New Releases you are all worked up about

[FITZ]

Thought it might be fun to talk about some of the stuff that is either just out or announced for this year that might have our hearts aflutter.

 

Here's my list:

 

The AFV Club 35116 Sdkfz 251 Uhu. Some of you may recall about a year ago I was in the planning stage on a diorama featuring a Verlinden Uhu conversion of the Tamiya 251/1D along with a Tamiya Panther G Steel Wheel version that includes the night vision goodies. Well, I've made zero progress on that and while Dragon continues to not release its Uhu AFV Club has gone and issued one that is probably a whole lot better than the Tamiya/Verlinden conversion I've got collecting dust on the shelf. Of course, they have the "Night Group 3-in-1" kit out too so now the diorama just got a whole lot bigger.

 

The MiniArt 35035 ZiS-2 57mm anti-tank gun and crew. Simple, instant diorama in one box. I love stuff like this.

 

Bronco 35011 and Italeri 6459 Staghound armored cars - bout time we had something other than the ancient Tamiya Daimler.

 

The Academy M7 Priest. The old Italeri kit has been out of production forever and I have a fondness for open-topped armored vehicles like this because they work so good in diorama settings.

 

Italeri 6458 40mm Bofors. I seem to recall there was a 54mm brass kit of this available about 25 years ago. Bout time we had something in plastic.

[Garth]

HobbyBoss has some interesting injection kits coming along ... hopefully they'll reach wider distro here in the states. The ones I'd like to lay my hands on are the anticipated TA-7 Corsair II (two kits, one USN, on ANG) and the NAW A-10B - both in 1/72 scale.

 

Trumpeter 1/72 F-105D -- I'm hoping to transplant my Airwaves Thunderstick II spine to it from an old Hase kit (when I built it several years ago I made sure that I just spot-tacked the spine on with a single drop of superglue, just in case a better kit came along)

 

Someone is apparently making a 1/72 Sea Harrier FA.2 this year too. Not sure who, but it will definitely be a welcome addition. I'd like to build two, one from each of the Shar sqns.

 

--Garth

[TonyE]

-Renault UE supply tractor in 1/35, which will be released in a few months by Tamiya.

 

-early Pz-38t from Dragon (with interior) and Tristar.

 

-CV L3-33/35 tankettes from Bronco Model

 

-75mm Pak97/38

-40mm Bofors from Italeri

-Maiale and Barchino special attack craft in 1/35 by Italeri.

-also the various Autoblinda and Sahariana variants announced, which might lead to 20mm Breda AA and 47mm Bohler AT-guns in seperate plastic kits, as these are the armament of the Saharianas.

 

-I-400 super submarine in 1/350 by Tamiya.

 

-Y-wing in 1/72 from Finemolds

-Type 97 medium tank and variants from Finemolds

[nitflegal]

For me, it's probably Revell's new-tool 1/350 Bismarck and Dragon's M1A2 SEP. To be honest, I'm in the wierd position of having most of my wished for kits already out in the last few years. About all that's left are 1/350th Japanese and British carriers, an injection Roma in 1/350th, and modern Russian tanks that don't require $200 to purchase the resin. Since I've heard nary a peep about any of those, there's not a whole lot of announced stuff that I'm anticipating.

 

Matt

[Corinthian]

1/35 LCAC

 

I know, it does not exist and no one is making it, yet I'm excited that someday perhaps some manufacturer will make one!

 

Hell, if they could make a Leopold, Karl Morser, and 1/350 carrier, how much difficult would it be to manufacture a 1/35 LCAC?

[DougRichards]

1/35 LCAC

 

I know, it does not exist and no one is making it, yet I'm excited that someday perhaps some manufacturer will make one!

 

Hell, if they could make a Leopold, Karl Morser, and 1/350 carrier, how much difficult would it be to manufacture a 1/35 LCAC?

 

There is your answer: if Germany had made an LCAC between 1935 and 1945, or had thought about making one 1944-1950 there would be three on the market right now.

