kenner back (that has seen much better days) for comparison:
It gets better. Here's the thing that actually got my attention first:
Holy fucking shit! Kenner-compatible slime blowers!!! Or I guess if they're Kenner-compatible I should call them "ecto chargers"?
The mood slime streams are also removable, and are available in purple and pink. So I got one of each. If I were him, though, I'd consider maybe a yellow/orange stream (per the mood slime in "Partners In Slime"). Or even black, even though that wasn't in the show, but it'd make a great option for GBVG fans.
Back of the slime blowers:
"Happy New Year, Vigo!!!"
Now, as if Charlie didn't want my money enough already, he also sold an accessory pack:
Four PKE meters that resemble the pilot/Kenner role playing toy meter (compare to the oversize, bright yellow Screaming Heroes Egon meter) and four ghost traps. The Screaming Heroes Venkman ghost trap might be a little better, but try getting four of those all at once. The four belts are compatible with the four Series 1 figures and subsequent repops (Power Pack, Slimed Heroes, Ecto-Glow, and even the Hasbro RGB Classics) which are designed to hold a trap and a meter apiece. There was even one set of ecto goggles, which I didn't even see advertised on the web site!
Egon and Ray model the new equipment:
Suffice it to say, I'm quite pleased with this purchase.
About the only down side I can think of is this:
The pegs are a little larger than the holes on the Kenner figures. On the Series 1, it's recommended you actually insert the pack rotated 45%, and then gently twist it into position. It works great. For the Power Pack and Slimed Heroes, you actually have to expand the back hole a bit for them to work. But the downside is, that after this they won't work with the old proton packs or the Power Packs; the expanded hole is just too big to hold them. I think in a pinch I can make it work by placing a very tiny rubber band onto the old pack peg to grip it, though.
(And note, again, that these particular ones don't work with the Hasbro ones at all. But also as mentioned, Charlie does sell Hasbro-compatible ones)
But if your old packs are broken or gone, or even simply, like me, you want an upgrade, these get my highest recommendation!