 

As for 1/350 scale carriers, they are just a continuation of the Tamiya (and other ) 1/350 scale battleship series. Other large scale ships - Heller 1/400, Hasegawa 1/450, don't seem to have caught on, and the old Revell / Monogram 1960s Enterprise in 1/400 sort of set the idea.

[nitflegal]

There is your answer: if Germany had made an LCAC between 1935 and 1945, or had thought about making one 1944-1950 there would be three on the market right now.

 

Ain't that the truth! Two different manufacturers released a freakin' Dicker Max but we don't have an injection Archer. To be fair, there has been an explosion of Allied kits in the past few years that was well past time but the german focus is a bit amazing. Heck, just look at Dragon's figure releases and see how many are german compared to everything else!

 

Matt

[Jason]

Ain't that the truth! Two different manufacturers released a freakin' Dicker Max but we don't have an injection Archer. To be fair, there has been an explosion of Allied kits in the past few years that was well past time but the german focus is a bit amazing. Heck, just look at Dragon's figure releases and see how many are german compared to everything else!

 

Matt

Every Hans, Fritz and Hermann that served in the German Army during WWII has been represented by Dragon/DML in one of their figure sets somewhere......

 

Along with every variation of every designed, produced or dreamed of AVF and aircraft of the Third Reich era......

 

But, through some twist of fate, it has taken YEARS for someone to do a really good F-105 in 1/72 scale (Mono-Revell kit was decent, but raised panel lines) or a really good Comet in 1/35 (Bronco finally).

 

And don't get me started on warships. The Germans had two frikken battleships* during WWII and every stinking model manufacturer makes kits of both of them in several different scales, but it took years to get a decent HMS Hood (Trumpeter 1/700 scale soon and 1/350 currently). It took forever for us to get some Soviet Cold War naval stuff in 1/700 too.

 

Look, I've got nothing against German military equipment of WWII, and in fact, have quite a lot of it (aircraft, ships and armor) in my model collection, but how about some frikken balance for cripes sake.

 

* I don't care what anybody says, the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau were NOT battleships, and those two useless leftovers from WWI (Schleswig Holstein and Schlesien) don't count either.

[nexus6]

1/35 LCAC

 

I know, it does not exist and no one is making it, yet I'm excited that someday perhaps some manufacturer will make one!

 

Hell, if they could make a Leopold, Karl Morser, and 1/350 carrier, how much difficult would it be to manufacture a 1/35 LCAC?

 

lol i love your optimism

 

for me its the trumpeter 1/32 f-100 and the hope that they will release a 1/48 gannet.

the staghound and i believe accurate armour is doing a saracen so maybe a saladin is in the works. the old tamiya kit i have needs so much work!

[Corinthian]

Don't get me started about german kits....

 

 

Great, now you did it.

 

Someday, there'll be WW2 German kits that shows Tiger tank XXX of the XX Panzer division that was last seen in the corner X in town Z at around 10:00 in the morning on 14 July 1944.

 

My reaction to German WW2 kits: "But they lost the bloody war!"

 

*sigh*

 

I'd rather see more 1950s-1980s Soviet kits even if they lost the Cold War!

[DougRichards]

My reaction to German WW2 kits: "But they lost the bloody war!"

 

*sigh*

 

I'd rather see more 1950s-1980s Soviet kits even if they lost the Cold War!

Some would argue that by 1995 Germany had gained roughly what they went to war for in 1914 to 1945, that is a united Europe without tariffs and customs borders.

 

Even so, there are too many German kits on the market, often put out by Japanese companies, as the Japanese apparently still worship German military achievements. I have an instruction sheet somewhere for a Japanese 1/700 Bismarck kit that refers to the unfortunate gallant German ship being tragically sunk by the British (or words to that effect). Well I guess Germany and Japan were allied in WW2, and both copped a hiding from the Bolsheviks.

 

It isn't just the Japanese though - look at the stuff Verlinden has put out over the years: a lot of WW2 German figures, very few (if any) Brit and only a smattering of US in 1/35.

 

It is what the market wants, unfortunately: How many Flak 37mm have we had before Italeri will release a 40mm Bofors? Is there yet a US 37mm A-T gun, or a Brit 2pdr in 1/35? What about even a basic injection Vickers in 1/35 scale? Surely it cannot be that hard? A weapon used over a 60 year period by the Empire and Commonwealth, and ignored by plastic manufacturers.

[DougRichards]

How many decent injection kits of Royal Navy carriers of WW2?

 

Yet Revell managed to release a Graf Zepplin!

 

Madness!

[Jason]

How many decent injection kits of Royal Navy carriers of WW2?

 

Yet Revell managed to release a Graf Zepplin!

 

Madness!

Actually, there is a 1/700 Victorious from Aoshima, 1/600 Ark Royal from Airfix, 1/720 Ark Royal from Revell and a 1/400 HMS Colossus from Heller. There is also the escort carrier by Skywave, such as HMS Tracker, but that is just a US ship with a British name.

 

Other than that, nothing, you have to go resin to get most British WWII carriers.

[nitflegal]

Some would argue that by 1995 Germany had gained roughly what they went to war for in 1914 to 1945, that is a united Europe without tariffs and customs borders.

 

Even so, there are too many German kits on the market, often put out by Japanese companies, as the Japanese apparently still worship German military achievements. I have an instruction sheet somewhere for a Japanese 1/700 Bismarck kit that refers to the unfortunate gallant German ship being tragically sunk by the British (or words to that effect). Well I guess Germany and Japan were allied in WW2, and both copped a hiding from the Bolsheviks.

 

It isn't just the Japanese though - look at the stuff Verlinden has put out over the years: a lot of WW2 German figures, very few (if any) Brit and only a smattering of US in 1/35.

 

The thing is, German stuff sells. I have several in my collection. Dragon has supposedly sold far more Tigers and Panthers, two tanks that have been well represented in plastic, than they have Pershings or Shermans. If Allied figure sets sold better, they'd make them. I don't get it but slap a swastika/black cross on a model and people just keep buying it.

 

Matt

[EW]

Ok I'm gonna add my two cents about the German domination of subjects. Some of you have aired some thoughtful opionons as to why this is the case but I would like use another approach on this subject, and that's the skills challenge. With all due respect, I think in general terms, a German armour or AC is more challenging (sp?) than their Allied counterpart when it comes to painting (Sherman vs Panther for example). A Spitfire is more easily done than let's say a Bf-110 in mottled camo when it comes to handle the airbrush and so on. So my "theory" is that when a modeler becomes more proficient with the AB, he will look at more challengening subjects ie. German. Of course this might be just a partial explanation of this "German phenomen" but think of it, isn't it in the human nature to seek new challenges?

 

Cheers

EW

 

Ps

 

To stay on topic there's nothing new that will excite me as a quarter scale ac dork this year. But I sure hope Trumps Fencer will hit the market during 07 Talk about a mean fighting looking machine there...

Edited April 25, 2007 by EW

[Jacques]

The German's get the most kits because:

 

1. They made cool looking, mean looking, cutting edge stuff. The TigerI and II are fearful. The Maus is awe inspiring. I LOVE the T-34 and Sherman, but they are made for utility and ease of production. The German's made damned good guns and optics, so it was like they really were super-men...tough tanks that could "kiss" you at long range.

 

2. That leads to the next part: Mythos. The Nazi's got a reputation that they were Supermen. When we went to fight them , we found out they were indeed damned good. That reinforces a myth and makes it attractive.

 

3. They were also the "ultimate" bad guys. The Nazi philosophy was pretty damned bad/sick/twisted. That makes them awesome badguys. Plus they are not pushovers/have good morale. Plus they have good equipment. This is the stff of dreams and legends, to beat a army like that.

 

4. While the Japanese were indeed good at what they did too, and fanatical, it is hard to idolize a system that specifically excludes all non-japanese and the Japanese equipement was not much better than allied stuff. Plus the Japanese were not physically imposing and they had a reputation as bullies from the war in China. Without a "Mythos" (and with things still being somewhat "frosty" between China and Japan over WWII atrocities) the Japanese just don't have that something extra to put them up with the Germans.

 

5. The Italians? What, they fought in WWII? ( )

 

6. The allies are just not "sexy". We favored utility and ease of production over ability, and we have a lot of "reactionary" elements to our military that kept really cool and cutting edge equipment out of the war, at least until the very end. Good for running a war, bad for marketing model 50+ years after the battles. And our GI's (overall), compared to the bad guys, were really nice people. It is hard to idolize a "nice guy" in terms of warfare, even though that is who you want on your side. I mean, who ever heard the phrase "It was so awefull it would make an American/Brit puke."? And while the Russians were brutal/rough, they were seen as low-brow and uneducated (Unfair I say! Unfair!) It took 45 years of a Cold War for them to achieve some level of respect.

 

So the cards are against the non-Germans. And that does not even take into account any modern social commentary of the main customers of those kits. Until we get a new set of "ultimate" bad guys, (and all the suffering/death that goes with it), it will be WWII German's. In that case, I am quite happy to see only this WWII German stuff.

 

On the other hand, those Communist Russians scared the living crap out of us...wasn't the 1980's "New Russian Man" the twisted love children of Nazi's and Commies secret scientific experiments? Based on that, I think we need a lot of MODERN RUSSIAN kits!

 

(As a quick side-note, think of how different we would be approaching modern times if the Iraqi Army had been as fully competent as we thought it was in 1991? i know many modern Vets who are rather disappointed that they beat up a third-rate military that really could not even effectively fight back. Had the Iraqi's been as tough as the Germans in WWII, once we won there may have been a LOT more interest in something other than WWII Germans...)

[ShotMagnet]

All worked up about the new Dragon Hanomag (the 251/17) with the flak mount. And their Diana. I know, they're German. If someone makes a decent MAR 240, MAR 240, a Kilshon, a Centurion with the MAR 290, some decent Israeli M3 kits, etc, I promise to buy them all.

 

Israeli stuff is sexier than German stuff.

 

 

Shot

[Jacques]

it may be sexier, but:

 

1. There is a fair amount of anti-zionist feeling in the world even now ( We got enough problems and we have to keep THAT up?? ) ...and the Isreali's ain't doing themselves any favors with some of their bone-head manuevers. Thats 2 strikes and then...

 

2. ...after the OIF invasion, middle eastern armies look a lot less potent. I have heard/read that the largest casualty of OIF has been the IDF's reputation...

 

So for Injection Plastic China to get on a huge IDF kick might be a bit much to look forward to...

[Jason]

I've got a few bones to pick here....

 

1. They made cool looking, mean looking, cutting edge stuff. The TigerI and II are fearful. The Maus is awe inspiring. I LOVE the T-34 and Sherman, but they are made for utility and ease of production. The German's made damned good guns and optics, so it was like they really were super-men...tough tanks that could "kiss" you at long range.

I'll argue this point with you. I think the T-34, KV series and JS series are every bit as cool and fearful looking as any German WWII armor. The Sherman didn't start to look even remotely cool until the later war 76mm gun armed ones came around, but the M-26 was a cool looking tank and quite fearful looking in it's own right. The Comet and Cromwell were cool looking tanks as well, though not as feared. To be honest, I also have a soft spot for the early war Brit cruiser tanks, A9, Crusader etc. Those were cool looking tanks!

 

4. While the Japanese were indeed good at what they did too, and fanatical, it is hard to idolize a system that specifically excludes all non-japanese and the Japanese equipement was not much better than allied stuff. Plus the Japanese were not physically imposing and they had a reputation as bullies from the war in China. Without a "Mythos" (and with things still being somewhat "frosty" between China and Japan over WWII atrocities) the Japanese just don't have that something extra to put them up with the Germans.

 

I think with this statement you are looking at a narrow field of model kits, specifically armor only and not encompassing all military equipment models such as ships and aircraft. As far as warship models go, the Imperial Japanese Navy of WWII is the single most represented fleet of any country and any era of history, flat out. They are also at least as well represented in aircraft, as are the Italians. I think there are two main reasons for the Japanese lacking in the model armor arena. Their tanks were crap, and they just didn't use them all that often. Most all of the Japanese conquests early in the Pacific war were accomplished by amphibious assaults by infantry. They spent the rest of the war defending islands for the most part and tanks really didn't fit their plans (not that they really had any real numbers of effective tanks anyhow). You would have thought they would catch on after the butt-whooping they got at the hands of the Russian armor in 1939 in Manchuria.....

 

5. The Italians? What, they fought in WWII?

The Italians are actually pretty well represented in the aircraft arena, and rightfully so. Some of their aircraft designs were among the best of the war, but were either too little or too late. I think part of the Italians poor showing as far as military models is the fact that they really only were involved in the war for a short time, about half of the war really. They also didn't spend as much money or time keeping pace with most of the other combatants, instead relying on older designs until it was too late. The other part is that, like the Japanese, their tanks were crap and they never really used them effectively. I think that they could stand to be represented a bit better as far as naval models go though, since they had both cool looking and effective warship designs that are quite in demand by warship modelers.

 

6. The allies are just not "sexy". We favored utility and ease of production over ability, and we have a lot of "reactionary" elements to our military that kept really cool and cutting edge equipment out of the war, at least until the very end. Good for running a war, bad for marketing model 50+ years after the battles. And our GI's (overall), compared to the bad guys, were really nice people. It is hard to idolize a "nice guy" in terms of warfare, even though that is who you want on your side. I mean, who ever heard the phrase "It was so awefull it would make an American/Brit puke."? And while the Russians were brutal/rough, they were seen as low-brow and uneducated (Unfair I say! Unfair!) It took 45 years of a Cold War for them to achieve some level of respect.

 

Again, I'll say there are some very sexy and cool looking Russian WWII tank designs in my opinion. And, to me at least, the Brits had some cool looking tanks and the Sherman had a few versions that looked borderline cool (especially the Firefly!).

 

 

On the other hand, those Communist Russians scared the living crap out of us...wasn't the 1980's "New Russian Man" the twisted love children of Nazi's and Commies secret scientific experiments? Based on that, I think we need a lot of MODERN RUSSIAN kits!

 

I have long thought that the Cold War Soviets were poorly represented in the model market. That has changed a lot over the years. I can still remember as a 15 year old getting my first MiG-29 and Su-27 models from Revell how awesome I thought they were. Used to be that Soviet stuff was hard to get models of because of the secrecy in military equipment maintained by the Soviets. There just wasn't enough information/references/photos coming out of the Soviet Union to accurately produce good models. Those Revell kits were horrible, as was the first Fujimi MiG-29. Anyone remember the Aurora MiG-19? It looked more like a space plane or something out of a comic book than an actual MiG-19. Fortunately, the times have changed and quite a few model manufacturers are catching up on the Russian stuff. Trumpeter is among my favorite manufacturers right now because of the subjects they have released or are planning to release.

[Corinthian]

Trumpeter is among my favorite manufacturers right now because of the subjects they have released or are planning to release.

 

And they've got one of the sturdiest boxes too! Perfect for storing stuff hehehe

[nitflegal]

I have long thought that the Cold War Soviets were poorly represented in the model market. That has changed a lot over the years. I can still remember as a 15 year old getting my first MiG-29 and Su-27 models from Revell how awesome I thought they were. Used to be that Soviet stuff was hard to get models of because of the secrecy in military equipment maintained by the Soviets. There just wasn't enough information/references/photos coming out of the Soviet Union to accurately produce good models. Those Revell kits were horrible, as was the first Fujimi MiG-29. Anyone remember the Aurora MiG-19? It looked more like a space plane or something out of a comic book than an actual MiG-19. Fortunately, the times have changed and quite a few model manufacturers are catching up on the Russian stuff. Trumpeter is among my favorite manufacturers right now because of the subjects they have released or are planning to release.

 

Aircraft is an area where Soviet/Russian stuff is doing quite well these days but then the Su-27 and Mig-29 are darned good looking planes. Naval stuff is tolerable although a lot of it is in smaller scales and either resin or somewhat coarse Eastern European kits. AFV's are an area that simply sucks. You have the old DML imagineered kits that have been copies by EE manufacturers and the barely tolerable Skif stuff. I sincerely hope that Dragon's T-62's sell like hotcakes so there is a chance that they'll tackle the T-80/90 tanks. I have to confess that it's odd to me that I can buy a decent LeClerc or Ariete but can't buy a good T-90 in plastic.

 

Matt

[Jacques]

Now now kids...I didn't say that I thought the allied stuff was not sexy...hell, almost any AFV has appeal to me, especially in 1/35 scale. I am just trying to explain why those who buy the kits as a light hobby gravitate to those particular kits.

 

As for the Japanese, the only reason they have a vast number of ship and aircraft kits is because a large number of the kit companies are in Japan and Japan is a big market for kits. Japanese hardware had some serious deficiences, like poorly laid out fuel lines in Aircraft Carriers, Super Battelships onl used as artillery, anf the Shinano super-carrier that was sunk by a submarine. There just is not that little bit of extra oomph, other tahn their sneak attack at Pearl Harbor, which only makes them look...craven (no offense meant, just trying to explain general perceptions outside of us History nuts.) I know the real deal, hence my love with allmost all the equipment, but this shows why it does not carry over into the rest of the public.

 

Of course, far to many of the General Public think the German's Attacked Pearl Harbor for me to have restfull sleep. Really. (No , I am really not kidding.)

 

As for my stand on German WWII anything, I stand by my comments. They put all kinds of cool new tech stuff into production and into the fight...Jets, awesome tanks, assault rifles, etc... Even their moderate Battleships (Bismark, Tirpitz) have a aura of mythos because they fought well, or were damned hard to kill. Correct me if I am wrong but there was never any German version of being the looser in a "Mariana's Turkey shoot" situation, right? And they do not have the bad rep. of the French and Italians. Or the befuddled grunting of the Russian soldier who was lucky to have a gun to shoot.

 

So the German's get to be the best "bad guys", and companies who make kits of their stuff get far more money than companies who make Italian aircraft, or French WWII tanks. Why do you think WWI stuff is so darned hard to get? Not Sexy...

 

On another note, YES i remember how hard it was to get ANYTHING russian. It is good times, and I look forward to even BETTER times soon. (BTW, those T-62's are going to sell WELL, just you watch. Assuming of course Trumpeter does not screw the pooch on the moldings... Been known to happen.)

[TonyE]

It must be said though, that although japanese armour might not be the most popular stuff (outside of Japan atleast), most of their designs are now available in plastic kits (Finemolds and some from Tamiya) and more kits are comming (slowly).

[Jacques]

It must be said though, that although japanese armour might not be the most popular stuff (outside of Japan atleast), most of their designs are now available in plastic kits (Finemolds and some from Tamiya) and more kits are comming (slowly).

 

I think it is mainly because of who they have "in country" and who they sell to. Also, now that AFV's are more? popular, some companies are doing more fringe stuff...like M3 halftracks...

 

Notice that Trumpeter made some darn good Chinese vehicles that can only be described as esoteric...not like anyone other than Chinese citizens were really screaming for them. But the manufacturer is in the same country and...

 

...but they all have done at least ONE German WWII kit. Almost seems obligatory.

[ShotMagnet]

There is a fair amount of anti-zionist feeling in the world even now...

There's a fair amount of anti-Nazi feeling, as well.

 

...and the Isreali's ain't doing themselves any favors with some of their bone-head manuevers.

Neither did the Nazis.

 

...middle eastern armies look a lot less potent.

Except that at the time the Israelis were fielding WWII-era AFV against Cold War-era stuff, to decent effect. I don't want to start an argument about how effective up-gunned Shermans were against T-55s and -62s, I'm only pointing out that the same underdog aspect applies to the Israelis as did to the Wehrmacht, and that this time it was okay to root for the underdog. Whether the Arab states might have found it within themselves to act as a cohesive entity against Israel isn't the issue; the cool-looking kludged-together melange of mongrel armor the Israelis fielded is.

 

 

Shot